When you are going to solder copper, it makes no difference whether it is a bracelet, a pipe or anything else copper-related, the procedure is going to be roughly the same. Of course for a copper bracelet, you are working with a possible asymmetrical area if it has been broken, and solders that join copper are silver-colored, so they don't match the original color at all and will reveal evidence of repair. But anyone with a solid do-it-yourself background should be able to tackle both of these problems.
Instructions
1. Place your bracelet in a vise or clamp to hold it. If it is broken in two, only one side must be held.
2. Brush on flux to the parts to be soldered together. If broken apart, both sides must be fluxed, and you must brush on flux to get into each and every crevice of the break or else the holding power of the solder may be compromised. If you are soldering a crack, make sure the flux is brushed on and penetrates inside.
3. Heat up the area you are going to with your butane torch. Cracks can just be heated in the general area, but a broken bracelet needs only to be heated on the side held by the vise or clamp.
4. Apply a bit of solder to the crack area and wait until it melts and fills it in. If broken, apply a dab of solder on the end of the piece held in the clamp. Just a little dab will do and allow them to harden. Apply flux over the top of the solder on the broken piece and heat it up again, but this time, bring the other half of the broken piece over and heat it up, too. Hold that in your needle-nose pliers.
5. Press the two halves together when the solder melts and make sure they join exactly where they broke. Remove the torch and allow to cool for several seconds. The bracelet will be joined together.
6. Sand lightly over the solder on both the crack or the broken area, using 200-grit to remove any chunks or impurities, and then progressively working your way from 400-grit up to 1,000-grit to polish.
7. Brush on some copper patina to cover up the silver color solder, and if you have done careful work, it will be difficult to tell where the repair has occurred.
Tags: apply solder, broken piece, make sure, , vise clamp