Copper inlay question

[finn]

Copper inlay

So today I was practicing with some copper wire ( house electrical wire 110 v) took it down rolled it flat pounded it even flatter with a hammer and anvil. Then on some practice metal I tried to inlay it.

I was having some problems with it being stiff. So I heated it up red hot and let it cool in room temp. Tried to inlay it again... But it didn’t stick in the metal (I cut the crisis cross of metal fingers that stand up to catch the copper) but as I was trying to inlay it seemed too hard and would not fit or stick to the metal practice piece. So I re heated the copper red hot and then stuck it in rubbing alcohol while it was red hot and tried again. But the same happened when I tried to punch the copper into the metal all my metal fingers just bent over but the copper never stuck.

Is there a copper that is softer? That I should be trying to work with.

Or do you know a way of making copper softer ? maybe I am doing some thing wrong.
I would work with 24k gold but I don’t have the money to practice with it at this time so I was trying the copper.


been using Steve L Palm Control to do the work. or should i use a hammer and punch?

Thanks for your help Finn

 

[dclevinger]

finn, I would get some fine silver wire for practice if I were you. It's not expensive and is very nice to practice with. I tried copper at first as well (stripped phone wire) and it was OK but silver is much less frustrating. Ray Viramontez used to have a "Bearclaw" kit that he made up fo John B's students. It has an assortment of wire and two pieces of silver sheet.

David

 

[Bob Bullard]

Most copper wire used in hse wiring isn't pure copper from what I'm told,and from what I gathered
from whlrat you said you was trying to inlay a piece not just a border
You can buy sheet copper at most hobby shops But I found I have better luck with the sheet silver
I get at the local jewlery supply house and it is not that expensive to practice with .
Try heating your copper again but dont quench it . I use both coppper and silver wire to practice
with and I also draw it down with no problem to the dia I want.
Bob

 

[BrianPowley]

Finn, I've never tried regular household electrical copper wire, but there's no reason to believe it wouldn't work.
I just buy the plain kind you get at the hardware store...it is cheap and comes in just about every gauge you can imagine.

You recognize the need to anneal it, and your description of your process sounds about right. I don't think you need to quench it at all.....but here's where you might alter your method:
Inlay it in a channel that is undercut or dovetailed instead of the raised burrs.
Copper will work harden instantly and you already know what happens to the raised teeth.
Use a hammer and a punch.........it'll take a pretty good whack to set it. I don't believe the air tool has enough "umph" to get it to stick.
I've had pretty good success inlaying copper,brass, iron wire by undercutting(no teeth) and using a hammer and punch.
If the area you want to inlay is wider than a wire width, you have to inlay one wire at a time.Very time consuming,but worth it if done correctly.

Brian

 

[leschowe]

Hi Finn,
I just ordered some copper wire and copper plate from Rio Grand at a very
reasonable cost. They claim that it is pure copper and "dead soft". I am sure
that it will work harden quickly but at least you know that it is pure copper.

Les Schowe

 

[jimzim75]

Hi All,
One of the things I found with wire when working with it, is that get softer if you use a kiln to
anneal it. I normally am working with gold, but this should hold true for any wire really. If you use
a torch your going to get cold spots, which is un-annealed metal. Unless your really really patient.

Turning the kiln on, and holding at 1000 f° and then place the wire in for five minutes, results in
dead soft wire. No cold spots.

Jim

 

[webad2006]

I don't know if this is right or wrong, but it's what works for me. To inlay copper strips into a bit, or possibly as a border; I simply strip the old household type wire, cut the groove with hacksaw or graver. I leave a small relief at the bottom of the grove on both sides "Think of a upside-down T', if using a hacksaw to cut the main groove, then use a jewelers saw/V-graver to form the sides of the T, lay in the wire "as-is, and pound, work-in with a hammer, work from one end to other as wire will harden as you go, file to surface, then polish. Sounds kinda crude I know, but I never had one come loose!...Yet!.......

 

[finn]

thank you all for your help i will work on it today. now i know what direction to go in.

 

[Andrew Biggs]

Hi Finn

Steve Lindsay also sells a heavy piston for his line of air gravers. It gives the tool a lot more "oomph" and power. Wheather or not it is enough to seat copper I' honestley don't know, but you may like to ask him and find out.

Sometimes just a good "whack" with a hand held hammer can solve quite a few problems.

Cheers
Andrew

 

[lesholmes]

In my jewelry fabrication books, air cooling is recomended for hardening copper, silver, and gold.

To make them soft, heat to glowing and quench in water or weak sufleric acid (swimming pool adjuster).

In my experience the books were right.

Regards,

Lester

 

[jerrywh]

I have done a lot of copper inlay. Copper will not overlay the same as gold and pure silver unless you have a gun part that is hard enough for the teeth to stand up . Copper is just hard enough to push down the teeth on the softer steels. In such a case the copper will have to be put in by laying wires side by side. Or in sections small enough so that no teeth are necessary. Small inlays side by side on different levels until the desired area is inlaid.
See http://jwh-flintlocks.net/vigilance-pg9.html

 

[Daniel Houwer]

In my jewelry fabrication books, air cooling is recomended for hardening copper, silver, and gold.

You are right Lesholmes. But silver and gold until a dull red and copper to an orange colour before quenched. Although whitegold containing nickel should not be quenched but I don't believe it's used a lot for inlaywork.