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What body filler for copper collectible?

I recently received an antique copper fire horn that has damage to the rim around the end of the horn. The rim of the mouth was originally formed by hammering the copper sheet back over an iron ring. The iron rusted and crumbled out, and I'm trying to decide what to fill the void with so that the now-hollow rolled over lip once again has support inside it. Options suggested to me thusfar are: Lead, JB Weld, Bondo, low-melting point bismuth-tin solder. Any thoughts?

The longitudinal seam of the horn is soldered, so I'm hesitant to use lead filling for fear of remelting this seam and ruining the horn. I'm going to paint the horn (it's too weathered to buff), so surface look is not that important. The horn is really made from rolled sheet copper too, not brass or bronze if this matters.

-Adam

Reply to
Adam
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You're not likely to "unsolder" the seam, other than perhaps a small segment of it. If you do, Big deal... Just re-solder it. Personally, if it were my project, I'd just go with sweating some solder into the hollow space.

Now *THAT* is a crime :(

Unless it's pitted through, or paper thin, copper is never too weathered to buff, and painting it borders on a felonious insult to both the maker and the metal! (Of course, I'm sure there are folks out there who would say I'm nuts, and that copper should always be painted, but they're weirdos! :) )

Should be a non-issue.

Reply to
Don Bruder

Reply to
Grant Erwin

Almost as bad as "electrifying" a serviceable Aladdin lamp.

Ted

Reply to
Ted Edwards

It may seem too obscure (but it would be a simple solution if it were me), but what about soldering a ring of solid copper wire in the place of the original steel rim wire? It won't be as strong as steel, but definitely better than nothing, certainly stronger than most any plastic stuff out of a tube or a can. This could probably be accomplished with a high wattage soldering gun, or a low amount of torch heat. If you're concerned about the seam coming apart, put a C-clamp or other holding device out near the rim area.The hard clamp faces could be padded with some aluminum scrap or other soft material.

WB ............

Reply to
Wild Bill

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