Quote:
Originally Posted by Mountain Snail
Kiln is literally right next to me, I have a magnetic door so I can use it as a rod warmer. That wasn't the problem, rods came out of the kiln nice and toasty and not broken or cracked. It was trying to introduce it to the flame. The amount of air pulled into these rods was visible. Long strings of air along the sides of the rods. I lost so much glass to shattering that it really isn't worth the lower cost.
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Dear Mountain Snail, I hope you will be glad to know that the shattering is not from air in the rods, it's from the rod end not being hot enough to go right into the flame.
Air in the rods is not the issue if the rod is truly preheated in a Rod Warmer. Rod Warmers are about $35 and so worth it to be able to put the rod right into the flame. This is why you need a Rod Warmer. It reaches 900 degrees or so, and the end of your rod can go right in the flame. Anything less will take slow introducing to the higher flame until it can be moved in closer to the flame.
For example, here's a picture of a Hotdog-sized clear rod in my Rod Warmer that I am about to pull thick stringer from. Thick rods like this take longer to preheat, and you need to hold them sideways, not above the flame as you work, because reflected heat can cause cracking in the cooler middle of the rod (when it is held above the flame as you work with it). The lower price would not be worth it if you lose the glass to shattering, but as many of us have learned, with a Rod Warmer you don't lose rods as a rule. I hope this helps.
