Air-Dri vs. Flame Dri

I like using flame dry for a couple of reason.

1. You can let it air dry. Mine usually dries in 20 minutes or so.

1. You can flame dry while it's wet and start working immediately. I'm always running out of mandrels and if I'm in a groove I don't want to wait for mandrels to dry.

If I were to recommend any bead release it would be Foster Fire. I haven't used it yet, but all my friends do and they love it. I'm in a test program for them and I'll be receiving mine soon.

Starlia

thanks! That answered my question. I do most of my dipping the night before (or two, or three...when I get to do it). I didn't want to waste all the MAPP gas flamedrying the beadrelease. I do have quite a bit of mandrels (made some, also).

In fact, they have been stored, and now, I have to go get them, and wash them all off, and re-dip them. Or at least get them ready to dip. Got the crock pot and the vermiculite ready...just gotta start begging for batch annealing from people, LOL!

Mary

Try using the mandrels within a day of drying them. The bead release tends to break down the longer you wait.

Also, I flame dry while heating up my rods. The flame dry takes only a couple of seconds while your rods are heating up enough to start winding.

Starlia

One thing to remember about flame-drying is that any moisture at all that's left in the bead release will likely form steam, and can introduce bubbles (not good) into your beads.

Tink

Whoop-de-Do!

I've been using Blue Sludge since I started, but recently I've heard VERY good things about a release called Purple Piffle.

I torture my beads horridly, and break the release about 1 in 3 times, so I'm going to be trying it out. I'm also trying Foster Fire.

-Kalera

meijhana wrote:

vj found this in rec.crafts.beads, from Kalera Stratton :

]I torture my beads horridly, and break the release about 1 in 3 times

i watched Lynda [beadgoddess] keep working on one yesterday after the bead release broke. absolutely amazing!

----------- @vicki [SnuggleWench] (Books)

(Jewelry) newest creations: ----------- The measure of the menace of a man is not what hardware he carries, but what ideas he believes.-- Jeff Jordan

Yeah, you can get pretty ingenious when it comes to saving a bead if you have some time invested in it! Mine usually breaks during encasing, and I can usually keep going.

-Kalera

vj wrote: