I seem to have copper plated my silver?

[Sal]

I'm not completely sure how I managed it but my most recent batch of silver has ended up copper coloured and I think I must have somehow copper plated it? It's been soldered, in magic boric and in safety pickle (vinegar and salt). I did use binding wire on some of the pieces too. Is there any way of getting it back off again? Tumbling has helped a little but isn't getting it off completely. I'd love to know what I did to end up with it happening so I can stop it doing the same thing in the future too! I'm really hoping I can save it as it's presents for my mum and brother and I'm seeing them on friday    Help!

[Carol]

No doubt an expert will chime in presently Sue, but if your pickle has been contaminated it can turn the silver a sort of pinky colour. (Ask me how I know  ) I got rid of it using blue, grey & pink polishing rubbers before I put it in the tumbler. I'm a bit more careful now how I transfer the pieces from the soldering block to the pickle bath - I think I used the stainless steel tweezers instead of the plastic ones (brass tweezers are also ok) 

[MadelineBunyan]

it'll be the binding wire that did it. and yes you can get it off.

this happens to me when I pickle something I accidentally left a piece of steel shot in something like a charm, or its been left in there on a new charm from when they polished it.

magic boric....ringing bells but I've never used it

I know how and why it happens but I am rubbish at explaining the sciency bit!

basically, steel + pickle + silver = copper plated silver

so you need to let the piece cool, then take off binding wire, then pickle it.

and yes, steel tweezers will also do it, use brass or plastic ones for pickle (or have a plastic cup with holes in bottom in your pickle jar, put stuff in that then hoik out plastic cup,let it drain off then hoik stuff out still with brass or plastic tweezers, not for hot stuff though, and that includes very hot pickle. a good trick for when you want to pickle something like headpins but your tweezers are fiddly to pick them up with.)


you will need to make up new pickle. the copper sometimes comes off just by pickling in new pickle,
a scrub with pumice powder and old toothbrush (then damn good rinse before tumbling) can sometimes help, but not good if you've got large flat shiny surfaces

someone with even more technical words will be along shortly!

[disandland]

yup, what they all said.

Try to keep your brass (or plastic or bamboo) tweezers on the lid of your pickle pot all the time because it is sooo easy to pick up the nearest tweezers and end up with coral coloured tweezers.  The copper plating is very thin (which disappointed me cos I had 'plans' for pink and silver silver  ) so it will come off very easily with very fine wire wool or Micromesh.

After lots of experimentation I've found that the best tweezers are bamboo - I got mine from Manda at Mango but I'm sure you can get them in other places

[Sal]

Thanks everyone - now I just need to work out how to get micromesh quickly and then get it into the middle of fiddily maille  I'm such a pillock! (and then I'll be getting in touch with Manda I think...)

[mizgeorge]

You don't need to polish it off. Just reheat to annealing temperature and re-pickle (without the wire or any other ferric metal!).

I've been telling everyone about Manda's bamboo tweezers ever since I discovered them at the last Flame Off. Fantastic for pickle, etching, oxisiding, and of course of for handling gold/silver leaf/foil as they're not static.

[Blue Box Studio]

I've been telling everyone about Manda's bamboo tweezers ever since I discovered them at the last Flame Off. Fantastic for pickle, etching, oxisiding, and of course of for handling gold/silver leaf/foil as they're not static.

Something else to add to my shopping list for Flame Off -  you'll know me when you see me, I'm the one with a team of Sherpas trailing behind and cursing loudly.

[Sal]

George - I could kiss you! In fact I shall    Thankyou so much - time to crack out my little flame thrower again then 

[Redhotsal]

Sounds as if it has basically electroformed - a battery is basically two different metals in an ionic solution, so if you consider that the pickle is the ionic solution and you have steel and silver then you will get migration of "stuff" from one metal to the other. Don't know exactly what has migrated to what though.....you'd need a chemist to tell you that.

[disandland]

Sounds as if it has basically electroformed - a battery is basically two different metals in an ionic solution, so if you consider that the pickle is the ionic solution and you have steel and silver then you will get migration of "stuff" from one metal to the other. Don't know exactly what has migrated to what though.....you'd need a chemist to tell you that.

sterling is an alloy of 92.5% silver and 7.5%  other metals - usually copper.  During heating the copper in the silver comes to the surface and leaches into the pickle solution. If you now place steel in to the copper rich pickle it will cause a small electric current to flow between the steel and the silver. This will start a mild electro-plating affect to take place and start coating the silver with copper. The longer it's left the more copper will be deposited.

[MadelineBunyan]

you see!! someone who can talk about the sciency bit in an understandable way! nice one!

[Redhotsal]

There you go - wait around for long enough and a clever person will come along........it's great this forum, isn't it? 

[disandland]

There you go - wait around for long enough and a clever person will come along........it's great this forum, isn't it? 

yeah, it's written in pretty crap English tho 

[Helen G]

I've been telling everyone about Manda's bamboo tweezers ever since I discovered them at the last Flame Off. Fantastic for pickle, etching, oxisiding, and of course of for handling gold/silver leaf/foil as they're not static.

Yes I have some too and they are fabby  my pickle tank is quite deep and standard plastic ones are too short but the bamboo ones are nice and long.

[Calico Cat]

OK, so bamboo tweezers go on the shopping list . . . . I might have to hitch the trailer to the car at this rate 

Hope Manda brings plenty of pairs!