Successful soldering!

[Luann Udell]

I'm sure the entire staff is now on their knees and saying, "Hallelujah!  The Lord hath delivered us from yet more annoying soldering questions, and yea!!"

I took another jewelry class on making earwires and simple soldering.  The instructor graciously set aside time to show me how to use my new little butane torch that I ordered from R&T.  And it worked!  I soldered like nobody's business....!!   '>

I THINK I was doing a small but critical thing wrong.  I confused a temperature-safe ceramic tile with the firebrick tile.  So probably heat was being leached away when I tried to heat up the components & never stayed hot enough to complete the joins.  It's been so long since I quit experimenting that I can't believe I would make such an error, but it's the only thing I can think of that would have altered the results so much.

In the meantime, my son & his friends "experimented" with my Weller electric soldering set-up, and I'm afraid it's given up the ghost.     ahhhh, teenage boys.....

But at least I have an easy, inexpensive, SUCCESSFUL soldering set-up now.  Thanks to your staff for suggesting the butane torch!  I should get enough experience in now to see if I eventually want to go for the whole tank set-up, or if this will meet my needs.

[Metalman]

WAHOOO!!!
gLAD WE CAN/Could  wiLL wOULD help
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[Polly]

Three cheers for Luann's successful soldering story!
And for your persistence in the path of permenently adhering metals.

--Polly