Goldsmith Q&A: Master Goldsmith Michael Lynton Answers Your Jewellery Making Questions
What torch should you buy? Can you melt down old gold? What's the best way to solder a fine chain without melting it?
During our latest Jewellers Academy Benchtips session, Master Goldsmith Michael Lynton answered questions from jewellers around the world, sharing practical advice from more than 60 years at the bench. From jewellery repairs and recycling precious metals to choosing the right tools and developing professional bench habits, this session is packed with practical tips you can apply to your own work. We've summarised some of the highlights in this post as well as shared the replay.
Can you solder gold-filled jewellery?
One of the first questions asked was whether gold-filled findings can be soldered.
Michael's advice was simple: if possible, avoid it.
Gold-filled material is manufactured from bonded layers of metal, so it's difficult to predict how it will behave under heat. While laser welding may be an option in some situations, traditional soldering can be unpredictable and often causes more problems than it's worth.
What's the safest way to solder a fine chain?
Anyone who's worked with delicate trace chain knows how easy it is to melt.
Michael shared a brilliant professional approach:
Hold the jump ring securely in reverse-action tweezers.
Heat the jump ring - not the chain.
Wrap the chain around the tweezers to keep most of it away from the heat.
Bring only the very end of the chain into the solder at the last possible moment.
His guiding principle is one every jeweller can remember:
Heat the largest piece of metal and bring the smallest piece to it - not the other way around.
He also shared another clever tip. Before removing a jump ring altogether, see if it can simply be gently compressed, threaded through the pendant and reshaped afterwards. Sometimes avoiding soldering altogether is the simplest solution.
Which torch does a master goldsmith recommend?
Michael explained that the torch is probably the most important tool in a jeweller's workshop.
Rather than choosing the cheapest option, he recommends investing in a torch that gives excellent control over flame size and temperature. Throughout his career, that flexibility has been far more valuable than simply having maximum heat.
Can I melt down old gold jewellery?
Yes but preparation is everything.
If you're recycling an old gold piece, Michael recommends:
making sure all the gold is the same carat
removing as much solder as possible before melting
cutting larger pieces into smaller sections
using plenty of borax during melting
avoiding overheating the gold.
One tip many jewellers may not know is to watch the surface of the molten gold.
Michael explained that the gold should develop a mirror-like appearance and gently "spin" as it melts. That's a sign the temperature is right. Too much heat risks damaging the alloy.
Why should you remove solder before recycling gold?
One of Michael's strongest messages throughout the session was not to rush.
Old jewellery often contains years - even centuries - of previous repairs. Solder, lead and other metals can contaminate your gold if they're melted together.
His advice is to spend time studying a piece before picking up the torch.
As Michael explained, every repair begins with understanding what has happened to the jewellery before it arrived on your bench.
How do you make better tube?
There were lots of questions about making tube, one of the projects featured in The Goldsmith Series.
Among Michael's tips were:
Make tube slightly larger than your finished size before drawing it down.
Pull the tube through the drawplate after soldering to tighten the seam.
Standard sterling silver is usually preferable to fine silver because it offers greater rigidity.
Remember the maths - multiply the finished diameter by 3.14 when calculating the starting width of your strip.
He also shared several workshop tricks for getting tube started through the drawplate, including creating a solid pulling point or temporarily soldering in a piece of wire to help grip the tube.
What advice would you give a beginner jeweller?
Perhaps the most valuable answer of the session came when someone asked Michael what he would tell someone just starting out.
His answer wasn't about expensive tools or advanced techniques.
It was about how you hold your tools.
Learning to support your work against the bench pin rather than clamping it down, developing good saw control and practising safe, efficient movements will pay dividends throughout your jewellery-making journey.
These are small habits, but over years at the bench they make an enormous difference.
Which gold solder should I buy?
Michael explained that traditionally goldsmiths begin with hard solder before progressing to medium and easy as more joins are added.
For many modern jewellers working in 9ct gold, however, he finds medium solder perfectly suitable for most work because it offers a good balance between flow and colour match.
Easy solder may flow more readily, but the colour difference can often be more noticeable.
Watch the full Goldsmith Q&A
This blog only scratches the surface of what was covered.
The full Benchtips session includes practical demonstrations, troubleshooting advice and dozens more professional tips from Michael's six decades working as a master goldsmith.
Watch the full replay below.
want to learn from michael?
If you've ever wished you could spend time alongside an experienced goldsmith, The Goldsmith Series was created for exactly that purpose.
Explore all 14 bench challenges, discover how the programme works and find out how you can learn directly from Master Goldsmith Michael Lynton.
Take a look at The Goldsmith Series and enrol today