How to Solder Stained Glass Pictures

Soldering a stained glass picture can be a somewhat challenging skill to learn, but the end result is well worth the effort. There are two ways to put stained glass together -- lead came and copper foil. The copper foil technique is more commonly used on smaller stained glass projects, and requires a more intensive soldering process. Every line of the project must be soldered, and learning the technique to achieve a slightly rounded smooth line of solder can take some time and practice.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Glass pattern
• Glass pieces cut to fit the pattern, wrapped in copper foil
• Flux
• Small brush
• Fan or fume extractor
• Safety glasses
• Safety gloves
• Solder
• Soldering iron (80 or 100 watt)
• Rheostat (temperature control)
• Damp sponge
• Paper towels or rags
• Glass cleaner
• Carnauba wax

Preparation

1. Clean all of the pieces. Check to ensure the copper foil has been applied correctly. At this point, everything should fit together with a minimal gaps. Any splits in the copper foil should be fixed as that will show up in the solder line.

2. Set the soldering iron on medium high to high and allow it to heat up.

3. Apply the flux evenly and fairly lightly. You can use either paste flux or liquid flux. Every line of copper foil should be fully covered by flux. It does not matter if it gets on the glass as well, as this will help the solder flow to the copper foil rather than sticking to the glass. It is best to apply the flux only to as much of the piece as you will finish at that particular time. After too long, the flux oxidizes and loses its ability to draw the solder to the copper foil rather than the glass. You don't want to flux the entire piece one day and come back in a couple of days to finish it.

4. Put on safety gloves and glasses. You don't necessarily need the gloves, and might find them awkward to work with, but you are handling lead which is a toxic substance. Moreover, the flux also contains nasty chemicals that aren't good for bare skin.

Soldering

5. Test if the soldering iron is hot enough by touching it to the solder to see if it melts. It may take a second to start melting, but shouldn't take much longer than that. If it does, let it heat up a bit longer.

6. Wind a length of solder off, usually a few inches is enough to start with. The solder usually comes on a little white plastic roll that is easy to wind off. If you are not comfortable holding the entire roll because it is too heavy, you can remove a length, wrap it into a manageable roll, and use that. You can also use the safety gloves to hold the lead. Be aware that as you hold the lead and soldering iron together, the solder can get very hot, so be careful as you get to the end of the solder if you are holding it in your hand.

7. Turn on your fan or fume extractor. The fan should not blow directly onto the stained glass piece, but should move the air enough to keep you from breathing the fumes.

8. Tack the pieces together by touching a bead of solder to each of the seams.

9. Start soldering at one corner and work your way methodically through the piece. Touch the soldering iron down, holding the solder against the top side of the tip and draw the iron slowly and steadily along the seam. If the solder line is flat you are moving it along too fast and there is not enough solder being drawn along to bead up. If the solder is pooling off the seam onto the glass there is too much building up.

10. Life the solder off the iron and continue to draw it to the edge. As you move toward the edge of the piece, there should be enough to finish off the last half inch without pooling at the edge.

11. Touch the iron down in the middle of the seam briefly. Do this until the solder just melts on either side, then lift it up. If needed you can move down the entire seam to fix it this way. Alternately, you can move the soldering iron in from the side of the bead and lift it, be careful not to push the copper foil off the glass. Use whichever method works best for you.

12. Life the piece up once all the seams have been soldered if there is too much solder on a seam. Touch the iron to the area until the solder melts and falls off to your work table. Do not try to pick this up as it is very hot. Use a dust brush and pan after it solidifies to clean it up.

Cleaning

13. Spray the piece with glass cleaner and wipe it clean once one side has been soldered. You need to clean the flux off or it can etch the glass.

14. Turn the piece over and solder the other side, then clean this as well.

15. If need be, turn off your iron and let it cool. This might happen if you find that as you are soldering the second side, the solder is melting through to the other side in areas where there is too much of a gap between pieces. If this is happening, turn off your iron and let everything sit and cool off for a while before continuing. When you start again try to move the iron along and not hold it in one place for too long. You may need to melt some solder on the tip of the iron and touch it down in that area to make a nicely beaded seam rather than drawing the iron and solder along the glass. When you have finished soldering that side, you can use the touch and lift method to fix the solder on the other side, after allowing the piece to cool down again.

16. After a thorough cleaning, apply the wax and polish it off with a clean soft rag. You can do this with soap and water.

Tips & Warnings

• If you have never done this before, use a few scrap pieces of glass, wrap them in copper foil and practice a bit before you get started on your picture.
• Never let children in your work area. Do not eat or touch your mouth or face while working with lead. Wear safety glasses and gloves to protect your eyes and skin. Do not touch the hot soldering iron to the glass anywhere but along the seams or you will risk cracking the glass. You can clean solder drops off later with a razor blade if needed.

References

• Illustrated instructions for making copper foiled stained glass.