My Beginning Adventures in Glass: From Day 1

[rahoorkhuit93]

[edit] Pics Added

I'm on day 3. But I have kept everything I've made so far. I didn't read anything in the rules about "reserving" a thread, so that's just what I'm going to do. I will post the pics after I'm done playing in the shop today.

WARNING: This is not going to be impressive stuff. At least not at first. Of the 4 things I've made so far I'm only really proud of one of them, and that's just because I suck so bad. I'm doing this solely for the purposes of opening myself to criticism so I can get better.

Pics to follow in several hours. And yes, most of the stuff is really really bad. Again, this is more for me than you guys :D

[Glacier_Arts_Studio]

i have a thread like this one...lol...
just because it's poop, doesn't mean than
i love it any less...

..

[dorkeedude]

Most of the stuff I've made looks like colorful poop, so don't feel bad!:eeek

[rahoorkhuit93]

OK, here are the pics.

The first one was my very first time on a torch period. It was intended to be a butterfly, then a dragonfly, and now... well, it's kind of just a fly. I didn't have proper mashers at the time and the wings were "drawn" and gradually flattened with forceps.

http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx64/rahoorkhuit93/FIRSTOBJECT.jpg

This is my second attempt. I realized at this point that doing things right the first time was often better than trying to adjust it afterwards. I also learned that the fins of a seahorse are not actually positioned as they are in the sculpture, lol.

http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx64/rahoorkhuit93/2NDOBJECT2.jpg

And my third. This one was a slight improvement. One of the fins is much larger than the other, but hey at least it's in the right position. I was, and still am sort of, having problems pulling the neck, tail, and mouth out. It seems like the glass gets too hot and just melts apart rather than giving me a good stretch. I notice in a lot of videos that people seem to stretch things out while only heating one side. I myself try to rotate it around before pulling. Could this be the problem? Won't heating just one side mess something else up?
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx64/rahoorkhuit93/3RDOBJECT1.jpg

And now, for the thing I did today. I made two picture because I'm actually quite proud of this, even though it still sucks in the grand scheme of things. At this point I figured out how to use gravity. I'm having a bit of trouble stretching out wings/fins, it's hard to tell exactly where to heat and how much. I'm wondering if I'm not operating the torch right. It seems like a smaller, less hot flame worked better for the wings, otherwise the glass seemed to get too molten to pull and would only stretch the very tip of the fin.
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx64/rahoorkhuit93/4THOBJECT1.jpg
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx64/rahoorkhuit93/4THOBJECT2.jpg


So far so good I guess. I was hoping I'd start off a bit stronger than this, the videos on youtube make it look so easy. I also did some hollow work, but none of it actually ended with anything recognizable, so I'm not going to bother with any pics. I didn't really buy very much tubing, so I may not get to practice much with it right now. Sucks too, cause I really got into this to make pipes :chilling:.

[Conchis]

Your first stuff is much better than my first stuff... keep it up! This is all about practice and muscle memory. One day you'll look at those videos and you'll see how many "simple moves" the person who's making that video had to learn to make it all just one seamless cooperating movement with glass, heat and gravity. Nice job just stay with it.

[Glacier_Arts_Studio]

you are doing well for your first day on the torch...
and the fact that you don't have direct input while
your working, adds to that... watching videos is a
great tool and you show that you have done your
research with your question,

"I notice in a lot of videos that people seem to stretch things out while only
heating one side. I myself try to rotate it around before pulling. Could this
be the problem? Won't heating just one side mess something else up?"

(imho) you should heat everything evenly, that you intend to
move (pull)... heat it and remove it from the fire, stick it and
let it set a bit before you do your pull... the hotter it is when
you pull it, the thinner it will be and the cooler it is, the thicker
it will be... if it is too cold when you pull it out, it will let you
know with stretch marks but, you can polish them out with a
needle flame.... you will learn the dance...

welcome to your new addiction...

...

[cc_bob]

Looking good. Check out this video (http://www.youtube.com/user/crazy4glass#p/u/9/CzMcKEEOUe4), it will show you how to make wings without a masher.

