How to Stained Glass Soldering - How to Solder Tips & Tricks

Learning the stained glass soldering part of the creation of glass art can halt you in your tracks.

It is both an art and a science and can prove crucial to making stained glass that is professional looking from one that is not.

Below are our top soldering tips that are easy to follow and will allow you to move forth in making your glass art work.

How to Tips for Soldering Stained Glass

Okay this is a fun part of putting your stained glass pattern together.

**Tip 1: Preheat the soldering iron. Yes, some people forget this.

**Tip 2: Apply flux in small areas at a time with a little brush. Remember, if you make a mistake (using copper foil), you can re-flux and go over it again.

**Tip 3: First, solder the corners to secure the glass, and hold it in place. Something to note throughout the process is to let the solder flow at it's own pace. You are the guide.

**Tip 4: If you are right handed, hold the solder iron in your right hand and the solder in your left hand. It is best to start at the top of your pattern and solder down. This is so you don't accidentally hit the solder before it dries.

**Tip 5: Place the solder close to the foil. With the soldering iron tip, slowly melt the solder onto the flux and foil to create a bead. Smooth it out along the foil.

**Tip 6: Finish by soldering the balance of the foil. Remember to apply the flux a little at a time. Take your time. Patience is a virtue in any art form.

**Tip 7: Solder the entire front side then turn over to solder the back- use same method as above. If you get a thick, bumpy appearance, you either need more flux or heat.

**Tip 8: DO NOT hold the soldering iron too long in one area - move your soldering iron and solder with a steady flow. If you hold it too long in one area, you might break the glass.

**Tip 9: We recommend when soldering to have an exacto knife to remove solder from the glass. Let the solder dry- scrape if off the glass with the edge of the exacto knife. The solder will only stick to the flux and the foil so it will pick off easily. The exacto knife also comes in handy to trim the foil if needed.

**Tip 10: It is best to practice on sample pieces to perfect the easy flow of soldering. After a couple of times, you'll feel like a pro!

**Tip 11: If you mess up that is ok. Just keep working on it and you're bound to get better.

Once you've followed these stained glass soldering steps, you'll have no problems finishing your stained glass projects to look like this one...

Let us help you find the perfect solder iron for your glass making.

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