Originally Posted by
Wallace
A good cleaning with hot soapy water and a brass brush should work to get that layer of polish off.
If you hammer to harden and have to solder again, you will soften it all again. A rawhide mallet will work, but leave it as the last thing you do the clean up, if you have delicate work, a mallet may not be suitable. Can you tumble the finished piece, if it has extra shapes to add?
As a reminder, solder doesn't fill holes, so flat surfaces need good contact. If you are doing a butt joint, a little bit of filing to bring them together would work and then use some sort of holding system (clamps, wire etc).
You could just file the contact areas you want to solder, annealing and pickling will immediately get rid of any polish residue. On occasion, I have had to rue pickle to get the solder to flow, as it will help clean the surface. I use Alum.
If you wanted to bend the ring into shape, you will need to do that after the first solder and then add your embellishments. If you add them before, you will flatten them as you shape the ring into place. (I think I understood that you have a straight piece you are going to make into a round.). Soldering softens metal, get your shape ready. Soldering can also lead to fire scale if it is repeated and the item is not protected. The copper likes the oxygen and will be affected under the surface. Prepare everything to tie in for a swift heating process. Clean and flat and matching shaped joints that have contact, make for good results. I have patterned my metal after rounding, but on occasion have used pre-patterned work. To make sue the solder doesn't ruin things, make sure you get the pallions (or that moist paste stuff) behind the joint and use the heat to pull it through.
Oh, I hope this makes sense
Kindest
Wallace
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