Why doest thine pendant cracketh?

Planet bamboozle · #1 2011-01-20, 5:35pm

Heyall. I just recently started dabbling with implosion pendants and after 19/20 of them cracking on me I've decided I need answers. I've never had this problem before with mushroom pendants, leafs, marbles etc.. Only with implosion pendants. Does anyone have any ideas as to why this is?

deb tarry · #2 2011-01-20, 5:48pm

Where and when do they crack?

deb tarry · #3 2011-01-20, 5:50pm

I mean 'whereth and whenth doth they crackth?

alb6094 · #4 2011-01-20, 5:55pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by deb tarry

I mean 'whereth and whenth doth they crackth?

Thou dost cracketh me up.

J.Meader · #5 2011-01-20, 6:16pm

Can thou provideth us a picture...

jonibird · #6 2011-01-20, 6:42pm

lol!

menty666 · #7 2011-01-20, 6:43pm

And which colors hast thou wrought into thine glass?

shawnette · #8 2011-01-20, 6:47pm

Thou dost loveth thine thread!

deb tarry · #9 2011-01-20, 8:43pm

No serious man give us more info.

Planet bamboozle · #10 2011-01-21, 9:32am

thine art a fine groupeth of folk.
They keep cracking in my kiln. I've tried setting it on several different temperatures but always with the same outcome. The crack is always on the inside of the pendant in almost a straight line across the middle. I've tried using several different colors (all from glass alchemy, which I've never used until just recently)
I don't have a computer, just an iPod touch, so I can't upload any pictures. But I'll see what I can do about borrowing my roommate to get some up so you can have a visual.
Thine help is much appreciated....eth

JesterGlass · #11 2011-01-21, 9:53am

Can you tell us which GA colors? If they're green, or if they're sparkly, or if they're green and sparkly, that may be a factor.

Are you setting the pendant down on the hot floor of the kiln? If so it may be thermal shock. Use fiber blanket.

Are you using a cold pair of tweezers to put them into the kiln? If so it may be thermal shock.

edit: mentally replace all "Are you" with "Art thou"

Planet bamboozle · #12 2011-01-21, 10:04am

You may have hit the nail on the head. I do use green in most of them. (not sure the exact names of the colors, I can check when I get back home) And I do set them on the floor of the kiln. But I don't use cold tweezers. So at least I got that goin for me.

I'll try one without green. See if that works. Also I'll try and pick up a thermal blanket, as I don't have one. Thank you! (boy am I glad I found this site!)

Bunyip · #13 2011-01-21, 10:06am

They have kiln paper (or something similar) which is thinner and easier to work with than fiber blanket - look into that as well - but if you're using green that's probably the culprit. Try using blue moon or turquesa or something like that instead and see how your results are

Ed_Slawson · #14 2011-01-21, 10:20am

The two greens that can be deeply embedded and not cause problems are Glasstronics dark green, and Northstar experimental green. The old Corning Green Dwarf is good too, but almost unobtainable.

menty666 · #15 2011-01-21, 10:39am

The Elan/Origin Dwarf Green was encasable too but I don't know that they sell it anymore. Not the swiftest group over there.

BellaBean · #16 2011-01-21, 11:25am

Check the crack very closely. Do you notice any air bubbles? I had a few crack when I first started doing complex implosions. When I examined the crack, I noticed a small oblong airbubble near the termination point of the implosion. I've become very careful about terminating cleanly and haven't had a further issues.

That said... I think the issue is probably the green.

ABR Dave · #17 2011-01-21, 12:16pm

if you don't properly marver the back as you implode, it's pretty hard to keep from trapping air, which is what causes it to crack from the inside out.

when your edges drop down, are you just covering the divit in the back with color? this traps are too.

Cornbread · #18 2011-01-21, 12:32pm

if you're using green and your technique is right...you could be annealing too long. greens and sparkly want to "sweat" and change coe on you if they get over worked or garage for a long long time. can't wait to see the cracking and find the result of said crack.

J.Meader · #19 2011-01-21, 1:03pm

Quote:

Originally Posted by BellaBean

Check the crack very closely. Do you notice any air bubbles? I had a few crack when I first started doing complex implosions. When I examined the crack, I noticed a small oblong airbubble near the termination point of the implosion. I've become very careful about terminating cleanly and haven't had a further issues.

That said... I think the issue is probably the green.

Hmm I have been playing with that air bubble, I have been letting the implosion cup on it self to trap some air and them it draws out with the implosion...looks really cool, but I didn't think about it being a cracking issue, well none of them have cracked yet so I guess I better keep an eye on them

Venbead · #20 2011-01-21, 1:13pm

if you want green implosions with no cracking try blue caramel or my favorite implosion color black pearl

ABR Dave · #21 2011-01-21, 1:22pm

these greens are awesome for implosions and deep encasement.

http://www.dichroicimagery.com/advan...r4pqin2lhfo1v7

Mr. Smiley · #22 2011-01-21, 1:26pm

warm your tweezers before you grab it to put it in the kiln...

JesterGlass · #23 2011-01-22, 7:00am

Air bubbles melted perfectly spherical are usually not a problem. Elongated/strange shaped ones can contribute to cracking.

Mary K · #24 2011-01-22, 11:35pm

Might thou be gazing a fortnight upon thine pendant and admiring
it's beauty to the pointeth of coolness, and then lo, when put into a hot kiln
a crack appears? Is all your glass the same coe?

gmkcpa · #25 2011-01-23, 6:24am

Thine thread is so funny that I laughedeth so hard that I tumbledeth off my chair and fell on the floor so hard that I broketh my butt, because now it too doest haveth a cracketh in it.

Planet bamboozle · #26 2011-01-27, 6:21am

So I've been toying around with some without the green and have yet to have one crack on me without. Also picked up some kiln paper just In case. But now have a small collection of UNcracked semi reasonable implosion pendants. Thanks for all your input! I'm learning loads about the little technicalaties that are easy for a beginer to overlook through this website!
Thine help is much appreciatedeth.

deb tarry · #27 2011-01-27, 8:32am

'appreciatedeth' just try saying that one out loud. Can't can you. We should start a thread with pictures of our practise and rejects. When I started to work on the implosion technique some said to get a box for rejects. Well my box runth over.

gmkcpa · #28 2011-01-27, 8:56am

Before I make something I have a real good picture in my mind of exactly how I want it to look. If it doesn't look the way I envisioned it, is it a reject? If so, then I have a very very large collection of rejects. (Although after looking at most of them for a few days I usually say "Wow, these are really good!)

murf · #29 2011-01-27, 10:18am

I hear a lot about greens cracking pieces but have yet to experience the problem.
what garage temp are you sitting at? my shop is now at the coast and it seems every other day i walk up to the kiln with PF flashing. (power failure) yet not once have i lost a mib. my SC2 kiln keeps it heat and cools slow enough to save the pieces. I suspect your kiln is too cool at a garage temp.. or "warm your tweezers before you grab it to put it in the kiln"

Planet bamboozle · #30 2011-01-28, 6:25am

I'm sure the temp ain't doin much good for it. I'm working out of a half finished shed in northern Utah. So even though it's a quick transition from flame to kiln my piece is still exposed to 15-25 degree cold air before making it into the kiln... The kiln still takes a good four or five hours to cool despite the cold. But I can't help but think that it does affect it.

N I like the idea of a reject thread. Good thing I don't have a way of uploading pics or I might take that one over real quick! Eth