exploding reversal balls from vac stack

[KILGORE]

since ive been vac stacking recently, ive had three reversal balls straight explode on me.

i vac stack and later benderback a tube, and split that up into 3-4 reballs. I tear off one at a time and attach a punty to one and let it bench cool, and just use I when I need it.

there hasn't been a problem until I started vac stacking. I'll take a bench cooled reball and introduce it into the flame and 5 seconds into the flame it fucking bursts and shatters all over the bench.

I know the obvious answers are 1.) throw the reball in the kiln and 2.) use a softer flame

but in curious because this has never happened in the previous months of making reballs the old way


ideas??? comments???

[Coal]

use an annealing flame when reintroducing, get a nice heavy oxidising flame, turn your lp up until the flame looks like a raging flame that would come out of some dragons mouth. I will post pics later of the flame, always works for me.

[BK]

yeah, if you're dropping them into anything but an annealing flame you're doing it wrong. :)

[p.j.]

are you annealing the vac stacks before you work them?

[smolder holder]

The only time i've had this issue is when my reball is too thick.

[Pogo]

Once I sat on my re-balls.. Hurt like hell.

[menty666]

Once I sat on my re-balls.. Hurt like hell.

Most people face front when they sit on the toilet, try that.

[NUBBLET]

maybe cause you have clear inside and outside so the color expansion has a bit more stress involved. if no clear as a typical line draw or stack the color at least on one side has more room to expand or opp maybe the clear expands faster..... I hope it makes sense although its just a theory.

[hashmasta-kut]

i always use clear tubing, lay lines of color on it, then lay lines of clear on it, so its completely encased in clear, yet i dont get this problem. i always have clear inside and outside, and its not a problem..

[Mac Maestro]

The vacuum made your balls explode. Did you have to buy it dinner first?

[FredLight]

Puffing them out a bit before bench cooling your balls may help.

I find little internal checks in anything I sleeve without puffing out.

Even a rest in the kiln won't fix that, just like un-melted frit in I/O.

[kage]

just slow down, use a softer flame to get it warm

[KILGORE]

thanks to everyone who chimed in. i'm going to take everyone advice next time i torch..

[KILGORE]

The vacuum made your balls explode. Did you have to buy it dinner first?

nope, i just turned it on reaaaaaal good

[NUBBLET]

i always use clear tubing, lay lines of color on it, then lay lines of clear on it, so its completely encased in clear, yet i dont get this problem. i always have clear inside and outside, and its not a problem..

Have you let them cool on bench , not reheat and go right to flame? not a soft flame as mentioned in OP , Kilgore was wanting OTHER theories not the obvious ones.

I still say its the double clear causing just that lil bit more stress during expansion , we should all be fully informed that the COE of a colored glass is slightly different from clear so my theory should not be so absurd that other glass people cannot understand it.

Pull a filligrana the same size you pull a clear rod let them both cool the same the reintroduce them into a flame (not soft) and see if one tends to pop more than the other, I bet you find they do and its the color filligrana that does more poppin.

Shit some poppin can be from air in color, maybe you cant see the air but its there and we all know the disasters of that shit.

Again its a Theory and a valid one

[n3rd]

Most people face front when they sit on the toilet, try that.

Facing front is the old way! Try ac-slatering it

[IndiePendent]

Uh why would you not just kiln stuff? Solves all the PORBLOMS!

[KILGORE]

maybe my shits too thick... i use heavy wall for both core and sleeve. maybe try a thinner core

[KILGORE]

Uh why would you not just kiln stuff? Solves all the PORBLOMS!

shit I dunno I just never had to. I got the idea from a video on YouTube I think from the user name "compman67" of his friend "glass4life" doing some reversals and he didn't so I tried and just never kilned again

[hashmasta-kut]

Have you let them cool on bench , not reheat and go right to flame? not a soft flame as mentioned in OP , Kilgore was wanting OTHER theories not the obvious ones.



yes, all the time. its only risky with some double layer combos sometimes, like blue velvet or alien tech, depending on the batches of colors i used to make it. if i find a shocky tube pull, i kiln it when using, but its very rare. all wsiwyg pulls are bench cooled and used cold off the bench. i dont worry about my flame, i just introduce it slowly from one end.

[hashmasta-kut]

maybe my shits too thick... i use heavy wall for both core and sleeve. maybe try a thinner core


ya i think so... it seems vacstack stuff is thicker to begin with right, so if you keep it thick you get thicker reballs that would be more shocky?

[kage]

if you think its bc your va stacks are too thick, then just blow the sections out more.

[Julian]

Without checking out the tubing first hand, can't say what the difference would be between what you're doing now and were doing before. Maybe you're not getting it to that liquid point where it's entirely melted together and de-stressed?

Seems like the simple plans would be (as mentioned) a> preheat your pieces in the kiln to reheat them, why not? and b> don't make them that thick... blow out your stuff a bit before bench cooling it, that works better all around.

For the heavy wall clear core/outer tube, the issue should just be the ratio of color to clear that you end up with when it's blown to a certain thickness, not so much what you start with.

[KILGORE]

I don't really hit that hardcore soupy stage. it flows around enough to get sloppy but not as much as I should I assume. I do kiln the vac stack for a little bit before I take the torch to it, the completed prep stage (sleeve with blowtube, color and core)

what do you guys use for the blowtube you attach to the vac stack to puff it out and pull It down? I try to use a piece of 50 kinda cone shaped on a blowtude like this ====<

[sasch74]

I use 29 fpr the vac tube. That produces a gentle vacuum. Just make sure ypu got the start very hot before you turn on the vac and then just leave it on and work your way through the pull slowly.
If you have a lathe you won't even need to give it a puff. Let everything melt smooth, then build a nice heat base from the sides, pull...
I start with 60x5, color,85x5 and I end up with almost 40" of 20x3mm tubing.
Dunno about hand pulls, lathe-junkie i am...
Plus a vac-stack newb too, but I had few successes...
Hope it helps...!

P.S. The blowtube for the core is 12 mm with a 29 med plug.