These are probably the best three YouTube channels for someone just starting in glass. They cover a lot of basics and some fun stuff as well.
Crazy4Glass (http://www.youtube.com/user/crazy4glass)
Acroduster (http://www.youtube.com/user/acroduster) - Gotta love this channel!
Timia Glass (http://www.youtube.com/user/TimiaGlass)

I have a bunch of other subscriptions on my channel (http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=cubcadetbob&view=subscriptions), mostly glass (some music and other stuff too).

[Uriel]

Acroduster is just beta testing a beginners lampworking Dvd, aimed at folk who have very little torch time.
Ive found his youtube videos Uber helpful, almost as much use as this place, once you start to feel how 33 flows you can start to dissasemble tutorials and follow them much easier.
Practice and practice and more practice is THE most essential skill a lampworker can learn.

[rahoorkhuit93]

I've run into a problem. A 5-foot tall oxygen tank only lasted me about 4 days of about 2-4 hours a day, and it's $30 a refill. I'm running my torch at a slightly lower psi than is recommended for this tip AND I'm not running the torch at anywhere near it's full capacity. I think I might have to buy an oxygen concentrator, I simply cannot afford to pay this kind of money for the oxygen. Do you guys think an M-10 5-lpm, 10 psi oxycon will power this torch?

[Stegee]

Nice man. Just keep making stuff and things will get better


I've run into a problem. A 5-foot tall oxygen tank only lasted me about 4 days of about 2-4 hours a day, and it's $30 a refill.

What company do you use for oxygen? I use national welders and was able to talk them down a good bit. It helps when you use a lot of oxygen. Maybe bit the bullet for two to three more tanks and then go tell them if they want to keep your business then they need to come down. You could also try a different company and see if they will give you a better price. Ask them both about liquid while you at it.



I'm running my torch at a slightly lower psi than is recommended for this tip AND I'm not running the torch at anywhere near it's full capacity. I think I might have to buy an oxygen concentrator, I simply cannot afford to pay this kind of money for the oxygen. Do you guys think an M-10 5-lpm, 10 psi oxycon will power this torch?

I might have missed it but what torch are you running?

That concentrator will run the torch but not to full capacity. IMHO I would try to stick with tanks but if you can't, get the biggest concentrator you can afford.

[rahoorkhuit93]

I'm running a National 8m with SM-7 tip. I'm seriously considering getting the oxygen concentrator AND keeping the tank for when I want to do larger stuff. I've already leased the tank for a year, but I know for a fact that farther from my location there IS cheaper oxygen. I'm concerned with having to travel so far though, it's about a 30-45 minute drive. The stuff I'm doing now is very very small, I think I could get away with primarily using the oxygen concentrator.

[rahoorkhuit93]

Ok, I haven't given up, in case anyone was wondering. I'm limiting my torch time until I can get my financial situation straightened out... or my oxy concentrator gets here. And even then I'm thinking I'm going to be limited to very very small things. I do have some pics of some more crap that I'll upload tonight or tomorrow.

The sculptural work seems to be going okay for me, but everything else is giving me trouble. I managed to create a very very tiny steamroller erm... tobacco pipe, but I don't have a bowl push so I have to use forceps, lol.

A big thing I'm having trouble with is this damned silver fuming. As of right now that's my only way to get any color on my glass (which is cheap chinese boro, at that). I tried to do a fumed mushroom marble/pendant, but it just wouldn't work. I tried fuming the bottom of the marble and pushing a stringer of clear through, which worked somewhat, but only barely. I also tried to encase a silver fumed clear rod and pull stringer, but the fuming seems to diminish as I pull the stringer and it disappears altogether when I push it into the marble. Any tips on making this work? Should I just wait till I get some proper colored glass?

Also, when I fume the glass it tends to be yellowish. Is this normal for silver? It seems to turn blue when I encase it but if left on the surface it is straight up yellow.

Anyone know of something easy that I can practice fuming with? Like really really easy? I'd rather do a marble or pendant than a pipe, I'm really not doing to well in that area at the moment.

[hashmasta-kut]

maybe try and make a small clear vessel, like a scotch glass or something. they fume nice, a clear glass...

[faded]

1 spoon will pay for your gas for the week. in a few months you won't be worrying about it. have fun and do what can. :)

[naughty pirate wench]

Your work is looking really good - especially considering you've never received direct instruction! :clap:

I second the suggestions re: Acroduster's YouTube videos - very helpful!

