Processes of Reclamation

I decided I needed to do something with my old fine silver scrap. Torching it into dirty balls of casting grain didn't seem like enough because they just sat there in a little box gathering dust. So I torched the scrap into blobs, put them into the tumbler, and started hammering them flat. Then I textured them between layers of old t-shirt with a hammer, finished the edges, polished them, drilled them for jump-rings, and finally dapped them into subtle domes. It's an interesting process and I like the results.

scrap ready for torching

that bright orange glow

in the quench

before tumbling

after tumbling 

 

before and after hammering

some finished pieces, textured, stamped, drilled, and domed

This is my process for the reclamation of fine-silver scrap. I have some nice pieces, where it was useless junk before. If I don't like the way something turns out, I can always remelt it and start over.