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Lampwork Questions



 
 
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  #1  
Old August 28th 03, 08:19 AM
Kandice Seeber
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Default Lampwork Questions

Hi Wendy!
This is a debatable issue, so what I say here is *my own personal opinion*.
You *can* do each of those things, to varying degrees of success. The
smaller the bead, the less likely it is to break from shock, generally. If
you're using soft glass (Moretti, Murano, etc.) the beads are more sensitive
to temperature changes. Most beginners start with soft glass. A fiber
blanket is better than using the torch to flame "anneal", in my opinion.
You can save those beads for later batch annealing in a kiln. Of course,
putting the beads in a kiln immediately is almost always the best option, if
you can. I *personally* would not sell any bead that has been batch
annealed or not annealed in a kiln. Batch annealed beads (or beads cooled in
a fiber blanket) are usually just fine for giving away, making into jewelry
for yourself, or selling inexpensively as a hobby, in my opinion.
Professional beads should definitely be properly annealed. That said, kilns
are expensive, so make sure you love this art before investing. But once
you get one, you'll probably love it. Have fun!!
--
Kandice Seeber
Air & Earth Designs
http://www.lampwork.net

A friend of mine at work wants to do glass work (paper weights, blown

glass
and etc) he thinks since I want to do lampworking (beads) that we could do
beads together to get him started.

I've been reading through the Sooz List, the newsgroup here (both live and
Google) and the web and this is what I think I've figured out. (I'm using
very technical terms like 'mess up' and 'thingy') Please correct me if

I've
made incorrect jumps in my assumptions. And read all the way through

before
thinking I'm daft.

-You can make very small things and use the fiber blanket to let it cool
slowly so it won't mess up.
-You can use a torch to cool things down slowly so they won't mess up.
-You should kiln anneal your stuff so it won't ever mess up.

My question (other than do I have the gist of it) is can you do the above
items then store your things until you can afford a kiln then anneal in

the
kiln so it will be cooked properly and won't break. I know you should

NEVER
sell your stuff unless annealed properly or if you do make sure you state

so
in VERY BIG LETTERS. grin

I'm using very simple terms so that I won't use a technical term that I
don't fully understand. So by saying 'mess up' it's more generally that

it
won't break, however beads break when they haven't been cooked properly. I
read about how if it cools too fast the molecules don't sit together

right,
kinda like they're not comfortable, but if you cool them down properly (or
maybe heat them up lots, then cool them down properly) they sit next to

each
other comfy like and are strong.

So tell me if I'm daft (my husband thinks so) or if I'm on the right

track.

Thanks for the help.
Wendy




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  #2  
Old August 30th 03, 07:59 PM
Kalera Stratton
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

In article ,
"Maeven" wrote:

A friend of mine at work wants to do glass work (paper weights, blown glass
and etc) he thinks since I want to do lampworking (beads) that we could do
beads together to get him started.

I've been reading through the Sooz List, the newsgroup here (both live and
Google) and the web and this is what I think I've figured out. (I'm using
very technical terms like 'mess up' and 'thingy') Please correct me if I've
made incorrect jumps in my assumptions. And read all the way through before
thinking I'm daft.

-You can make very small things and use the fiber blanket to let it cool
slowly so it won't mess up.
-You can use a torch to cool things down slowly so they won't mess up.
-You should kiln anneal your stuff so it won't ever mess up.

My question (other than do I have the gist of it) is can you do the above
items then store your things until you can afford a kiln then anneal in the
kiln so it will be cooked properly and won't break. I know you should NEVER
sell your stuff unless annealed properly or if you do make sure you state so
in VERY BIG LETTERS. grin

I'm using very simple terms so that I won't use a technical term that I
don't fully understand. So by saying 'mess up' it's more generally that it
won't break, however beads break when they haven't been cooked properly. I
read about how if it cools too fast the molecules don't sit together right,
kinda like they're not comfortable, but if you cool them down properly (or
maybe heat them up lots, then cool them down properly) they sit next to each
other comfy like and are strong.

So tell me if I'm daft (my husband thinks so) or if I'm on the right track.

Thanks for the help.
Wendy



Yes, what you are describing is "batch annealing" and once you have
batch annealed, your pieces are as strong as if you had
production-annealed them...IF (and this is important!) there were not
any invisible internal cracks in them before you annealed. You CAN weed
out the ones with invisible flaws by putting your beads in the freezer
for a few hours after annealing, then running them under hot tap water
(or putting them through the dishwasher). The ones that have little
invisible internal cracks will break from the stress.

--
-Kalera

---------

Regime change in 2004!
 




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