This is the
story of a Tea Pot that we recently
restored as part of a consignment from
the Ritz Hotel London.
This Tea Pot was made over 50 years
ago and forms part of a complete service.
What do you do if it is seemingly damaged
beyond repair?
It would be very difficult to find a
replacement and unnecessarily expensive
to create a new one.
At Margolis
Silver Service we have the answer
We can expertly restore your Tea Pot
to ‘as good as new’ condition
for a fraction of the cost of a replacement!
See how we do
it!
Tea
Pot for Restoration
The Pot is in very poor condition
The plating is worn through to the
nickel inside and out
The surface is ruined through years
of cleaning in a tumble polisher
The entire body is battered, scratched,
dented & abused
There are signs of old repairs and
patches to prevent leaking
The spout is damaged and part is missing,
the handle is loose and dented
The foot is twisted & will not
stand straight, the lid is broken
and bent
The Initial Process
At first the Pot
is assessed and then gradually dismantled
Removal of the handle will reveal
the state of the insulators
The lid is removed and the hinge is
checked
The Pot is now ready for the Silversmiths
Repairing
the Foot
At first the foot
is straightened and repaired so that
the Pot can stand straight
The foot can be removed for more difficult
repairs
In this instance this was not necessary
Repairing
the Spout
However the spout
had to be removed to repair a hole,
which was causing a leak
Heat is applied from a blowtorch to
the spout area, which becomes red
hot
The solder dissolves so that the spout
can be removed from the body
This way the repair can be undertaken
more easily with a permanent result
Repairing
the Body
The entire body
has to be planished to remove all
dents and bruises
The silversmith presses the silver
onto a specially prepared stake
This returns the Pot to its correct
shape and removes the deepest dents
Hammering
& Re-surfacing
Hand hammering
is a skilled art and an important
part of silversmithing
This stretches and smoothes the surface,
finally removing all traces of damage
The Tea Pot is then scoured with an
electric mop,
which creates a smooth surface
Then it is cleaned and prepared for
the plating process
The
Silver Plating Process
The silver-plating
process is not simple and must be
carried out correctly
The item to be re-plated must be chemically
degreased to give
the new silver maximum adhesion. The
Pot and its components
are then immersed into the silver
tank and connected to the electrodes,
Every minute in the silver solution
one micron of silver
is deposited onto the surface inside
and out. The pieces are left
in the silver tank for at least half
an hour depositing a minimum 30 microns
Reassembly
& Finishing
After plating the
pieces have to be re-assembled
- hinges and insulators are replaced
Then the Pot is polished again to
creates that wonderful shine
Quality control then examines every
inch to make sure it is in perfect
condition
Fully
Restored
The Tea Pot
is then returned fully restored
It
carries a full guarantee against any
defects in repair and plating
