Precious metal soldering is a process mostly used by jewellers, watchmakers, contemporary artists and jewellers.

• For the joining of metal
• Solder is also metal, but it is a special alloy manufactured to melt at a lower temperature then the metal it is to be used on
• On heating, the solder melts and flows between the pieces of metal. On cooling the solder solidifies to form a strong bond
• One must use a suitable heat source such as a micro flame unit (see code MFUK30)
• Additives reduce the melting point of the solder, so that it is workable. Hard soldering gives a strong permanent and (when finished), invisible join.
• The technique, which is quick and easy to carry out, is suitable for many metals, including gold, silver, platinum, brass and copper

There are two types of soldering, hard and soft:

• Soft soldering and solder is used mainly in costume jewellery or other metal joining, and uses a lead alloy which is inappropriate for jewellers as it gives a cheap look, is weak at the join and spreads impurities into your original precious metal piece
• Hard soldering and solder contains a high proportion of the precious metal it is designed to be used on (for example silver solders contain mostly silver)
• When soldering multiple items a harder solder with a higher melting temperature is required to begin with. This allows further multiple items to be joined using softer solders (at lower melting temperatures) without compromising the first solder joints