One thing you might consider (filthygodbrother shared this tip with me): score yourself a copy of Homer Hoyt's book, Glassblowing: An Introduction to Solid and Blown Glass Sculpturing, and work through the lessons in that book. Keep an eye out for it on half.com and Amazon - you might be able to find a used copy for not too much money.

Hang in there and enjoy the ride!

[cc_bob]

One thing you might consider (filthygodbrother shared this tip with me): score yourself a copy of Homer Hoyt's book, Glassblowing: An Introduction to Solid and Blown Glass Sculpturing, and work through the lessons in that book.

Also check your local library, even if they do not have it ask. My library can get books from other libraries in their network and it's all free. Also check to see if your local library has a web site to browse books on glass (search for GlassBlowing, Flameworking, lampworking etc...).

And....
Get a library subscription to the GLDG lending library. (http://www.gldglibrary.com/) or get some through SmartFlix.

For a beginner the Lewis Wilson videos (http://smartflix.com/store/video/1324/Sculptural-Glassworking) are AWESOME. They're a bit monotone but a LOT of good content and will help you a LOT!! He covers basic welds, and shaping very well using only clear.

[rahoorkhuit93]

Thanks for the advice and encouragement everyone. I'm having a blast, it's just as fun as I imagined it would be. I'll be on the lookout for these vids and books. I already have one vid called Essential Lampworking Vol. 1. It's pretty good, but it's mostly hollow form stuff. I need some good sculptural vids. I've just about bled youtube dry. I wish more glass peeps would put stuff on there.

Welp, here's the latest pics. I think after this I'm going to refrain from posting every single thing I make in this thread. If I don't it's probably going to be filled with garbage. I'll still put all of the stuff in my photobucket gallery though.

First of all, here's my Onie-Roller. The bowl was made without a bowl push, by spinning a very large pair of forceps into the glass. It worked quite well. I'm having trouble getting these hollow form things to do what I want them to do. I had to "squish" this into a ball (like for reversals) and stretch it into the shape I want. Is that legitimate technique? If I try to condense the glass by just heating it, it tends to either fold on me or stretch. How can I fix that and just get it to thicken up?
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx64/rahoorkhuit93/GEDC0134.jpg

Another thing I tried was a small T-Rex. I notice my glass has a lot of bubbles, and I didn't really fire polish this one. I dunno if it's me or the glass, but I did get the cheeeeaap chinese stuff. And before anyone says it, yes, this is one of the Barney type t-rex dinosaurs... you know... before we figured out that they probably didn't drag their tails :D
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx64/rahoorkhuit93/GEDC0140.jpg

And... another bird. This time it's shaped a bit more like a real penguin. I guess now's a good time to mention that I'm not artistically inclined at all. This glass hobby is my first real attempt at making anything that could even remotely be considered "art".
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx64/rahoorkhuit93/GEDC0138.jpg

And last but not least, a lizard. I really liked how this one turned out. I won't be selling it or anything, but I see definite improvement. I tried to fire polish the stretch-marks so this one is a bit more clear than the other junk I've tried to make. Should I be trying to make this thing's body in one pull/stretch? I notice I try to do it sections at a time and it works okay but as you can tell I'm not really good at getting a consistent taper yet.
http://i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx64/rahoorkhuit93/GEDC0144.jpg

Apologies for the pic size. I may or may not fix it later... but first... I need a safety break.

[Ben 'Spice' Crowley]

condensing is a matter of evenly heating and spinning the glass without pulling or pushing (at least not enough to stretch or buldge it)

Keep practicing and it will come to you, the folding is also probably from spinning out of synchronus

As for the stretch marks and fire polishing them, if you have an even heat base, and you have not let it cool too much, then it will most likely not devit (stretch marks) This happens because the glass on the surface is colder than the glass you stretched and it buckles onto itself.

fire polishing is dangerous until you have your heat base figured out, if you try to fire polish something cold, you have a potential explosion in your hands

[Fiorino Glass Art]

Very good start!! Condensing is rather intimidating at first because of the almost unpredictability of the tubing. When condensing, I usually use a bigger flame. It all depends on how much you need to condense to how big of a flame. But more than often, you're using a bigger rippin flame, unless you're constricting a onie. I've found you need to get three things down when condensing.

