Posted By Clare Gabriel Did anyone else - oh no how sad am I? - watch the One Show last night and see the work being done to repair the stain glass windows? Its an amazing project BUT - My worry was the lead smelting on the stained glass with NO EXTRACTION!!!! Shocking!! An it will be going on for 10 years!!!

Posted By Tabs Daft question? ... Is it lead they are using?

Posted By Ron Hunter Ah the "One Show". I usually take the opening jingle as a cue to get up and do something else. Nationwide - now there was a good after News magazine program! (Only kidding!) Having said that, it does seem that even the previously stolid and reliable BBC News has been "dumbed down" significantly over the last few years?

Posted By Paul Leadbetter The little I saw showed the lead being melted with a soldering iron (presumably thermostatically controlled) and so, as has already been said, the lead would be below 500 C and, thus, lead fume would be insignificant. Paul

Posted By Liesel Stained glass solder is usually 50/50 lead/tin and the lead cames are 100% lead. When you spot-solder the joints between the cames you try not to melt the cames too much(!) The soldering irons used these days (if you are up to date and use an electric one) are 100W-plus temperature controlled irons, in the days when I used to build stained galss panels and things for a hobby I seem to remember choosing a lower temp tip for lead-light work (copper foil work uses a higher temp iron for the long runs of solder). I also seem to recall that the fumes from the tallow rubbed on the joints as flux were a bit unpleasant, and I also recall always being told to work with gloves on and wash well after handling the cames.