Working with brass

[Sandra]

Does anyone have experience working with brass? The colour resembles gold as it's more yellow than copper and for someone still learning it's much safer financially.. I've been experimenting with a design using 2mm silver wire and 2mm brass wire. I anneal often but the brass seems much harder than the silver to forge or bend. Is this just a characteristic of brass or am I doing something wrong?

[ps_bond]

That's brass for you. There's a huge variety of brasses too - varying zinc content, with possible additives like lead (it machines more easily). Gilding metal is a low-zinc brass that forms relatively easily and has a less, um, brassy look than most of the common brass alloys. Then there's nickel silver - which is brass with a load of nickel in it to make it look silvery.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brass

[Goldsmith]

As Peter says, Gilding metal is preferable to brass, it works well, solders well with silver solders and polishes good. It also enamels well. When I first started in this trade I worked for a company that made regalia and we used to make hundreds of CBEs every year. The centres of each CBE has an enamelled border which is made from gilding metal. This is one of the gilding metal CBE centre borders and an old CBE badge body, the badge body is silver/gilt and the central heads plate is 9ct. gold, the only part missing is a crown which fits on the top for the sash to go through.



James

[Sandra]

Oh thanks, I didn't know brass was so variable! I found where I can buy sheets of gilding metal as well as bronze, I may give those a try and give up on my mystery ingredient brass wire. My hand is very sore today from struggling with that yesterday!

[Dennis]

Hi Sandra,
I can sympathise with your liking for brass for its golden colour, but unless you send away to RioGrande, or Otto Frey for brass coloured solder, there is always a risk of unsightly silver splodges. Some brass is incredibly tough to work, but if you have a model shop in a town near you, they often have a stand of brass sheets, rods and wire. Although that is a more expensive way of buying it, at lest you can choose what you need.

I have made quite a few brass items for people who don't wear jewellery and last year made a brass buckle. The tongue is copper. Please show us what you are making, regards, Dennis.

[Sandra]

Oh thanks Dennis! The model shop in town closed up recently unfortunately. I have found a place online that sells it though. If my current project turns out ok I will post it, at the moment though it has the potential of ending up in my ever growing metal pile of shame.

[metalsmith]

just be careful of taking the fumes if you are melting brass i.e. don't!