how am i burning the glass!!

[flowerjasper]

hi,
not sure what i am doing wrong, a couple of things keep happening and its making me a tad peed off!!
i am on a hothead on bulk,
if i use clear frit it goes silver! i want that "fruit pastille sugar effect"
a lot of the frit i use goes brown/ grey (not just on ivory),
today i used mint sparkle on clear , the clear looked yellowy and i couldnt see the mint!(i know this combo looks fab  as i hve some Lush! beads)
when i encase i get brown streaks in the clear.
all of what i do is hit and miss, the tips fom here have been a great help
any ideas? am i over heating the glass?
sandy

[♥♥Tan♥♥]

aha your flame is too reducing, its too bushy and that is what is making all of your glass mucky, it may well be that you are working too far down in the flame, try a rod of yellow and hold it in the flame, if it goes mucky pull the mucky bit off and try again further up, keep doing this until its not mucky anymore and thats where you need to work in the flame.

If that doesnt work then you need to cover the holes around the base of your hot head with some tin foil

[flowerjasper]

will try that tomorow tan,
i thought if i covered the holes up thats what gave a reducing flame, another thing  ive got wrong!!
i just turn the hothead on, could it be that i am yurning it up too high??

[♥♥Tan♥♥]

ooo dont quote me on the covering the holes then, its been a long time since I was on a hot head, but try the yellow glass thing too, it picks up smut quickly but is cheaper than trying it with pink

[garishglobes]

Definitely don't cover the holes!! It'll make things more reducing for sure. The yellow glass thing is a good idea though.
If this has only just started happening, you could have a bad lot of propane (some seems to be "dirtier" than others, for no good reason) or possibly a mucky hose? Easiest to start with experimenting with working position though, and go from there...

[julieHB]

Also, could it be that the propane cylinder is nearly empty?  I've read somewhere it might be more yucky then.

[flowerjasper]

thanks, i will work further out, and try the yelow rod thing,
its so frustrating when the frit is lovely in the pot and poo on my beads!!
could be the propane is running out, is there maintence that should be done on a hot head? 
dirty hoses? would i just wash them out ?

[flowerjasper]

does the angle of the torch matter?
i have noticed that mine is at a different angle to everyone elses 

[Redhotsal]

I like your spotty pinny......

[flowerjasper]

thats my dog grooming top, so lovely to wear nylon in the hot weather!!
it has paws all over it 

[Amber]

My torch is at the same angle as yours and it seems to be fine...

I started getting burn marks when I was right at the end of my propane, that can definitely do it. Also might be worth checking whether there are any 'bits' (glass, bead release...) in the torch itself.

[Shirley]

I'd say it's mucky propane. I've been making a lot of beads with black nebula recently and getting a good reduction. Made a great tube bead on Saturday but couldn't get the reduction at all, just sooty marks. The tank is definitely on its last legs so I'm pretty sure that's what it is in my case.

[flowerjasper]

i hope its that!!
would be a sad life if i could never have clear clear 
was thinking it was me 

[June]

Sandy, I had that a lot with my HH, especially with clear and pale transparents.  If the tips about the propane don't solve your problem, you may need to work further up in the flame and then be patient (something I sadly lack, hence the reason I didn't do a lot of encasing  !) 

[flowerjasper]

took your advice ladies , worked further up the flame and managed to keep a bit if clear frit clear, i also encased ( wonkily!) and the clear wasnt so streaked, 
i think the propane is coming to the end as well, 
ta all x