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Cleaning up after Silver soldering (brazing)

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Stub Mandrel18/12/2010 18:21:07
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Hi Mike,
 
This may seem a stupid question, but... what sort of work does/did a coppersmith do?
 
I ask as my maternal grandfather was a coppersmith in the RAF, but he died while I was still a baby. The one bit of his work I saw was magnificent - a perfect little lost wax casting of a Spitfire, from a single old penny . Sadly it was not found when my Nan died; perhaps it just got junked All I have of his is a very battered and worn pair of miniature pliers.
 
Neil
KWIL18/12/2010 18:51:45
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Coppersmiths, some of them made the copper tops for GWR chimneys and all the pipework.
John Olsen18/12/2010 23:01:45
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Coppersmiths work in general would be sheet metal work bent, beaten, rolled and otherwise formed, and fastened with rivets, or hard or soft soldered. Those gleaming copper kettles in the old fashioned farmyard kitchen would be the work of the coppersmith. A coppersmith would be a very handy fellow to have about if you were building a model locomotive boiler!
 
There were also tinsmiths, who would have had much the same range of skills. My Great  -great grandfather who came from near Trogstad in Norway was a tinsmith.
 
regards
John
Nicholas Farr18/12/2010 23:26:26
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Hi, yes coppersmiths, tinsmiths, silversmith, blacksmith, ect, usually specalise in the associated metals. Take the blacksmith for instance, which is what I started in when I first left school, worked mostly with wrought iron or black steel (although it was a blue coulor) which it was, more or less, as wrought iron was phased out when I first started work.
 
Regards Nick.
Sam Stones18/12/2010 23:47:33
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Hi Nick,

Apologies to Clive also!

I know this is something of a digression from Silver Soldering, but . . .

On his marriage certificate c1910, my grandfather’s occupation indicates that he was an Agricultural Engineer. I have admired this detail since I seem to have followed suit.

However, in those days, would an agricultural engineer be more of a blacksmith?

Regards to all,

Sam

Nicholas Farr19/12/2010 00:20:19
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Hi Sam, yes I agree a little OT, but agricultural engineers were/are blacksmiths, which was one of the main source of work where I first started. Some blacksmiths also shod hoarses, which of course is part of a farrier's job. A farrier may not have made hoarse shoes though, but a blacksmith would, but the blacksmith wasn't always a farrier.
 However both agricultural engineers/blacksmiths basic material is black iron/steel. Modern agricultural engineers are involved in a lot more technolegy, and probaly steer away from the blacksmith tag. The machines your granfather worked on were most likely hoarse drawn and low tech compaired with todays machines.
 
Regards Nick.

Edited By Nicholas Farr on 19/12/2010 00:23:53

Sam Stones19/12/2010 03:08:13
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Nick,
 
Now you've got me thinking. My grandfather married into a family of  Cab Proprietors, but this is now getting too far from Silver Soldering.

Perhaps we should continue this on a private basis?

Sam 
Ian S C19/12/2010 10:25:05
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A Farrier also dressed the horses teeth, well i supose it was similar to fileing the horses hooves. Each in there age were the "hight Tech" engineers of there time, and worth following.  Ian S C
Michael Cox 119/12/2010 12:30:35
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You can buy spirits of salt (hydrochloric acid) from Toolstation (www.toolstation.com). This is a very effective pickle for copper and steel when diluted 1 part spirits of salt to 5-10 parts water. Make sure you keep it in a well stoppered bottle since the fumes promote rapid rusting af any steel around.
Mike
Stub Mandrel19/12/2010 12:35:05
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Any ideas what sort of woork it would be in the RAF? Beating up intake manifolds?
 
Neil
Ian S C19/12/2010 13:31:07
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Perhaps wave guides, and other bits for radar, and other radio and electronic gear.  Ian S C
Michael Kilpatrick 119/12/2010 15:13:07
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@Stub Mandrel
Shipyard Coppersmithing consisted mainly of pipe manufacture(Copper-CuNi)
With some rather substantial thick walled (CuNi) pipe used on Hydraulic & High Pressure Air Systems.
Connection of this pipework was facilitated with a Phosphor Bronze Fitting containing an "O" Seal grove. These fitting were Silver Soldered to the pipe.
This process has now given way to welding pipes in situ.
Regards
Mike


Stub Mandrel19/12/2010 17:05:35
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Perhaps wave guides, and other bits for radar, and other radio and electronic gear. 
 
A bit early for that. I saw a photo of him in the Sudan or Egypt with a big biplane airliner (either Hengist or Horsa) in the background.
 
My other grandfather worked on such things, and sonar, in all three services!
 
Neil
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