Hi All can stainless steel be solders with solder you would use on wires ?
or better still can you use silver solder ?
this is for links on a SOS bracelet
Jacko

Flux cored solder (like you use for electrics) will solder stainless but it's pretty soft stuff. I believe there are special fluxes for silver soldering stainless steel.

To soft solder stainless steel you need to use phosphoric acid as a flux.
Special stainless flux is available for silver soldering

HTH

Neil

I have used jenolite rust remover, as a flux to soft solder with success, this stuff contains mostly phosphoric acid.

Stainless Steel covers a wide variety of ferrous alloys I am pretty sure some will be a lot more difficult to solder than others.

As already said Phos acid - Jenolite is a great flux for ferrous alloys it can even be used to solder aluminium.

I hope the following link helps, but it gives a great description of 'how and why'

www.bssa.org.uk/topics.php?article=150

HTH.

Len

I've done hundreds of stainless joints in 15mm x 0.8 wall pipe with silver solder
using a aerosol type map gas torch and silver solder flux.

After soldering soak the job in hot water and washing up liquid to soften the flux. It sets like glass.


No prob.

Paul G

[Edited on 8/12/12 by 907]