Posted by Angel on March 19, 2003 at 10:21:43:
In Reply to: Tinning zinc channel posted by Rowan on March 18, 2003 at 21:49:35:
I'm answering this in spite of the fact that I HATE Zinc but sometimes it's useful. I never tin Zinc framing...I always wirebrush it to make a satin finish. With that said, I will tell you to CLEAN the zinc with steel wool or some kind of lightly abrasive scrubbie pad. FLUX it well and keep the part you're working on flat on the table. Solder runs downhill (like some other stuff),
There is a product called Solder Magic that's good for this kind of application as well as tinning vase caps. It's a mixture of solder and flux in a jar (nasty gooey stuff) that you mix well and just brush on. Hit it with a small torch or Soldering Iron and it produces a nice smooth tinning.
Why are you tinning Zinc? It's already silvery when it's clean. Most people just tin it so it will take a patina, which it won't do evenly without some tinning or heroic cleaning.
: I am using zinc channel aroung a pannel and want to leave the solder silver, but I would like to coat the zinc so it is silver as well. I am having trouble getting the solder to stick. It works at times but other times it wants to slide off. Is there a trick to this?