Lampworking Tutorials/Tips

Twisted Cane Glass Video Tutorial Link

 

Dot Implosion Pendant/Marble Step-by-Step Tutorial

• Torch setup and ventilation system / bench setup
• Glass rod 1 10mm-14mm and 2 5mm-6mm rods
• Colored glass rod(s) (any color works, experiment)
• Kiln (if you don't have one you'll need one eventually) or Fiber blanket

Take your thicker rod (I'm using 12mm Boro) and heat it up approx 1/2" in the flame. Use a flame large enough to make a gather. Gather a ball on the end up by tilting the rod end angled up towards the torch while rotating. When you have a glass ball gather about 3/4 X the size of your rod, remove from torch while white hot, wait a few seconds while rotating and mash the end down on a graphite block or paddle creating a disc about twice the size of your rod.

Next heat up the very tip of your color rod while letting the disc cool a little bit in your other hand.Your torch should now have a narrower flame.Next apply color dots to the end of the disc by super heating the very tip of the rod and lightly touching it to the end of the disc in the flame. Pull the color glass rod away slowly and let the flame fire cut the glass rods away from each other. Place dots all about the end of the glass disc. See Pic 1

Next you will increase your flame size and start to melt the dots in. Note: if you have chosen a color that boils easy you should encase the color and work with a cooler flame. Place your disc in the flame at a 45 degree angle, heating half on the end of the disc face and half on the side edge of the rim of the disc. Be careful not to overheat the narrow part of the rod close to the disc. The disc will start to deform and the dots will start to melt in. See Pic 2

As you melt the disc in you will want to angle the glass rod again, the other way this time with the rod you are holding angled down, the end of the disc lower than the end you are holding. This makes the rim of the disc melt into the middle, pulling glass around the dots and letting them implode up into the future optic side of the glass. See Pic 3

As you melt in the glass and when it is liquid hot, you can lightly press the end down and flatten to keep the disc shape. By re-flattening the glass and re-melting the disc down into a sphere, you will add depth to the glass implosion process. The end result shows a flower pattern, showing multiple layers created from just one application of dots.

At this point you can add a backing color and melt in fully if desired. You then can make this ball into a marble or pendant. For a pendant, flatten one last time into a disc. Now punty up to the back you just flattened using a cold seal. Now using your new punty fire cut the other end of the rod as close to the disc as possible. Spinning with your cold seal punty, melt the unfinished optic end into a nice round optic (the face of the pendant). Then attach another cold seal punty on what you want the bottom of the glass pendant to be. Before this new cold seal has time to cool and set, flash the cold seal punty on the back of the pendant disc with 1-2 seconds of heat and knock off by tapping punty with object or on an object close to seal. Now make your loop on the top, hold with grabbing tool and knock last cold seal punty off (remember to flash with flame). Finish by fire polishing the seal mark and you are finished.

To make a marble from the disc simply melt disc completely into a ball on the end, round with gravity first then mold, punty and fire cut. Ball, round and swich axis 180 degrees again. Repeat rounding and puntying up to opposite sides until your marble is round. See glass marble rounding.

Send your questions to be answered: glassrave@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lampworking Tutorial Pics

 

 

1  Disc with dots on.

2  Melting glass disc into round end.

3  Dots imploding, disc melting at end.

Glass is fully melted in.