Metal Casting Zone

Hi. My Name is Tim and I am new at this and just looking for advice. I hope I aint beating a dead horse but I have a question. I am looking to try and refine sterling silver. I have seen different ways to do it. What would be the best method?

Welcome to the forum.
I just play with Al, Brass and a little Iron. Precious metals look a little tricky and expensive. There are a lot of good videos on you tube about jewelry making and casting.

Hi Tim

Having been in the jewellery trade for several years I have read in old out dated trade books there are ways to refine silver. Most jewellers take the fillings and scrap silver to speciality refining places these days. Depending on the volume of the silver you have this may be a cheaper alternative.

Thanks for the replies. I only have a dozen or so pieces of sterling silver right now. I am also researching the best way to make my foundry as well. I will probably start out small and work my way up from there. I too plan on getting into brass and al as well later down the road.

Hey there

refining silver can be very difficult without the right equipment. You can into some very frustrating issues, as silver likes to absorb Oxy while in a molten state, causing serious pits if you try casting with it later. I suggest that you melt it down into one lump with a torch and send it off to a refinery for trade. Most refinerys will take a percentage of the metal you send them, and most refinerys will have a min amount that they will take. You should ALWAYS use at least 50 percent fresh grain or ingots when casting, as the metal will flow much better and oxides will be kept to a min. I hope that helped, I have lots of other tips if you need further help