Jump rings...solder or not?

[Ruedeleglise]

Light necklaces with fine chain and not of great value.....to solder or not? I was asked by one person to not solder the suspending jump ring in case the necklace became caught in something so that the link would break avoiding the chain cutting into the neck. This was in fact for a child, so can see the wisdom. However what are your views generally on this question.
Ruedeleglise.

[Sheen]

I generally don't solder because of the extra effort and time involved and like you said it provides a break point. But mainly my stuff is not expensive enough for me to bother

[CJ57]

I usually don’t solder the jump ring at a catch as the safety break and use a thicker gauge of hard silver for the jump ring so that it closes well. Otherwise ideally they should be soldered

[china]

I don't solder jump rings if the chain is heavy, just polish the join well, although with small chain I do as the the chain will break anyway (One of the reasons I am yet to be convinced of the value of safety chains).

[Dennis]

The debate about jump rings has already been well covered, but I can dive in about safety chains:

If the catch opens, safety chains will generally warn the wearer that something is amiss, because the brooch, necklace or bracelet will hang askew. Sometimes an observer will draw attention to it.
With out a safety chain, an important piece can slip to the floor unnoticed.

An added advantage for bracelets, is that when putting them on, they can rest on the wrist, making it much easier to close the catch. Dennis.

[Ruedeleglise]

Thanks all. So really the ball is in my court. It is ones own choice!


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[china]

Thanks Dennis, that makes sense