Page 64 - My FlipBook

48 THE TREATMENT OF TEETH

must not however be forgotten, that the exckisive
use of a fine point may reduce density by pitting
into the filHng, and that the use of a medium point,
followed by a fine one, will prevent this, and in many
cases give the best result. Such fillings have been
made to considerably exceed the density of a button
of melted-up pure gold, but it is very doubtful if
this extreme density, or even a close approach to it,
can be made as a regular thing in the mouth, and a
filling made in the mouth that approaches a specific
gravity of 18*0 will usually be considered excep-
tionally dense. The specific gravity of a melted-up
piece of S. S. White's gold foil is 19*0.
It is often a convenience to pack and condense
each piece or layer of gold with a medium - sized
plugger, and then to further condense it with a
fine point. This, as already mentioned, may pre-
vent pitting, and result in a better and more even
condensation and adaptation. When gold is con-
densed with a fairly broad plugger so thoroughly
that the operator feels sure of perfection, it is
wonderful how often the gold will still further " go
down " when the fine point is applied.
The method of manipulating non-cohesive gold is
entirely different from the cohesive method, and the
accurate adaptation of non-cohesive gold does not so
much depend on the greater adaptability of the