Devardi Mini Annealer ??
 

Ok..i have a mini annealer from a Christmas present and now have a question...my turtle that i made today barely fit in there..but i had it so nothing was touching the sides, top or bottom.

my fins on the front of my turtle apparently slumped..guess that is the word. They are now resting on the bottom and are stuck there (kiln is still going thru the annealing process).

Any idea when it is finished how to get them unstuck? Also, I have a Glass Hive on order, when i get that..how do i stop this from happening in that as well.

Thanks in advance
Becky

Wont happen in a Glass Hive, they know what they are doing when they build annealers.

You may get lucky and the legs will lift off the floor of the Devardi, but don't bet on it. You might need to try and slip a thin blade under them to pop them off, you will most likely pop them off the turtle.

Sorry, but that is the general nature of what I have tried from that supplier - sounds good, look intriguing, almost works.......

Good Luck, you'll love the Glass Hive

Aw damn Becky; I hope he's salvagable! I have a mini annealer too, and had a bunch of rods I was trying to anneal do the same thing. They just popped off the bottom when it was cool - hopefully the turtle will do the same!

Won't happen with the Glass Hive unless something goes badly wonky (and you would know before hand). Temp control on the mini's is difficult; I actually bought a small digital thermometer to check it and make sure that didnt happen again.

Alli

Really, Seriously?

Don't even get me started. That whole page is laughable.

Just the page? :lol:

I haven't had any problems with my mini since i have gotten it and i've tested the hardness :) my crap beads turn into stress beads..i anneal them..then throw them against the concrete floor LOL takes alot to break them that's for sure.

It works for me for small things, and for a rod warmer..it's is exactly what i was expecting...i just didn't think the fins would droop..otherwise i'd have done something different...

This wasn't a start to bash anything..just saying...

Becky

I'm restraining myself a bit. :razz:

I highly doubt that this modified curling iron warmer is actually annealing beads. But hey, it passed the "throw your beads against the floor" hardness test so maybe I'm totally wrong.

Sorry but most "D" threads just naturally lead to it

well this was more a threat of how can i get my bead to be detached when it's done thread :)

that is all I care about.

BEcky

I preheat Devardi rods in the Sally Beauty Supply curling iron heater that this "mini-annealer" is based on. Devardi rods slump in it. When they stick to the lining, they pick up parts of it.

Since the turtle is stuck to the inside surface of this supposed "mini-annealer," if you get it loose and if it survives, the feet will probably have ceramic material stuck to it. My bet is that your turtle doesn't survive intact trying to pry it loose from the heater.

The Glass Hive kiln will keep a consistent temperature better than this silly "mini-annealer" does. My Sally Beauty Supply heater displays wild fluctuations in temperature. Create a mandrel holder for use inside the Glass Hive so your beads don't come close to touching the kiln floor.

will the fins still move or slump down in the Glass Hive like it did in this? Uggh going to be a long 4 weeks before that Hive is here LOL

since this was my first turtle, it's ok if the fins have stuff on them..it's not going anywhere but here...but i sure would like to get it out intact if possible lol

Becky

NO, they shouldn't unless they are way to thin

Is your annealer lined Becky? Mine isn't; hence no difficulty popping the melted rods off.

Alli

No Ali..it's not lined. That's good to know David. I don't think they are too thin...but i won't know till tomorrow when i get it out. I'll have to get out my caliper and see how thick they are.

I think i'll wait to make another one till my Glass Hive gets here.

Becky

Becky, if you have your GH controller set to the correct temperature it should be fine.
I believe your mini must be spiking into "slumping" temperatures.

GH told me they will set my controller for me ..hope it's easy to use. Still trying to understand the firing requirements for glass.

Alot different then Ceramics.

Becky

The Glass Hive is super easy to run. Just keep pushing buttons until something happens. Then, call Pam in a panic to find out what I did wrong. She will get it back to normal whilst very patiently telling what to push and in what order. Then, so you don't do the same stupid thing again, get a Sharpie Pen and write on the kiln, the instructions so you don't do it again.

I'm not going to get into a devardi bashing session, thats just counter productive.

Throwing beads on the floor is not a test of annealing, the only way you can test if a bead is annealed is to put it in front of a polariscope. That little gadget is a curling iron heater, nothing more.

Glass Hive will program your annealer for you before they ship it. Just let them know what programs you want. If you're worried about glass sticking, you can give the kiln floor a coat of kiln wash. If your kiln is programmed to the right temp, it shouldn't be a problem, though.

I use a curling iron stove for warming rods and it gets way hotter than it's supposed to. I've attached a rheostat to mine to control the temp. I also have a piece of graphite inside so that the rods don't stick to the ceramic if I put them back in when they're too hot.

I batch anneal all my beads in a glass hive kiln, none have ever stuck to the floor. I really love my GH kiln. I know batch annealing isn't as ideal as going straight from the torch to kiln but the wiring in my studio won't support it yet. I have no input on the mini annealer from Devardi as I have never used one.

Caroline

devardi's tools are actually very good. great claw grabbers and the like.

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! :lol:
Oh that is good!

A lot of ovens and kilns will spike temps as they heatup.
Much like older thermostats, the temp may actually be a bit warmer befor the element cycles depending on the placement of the thermo coupler, heating elemtents and openings you can also have spots that are warmer or colder.

This is why your cookies may need to be rotated to get an even color when baking, the top rack cooks faster, why the cook times vary a little between the first tray and the last.
And convection ovens are faster than traditional ovens.
You also have thermal transfer that can affect cooking times between aluminum pans and glass pans.
Not that this has anything to do with glass work just an illustration of what might be contributeing to the issues of your mini annealer.

GOOD NEWS...little Ralph's fins just popped off the bottom of the mini annealer...bad news..it looks like he's walking on tippy fins (like tippy toes) lol told the hubby he can sit over my monitor and watch me as that would be the perfect width ha ha.

Thank you for all the comments...come on GH..get here so I can make more of these cute little guys!!

LOL :)

Mike

Tammy that is funny..sounds like something I'd do!

Oh boy, don't even get me started...

Too late, you already did. The "thermal shock test", which is:

Bouncing beads off the concrete floor after putting them in boiling water, and then dropping them into icy water. Oh yeah, the other thing, the radiation test. :rolleyes:

As far as the Devardi annealer goes, there is no reason why it wouldn't work to anneal a few beads as long as the temperature can be properly monitored. I assume you would have to babysit it. Very closely. You will have much less to worry about when you get your Glasshive kiln. :)

From the image it appears the term "annealer" is very loosely applied IMO. Yes, there is a way to control the temperature but did not see any indication of a thermocouple or readout device.

Annealing temperature control can be done manually, but it is labor intensive. The use of a PID electronic controller simplifies the task.