Newbie question:

[ellyloo]

I'm getting all my vocab sorted out before I actually TOUCH a torch.

I've learned what reducing means, but I haven't deduced the meaning of another term.

What does it mean when glass "Strikes"?

I"m guessing: does this mean that at a certain temperature the glass changes somehow? Can people post pictures of examples? Thanks! I'm intrigued!

[Firebug]

Ellyoo,

You are right. When the glass is heated enough, sometimes in a certain part of the flame, it will "strike" to another color. Sometimes these rods are clear and when they are heated, either in a neutral or reducing flame, the true color of the rod of glass will appear - its like magic! This is what is meant by "striking" or "striker" color. Hope this helps!

Cheers
Kathy

[ellyloo]

ooOoo.
I think I'll like those.

[JanMD]

From our friends at Corning:
"Striking -- The process of reheating glass after it has cooled, in order to develop color or an opacifying agent that appears only within a limited range of temperatures." (http://www.cmog.org/index.asp?pageId=689#P19)

JanMD

[Keltik]

A great investment for you would be this

Contemporary Lampworking: A Practical Guide to Shaping Glass in the Flame (2 Vol. Set) (Spiral-bound)
by Bandhu Scott Dunham (Author)

Forums are great source of info, but this book gives you one of the best foundations I have found.

Dave

[Emily]

Some glass is like a rattlesnake: it will coil up, hissing gently, and then suddenly strike out at you, leaving small but intensely painful wounds.

True, but that's not what "striking" glass means. It means changing color, like everybody else said.

(Yeah, I know. I'm a wiseass.)

Contemporary Lampworking is a good resource. It deals with all forms of flameworking. Another good reference book, which focuses on beadmaking, is Jim Kervin's More Than You Wanted to Know About Glass Beadmaking. The problem with forums is that if you pop in to ask a quick question, you don't know if you're getting a correct answer or well-meant misinformation (or something from a wacko with a bee in his bonnet, or somebody like me who just likes to make jokes). Having a reference book around can bail you out in situations when you really need to know something from someone who really does know what he's talking about.

[ellyloo]

:)
I'll be taking a class soon (Gosh, I've been saying that forEVER, but I AM, truely. I booked 2 months in advance. *SIGH*) but as I'm reading in the forums, I want to know what people are talking about.

I love the forums.