Place a silica melting dish on a base of sand, or other non-heat-conducting material. The dish must withstand temperatures of up to 2,800 degrees Fahrenheit. Cut the bare copper wire into 1-inch lengths (or shorter) using wire cutters, and place the pieces in the silica melting dish.
Put on eye goggles, a face mask and heat protection gloves. Turn on the acetylene valve until a hiss of gas is heard from the torch valve. Light the torch with a striker/lighter. Slowly turn on the gas valve, until the flame becomes blue with an inside tip -- the white tip will be roughly 3/8 inches long.
Hold the tip of the flame in the silica melting dish, against the small sections of copper wire. Move the flame left to right over the copper and in a circular motion, until it melts and forms a liquid. Turn off the oxyacetylene torch.