Please help me pick a glass....

[judi]

I am brand new to this wonderful art and i am trying to decide what glass to use . I fuse with Bullseye and tried making a bead with one of their rods and it was much more difficult to use than what i used in my class. But i have tons of busllseye frit and stringers...will it work with an easier glass rod? What type of glass goes with what type of glass and whose glass your favorite? Who has the best colors? Oh, i've filled my head with so much information that it feels like mush now.....please help me decide...i need to order glass!!!!
Thanks in advance,
Judi

[chrisdd]

I think Bullseye is great for beginners. It does take a little longer to melt, but that makes it a LOT easier to control than Effetre/Vetrofond. You can mix Vetrofond, Effetre and Lauscha; I don't think you can use BE frit on them at all (someone correct me if I'm wrong). You can use Gaffer, Reichenbach, and some other frit on V/E/L as long as you use it sparingly. Something like 5% of the total bead. I love ALL the glass colors, so I'm no help with that. ;)

[DawnT]

I learned on Effetre. It's common for beginners because most of the colors are less expensive. When I first started I bought a sampler pack from Arrow Springs. As for specific colors - that's tough. You could start out with a sampler pack and play but it's great to know which colors cost more so you don't waste those practicing your spacers and such!

I just recently purchased a sampler of Bullseye and I really love this glass too. And Uroboros...and Pi..I love all glass.

Just make sure that whatever you're using you don't mix COEs. Bullseye is 90 and Effetre 104 for example and they are not compatible in any amount.

Furnace glass frits like Chris was saying contain lead and this makes them compatible in small amounts with other COEs.

[sassy]

I learned with effetre, however I agree that the bullseye would probably have been better because of the slower time to melt it.

[Cosmo]

Bullseye is very beginner friendly if using a dual fuel torch. If using a hot head, I would stay with something 104 COE.

104 glass still has the widest range of colors, though.

[CarolinaDreamDesigns]

I started on a hothead and loved Bullseye and Uroboros because it seems to just round up better and have nicer holes easier. Now that I'm on a Piranha, the 104 glass melts almost too fast but I love LOVE working with the 90 and 96.

Martha