How to Repair Your Sterling Silver Jewelry

Is your sterling silver jewelry broken, and do you want to know how you can repair it? Learn more about jewelry repair here.
Have you finally established your own personal brand? Have you curated and collected an array of high-quality jewelry that perfectly conveys your “you” to the world?

Maybe you’ve already done it, or maybe you’re still working on it. But with all of the wonderful advantages of sterling silver jewelry, chances are good that you already own a number of pieces of it. But although being more resilient than gold, silver clasps and chains are nevertheless prone to breaking.

Check out this quick approach to repairing sterling silver jewelry. If something bad happens to that one silver necklace you can wear with everything, you’ll be pleased you did!

Jewelry Repair Using Hand Tools

Since the fundamental design of a broken piece of jewelry is the same for both men’s and women’s jewelry, you’ll use the same techniques to do the repair.

Clasps frequently fail, but fixing them is a reasonably easy and pleasant procedure. And that’s for the best since no matter how well-maintained a piece of jewelry is on the outside, you can’t wear it.

For this procedure, you’ll need:

• New clasps and extra jump rings (usually silver-plated)
• Small flat-nosed pliers x 2
• Good overhead lighting
• Hands-free magnifying glass (optional)

Procedure

First, find the slit (which is really a tiny gap) in the jump ring that connects the clasp to the piece of jewelry. Now, grip the ring on one side of that slit with the jaws of one of the pliers. Then, using the other pair of pliers, grip the ring on the other side.

Widen the gap in the ring by slowly rotating forward with one hand and twisting backward with the other. Ensure that you don’t pull horizontally on the sides of the ring. That will make it extremely difficult to bend the ring back into proper shape, and trying to do so will likely just snap the ring in half anyway.

The old clasp should now slide free. If there are any damaged jump rings (including the one you just opened), open and replace them as well.

Now you can hook the new clasp onto the open jump ring and then twist it closed. Make sure the jump rings are closed tightly and the new clasp is secure.

And that’s it, you’re done!

Jewelry Repair Using a Soldering Torch

If you need to repair a broken chain, chain links, rings, settings, or charms, then you can light ’em if you got ’em. This task requires some patience and practice, and you’ll also need the following supplies:

• Pickle solution
• A soldering torch
• Hard silver solder
• A towel
• A small paintbrush
• Tweezers and/or small flat-nosed pliers
• Wire cutters or sharp scissors
• Heavy work gloves
• Eye protection
• Fire brick

Soldering Torch?

Yes, soldering does require melting one piece of metal onto another, and a soldering iron does this. Why then would one not be suitable for mending your silver jewelry?

Typically, soldering irons are used to melt soft solder, which is typically tin or lead-based, and solder electrical wires together. Around 752°F is the average melting point of these substances.

Since the strong silver solder used in jewelry repair requires temperatures of 1640°F or higher to melt, soldering irons aren’t made to reach those levels.

This is where soldering torches come in. They can be fueled by tanks of butane, propane, or other clean fuels.

Procedure

“Safety first,” they always say. And they’re right.

Make sure your workspace is first tidy, well-ventilated, and clear of anything flammable. Additionally, be sure to cover your work area with a tile or other heat-resistant material that is big enough for you to use. Don’t forget to put on thick gloves and safety eyewear to shield your hands from the soldering torch’s heat.

1. Prepare your jewelry by letting the pieces you’re going to solder sit in a pickle solution; this removes any grease or oil from the surface that could interfere with soldering.
2. Remove the jewelry from the pickle solution using tweezers and place the pieces that are to be soldered onto the fire brick.
3. Use your wire cutters or sharp scissors to cut off tiny pieces of solder; set them aside.
4. Apply flux to the area you’re going to solder with a small paintbrush.
5. Use a pair of tweezers to place the pieces of solder you cut in Step 3 between the parts of silver you want to join together.
6. Ignite your torch and begin heating the silver; don’t heat the solder directly! When you see the solder starting to run into the space you want to be connected to, remove the flame.
7. Use your tweezers or pliers to pick up the still-hot piece of jewelry and quench it in a bowl of water.

Removing Shallow Scratches in Your Silver Jewelry

Your sterling silver jewelry may develop minor scratches over time, either as a result of normal wear or through maintenance procedures. Your silver may not break as a result of these scratches, but it could lose its brilliance.

By polishing them out with a microfiber cloth, you can get rid of these scratches. These are made to polish and buff silver without the use of abrasive cleaning products or polishing compounds, which could harm the protective finishes (like rhodium) that are frequently added to sterling silver.

Keeping Your Silver Jewelry Clean

Over time, tarnish forms on everything from sterling silver body jewelry to silver eating utensils. Maintaining the original luster of your silver jewelry is important for keeping it in good repair. Fortunately, you may access a simple instruction we created to assist you with DIY jewelry cleaning.

Back to Your Collection

You can resume creating your own distinctive style without worrying about what to do if a priceless item of your sterling silver jewelry is harmed.

Therefore, browse our exquisite selection of silver necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and more if you intend to include some classy sterling silver jewelry in that ensemble.

P.S. Royi Sal Jewelry, as a decades-long leader in silver jewelry design and manufacturing, invites you to download our latest magazine here and profit from the exceptional or best-seller jewelry designs at affordable prices in 2022 you will find in the magazine. Click here to download it now.