anyone any idea what kind of glass these blue bottles are made of and what kind of schedule to use?
Planning on getting heavy with a hammer and crushing to make bowl,,, guessing flat fuse then slump but dont would like some texture left so dont want to fully fuse, normally use 780 as high end contour but dont know if these bottles need more or less??
really grateful for any ideas.
can you ever contour and slump into a gently curved mould at the same time?
ooh life is full of questions!
cheers
you have to go higher and you can't fire as many times. I found loads of useful stuff here
http://glasswithapast.com/fusing-with-bottle-glass/
Oh Pauline thank you. That's a great site. Every so often, I mess around with window glass and bottle. I made about a half kilo of blue window glass rods the other day with the vitrigraph kiln using blue float frit.
great site thanks for the info! feel such a numpty as clearly dont have all the gear some of you do! I can only dream of Dremmels and Ring Saws! How very sad!
They refer to using a tile saw for cutting bottles but I dont have any kind of glass cutting saw...
" but many people successfully use the score, heat and thermal shock method" can anyone tell me what this means and is it possible with an ordinary hand held glass cutter??
does bashing it all with a hammer and full fusing not work??
cheers
Hi ,
I can help with the "score, heat and shock" method. Basically you need to score a mark all the way round the bottle where you want it to break,try and make sure that the finish matches up with the beginning and the scores join together.
Normally you can then heat the score mark with the smallest needle flame you can get on your torch and after a few seconds the bottle should break along the score mark. There was a second method we used as kids in the glass factories and that was scoring the bottle the same and then get some string and soak it in meths , tie it tightly around the score mark and then light the string , after 20 odd seconds the top of the bottle should ping off. You can also fill the inside of the bottle with cold water up to the score mark and this can improve the shock effect.
Off to try it again .
Best wishes ,
Martin
Tuffnell Glass
Smashing things with a hammer is a perfectly valid method, it's just that it gives you rather unpredictable shapes and quite a few annoying tiny little shards in the mix, which are a pain the proverbial to tidy up. Cutting up the bottles is a bit neater. I've made some (not very straight and tidy!) coasters (http://"https://www.flickr.com/photos/88956060@N05/sets/72157635124047848/") using some nice green bottles, and I'm sure you can tell which ones were smashed with a hammer!
By the way, my green bottles seem to be compatible with COE 90, which is lucky, but not something you should expect from any bottle glass. I've seen it somewhere on this forum that the COE of bottles can vary (including between bottles which look identical and contain identical drinks!), so you have to test before you mix anything.
The thermal shock method can also work by pouring boiling water over the score mark, then dunking the glass into very cold water.
Hi ,
Just tried it and would recommend tying the string a1" below the line for the best effect.
Martin
Quote from: Lorac on August 13, 2014, 12:51:23 PM
does bashing it all with a hammer and full fusing not work??
I regularly smash up Bombay Sapphire (and other) bottles with a hammer before fusing in various ways. One thing to be wary of is that one bottle may not be 100% compatible with the next, though they look the same. I've had serious cracking with Bombay Sapphire (especially thicker pieces) when I've mixed up glass from different bottles... I think there may be compatibility issues with the gin itself - drink more than one bottle and you'll wake up feeling your head's been cracked.
Quote from: DementedMagpie on August 13, 2014, 01:46:00 PM
By the way, my green bottles seem to be compatible with COE 90, which is lucky, but not something you should expect from any bottle glass. I've seen it somewhere on this forum that the COE of bottles can vary (including between bottles which look identical and contain identical drinks!), so you have to test before you mix anything.
This is true. Nobody designs or makes glass bottles with fusing in mind!
A lot of bottle glass seems to be nearer to float glass, which is approx COE 83/84 - but even float glass is not absolutely guaranteed compatible, unless you're fusing pieces from the same sheet.
Regarding Bombay Sapphire bottles, didn't someone say there was also two types - those made with an actual blue glass, but also some around that are just coated with a film of colour? Can't recall where I read that.
I popped a lovely transparent, deep blue bottle into the kiln one day. Came out clear with an iridised sheen.... was pretty, but definitely not deep blue!
