Old silver solder rods...still usable?

[jwfilion]

I bought an old welders tool box with a lot of junk left in it. However, there were a dozen 1/16" silver soldering rods with different colored flux in them. Blue, Pink and Yellow. Don't know the significants of the colors, but they crumble easily when handled. Also found a plastic jar full of silver solder flux. The jar is white and red but the lettering is worn off. The flux was a white paste. I never used the hard stuff. I used mostly silver bearing solder, the low temp stuff on my knives.
Does anyone know the color designation of the rod flux. If the rod flux crumbles, could I use the paste flux? Could a regular propane torch be used to melt the rod solder? I'm sure you can understand that I don't like the idea of having to experiment with these rods and wasting any of them.

 

[Bernd]

I believe what you have is brazing rod. I don't know the sicnifigance of the different colored flux. It could be for different materials that you are going to braze together.

As far as the flux in the bottle. I would asume a bit of water would make it into a paste again.

That's about it it for my knowledge on brazing rods. Try google and see what you come up with.

Hope this has helped some.

Bernd

BTW, welcome to the group.

 

[Mcgyver]

there were a dozen 1/16" silver soldering rods with different colored flux in them

i haven't seen it, but apparently there is flux core silver solder. here is a quick google result

http://www.azuremoon.com/tek9.asp?pg=products&grp=8

whether that is the same colour coding as yours, who knows. there is no label or anything? you say you are not familiar with ss - what made you think it is ss?

Propane is imo the ideal way to heat. Anything more can burn the flux. if you do you use a higher temperature source, say O/A, you have to heat indirectly to avoid burning the flux. read up up on it, cleanliness is important and use lots of ss flux on the joint - do not rely on the rods being flux cored (which still seems odd to say for ss).

 

[jwfilion]

Sorry, My mistake! That should have read flux ON the rods, not in them. I believe the reason the flux crumbled from these rods was due to the humidity where the box was stored. The reason I assumed the rods were silver solder was from the welders in a shop I worked at. A few jobs we machined required soldering some other parts onto them. The rods they used were 1/16", about a foot long and coated with white flux. The flux was not from a jar, but was, I assume, baked on. The brazing rods they used were 1/8" and 3/16" dia. and as long as 30", don't know the exact length, and had a thin, pale greenish coating. Now, these are the only rods I saw them use, so I can only speak to them. I was a machinist there for thirty years, but we were never allowed to touch any welding equipment, union stuff, you know. I just wasn't sure if the rods and jar of flux were there together for a reason or coincidence. I hope this helps.

 

[Loose nut]

There are some types of brazing rod, with small dia., that have a percentage of silver in them to improve the flow characteristics, they are flux coated and used like any other brazing rod but are silvery looking in their finish, this might be what you have.

 

[PTsideshow]

Benz-o-matic has flux coated rods in nickel silver type and some other flavor.
And you are right it is old and damp which causes it to fall off. The rod is still good, you just have to scrape the remaining flux off and then apply by the heat and dip method.
They do make any number of rod with the flux coating on it. Bronze type brazing rod is the most common it is a white flux on the Benz-o-matic.
They have a Copper Phosphorous flux coated it is black or grey.
the nickel silver rod is a flux coated blue.
you can see them at your local big box stores,in the area near the welding supplies.
You are way better off getting them at the local welding supply they will be cheaper.
The jar of flux sounds like it was a crown brand with the pinkish lettering. Try mixing a little Meth alcohol/Dry gas with it to re liquefy it. Then you dip the rod in and then pass the flame over the rod end to dry it up.
The powder flux is put on by heating the rod end and dipping it in it to get some on the end.
With the flux coated rod you can scrape most off as there is way to much on it. Saves clean up of the glass slag later.
http://www.lucasmilhaupt.com/htmdocs/brazing_support/everything_about_brazing/what_brazing_about.html
Is a site that has more than you will ever want to know about brazing in all its assorted types.
;D