Thread: Soldering brass.

John, we'll have to start calling you Lisa (Simpson)



I'm expecting more doh, than Baker Street.

I prefer leaded as well, especially when removing or reflowing. Lower melt temperatures. But that's on electronics. This is a whole new world.

I know the question I asked referred to soldering, but I may get some tips here. Soddering can't be that different, right?

The sax. Tipping it's nickel plated, and I guess I'll need to remove that to fix it properly. I suppose reverse plating it would be the go. Still got to take it to bits... obviously.

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Replating it will be a challenge, at least for this novice.

Jane Kits do an "electroless" nickel plating bath (I have 5L of it here). Nasty stuff and you'll want to do it outside on a gas stove/BBQ but it works and gets into all the bits you can't reach with an electrode. I bought it to plate the hole inside a bit of drilled copper (making a new desoldering tip) because solder being sucked through it was eroding the copper. Turns out solder sticks to nickel plating like **** to a blanket, so while it didn't erode the copper it kept blocking up. Live and learn.

I've had fantastic results soldering to nickel plated steel. Actually, nickel plated anything to be fair. If you were after structural strength you could abrade the plating off the bit you want to solder to in order to get to the base metal. I suppose if you solder to the plating there's a chance it will peel off when subjected to mechanical stress.

I've never seen a plated sax. Only flutes, so this is a first.

I am pretty certain (but could be wrong) that soldering is effective on nickel plating - but not on chrome plating. Normal preparation in cleaning the surface mechanically would probably remove the nickel anyway.

Just another thought. You could remove the coating locally and then "brush plate" when it's done to restore that bit.

Originally Posted by BradC

Jane Kits do an "electroless" nickel plating bath (I have 5L of it here). Nasty stuff and you'll want to do it outside on a gas stove/BBQ but it works and gets into all the bits you can't reach with an electrode. I bought it to plate the hole inside a bit of drilled copper (making a new desoldering tip) because solder being sucked through it was eroding the copper. Turns out solder sticks to nickel plating like **** to a blanket, so while it didn't erode the copper it kept blocking up. Live and learn.

I've had fantastic results soldering to nickel plated steel. Actually, nickel plated anything to be fair. If you were after structural strength you could abrade the plating off the bit you want to solder to in order to get to the base metal. I suppose if you solder to the plating there's a chance it will peel off when subjected to mechanical stress.

I've never seen a plated sax. Only flutes, so this is a first.

It's Italian, and possibly 70-80 years old. Pretty sure the plating is original. I'm not wedded to it, but it would look great all cleaned up. Of course it would need to be repaired where the plating has lifted, unless I want to treat it like a Series and keep the "patina".