Hello,

I was recently commissioned to design some decorative grillwork for a church. They chose to fabricate the pieces out of mild steel and have them powder coated to keep the costs down. The client has since changed their mind and would now like it created out of solid brass to match some existing brass work in the church(300 series brass). I have never worked with brass, but would like to give this a try. I need to do some basic forming, weld or braze numerous connections, and finally be able to polish the whole piece to a shine. Can any one offer advice on brazing or welding brass, the type of filler metal or brazing rod that will blend in with the rest of the piece, ways to protect the surrounding brass during forming and brazing/welding, and polishing the piece out so I can get a mirror shine. Do I need to worry about distortion due to the heat from brazing/welding? Also any tips on material alloy would be greatly appreciated. They want to try to match an existing piece(all that I know is that it is a 300 series brass)which is a rich gold color. The brass on that piece was powder coated with a clear coat to prevent any oxidation. If there is any else I should know please tell me.