It tends to be imported Bombay Sapphire, the bottles you get in Duty Free, that are film covered. I've only had solid glass in the UK. But the first bottle I smashed was covered in film, looked slightly iridescent, put it in the flame and the blue film balled up.
Quote
Regarding Bombay Sapphire bottles, didn't someone say there was also two types - those made with an actual blue glass, but also some around that are just coated with a film of colour? Can't recall where I read that.
You may be thinking of this thread (http://www.frit-happens.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=24810.0).
Quote from: Blue Box Studio on August 13, 2014, 03:49:27 PM
It tends to be imported Bombay Sapphire, the bottles you get in Duty Free, that are film covered. I've only had solid glass in the UK. But the first bottle I smashed was covered in film, looked slightly iridescent, put it in the flame and the blue film balled up.
Thanks Sue, I knew I'd read it somewhere. The dark blue bottle I did (no idea what it had contained as I picked it up at Play Recycling) didn't have a film, it was definitely a 'painted' on coating, wasn't iridised until I fired the colour off :-)
If I'd have known, I would have sand-blasted a pattern into it instead....
If I remember correctly, Jodie of glass with a past posted something few weeks ago about being able to work out what factory a bottle has been made in, along with a useful sheet of bottle marks. She suggested that bottles with the same factory marks should be compatible with one another (which made sense) , but recommended testing anyhow. I think I bookmarked it somewhere...... Will have a look for it.
Thanks all!
Martin I wish I had a flame - will put on my Christmas List! Having given up in frustration with trying to bend stringers with tealight I am really keen to get a torch!
I will try the boiling water method though so thanks.
Cheers
By the way, a kitchen blowtorch might just about do for bending stringers, it has rather more oooomph than a tealight. Depends on the stringer.
oh i wish i had one!
maybe able to borrow one from a creme brulee lover!
cheers
You can pick up a cheap torch on Ebay for a few pounds. Mine just says Creme Brulee on the side, but I used it for silver work.
what do you guys reckon in the best method for removing labels? I have been googling away....oven then peel off works quite well but there is a lot of glue residue left behind. tried the oil and baking soda but doesnt remove the paper.
any thoughts???
bombay sapphire......are the sides with the etched ingredients on no good to use then???
cheers
I use white spirit to remove the glue residue, then give a final wash in hot soapy water, then rinse, then either drip dry or wipe dry with a very clean cloth. It's worth taking time to get the glass really clean. I think the white writing and images of ingredients must be something like enamel. It will remain there through several firings... not too obtrusive to my eye, in fact I quite like it. I'd recommend you experiment with it deliberately as part of a design - and if you don't like it just discard those parts in future.
Bombay Sapphire bottles have THE most difficult glue to remove! I use Labelclene and then wire wool to remove the glue, then hot soapy water and a final rinse in clean water.
I make a feature of the enamel parts, and use thin fire paper underneath the bottle as the enamel will stick to the kiln shelf primer. I've also cut the bottle up and made mini tiles of the enamel decals.
If you're using the glass to make beads then be careful not to heat it too much as a rusty residue can form.
I use CarPlan paint thinner in a well ventilated area to remove sticky residue from all sorts of bottles and plastic food tubs. I never leave the cap off the can and use a minimum amount on kitchen paper as the fumes can make you high. Let the paper dry out thoroughly before binning.
Quote from: Pat from Canvey on August 22, 2014, 06:17:12 PM
I use CarPlan paint thinner in a well ventilated area to remove sticky residue from all sorts of bottles and plastic food tubs. I never leave the cap off the can and use a minimum amount on kitchen paper as the fumes can make you high. Let the paper dry out thoroughly before binning.
I use Goo Gone, but it's not a quick process. Sadly, it's not a legal high. The more we know about Pat, the more we find out about Pat ;) ;) x
Wd40 on the glue for five minutes or so tends to shift it.
oh i love the smell of WD40! what a wonderful excuse. thanks so much.....will try it out forthwith!
cheers :)
Quote from: Lorac on August 23, 2014, 10:20:14 AM
oh i love the smell of WD40! what a wonderful excuse. thanks so much.....will try it out forthwith!
cheers :)
Ewwwwwwww! I can't stand the smell! Still, everyone's different. :D
Nick