Tool Time Tuesday - Soldering a Silver Ring
Well, here we are. My very last Tool Time Tuesday - Ohio Edition, even though it is on Monday. But there is a good reason for it being early. In just five days we will be driving off to our new adventure and life in Washington State. Funny to think that we went from one Washington (DC) to the Other. 
They couldn't be more different either. I hope I like Washington state as much as I loved the DC area.
The packing continues. The movers will be here Tuesday morning to start packing things up. The basement is pretty much done. Tomorrow and Tuesday we will break down my tables, finish touch up painting and clear everything out.
This is pretty much all that is left to pack up. Just some shelves and misc items that didn't fit into a box.
Look, you can see my temporary bed while we wait for our beds to be delivered. Gotta love the air mattress and sleeping bags.
Okay, this is quite the shot for any of my students. My desk was always a mess. An organized mess, but a mess all the same.... now it is EMPTY!
Even Kiari is trying to get in on the packing gig.
Okay, a few people asked about the coloring in my hair. Here is a little better picture. I did some blonde highlights and red streaks. You can SORT OF see the red highlights. I am told you can really see them in the back. But regardless of what my children think, I do not have eyes in the back of my head and I cannot see them.
No, I didn't spent a ton of time curling my hair either. Post baby hormones do funny things sometimes.
First, I figure out the size of ring that I am going to make. In this case, it was a charm for a friends bracelet, so it didn't really matter the size. But here you can see that I have taken my calipers and marked my sheet for the width of the ring I am about to cut.
Normally, I would cut my strip with my sheer, but since it has been packed away, I have to do it the old fashioned way.... with a jewelers saw. Be sure to use plenty of lube on your blade to help things cut smoothly.
Next I want to form my ring into a "D" shape. So I use my ring forming pliers to get the first part of the curve.
Then I use my flat nose pliers to bring the ends together and giving a nice flat spot. This helps to align my join the best.
File the ends so they are perfectly flush. NO GAPS ALLOWED. Solder will not fill gaps. Think of solder as a glue. It will only glue items that are already touching.
Sometimes there is a tiny spot that creates a tiny gap. You can cut through the seam with a jewelers saw to "shave" a thin area on both sides of the seam. If you do this correctly, you will have a perfectly flush seem.
Now, let's see how the rest of this works. Please check out my video on how to solder the ring. Once soldered, I will also demonstrate how to form it into a perfect circle. The end of the video didn't get very focused. Sometimes the camera wants to focus on something else. In this case, my camera is obsessed with my scrap silver. LOL. Then again, I don't blame it. I am totally obsessed with my silver too.
I will still have access to my emails and such, but I won't be making any posts until we arrive at our new home and start setting things up. Wish us luck and pray for good roads and weather.
For any of you in the area, we will be having a "Clean out the fridge and freezer" (aka - Going away party) on Monday (Feb 6) from 6 - 9. I would love to see you and have the chance to say good bye. I can promise, the house will be a wreck and the food interesting, as what we will be eating will depend entirely upon what crazy things I can make with what is left in my fridge and freezer.
They couldn't be more different either. I hope I like Washington state as much as I loved the DC area. The packing continues. The movers will be here Tuesday morning to start packing things up. The basement is pretty much done. Tomorrow and Tuesday we will break down my tables, finish touch up painting and clear everything out.
This is pretty much all that is left to pack up. Just some shelves and misc items that didn't fit into a box.
Look, you can see my temporary bed while we wait for our beds to be delivered. Gotta love the air mattress and sleeping bags.
Okay, this is quite the shot for any of my students. My desk was always a mess. An organized mess, but a mess all the same.... now it is EMPTY!
Even Kiari is trying to get in on the packing gig.
Okay, a few people asked about the coloring in my hair. Here is a little better picture. I did some blonde highlights and red streaks. You can SORT OF see the red highlights. I am told you can really see them in the back. But regardless of what my children think, I do not have eyes in the back of my head and I cannot see them.
No, I didn't spent a ton of time curling my hair either. Post baby hormones do funny things sometimes.
On to the Tutorial! Soldering a Silver Ring
A little while back one of my "friends" asked about soldering a simple silver band. I told her that I had been working on a video. It didn't go so well, so I started over. This tutorial is both still pictures and video, so let's check out the pictures.First, I figure out the size of ring that I am going to make. In this case, it was a charm for a friends bracelet, so it didn't really matter the size. But here you can see that I have taken my calipers and marked my sheet for the width of the ring I am about to cut.
Normally, I would cut my strip with my sheer, but since it has been packed away, I have to do it the old fashioned way.... with a jewelers saw. Be sure to use plenty of lube on your blade to help things cut smoothly.
Next I want to form my ring into a "D" shape. So I use my ring forming pliers to get the first part of the curve.
Then I use my flat nose pliers to bring the ends together and giving a nice flat spot. This helps to align my join the best.
File the ends so they are perfectly flush. NO GAPS ALLOWED. Solder will not fill gaps. Think of solder as a glue. It will only glue items that are already touching.
Sometimes there is a tiny spot that creates a tiny gap. You can cut through the seam with a jewelers saw to "shave" a thin area on both sides of the seam. If you do this correctly, you will have a perfectly flush seem.
Now, let's see how the rest of this works. Please check out my video on how to solder the ring. Once soldered, I will also demonstrate how to form it into a perfect circle. The end of the video didn't get very focused. Sometimes the camera wants to focus on something else. In this case, my camera is obsessed with my scrap silver.
LOL. Then again, I don't blame it. I am totally obsessed with my silver too. Wish Us Luck
Okay, the computer is going to be packed away now. I will still have access to my emails and such, but I won't be making any posts until we arrive at our new home and start setting things up. Wish us luck and pray for good roads and weather. For any of you in the area, we will be having a "Clean out the fridge and freezer" (aka - Going away party) on Monday (Feb 6) from 6 - 9. I would love to see you and have the chance to say good bye. I can promise, the house will be a wreck and the food interesting, as what we will be eating will depend entirely upon what crazy things I can make with what is left in my fridge and freezer.
Posted by Melissa Muir at February 5, 2012 9:09 PM 
Categories: Tutorials, Tips and Tricks, RINGS, Personal, Tool Time Tuesday
Tags: Tool Time Tuesday Soldering Silver Ring Tutorial Video Moving
Categories: Tutorials, Tips and Tricks, RINGS, Personal, Tool Time Tuesday
Tags: Tool Time Tuesday Soldering Silver Ring Tutorial Video Moving
Wishing you a safe journey to your new home. A new adventure is beginning for you! Many Blessings.. Penny
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Thank you Penny.
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Hello Melissa,
In the soldering tutorial you mention that you color-code your solder. What do you use to color them? Does the dye/ink in any way interfere with the solder flowing? I think it's a great idea because little bits can be salvaged & sorted instead of being thrown away.
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Christine, I use sharpie markers. The color burns off and does not inhibit solder flowing. At least I have never had an issue with that. It has saved me a lot of questioning and makes finding my solder so simple.
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Good luck Melissa!
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