[Jewelry making - Article 00138] - Re: [Orchid] Do small butane soldering torches work?

[kara campbell]

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    Yes, indeed, they do work ... with limitations.  At one time I was
    building mini kilns out of bits of charcoal blocks and using two
    butane torches, one in each hand.  Which was annoying when I needed
    another hand to add a solder snippet or nudge an element back into
    place.  But it does work fine for both silver and gold. 

    Everything you make must be small and not too thick. Earrings,
    chains, rings and small pendants are generally not a problem. 
    Brooches and larger pendants are tricky. Cuff bracelets are out of
    the question - the flame just isn't big enough.  Annealing can be
    tricky too because of the pinpoint flame.  As the pieces get larger
    it takes longer to get everything up to temp, and you will find they
    become very susceptible to firescale. 

    But - it does work!  Use charcoal blocks to help maintain the heat
    and reflect it back onto your pieces, try not to use third hands and
    other heat sinks, keep your pieces small, and you'll be amazed at
    what you can accomplish with such a little torch.  I don't have my
    'real' torch set up all the time, so even now if I just need a jump
    ring or some other quick little thing I'll pull out my butane torch
    because it's so quick and easy. 

~kara

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