How Do I repair small bell?

[gmiddleton]

Now for my hard luck story!

Here's a bell that looks great, but was damaged in shipping.
Question: Is it Reparable? How?

Appears to be silver plated Pewter. Very heavy and solid. The pictures do not show how nice the detailing is, but I would like to repair it if possible.

The bell is 2 1/2" high by 2 1/2" diameter. The figure is 3" high and broken at the ankles.

It's engraved on the outside as "Christmas 1982" and at the top inside it says "Gorham EP YC1781"

It's a choir boy singing.

Looking for ideas on how to fix.

Thanks!
Garry

[admin]

Charles R. in California writes:

Charles here: Ref. How To Repair A Small Bell: POC: Gary Middleton: I use J. B. Weld. A type of Metal glue for small projects & it seems to work just fine on them. You can also paint over the liquid-jell compond after it has dried. I use it when I need to weld a half-moon eye-bolt inside a bz bell that has lost its eye-bolt from long exposure to salt water. You can purchase the G.B. Weld @ Lowes hardware stores. Best/Wishes Charles...

[hjlong3]

A good methylmethacrylate glue such as Super Glue, Krazy Glue, or Gorilla Glue will frequently work. Do not try to solder it... the pewter will melt at a low temperature and the bell will be ruined beyond repair.
Harry Long, MD

[gmiddleton]

I was wondering about solder, Glad I asked!
Garry

[Frank]

A good methylmethacrylate glue such as Super Glue, Krazy Glue, or Gorilla Glue will frequently work. Do not try to solder it... the pewter will melt at a low temperature and the bell will be ruined beyond repair.
Harry Long, MD

I would discourage Gorilla glue. It is a foaming and expanding poly type. Would make a mess. The methyl....... a/k/a CA glues are a good reccomendation. Or one of the metal weld epoxy types would be excellent. You would only need a very tiny amount.
Nice bell. Too bad about the damage. Happens.
Frank

[gmiddleton]

Good Point Frank!

I am leaning towards a grey 'putty' type material that the local hardware store sells. It hardens over time once kneeded and exposed to air.
Any thoughts towards that?
I am thinking that I can more easily remove any excess, probably with a toothpick, plus the color is closer to the metal itself.

[Frank]

Good Point Frank!

I am leaning towards a grey 'putty' type material that the local hardware store sells. It hardens over time once kneeded and exposed to air.
Any thoughts towards that?
I am thinking that I can more easily remove any excess, probably with a toothpick, plus the color is closer to the metal itself.

There are several on the market. The popular brand I couldn't think of yesterday is J.B. Weld. They are as you describe, grey putty types but really a metal infused epoxy. Very handy for many uses.

[gmiddleton]

Humm. Not looking good so far. Bought two types of 'putty' glues.
First comes pre configured with the two mixes, you kneed them together. You have 15 minutes to use and an hour before it sets. Kneeded together and it immediately was dried out. Tried again, same results...

Second comes in a tube with two parts. Mix in equal amounts and use it, sets in about 25 minutes. Stayed moist and put in place but while it stuck to both sides of the figure it did not stick to itself. - go figure - Held it in place over night, it hardened but as two separate pieces so - no joy.

Very strange.

Will be trying again, but if it doesn't work then I am breaking out the glue gun!!!!! ARghh.

Will send photos when done.

Garry

[gmiddleton]

Here's my final result with this bell. Not the best repair but it works and it is my first one!

I tried two types of metal bonding substances.

Tech-Steel, which has both materials already in place - an inner core of one material and an outer core of the other. It seemed easier and impossible to get the proportions wrong that way. You cut off the amount you need, kneed it until uniform, then apply within 15 minutes.
- I found two things with this product:

[gmiddleton]

Here's my final result with this bell. Not the best repair but it works and it is my first one!

I tried two types of metal bonding substances.

Tech-Steel, which has both materials already in place - an inner core of one material and an outer core of the other. It seemed easier and impossible to get the proportions wrong that way. You cut off the amount you need, kneed it until uniform, then apply within 15 minutes.
- I found two things with this product:
1) kneeding it dried it out, so it did not stick at all.
2) a dried ball of this material would make an excellent replacement clapper! You could mold the hanger into it.

PC-7 was the other type I tried. It comes in a double sided tube. You remove the same amount of material from either side and mix until uniform. It stays workable for about an hour, according to the instructions. I found getting the proportions correct was much more troublesome, and it wouldn't set for me until I left it over night.
The past form this became was easier to apply but if it wasn't held together until it permanently hardened then it wouldn't stick together (once apart) after 15 minutes or so. If you left it over night then it held.

[gmiddleton]

I first tried the premixed form.
I rolled it into a ball and found it to be quite dry.
Pressing it on the feet, then putting the boy into it, only filled the crevices with the putty. Nothing really stuck. After about 2 hours the putty just wiped off.

Interestingly enough, the ball I formed, I noticed later, made a very nice clapper, rather like the lead ones in some of my bells. So it does harden, just didn't stick very well.

[gmiddleton]

Here's my attempt with the PC7.

I mixed about a 1:1.5 mixture and applied the result to both pieces.
Once I put them together, I tried to remove and smooth out the overflow, using it to build up the ankles so as to provide the support it needs at that weak point.

[gmiddleton]

Now I taped the piece in place and left it over night (approx 18 hours) in a cool but not cold location.

Get help. This is one thing I didn't do and you really need four hands;
1 to hold the bell
1 to hold the figure
2 to pull the tape off the roll, cut it, and apply it across the figure.

I have a very slight shift that was cause because I couldn't do it all myself easily. - live and learn!