One of my all time favourite tools apart from my tumbler.... is my third hand.
The problem with soldering is that in my left hand I hold my torch, in my right hand I generally have tweezers holding solder wire, or a solder pick ready to assist the solder in going where I want it to go, and then I still need to hold in place the bit of silver I'm soldering (often an earwire or something which needs to be in just the right place).
That's where my handy little third hand comes in. This special pair of tweezers in a on a ball joint in a stand.
I just wish I really did have another hand, or even another pair of hands. That'd make life a bit easier for everything, not just soldering - even if finding tops to fit would be tricky.
I have a third hand that I've never used with soldering as I'm not sure if it could take the heat... think I am going to give it a go soon though, because as you say, you do need another hand with anything other than simple soldering jobs! I'll let you know if it survives the temperature...!
ReplyDeleteGood luck! I honestly don't know how I could manage without mine.
ReplyDeleteI like my third hand too. My first and second hands sometimes shake (too much gin!) when I'm doing fiddly little soldering jobs so it is really useful to anchor things in place and stop them sliding about :D
ReplyDeleteI wonder if anyone has a fourth hand? I'm sure another one could come in handy too! Yes, they're ao good for holding things in place for soldering, especially when the flux goes all fizzy! Though, Tracy I think I saw on your blog you use T pins too... must invest in some of those!
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