I ran across this site while doing a google search on how to join steel with copper. I'm VERY new to metal working - in fact I'm still experimenting. I make chain mail (chainmaille if you like it spelled that way) and a friend gave me an assortment of copper wire scraps. Some of the stuff he gave me was far too heavy (10ga) for use in anything I make, so I got to playing around and made a copper ring by flattening the wire (okay, bashing the living crap out of it) with a hammer and making it roughly ring shaped over a broom handle (only the HIGH tech tools used here). NEAT STUFF! Every night, I'd think of something new to try, including using some steel wire (16ga) that I found here in what was my dad's studio. This is why I have some questions...

Has anyone ever used a phoson/copper rod 0% silver for brazing copper?

I was reading about them and it seems like the fumes that come off of the phospherous are harmful if breathed.

Dick

Hi all:

I'm a newcomer and would like some advice about tools and methods for working with brass rod and sheets to create scale models from four feet down to six inches. My first model will be a simple boat of about 10" length build with a 1/8" brass rod skeletal frame. I would like the finished boat to be highly polished and would really like to avoid silver joints. Does that mean brazing is my only option? Does anyone have experience with "yellow" solder? If I go the brazing route, will a mini or jeweler's torch do the job? How localized will the brazing spot be? Can I braze a part within an inch of a previously brazed part? What about silver solder, can that be applied without a big sliver spot on the joint? Is silver solder applied with a soldering iron exclusively, or can it also be applied with a torch? I really don't want to file away all the excess solder on every joint. Some of my models will have a large number of seams. Some will have intricate detail in brass, such as a ship's wheel down to about 1/4". I'm thinking that I might have to employ several different methods of joining the brass. All tips and recommendations are welcomed and appreciated.

So I got a new torch and I want to try my hand at brazing (I have only MIG welded everything). I have an old ornamental piece from the top of a chimney that I have displayed in my living room. During the removal it broke in several places. I would like to try brazing to put it back together. I thought I could do this just on the back. How do I have to clean it? Do I need to grind any rust or just brush it and clean with something.What kind of brazing rod do I use? Any helpful tips would be very helpful.