u/PomegranateMarsRocks

Usually I have no (minimal at least) issues rolling out ingots, even when they are half dirty scrap. After alloying I realized I skipped the sulfuric acid step in my gold refine. Alloy is 15k gold, with roughly 60/40 Cu to Ag for the rest. Very brittle. Annealing doesn’t really help to soften. Peened after pouring, did everything as usual. Has anyone had experience with lead contamination that showed itself like this? The alloy doesn’t feel ‘soft’ more weird brittle hardness. Maybe steel contam?? Is it possible I super heated/oxygenated the original alloy? but again, has not usually been an issue for me. I remelted it multiple times, finally with the addition of 1.3% zinc. Seemed to improve slightly but working it out still isn’t acceptable. Picture is of the end, cut 3-4 mm back, more of an internal flaw that surface issue. Looks like it released copper when annealed, which has me leaning toward I made some weird transition alloys/porosity on the first over oxygenated melt. I have known .9999 gold and .9999 silver along with copper, so will try a fresh alloy but would like to figure where I went wrong. Thank you 🙏

TLDR: Somewhat experienced, but no answer for this one, is this what lead or iron contamination can look like? Thanks

I have some scrap 14k that was fairly clean so poured it into an ingot for an opal inlay ring I’ve been thinking of making for awhile. I am wondering how’d you’d approach creating height/space for the inlay section. I don’t need it to go around the entire ring, just a small (10-15cm) section for the inlay. I was planning to solder bars either edge of the ring but am worried about how they will terminate into the shank and on getting the curve right for a gap-less solder. So I am planning to make two rings. A thicker one (~2mm) so I can cut out the inlay portion, then a thinner (.75-1mm) inner band to solder inside. Then adding dividing strips for the inlay. I don’t need the ring to be that thick but without casting this seems like the solution. I am likely overthinking it as usual, hopefully explanation makes sense, thanks in advance!

I tried a few things and then settled on a loop passing through these cones. Will have to give riveting a shot next time as suggested. The cones allow for some movement, the loops are relatively sturdy and the hammered hook is functional. I really wanted to keep it .999 and avoid any solder but my torch/fusing skill are limited. so it’s pretty rough finished, but I like the antiqued look. Thanks to everyone who weighed in. .75mm hand drawn fine silver wire, 24ish”, 28 grams

Finished this foxtail chain out of .999 fine silver. I made two little fists for the ends but they’re just too large to fuse. I’m trying to avoid any solder but I also want it to look properly finished. Any ideas beyond just some links and a hook or S clasp? Thanks!