Hothead issues

[meshell87]

hey! I'm having issues with my new hothead. It makes the colours go black! Im quite new to this so Im wondering are there anytips someone could give me?
thanks! shell

[Slaterville]

I'm guessing you have the gas up too high.

Lite your torch, let it run for a few seconds, then adjust your flame. Work your glass mid-flame or a little higher.

Hope this works for you.

[lunamoonshadow]

Move AWAY from the torch

Seriously--you're shoving the beads way too close to the torch head & frying the heck out of your glass.

Go visit www.nlcbeads.com & click on her "tutorials" link--she's got a LOVELY little diagram on there of EXACTLY WHERE you should be in the hothead flame to make pretty beads (and...she's a hothead teacher )

[cakelady]

I also on a hot head torch and a newbie. I had problems a couple of time with my beads turning black. One issue was the gas, I was using my exchange tank from my gas grill. Bad idea, as the nice guys told me from Indiana oxygen and Sundance. You have no idea what people do with those tanks. They suggested I buy a new tank and have it filled. I started doing that the difference was amazing. First bead with the new tank was great.
My Second issue was my beads turning a brownish color. Ruth helped me find out it was my glass. I work in a garage and the yuck in the air was causeing my problem. I clean all my glass and I have to clean it everytime. I also work about 4 inches from the torch head. Ruth helped me alot with the brownish issue. Thanks Ruth. Don't give up HH torches are great and I love mine. Good luck and god bless

[Chau Nguyen T]

Meshell87,
MAP gas is the best for HH but very expensive. If you make a major bead i mean with a lot of details you have to set the can of gas aside waiting for the cold moisture gone to use the can again.
Last summer i can't afford the MAP gas so i switched to Propane Gas Grill my beads were so sucks. If you plan to do a lot of beads you have to put out $150 - $200 to go to a place that sells bulk gas (i don't know what to call it.) It's about 60 - 80 pounds in a tank. Well, the gas is cheap but the tank is not. You can buy an empty tank at Harbor Freight and refill the gas. You can make hundred of beads with this tank. The price of MAP gas at Menard keeps going up all the time i think i'll go for big tank this summer.

[JBeads]

Also I found when I worked on a HH, that if I cranked open the tank all the way I got dirty beads. I only opened the valve about half way, then lit torch and adjusted the flame so it was not bushy, tried to get it as crisp as possible.

A new propane tank as well. The exchange ones I found were very dirty. The tanks do rust on the inside and get yucky build up. I think some of the black soot from charcoal bricks or the lava rocks peopel use in the BBQ's, get sucked down into the hose and tank.

I just use a 20 pound tank and it lasted me all summer on my HH, but I guess that depends on how much you are torching. I could only do it on the weekends when I started, so it lasted pretty long.

Goo luck!

[CelesteK]

I'm on a hot head with bulk propane. I've discovered what everyone else said. After you light the torch, turn the gas down. I listen to the hiss to determine the right amount. Louder hiss, too much gas. Then I work out quite a ways from the blue part of the flame. I start at the top of the flame and stop when I get to a spot where I have the soda flare. Then I force myself to work slowly; it's when I try to work fast that I burn the glass. The super light transparents seem to be the worst for me for burning.

Celeste

[scootrgrl]

I turn my flame way down, almost to the point where it sounds like its going to turn off. I work just above the bright blue tip of the flame.

Janet

[lunamoonshadow]

Originally Posted by scootrgrl

I turn my flame way down, almost to the point where it sounds like its going to turn off. I work just above the bright blue tip of the flame.

Janet

Exactly PERFECT!!

[maren]

I haven't switched to bulk propane yet, but we own our own tanks because we use it that way for cooking (plumbed in, we don't have gas lines here as we're on bedrock in earthquake country). When you move a tank the mercaptan (that is put in to warn you when you have leaks and when your tank runs empty and is heavier than propane and will settle at the bottom when you leave the tank sitting in one place) will mix more with the propane and you get guck coming out. I used up some disposable propane bottles (were getting rusty, but there's times when we need them for the Coleman lantern) and found that some of my beads turned brown. I may have worked too close to the torch, or with the canister going on empty, or too soon after moving them. If you want to work with bulk gas (one or the other), try to not move the tank just before you start making beads, get your own tank, and if there's more than one supplier where you are, find out who has the best quality gas. I'm entirely fed up with disposable canister MAPP gas (before my first one is even empty) because the flame gets less hot that even with the disposable (I hate disposable anyway) propane bottles. I know I'm in a high humidity place (normally above 70%), but having to stop every half hour sucks. When I have/find/make time to make beads I want to make beads until I decide I'm done yet (with the propane canisters at least it was when I ran out of fiber blanket space, with the MAPP gas it's 1/2 hour, max).