Jewelry Repairs Near Me • Soldering Jewelry 

Requests for Jewelry Repairs are a common occurrence in the Jewelry Industry. Common occurrences include broken chains, repairs to cracks that have appeared in rings, and many others. At Federal Way Custom Jewelers located in the Seattle Tacoma Metro area, we have experienced craftsmen that undertake the simplest of repairs, to the more complex soldering jobs. Following is some information on how our craftsmen are able to help our customers that need their jewelry repairing.

Soldering

Soldering jewelry is a process used in many different repairs, from repairing snapped chains to fixing cracks in rings to joining a wedding set together. There are several different types of soldering. Some are simple, some complex, some using different tools and hardware like lasers. How you solder a piece can also change depending on what kind of metal you are working with. What we cover in this blog is primarily applicable to soldering gold or silver. When working on platinum or palladium it can be much more complicated.

Jewelry Repairs Near Me • Soldering Jewelry • Federal Way Custom Jewelers.

Chain Repair

Broken chains are an unfortunately common occurrence. It makes sense. Chains are often worn regularly, which means they get a lot of wear and tear. Because of the nature of them and the way they hang and dangle, they also often get caught on clothing, arms, toddlers, etc. How do we repair a broken chain? We solder it! Soldering a chain is generally a simple task, but the process can be vastly different depending on the type of chain you’re working on. If it’s a simple cable link chain, the solder job is fairly easy. As chains become more intricate or delicate or lightweight, we may end up having to use a laser solder machine as opposed to a standard torch.

Laser Solder

A laser solder differs from a standard torch fire in that you can heat up a very precise area without heating up surrounding areas. This can be advantageous when working with very small or delicate pieces. For example, a standard torch is not viable for some chain styles. Chains can occasionally have very small or thin links, or can even be hollow to save weight. If we use a standard torch on one of these examples, we risk the surrounding links melting down or otherwise losing structural integrity. When we use a laser, we can heat up only the spot we need to repair. This can be applicable to more than just chains. If we are working on a ring or pendant with stones that are delicate or otherwise heat sensitive, like pearls or opals, we will often use a laser to avoid the risk of damaging the stones.

Ring Repairs

Cracks can develop in rings requiring them to be soldered. One part of a ring that can crack is the shank. This can occur for a variety of reasons. Cracks in shanks occur primarily because the metal is brittle. Brittle gold has multiple causes. The most common causes of brittle metal is either bad cast, where something went wrong in the making of the ring, or chlorine damage. Sometimes a ring can have no pre- existing brittleness at all and still crack if they’re impacted hard enough in the perfect spot. The most common crack that can occur in a ring is on the sizing seam. If your ring has ever been sized, the sizing seam is where the ring was soldered after it was sized. That seam can occasionally crack. This can happen for a number of reasons but primarily occurs if the sizing was done with a bad batch of solder.

Soldering a chain by Federal Way Customer Jewelers.

In addition to cracks in the shank, cracks can also form in the undergallery of the ring. The undergallery is the structure of the ring below the stones. The causes of these cracks are similar to cracks in the shank (casting flaws or chlorine damage causing brittleness, impacts, etc.). However, because this structure can be very intricate, it tends to be even more prone to cracking and damage than the shank of a ring. Depending on the design and the stones set in a ring, a laser solder may be necessary for undergallery repairs. In complicated filigree designs, a torch is too imprecise to guarantee a good result.

If you are looking for a reputable jeweler to undertake some jewelry repairs for you, then look no further. Federal Way Custom Jewelers has been in the business since the 1950s and they specialize in jewelry repairs, customization, personalization, and of course, the selling of top quality jewelry from their showroom in Federal Way, Washington State. At Federal Way Custom Jewelers in the Seattle Metro area, we have an excellent reputation in Jewelry Repair. We are able to undertake quality repairs from customers all over the United States. So, no matter where you live, we’d like to invite you to contact us regarding any items you would like to be repaired. No job is too small and we will provide you with details regarding your repair including pricing, estimated times and any other relevant information.

Contact us today to find out about your jewelry repair.

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