Re: MtMan-List: Tinning

[John Kramer <kramer@kramerize.com>]

The old recipes and instructions I've seen call for using wads & swabs made of
"oakum" -- it should still be available from a plumbing supply house -- if not
try marine suppliers to wooden boat builders.

John...





At 01:19 AM 10/20/98 -0400, you wrote:
>In a message dated 98-10-19 00:45:46 EDT, you write:
>
><<  I haven't been
> able to find "tin" at affordable prices and just finding it has been
> frustrating so what I use is "lead free Silver bearing Plumbers Solder". It
> goes for about $10 per roll and that is enough  to do many pots. >>
>
>You can also use "95-5" solder which is 95% tin & 5% antimony.  The antimony
>makes the tin flow better & is not toxic.  Runs about the same price or a bit
>cheaper as the lead free stuff.  Seems to flow & adhere better than the lead
>free stuff.  
>
>The old tinners used asbestos pads to swab the tin/solder around inside the
>pots, but as we now know, asbestos ain't good for us, so it's nearly
>impossible to find, & hazardous to use.  I've read that some used heavy
>leather pads, but I think the steel wool trick might be easier --
especialy on
>smaller pots where you can't get your gloved hand inside with enough room to
>move freely.  Some autobody sypply houses still carry the pads for "leading"
>which was the process used for autobody repairs before "Bondo" came
along.  It
>was a process in which melted lead was wiped on the body metal to fill in the
>imperfections/dents.  For large pots the pads used for this process should
>work well because you're workng sith simular temperatures.  The small
>stainless steel "tooth brush" (so named for it's size & shape) might work
well
>in some applications.  Some fluxes remove easier with alchohol -- the plain
>old "rubbing" variety seems to work as well as ethanol & methanol & is easier
>to find (local grocery store) & much cheaper.
>
>Above all -- remember you're working with molten tin / solder that's in the
>600 degree range & ANY contact with bare skin is imediate pain!!!  Be
>careful!!!  Any contact between this molten metal & water has explosive
>results that usualy splatters the hot tin & generates large amounts of super
>heated steam.  As Capt recommended heavy gloves are a must -- check your
local
>welding supply.  I'd also recommend long sleeved cotton shirts & heavy canvas
>or leather work aprons.  I learned the hard way & have the scars to prove
it!!
>
>I've done a lot of radiator work & some "leaded" body work & had recently
>gotten the urge to make a pot too, but I was intending on using brass shim
>stock.  This question came at a good time for me because I was doing some
>heavy thinking about how to spread the tin inside the corn boiler sized pot
>knowing I couldn't get my hand + glove + pad inside to do the spreading.  I'd
>already decided simply sloshing the tin around inside wasn't a good idea with
>questionable results.  I DO know heat is the secret to getting the tin to
flow
>properly & have it leave a usable thickness of tin deposited on the surface
>the wife won't scratch through it the first time she scrubs the pot out.  You
>want the pot just hot enough for the tin to flow & stick -- too hot & the
>resulting coating will be pretty thin. 
>
>NM
> 
John T. Kramer, maker of: 

Kramer's Best Antique Improver
>>>It makes wood wonderful<<<
        >>>As good as old!<<<

<http://www.kramerize.com/>

mail to: <kramer@kramerize.com>