Finally...Round beads...

[sugarenie]

I have been a newbie for about a month or so and have finally made my first "round" beads last night...I'm so excited...I think I've got it...I watched a video someone posted here on LE and voila...

One problem though, I am afraid to take them off the mandrels...The last bead I took off broke in half...No, I did not anneal it or any of the beads I have made so far...I am waiting to hit my 100th bead before I purchase a kiln...I put my beads in a fiber blanket immediately after I remove them from the torch and cool for just a minute...I left these in the blanket overnight and am still afraid to take them off...

Help!...I need courage...

[Emily]

You have courage. You've always had courage. What you don't have is a medal. Therefore, by the power vested in us as Supreme Wizard of Oz, we present this medal to Eileen, in token of her exemplary courage. (Take a step forward, and we'll pin it on . . . right . . . there. Oops! Sorry 'bout that, don't worry, it'll stop bleeding in a minute.) There. Feel better?

Now if I only had a brain . . .

They'll be fine, and if they're not fine, you'll make more, and they'll be even better. Even if they ARE fine, you'll make more, and they'll be even better. You're not cracking them by taking them off the mandrel. If they're cracking, they've already got a crack in them. It may be a little one that you can't see, but sooner or later, the bead is doomed. (Somehow I'm not sounding comforting right now. I'll have to work on my technique.) If you just leave the beads, and you have one that wants to crack, you might find half of it lying next to the mandrel even if you never touched it again. But let's think positive, OK? Here's my method: (1) soak mandrels in water; (2) grasp mandrels with vise grip pliers; (3) grasp bead with rubber jar opener thingy; (4) twist bead; (5) remove bead from mandrel; (6) dunk bead in water to remove remnants of bead poop; (7) admire! Repeat until finished (then go use the Dremel to clean out the bead holes better, if you're me.)

[sugarenie]

Thanks Emily...I love my medal...I will wear it proudly...OK...Here I go...I'm going to follow your routine except for the dremel part (I don't have one)...Guess I'm going to have to get another piece of equipment...I have a few bead reamers and pipe cleaners...They will work for now...At least til I get to 100...Why am I stuck on that number?...

Thanks...

[artwhim]

That's great Eileen. Post some beadies for us sometime!
Kathy

[sugarenie]

Well, I did it...Only 1 of the 5 cracked in half...Is this pretty normal or am I doing something wrong?...I'm not the best photographer so my pics didn't come out so good but here goes...

46024 46025

Well...What do you think...

[Lisi]

Cooling in a fiber blanket, IMHO is risky anyway, but they are probably cracking because they cooled too much before they went into the blanket. But don't despair....

Get to that 100th bead and you will get your kiln, and then all your worries will be put to rest! Here's some tips on cooling beads before they go into the blanket or kiln.

Wait until the glow is nearly gone and then place inside kiln/blanket. You may be able to see that better if you look at it under the work table where it's darker. Because if you put them away too soon, they may get fibers stuck to them or indentations from the kiln floor. One of the things you may want to get for your kiln, is a "kiln mandrel rack" so they won't have to touch the floor. I think Arrow Springs sells them. But getting one of these would depend on the size of the interior of the kiln that you choose.

With Lauscha, you will want to put it away a little sooner, while it's still glowing pretty good. Lauscha, though it may be 104 COE like Effetre, it has its little quirks! And with Bullseye, even sooner. Bullseye (which is COE 90) will "stiffen up" faster than the Effetre, Vetrofond, Lauscha and other 104 COE glasses, so you want to put it away soon after it leaves the flame. I treat the 96 COE glass (Uroboros rods and sheets, Spectrum 96 sheet glass) the same as the Bullseye. After a while your judgement on these "seconds that count" before putting beads away will become second nature.

When the beads cool down too quickly they will crack right in half, so that's "thermal shock". If the cracks are crazed or jagged, that can mean one or more of the glasses you used are incompatable with each other. It's wonderful to try all types of glass COE's and by all means, do so, but be careful not to use them together! But you can use small amounts of 96 COE or other "furnace glass" frits on any COE glass, because it's just on the surface. There sure are a lot of frits out there to choose from! It's addictive, I'll warn ya! :D

Remember to mark your Bullseye and other non-104 COE glass rods with a little tag (I use Scotch tape and Sharpie pen) at the end of the rods saying "BE" or use a dab of nail polish. I keep them separate in the studio, but sometimes I have BE mixed in with the mess of 104 COE glass on my work bench!

[Louise]

Hi I am a newbie too! Your beads look great, what video did you watch, I could probably use it too.
Thanks Louise