How do you repair a broken brass trigger guard?

[Sequatchie Rifle]

I have two antique percussion rifles with broken trigger guards. Both guards are brass. What is the best way to repair them? Thanks, Bill

[Dphariss]

Brass colored silver solder from Rio Grande supply is the best bet.
Or braze it with brass. I patched a buttplate that cracked while being widened this way once, just gotta be careful with the torch.
Dan

[Gaeckle]

I think the solder would be best, however, you need to make a fixture to hold them together while doing the repair....that's the tricky part.

[wattlebuster]

I have just repaired one in my time an It was brazed. It still holding today

[jerrywh]

 The best silver solder is silvaloy 45.  It is 45% silver and is brass colored but slightly lighter colored than 360 brass.  Some of the real old brass on antique guns is impregnated with oil and will disintegrate when trying to braze it.  Also it cannot be annealed. The only way to tell is to try it. If it is real old it may help to soak it in Acetone for a day or so.  When brazing something like this I use Casting investment to hold the parts in place while I do the work. Rio Grande sells a product for this purpose.

[Sequatchie Rifle]

Thank you all for the useful information. I will give it a try. The rifle was made around 1840.

[Goo]

I have done this in the past you need some practice at handling an Oxy Acetelyne torch.  If you have to support the area that is being repaired because the brass can collapse when molten.    Once supported with firebrick the soft ones can be carved to shape you can then weld use flux 20 mule team borax dip the hot rods into it. ( it would be technically correct to call it a weld because the metal is brass to brass and it will meld and fuse )  The area will most likely get a little sloppy and there will be excess but it can be filed or reshaped after the fact.    If porosity is revealed you will need to touch up the area and reshape.   doing it this way is alot of work and difficult but it will produce the best results.

[jerrywh]

 Brazing brass with brass rod is very  risky unless you have a lot of experience at it.  That is why they make products like silvaloy 45 and other similar alloys. This is especially true on a 100year old brass part.
 Old Brass is risky as it is. The crystal or molecular structure of brass changes as it ages and annealing will not restore it. That is my experience. Look it up.  
 In addition a person cannot assume that 150 year old brass is the same alloy as we use today.  
http://datasheets.globalspec.com/ds/3022/WolverineJoiningTechnologies/54D324A9-1948-4CE2-A716-B59A898B97D0