Incalmo help pleease

[nate dubbs]

Hello,
I've searched the forum and still can't find any specific tips or tricks on this technique: I'm trying to attach an incalmo color section to a clear tube and blow it out evenly. The clear always blows out way thinner and ruins my attempt at a nice clean seamless line.
I can easily pull off color to color incalmo sections , but having troubles with this. I'm trying to make large 16-20 oz blown out cups using 52mm and 58 mm medium wall tube by hand.
Do i make the clear section twice as thick walled as the color section to compensate for the differences in consistencies? Or maybe use smaller diameter heavy wall clear tube and then blow out thinner after attaching the section? Any help is much appreciated. I've wasted a lot of tube trying this today.

[BORO]

O.p. Has been at this a long time. So take my advice with a grain of salt.
All my suggestions are probably obvious, and already considered.

I think more qualified people on this forum, with cleaner work than me, may have a better answer.

...........

If I'm making a seal from color to clear, I usually do keep the clear slightly thicker. Slightly, as in not really noticeable.

I make the seal small, then blow it out.

Any time I have stiff glass next to softer glass, I concentrate all my heat on the stiffer glass, and the flame deflects towards the softer. (clear)

Its the same when I add a solid section to a piece. The solid can soak up way more heat than the bubble, so I give that solid almost all the flame exposure. The hollow side gets hot by default/deflection of the flame.

If your puffing out a seal, make sure to condense it back thicker between puffs.

Don't hold your handles at extreme angles. Glass runs down hill. If you hold your handles any other way than level, the hottest surfaces (the clear) will move down hill and give you thin/ thick spots.

I like a soft even heat base. I really really try to get all the red glow to look the same on all sides before I puff.

Yes there is a time and place for extreme angles (wrist above the flame or below the flame) just be sure to know why your at that angle. If your just doing it, cuz that's how you do it, you may be sabotaging yourself to some degree. It will be way more apparent when your working stiff glass next to softer glass.

I feel like fade to clear line work was the best training. Its all about that even heat base. It takes way more time heating up the stiff color so the two move in a similar fashion.

[BORO]

The best inclamo I have seen worked in person... They used the L marver a Lot for fine adjustments.


I just finally got a L marver. Its something I need to work on.

[nate dubbs]

Thanks BoRo for your well thought out response. You are right that i've been at this a while but stiil haven't mastered this. Its more like i've just avoided it.
I'll try what you said and keep my flame more directed onto the stiffer color and give multiple small puffs to see if that clear will expand evenly. I'll also try to thicken up the clear section with my L marver after i pop the hole. The clear tube is 58 x 3.5mm and i plan on blowing it all out thin if afterwords, if i can get an even seal. The color incalmo section will be approximately the bottom 1/4 of the cup. I'd also like to try one where the color incalmo section is the middle band with clear above and below .