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Sirius: Alco "Firefly" version

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Jasonb:
I would say your thread is 1/4" BSP. British Standard Pipe threads are measured by the bore of the pipe so the size bears little relation to the overall diamater but is generally about 1/4 "larger. 1/4 BSP has an OD of 0.518" and is 19tpi.

The smaller whitworth sizes can be quite fine and were used before BA became the more common thread

For silver soldering I would be using the temnacity No5 mixed with a little water into a paste and then one of your silver (yellowish) solder rods. Th eN05 is a hight temp flux and will stay active for longer than easyflow flux.

The yellow tub will go with teh coil of electrical solder which is more than likely flux cored.

You should not need much more than those two.

Available heat is a factor that can affect the ability to silver solder parts, if you can't get enough heat into th epart in a reasonable time then even the No5 can get exhausted

uuu:
I only use Tenacity No5 flux on stainless steel or other difficult materials.  I've found EasyFlo is fine for Copper and brass, even large assemblies.  But you need enough heat to get things done without hanging round for ever.  A 7Kw burner is quite a good all-rounder - although you need a lot more for a boiler, say.  The Sievert Crafstman set goes up to 86Kw!  Only used once - set fire to the garage.

You need something to clean off the fitting after soldering.  For EasyFlo, citric acid is a favourite - it's a lot safer than the sulphuric acid that used to be suggested..  Tenacity can need a caustic solution to shift it.

Wilf

crueby:
Be careful not to mix soft (low temperature) and hard (high temperature) solder. The name 'silver solder' gets used for both sometimes in the hobby industry - there is some sold as 'silver solder' that is just soft solder with a tiny amount of silver mixed in. The high temperature silver solders have a range of 40% or more silver in them, and require the matching high temp fluxes, like the Tenacity 5 or Harris Black. The high temp hard solder should never be used on something that has low temp soft solder on it - they dont play well together. The high temp flux will start to melt and flow close to the temperature of the silver solder, and where the metal is starting to glow a bit. As the others said, if the torch is not up to the task of heating it all within a couple minutes, the flux will burn off and just leave a black mess that has to be cleaned off before trying again. Great thing to test on practice bits of scrap first to get the hang of it!

redhouseluv:

--- Quote from: uuu on December 08, 2024, 05:04:36 PM ---The Sievert Crafstman set goes up to 86Kw!  Only used once - set fire to the garage.

--- End quote ---

That sounds dangerous and if I survived that my wife would probably kill me  :D

Okay at least I know of what goes with what - I'm currently using one of these, is that the problem, not the right tool for the job?

I'm just digesting BSP being based upon the bore size, that's a completley new one on me. Finally I hope I ordered the correct item for the 1/2" x 26TPI its description was given as BSB BSCY,CEI 26 TPI TAP DIE SET 1/2" TAP AND DIE set?

crueby:
Small torches like that are fine for small fittings, but as parts get larger it will fall short pretty quickly. As a test, take a piece of brass about the size you want to solder and run the torch on it for a minute or two - if the brass is not getting up to at least a dull red heat in that time, its not enough to do the job well. For larger/heavier parts, most of us use a larger torch that runs off a propane tank like on a gas grill. I like the Seivert line of torch handles/nozzles, though there are other brands out there just like them. A few fireplace liner bricks make a great platform to put the parts on for soldering, they reflect some of the heat while protecting the surface they are on - outdoors is best! And beware of the heat/flame blowing past your parts/bricks, ensure there is nothing (like a garage wall/ceiling) too close...

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