First you need to be constantly rotating. And rotating evenly to where you're not twisting the tubing. You want both your hands to be rotating at the same pace, not lagging behind. As soon as one hand rotates faster or slower than the other, you will be twisting the tube. I would suggest practicing this with a flat rod or disk. Two punties on each side, then just heat it up slowly making sure not to twist it. It being flat will help you see this. Then practice it with some tubing.

Second is heat base. Think of the glass like a steak. Hot intense heat immediately applied to the steak will heat up the outside of it really hot but the inside is still going to be rare. A nice even, slow heat, will evenly cook the steak. Think of the same thing with glass. If you just start it in a rippin hot flame, the outside "skin" is going to get hot, but the heat isn't evenly distributed into the walls of the tube. Start rotating the tube in the middle of the flame, then pull it out about 2-3 inches towards the end of the flame. This is a good spot for getting a nice even heat base. Just keep spining, evenly in both hands, and be patient. At first you may not see nothing, but give it some time and it'll get nice and evenly hot, helping with the condensing of the tubing. By this time the tubing should start moving.

Last, I've always wondered, Are you pushing? Pulling? or what? Really, when the glass it hot, it'll be like taffy. So you will be kind of pushing, and kind of pulling. Keep it in the same region of the flame where it was before. This is where turning it steady come in to play. You don't necesarliy want to push or pull it, just hold it steady and straight. It may sound confusing but once you try it you'll see what I mean. When you don't push or pull on it, and when I say push or pull, I mean in the smallest minute way, it helps build thickness in the walls of the tubing. Usually I angle it down, on both sides from time to time to help gravity pull it a lil and even everything out. After you get a nice thickness, pull out of the flame and keep roatating until forever! Angle it down on both sides to let gravity help redistribute the glass. When it cools it'll also help it condense. Usually, when I have the desired shape, I hold it horizontally, still rotating and watching it to make sure it is straight.

Sorry if this is a lil lengthy, but I figured I give ya a nice detailed description of what I do for condensing. Hope this helps! And good luck!

Great lizard too by the way!

[rahoorkhuit93]

Yeah my left hand right hand coordination with this is not very good yet and yes, my heating is often very uneven. Sometimes I don't constantly spin either :D. I think I'm definitely working the glass too close to the torch, to try to save time. It ultimately seems to cost me more time because I end up having to fix things :bangHead: .

Fiorino. thanks for the info. I'm pushing and pulling, but I think I'm doing it too much in both cases when I do it. I can sort of see the whole push-pull, not pull thing... sort of like making minute adjustments until I have some stability?

A question about rotation speed... should I be trying to spin it very quickly when it gets all soupy?

[Ben 'Spice' Crowley]

the faster you spin it the more centrifugal force you will create, so sometimes faster is better, sometimes it's slower, depends on the application, when condensing I rotate about 5 times a minute, and don't be scarred to rotate it both ways, it'll keep the whole piece flowing well


Check out essential Lampworking if you need to know where in the flame you want to be, there are diagrams all around if you hunt.


pushing and pulling a little never hurts when constricting/condensing, Give a lil push when it's good an hot, that'll buldge the piece out a lil at the middle, now hold your hand w/o pushing or pulling while that condenses to the same od as the non buldgey part. then when it's nice and thick you can give it a tug or two to even it out or lengthen it if desired.

[Slimy-E]

1 spoon will pay for your gas for the week. in a few months you won't be worrying about it. have fun and do what can. :)

man you must make nice pricy spoons!

[rahoorkhuit93]

Sativa, thanks... 5 times a minute, did I read that right? I think I might be spinning way too fast to condense it sometimes, that along with working it to close is messing me up I think.

[Fiorino Glass Art]

Fiorino. thanks for the info. I'm pushing and pulling, but I think I'm doing it too much in both cases when I do it. I can sort of see the whole push-pull, not pull thing... sort of like making minute adjustments until I have some stability?

A question about rotation speed... should I be trying to spin it very quickly when it gets all soupy?

You got it. You'll know when you're pulling or pushing. I've heard if you spin too fast when it's soupy, it won't condense because of centrifugal force. You more or less want an even, consistent, rhythmic spinning.

