well i thought i knew how to solder, having soldered cooper tubeing togeather with silflose but after this afternoon i'm pretty sure i dont know squat . i had my spurs ready and the brass pieces bent to fit the heel band and the shank piece . i finally got the heel band piece but there is solder everywhere then i put some heat stop on the heel band and tried to solder the piece on the shank and never could get them to stick . now i aint sure what i'm going to do with the shank but what i really need to know is how do i get all that damn solder off and cleand up????? ya know after 6 ft of solder and a half a tub of flux i would have gotten something besides my pliers stuck togeather .
for the love of god someone HELP
hogshooter( roger barbee)

_________________
navy seabees
viet nam vet. 1968
ranch hand when not working construction

Hogshooter
I would heat it up. Take the brass off. If it is real heavy solder, I heat it up
until it melts and strike the spur on the table and a lot of solder will fall off.
Then buff the remaining solder off the spur and start over. You can usually
not have to add new solder because the brass has enough on it.
Rod

thanks rod for your replay , i may have to do just that but i was hopeing that there was some spur maker secret to cleaning them up with out starting over . maybe some of the other folks will chime in with tips on cleaning up solder. again i thank you for your help.
hogshooter

_________________
navy seabees
viet nam vet. 1968
ranch hand when not working construction

Sorry can't help you in this department- I silver solder all my overlays- use soft solder for filling buttons. etc. There must be some chemical that you could put them in that would eat the solder without doing too much damage to the steel? I use muratic acid, but not sure if it affects the solder.

well RT
i really appreciate your help ,i was also trying to inject alittle humor to the forum and get the others to put some info on this soldering subject so it might help others but maybe i'm the only one that seems to be haveing trouble , which i guess is a good thing. i was really glad i didnt have the brass engraved yet lol. i reckon i will do as you suggested and heat em up and start over. hope this finds you and yours in good health & prosperity.
yourn truly
hogshooter ( roger barbee)

_________________
navy seabees
viet nam vet. 1968
ranch hand when not working construction

Hogshooter

I have had luck getting solder off exactly like RT recommended, heating until molten and then banging on anvil or bench top to knock off the solder. I have also had success heating untill molten and then brushing off solder with small stainless steel brush. Hope this helps, keep postin

_________________
Norm Harris, Jr.
"The outside of a Horse is good for the inside of a Man"

hi Norm
thanks for your helpful reply. i did do like R. T. said and took oof the brass and finally got the solder off by heating to get the excess off then used a fine sanding pad on a 1/4 shaft in my drill motor to get the rest of it off. had to trash the pieces of brass cause they had gotten solder on the surface and i couldnt get it off. reckon the thing to do now is do some solder practice on thick and thin steel before i try to do the spurs again.
thanks again for your help
hogshooter

_________________
navy seabees
viet nam vet. 1968
ranch hand when not working construction

Hogshooter
If you are ever down my way, I would be glad to help you. I can show you
how to reuse the brass with all the solder on it.
Rod

hi rod
thanks for the invite, i use to come through there every once in a while on my way to ft. worth to a horse show. i havent been down there for about 2 yrs but may come by on my way to the paint horse world showaround the end of june. my son use to live over at collinsville ( southof whiteboro) trainning horses for some friends of ours .
them spurs looked pretty sorry , looked like i learned to solder down at the abortion clinic.
you have a good one if ya can and give me a holler anytime. i will let ya know next time i'm down that way and we can visit and a cold drink or some coffee.
yourn truly
hogshooter ( roger barbee)

_________________
navy seabees
viet nam vet. 1968
ranch hand when not working construction