I'm plugging silver solder again. When you think about it, jewelers use silver solder - not epoxy or super glue - for clasps, chains, and rings which have a small contact area.
David P

I use CA on the lathe , to hold the metal tip on a cutter, and that's turning at 3500 rpm and cutting wood at the same time, it will do the job here and in 15 seconds, you can also mix in silver powder,

David P. You know metals! Silver solder for dissimilar metals may not work. Sure, a real copper penny would hold, but the nickel on the surface of a dime might not. Also, there's too much zinc in today's coinage. David knows, but the rest of you might be surprised to find that melting or burning zinc produces toxic fumes that sicken and KILL. I know a few smiths that sit 6 feet below their headstones due to zinc fume poisoning.

You are correct greatnippulini about zinc fumes. They are bad for you. I don't know anyone who has died as a result, but have read about instances. Anything galvanized is coated with zinc. Zinc melts at about 700 and vaporizes at 1975. Vaporization is when the fumes occur. Blacksmiths who place galvanized iron or pipe into a forge which can reach 2600+ are at risk. Blacksmiths can also ingest manganese and cadmium. Silver soldering temperatures fall well below those a blacksmith encounters. I think we are both on the same page that there are hazards and that safety is a must.

A little common sense is necessary. In my first post, this is why I recommended finding a jeweler for this job. Safety first. For the do it your self project, good ventilation is a must. Silver solder is very good at joining dissimilar metals such as stainless steel, steel, copper, nickel alloys and bronze. As the greatnippulini pointed out, the newer American pennies are mostly zinc. Stay away from these. Any older copper penny and an american dime (an alloy of copper and nickel) would silver solder nicely. The American Mint has a website which gives the alloy content of all coins.

That's why CA will do the job, fast and safe, and it will last forever.

Ca is a good idea,but I think it is too hard a solvent.Being a hard glue makes it brittle to shock impact,when used between two hard pieces(metal,coins,etc.).It would last as long as you looked after it,the first time it was dropped against a hard surface,I believe it would break.I'm in England so I can't test it with American coins,but I can say it does not hold bright metal well enough to perform any hard impact tasks.Does anybody fancy experimenting with the American coins and giving it a destruction test.
Ray.

I have coinvexed 2, and I used CA to mount the coins to the metal gimick, as US coins are not magnetic, I have dropped it many times and it is still perfect,I also use it with metel to metal on a spinning lathe,it is brittle to the point where you could break it apart, but far from fragile, I use a brand called
Hot stuff, CA. it sounds like this is the best solution for this task,

With coinvexed you probably have a large area of contact and CA might be fine. What we are talking about here is a small contact are, maximum 1/8" square. Silver Solder!

Forgettfulness!!! A few days ago I tried it several times with medium viscosity CA to stick the edges of a dime and penny together and guess what???

Bends right apart with very little effort. This absolutely will not work in this application.

JB weld holds most anything if you're not too rough in handling.harry anderson has a "changering"that is a perfect example.you can adjust the positions as it sets up,something that is difficult using solder/weld techniques.scuff the coins up to adhere better.

Yeah but a pound of solder would do a hall of a lot of coins methinks.

That's why I suggested adding the pin. It should stiffen the joint to help prevent bending. Two pins close together would also help prevent twisting.

Hi
I have had some success with silver solder, it seems to be about ensuring the surfaces are clean, I would like to find out what flux people have used as that's the bit I have been having trouble with

I've got to buy a small drill bit anyways, so I'll make sure to grab one and attempt the pin method as well. I'll let you know what comes of it.

Interesting read, did anything every come of this effort? I don't remember reading anything for the coin effect talked about. Any info?

My father had an effect by Timothy Wenk from some years ago, I'd say at least 25 or more. The gaff was 3 quarters bound together. Well I tried to duplicate it, there are no flat spots, but I did notice that the milled edges were very sharp and crisp. I took it to a jeweler and it changed the way I joined coins. The first thing you have to do if you join coins by the edge is take a jeweler's saw and cut into the milled edges where the bonding will be, instead of flux, the jeweler told me to use distilled vinegar. The next step was important, it was the material you used to join the coins, it's called Hard Sheet Silver Solder, when melted will be sucked into the saw cuts you made and join the coins together. You can water dip after finished or just allow them to cool down.

I do this now with all coins that I join to the edge of each other, while the joints are still subject to being snapped if you bend them, you simply don't bend them. I use older coins and 90% silver coins usually. Newer coins are subject to discoloration from the high heat. CA, Epoxy etc is not going to hold them. I make my silver coin stacks the same way. I cut 3 small bars and space them on the ring of the coin, once melted I place the next ring on there and repeat the process until the stack is finished. If you do it like this, you would have to throw the stack at a brick wall to get it to come apart. Remember to always clean and prep the surface in which your soldering to.

Jake Jr.

Jake, I sent you a pm and payment for what your making me but have not heard from you...I hope all is good