Hi everyone,
What is the best way to put a hole through a bead (other the one from the mandrel) and do I need a specific tool?
Debs xx
If you have a tungsten pick, get it very hot and poke it through the glass, in the flame.
It helps to pinch a hole first with Peter tweezers or just tweezers bent in at the ends, so that the pick has somewhere to start off going into.
Get the glass glowing, so it is soft but not liquid. Get the pick glowing too, just glowing and just at the side of the flame - it shouldn't have to be right in the flame - and gently, with a screwing action (sorry, it is the only way I know how to describe it ;D) drill the pick into the glass. You don't need to push hard, just let the heat do the work. You may need to reheat as the glass cools and repeat a few times, but the pick should just go through without effort. It can take a bit of practice, but you'll get it.
Thank you both. I wasn't sure about what should be hot and where etc.
Thanks again
Debs xx