Practice Practice!!

[Ben 'Spice' Crowley]

man you must make nice pricy spoons!

Almost everyone I know of sells spoons 20$+ depending on the tech (not to shops either)

[rahoorkhuit93]

I really wish I could make some sellable stuff. I ordered a very small glass alchemy color sampler (it's a book and some samples, only 20 bucks hehe) and I'm hoping that I can make some stuff that I might be able to peddle here and there. Even 10-15 bucks occassionally would greatly help me support this hobby. I tried a fumed anemone implosion (?) pendant, but my fuming all but disappeared as I heated it up for the final shaping. Is this normal? Someone said that I might have to use the kiln to make the color come out. Hell I can barely use the kiln with it's crappy digi pyrometer and infinite switch. Oh well, at least I have a kiln. A ghetto setup is better than none at all :)

[Slimy-E]

one thing on spinning rate, when i spin it is generaly pretty consistant. but also i watch the glass move. if i see it is off sligtly(or greatly) then i give a real quick pause when the high point is up. dont know if that made sence. letting gravity help to even things out. u said all the fume burnt off too. i generaly over fume a bit, expecting some to burn off, but i also do something kinda like flame annealing after i fume. i turn down the oxy almost all the way and up the propane and coat the peice with a layer off carbon. then add a little more oxy, not enough to burn it of and even heat whole thing. seems to bake in the fume a bit. im sure many people in here can give u better advice than me.

[rahoorkhuit93]

Thanks 'Flow I'll give that a try.

[berning]

I've run into a problem. A 5-foot tall oxygen tank only lasted me about 4 days of about 2-4 hours a day, and it's $30 a refill. I'm running my torch at a slightly lower psi than is recommended for this tip AND I'm not running the torch at anywhere near it's full capacity. I think I might have to buy an oxygen concentrator, I simply cannot afford to pay this kind of money for the oxygen. Do you guys think an M-10 5-lpm, 10 psi oxycon will power this torch?

i purchased a regalia oxy/con from http://www.pyronamix.com/Pyronamix/Welcome.html ,and couldn't be happier with it. i'm pretty sure that would run your torch with no problem. i spend 60 + hours a week melting glass , and i've been at it for 9 months. if it hasn't paid for itself already it's definately going to. the only problem is that the oxy/con limits the size torch you can work with, unless you buy multiple units and run them through a compressor into a holding tank.

[jes]

cool stuff, please keep postin, that T-rex is terrific!

[rahoorkhuit93]

i purchased a regalia oxy/con from http://www.pyronamix.com/Pyronamix/Welcome.html ,and couldn't be happier with it. i'm pretty sure that would run your torch with no problem. i spend 60 + hours a week melting glass , and i've been at it for 9 months. if it hasn't paid for itself already it's definately going to. the only problem is that the oxy/con limits the size torch you can work with, unless you buy multiple units and run them through a compressor into a holding tank.

Good to hear the oxycon is working for you, I've heard mixed reactions from people about how well they work, but some people swear by them. I ended up getting the smaller M10 unit, it's actually supposed to be somewhere between a standard 5 LPM and that Regalia... I'll probably end up getting another one in the future and piggy backing them. What's this about a holding tank and compressor?

Jes, thanks man, wow you liked the T-Rex??? I was actually kind of embarrassed to post it. Don't worry I'll be posting most of my junk here (the stuff that I actually finish and don't abort half way through) haha and anything I don't post here I'll put on my photobucket.

[Swampy]

Just a suggestion but if you could polish your spoon output, fit the little gecko onto it and do all that in colour, I reckon you would be onto a winner right there. Your gecko looks wicked.

[rahoorkhuit93]

Thanks Swampy, I didn't really think about doing that but that's a pretty good idea. I'm really inspired by the sculptural pipes I see from time to time. I'd love to learn how to do them properly. I think it might be a while, but eventually perhaps :bouncy:

[Slimy-E]

i was thinking the same thing when i saw the lizard. it looks good and shops and custys love those animals on spoons.

[berning]

i like to put lizards and frogs on vases and oil candles and such. old ladies grab that shit up like it's somthin really special. dragonflies and spiders are some other nice easy shapes to work with.