Depletion guilding is one way of overcoming firescale by raising the fine silver to the surface of the sterling silver and eliminating the copper oxides on the surface of the metal through multiple heatings, pickling, and lightly brass brushing with soap and water between firings until a nice...
Put yellow ocher, graphite, or white out, etc. in areas you don't want solder to flow as stoppage, it can be removed after soldering. When work hardening the metal hit it on the concave side of the dome with a wooden dapping punch into a wooden dapping block, this will work harden to some...