Questions for the lampworkers

Kathy, I have mashers, but I don't like using them. I just slightly press the bead between my graphite marver and my graphite paddle. Less is more, and I tweak it after I'm done with my stainless dental tool that I love so much.

As for keeping the shape... It sounds to me as though you're letting your bead get, and stay, too hot. When I first started lampworking, I had a tendency to think I had to keep the glass really hot and soupy. Again, less is more. Try just heating the apex of the bead on the edge of the flame. I seldom have the whole bead in the flame.

Thanks. I have mashers but they are sooo big, and seem better for making tabs. I'll try the paddle and marver- sounds like a plan!

Who me get the glass really hot and melty????? Actually I do so I can get the colors all swirled together with a pick. So maybe after the swirling I get it more away from the flame?

Oh- and lesson learned last night. If you are using double ended dental picks- if you just used one end and decide to turn it around and use the other end - guess what - the first end is still HOT! No burns- but I dropped it really quickly:)

Kathy, when you are done with your bead, take it out of the flame and keep turning it slowly away from you and hold it under your table still turning it until you see the glow decrease, then put it in the crock pot. HTH

What Tink said. Jim Smircich defines that cool state as maintaining a "chill skin". The surface glass is cool enough to contain the inner, still hot and soft glass. It takes practice and a lot of just looking at the glass, but after a while you can "read your bead" better. When you're shaping, especially refining a shape, you do NOT want your glass to ever be more than medium orange-hot.

I'll be the voice of dissent about tools, though. I love my big BBQ mashers and my second favorites are my mini-mashers, which are square plates soldered on to tweezers. Very useful for fins on fishies, too.

-- KarenK Desert Dreamer Designs

the colors all swirled together with a pick. So maybe after the swirling I get it more away from the flame?<

Ohhh honey! LOL I'm a raking fiend (half the beads I've done the last few days are raked). Trust me, you do NOT want to get the whole bead melty. It works out much better if you have your base shape established BEFORE you start raking. I do this with all my feathered bicones and rounds. If you don't start with the right shape, the final shaping will be a total struggle. Make your shape, apply the colors you want to be raked, then just surface heat. You don't need a lot of heat to get the surface to move, and it helps to have a solid core as a backboard.

And yeah, Jim Smircich is THE pro on all this. His books and videos are totally worthwhile, but save your pennies and get a class with him. My beadmaking totally changed after his class.

-- KarenK Desert Dreamer Designs

My current fav tools are my Lentil Mashers and my BBQ mashers! Everything gets smashed!

Nicole

Kathy, I use a combination of mashers and the paddle and graphite pad. I start it with the mashers (just slightly) in one direction then finish it between the paddle and the marving pad. Then I do the other direction the same way. You can heat just the corners of your cube and touch the end of a warm rod to it and gently pull the corners out, but not too far. Then you can gently hit it with a little heat to let the corner settle back a bit into the cube shape. Hard to explain, but it just takes practice.

I think if I had better mashers, I would like them. Mine are SUPER heavy, and are in the "normally closed" position. I think I would like some that are more like BBQ tongs: Normally open, then you squeeze them closed on the bead.

1. I use mashers for my cubes - big, industrial kind of mashers. Using a paddle is really difficult.
2. I have never used a crock pot except for my first class, and I do not recommend it because of the safety issues with vermiculite. I would recommend trying for a used kiln. :)

Ooooh, yeah - I have done that several times! Ouch!!

Thanks everyone!!! I love this place!!

I think I was using the mashers (I have the big ones) with my left hand- I'll try again using my right hand (a little more control). Just more things to play with!

On the too hot to hold it's shape business - the bead is well shaped until I move it away from the flame - I think I've been so afraid they will crack that I'm not really letting it get to the "skin" point and I'm moving it out too fast.

Man I wish my kiln would get here already!!!

Kathy K

The mini mashers sound cool. I like the bbq mashers for doing tabs.

Kathy K

Hey Kandice,

I have a kiln ordered - just waiting for it......... tap tap tap - impatient tapping foot!!!!

Kathy K

Here's how I make my cubes - Make a base bead, slightly larger than an average round bead. Any decoration that will be melted in can be applied before you mash your cube. After you have your decorated base bead, heat it until it softly glows, then take it out of the flame for a second or two. Once it begins to cool off, you can mash it. Don't wait too long, or it won't mash, but you do want some resistance so the glass doesn't go everywhere. When you go to shape your cube, hold the bead in your left hand so that the hot tip of the mandrel is pointing at you. Hold it straight, parallel to the floor. Make sure you keep it straight while mashing, or the cube may not be straight. (I know, sounds scary, but it's okay). The mashers will be in in your right hand, perpendicular to the bead in your left, but still parallel to the floor. Mash the bead lightly with the mashers on one side, then the rotate 90 degrees to do the other side, quickly, then flash your cube (Waving the bead in and out of the flame slowly) back into the flame. Don't push too hard while mashing, or your bead will be rectangular. Been there. :) Once it's slightly glowing again, mash it again, really slightly, to sharpen the edges. Then, make sure you firepolish it to get all the chill marks off the surface. Do this by slowly moving each side of the bead in and out of the flame while it softly glows. Not enough to kill the shape of the bead, but enough to remove the chill marks. This takes a couple of minutes. After you have your cube, you can then add any surface decoration that will stay raised. While doing this, it's important to flash your cube every 10 seconds or so, so it stays warm and does not crack. That's how I do it, but YMMV. :) Hope this helps!

LOL - I hear you there! You can let small beads cool to the point that they are not glowing before you plunge them into the crock pot. In fact, it's best if they aren't glowing when you put them into the kiln, too. Basically, flash your bead in the flame slowly until the glow is almost completely gone, then move it to the kiln or crockpot or blanket, and you should be fine. Anything big (like 20mm or more) will not work in a crock pot - it will crack because it's too cold. :) Hope this helps!

Don't feel bad. I get weekly burns still.

Go ahead ans keep rotating that bead waaay up in the tip of the flame until the glow is almost gone... then you can bring it out and pop it into your cooling medium. Unless it's Bullseye, which needs to be bright red still or it'll crack.