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Tips, Techniques, and Questions -- Technical questions or tips

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  #1  
Old 2008-03-11, 10:06am
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Default how do you fix cracked beads

I have heard several people mention that you can fix broken beads by slowly warming them in the kiln, and then reintroduce them to the flame. i just got my kiln, and I have a couple of cracked beads that I really would like to try and fix.
But how do you do it? i mean, how do you hold it, scince it is no longer on a mandrel. Is it any wqay to put it on a mandrel again? or do you hold it with tweezers or haemostats? and is there any other important points?
The beads that I want to try and save are rather precious to me, so its no good trying to save them to just ruin them in the process. Then I could just as well leave them cracked.
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  #2  
Old 2008-03-11, 12:39pm
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nobody...?
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  #3  
Old 2008-03-11, 12:48pm
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I put the bead back on a thinner mandrel - carefully, so that it does not scrape off the bead release. If it is too loose, I add a drop of bead release above and below the bead, but not touching the bead. When it dries, I put it in the kiln and do a fast ramp up to 940. Then I very slowly put it back in the flame. It helps if you do not put a lot of heat on the crack right away. It tends to open up and can pop off a chunk. If you heat slowly, let the melted glass migrate to the crack, you will have a better chance at recovery. Also, usually the bead is not going to stick to the mandrel and will spin while re-working it. If you have some ugly cracked beads, practice on those first!

Nancy
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  #4  
Old 2008-03-11, 1:05pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DesertGlass View Post
If you have some ugly cracked beads, practice on those first!
Yeah, I do have a cartload of those
thank you very much for the explanation.
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  #5  
Old 2008-03-11, 1:15pm
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And make sure that the exterior of the bead is clean so that you don't have anything unwanted going on, on the surface.
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  #6  
Old 2008-03-11, 1:37pm
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Make a new one. Its just not worth it. Even if you get it back together, It will always have stress. Making it suspect.
Scott
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  #7  
Old 2008-03-11, 2:00pm
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May I say that making more beads helps a lot to fix old cracked ones?.....in other words, the best is yet to come, so is it really worth the time and effort? Just curious, since it's completely up to the lampworker.....but I've never done it, because it would take up time...and I'd rather torch!
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Old 2008-03-11, 2:03pm
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Oh, I have fixed a few. You have to be very careful and reintroduce them so slowly. But I have saved some beads this way, maybe 40% that I have tried it with. I've fixed a few goddesses. If it's a focal and you like it, why not try to fix it?

It doesn't take that much time. Put it in the kiln before you turn it on and then leave it there so it gets good an soaked. Put it in the very outer reaches of the flame turning it fast and dodging it in and out. If it doesn't blow up after a minute or so move it closer, if it's still ok leave it in the flame longer and longer until you can turn it red and it doesn't blow up.

Lots of them are just going to blow up, but why not save it if you love it?
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  #9  
Old 2008-03-11, 2:43pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LaurieBSmith View Post
May I say that making more beads helps a lot to fix old cracked ones?.....in other words, the best is yet to come, so is it really worth the time and effort? Just curious, since it's completely up to the lampworker.....but I've never done it, because it would take up time...and I'd rather torch!
I am not planning on spending a lot of time fixing cracked beads,, but there are just a couple that I really really love, so I thought I might just give it a try... If it doesnt work, I'm no worse of than having wasted a halfhour or so. Ill just not watch TV that day and make up for it
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  #10  
Old 2008-03-11, 8:04pm
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The type of crack also makes a difference. If the crack is due to incompatibility, it will only crack again, so don't bother fixing it. If the thermal crack follows the mandrel completely, it is really hard to reheat without the crack opening. Some of the most successful repairs are thermal cracks on the end of long beads. Chipped ends from using too much torque when removing the bead from the mandrel can also be repaired easily.

Make sure you allow the bead to soak in the kiln for a while after it is brought up to temp and when you introduce it to the flame do so gradually at the back of the flame. Do not heat immediately on the crack, heat the rest of the bead first. After you have repaired the bead, you must make sure the entire bead is so hot that any weakness deep down in the bead will also get healed.

If you only need to repair a chipped end of a long bead, you don't need to put it back on a mandrel. This works best if the chip isn't huge. Grind off the end of the bead to even it off and get rid of the chip. Heat the bead in the kiln and soak. Use heated loop hemostats and hold the bead by the end that doesn't need to be fixed. Only introduce the very end that needs to be fixed. Do not heat the whole bead. Watch very carefully, you only need to fire polish the area that was ground, but you don't want to heat so much that the hole closes. As soon as you have a nice polish, garage the bead and anneal again.

Cracks are much easier to repair if you notice them before you take the bead off the mandrel because you can fix it on the same mandrel you made it on without changing the bead release.

If I've spent the time making a really long bead tube bead, I don't mind spending the time fixing a crack. Making a new one would take longer.

Hope you can save them!
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  #11  
Old 2008-03-11, 8:14pm
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I would melt them into cabs if I was you.
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  #12  
Old 2008-03-11, 8:15pm
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Or use them in a mosaic
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  #13  
Old 2008-03-12, 1:10am
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Carolyn M View Post
I would melt them into cabs if I was you.
cant do that, I've got the chili pepper bead annealer, it doesn't get hot enough...
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  #14  
Old 2008-03-12, 2:47am
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Most of my cracks I notice before they are removed from the mandrel, so I would think that if you check them out thoroughly, you could put the whole thing in the kiln.
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  #15  
Old 2008-03-13, 3:14pm
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DesertGlass View Post
I put the bead back on a thinner mandrel - carefully, so that it does not scrape off the bead release. If it is too loose, I add a drop of bead release above and below the bead, but not touching the bead. When it dries, I put it in the kiln and do a fast ramp up to 940. Then I very slowly put it back in the flame. It helps if you do not put a lot of heat on the crack right away. It tends to open up and can pop off a chunk. If you heat slowly, let the melted glass migrate to the crack, you will have a better chance at recovery. Also, usually the bead is not going to stick to the mandrel and will spin while re-working it. If you have some ugly cracked beads, practice on those first!

Nancy
Just be careful, HelleAlice, when you take those mandrels out of the kiln to re-introduce into the flame...they may be really HOT! I'd maybe wear some leather gloves to be safe (leather makes a great barrier against heat).
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Old 2008-03-13, 8:06pm
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I think the concept of --bringing into the flame slowly-- cannot be overemphasized. I've tried to repair a couple of beads and have had explosions each time. I apparently don't know just how slowly they need to be introduced to the flame, but it must be verrrrry slow!
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  #17  
Old 2008-03-14, 10:10am
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Quote:
Originally Posted by HelleAlice View Post
I am not planning on spending a lot of time fixing cracked beads,, but there are just a couple that I really really love, so I thought I might just give it a try... If it doesnt work, I'm no worse of than having wasted a halfhour or so. Ill just not watch TV that day and make up for it
sounds like you have a plan....
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  #18  
Old 2020-09-16, 4:14pm
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Default Fixing Cracked Bail

I tried it. It worked. (Amazed.)
Put the bead (with cracked bail) back into the cool kiln - let it ramp up to the 900 dg. Let is sit for about 10 minutes. Turned the torch on - heated up some long tweezers - grabbed it, wafted it in the top of the flame...and that was enough to mend the crack.
I was very luck.
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