Glass problems.

[♥♥Tan♥♥]

My anice has been send in shame to the shorts jar although it is VERY long shorts, even sticking it in my kiln didn't really help it much. What I did find, and I know this is a bit of a faff, was I cut it into shorter lengths, about two to three inches, held them in my tweezers, waved it at the flame and then used it as normal.

It was still shocky but at least I didnt' have that horrible jumping off the rod business. I also found if I used a base of normal white and aimed the rod at that as I was melting when it did pop and shatter it just landed on the warm white bead so ended upwhere I needed it anyway, if that makes sense?

[Shirl]

I have anice, soft white and find its OK if i play it in the end of the flame for a bit before I melt.

I like CIM peace best, I am on a hothead and works great, its good for encasing as its a bit stiffer and doesnt try to escape from the encasing 

[lyzzydee]

Thank you for all the assistance, I tried another couple they are all as bad!! I have loads of bits all around 1/2 cm long. I expect I will be able to use it as large stick on lumps!!

[ScarletLeonard]

Peace for me to and on HH

If you are after soft white try CiM marshmallow it's a little more translucent than soft white but give it a base of peace and it comes close.

[Redhotsal]

You don't have to have a kiln to preheat rods - lots of people use a portable electric ring heater - bit like a Baby Belling: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Double-Boiling-Table-White-Colour/dp/B0013HGFF8/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=home-garden&qid=1301218633&sr=1-3

Obviously - bit of an expensive faff for just using your white but if you have a continuous problem then they can be helpful.

It usually is a batch problem - but a few colours are definitely prone to it. They are usually are the soft opaques - ivory, white, periwinkle and so on. Also - thicker rods are shockier than than thin ones - this is why you didn't have a problem with your stringers. You could try very slowly heating up a huge gather and then pulling it out thinner (as long as you can heat up enough for a gather).

[stuwaudby]

I use Effetre opaque white alot and never have any problems with it. I did buy a pack of the semi opaque white once and I gave up trying to use it. It eventually ended up in the kiln and slumped into a plate.

If your rods are cracking off an inch away from the tip then the problem is the glass. It is proably been manufactured with stress. i.e. the core fo the glass rod has been compressed by the skin as it cools too quickly. As soon as you apply some heat the energy stored in the comressed core is able to cause a crack.

Another possible problem is that the colour is not mixed well enough, leaving small areas of transparant and opaque glass. Different colours radiate heat at different rates and therefore heat up at differnt speed and expand differntly. (Just try using a mixed glass rod).

Annealing can help but think about using a higer temperature than normal 520- 530 (because you dont have to worry about deformation). Softening temperature is about 550.

[lyzzydee]

Thanks for all the advice, To be honest  I am a bit of a chicken and I am frightened to use it now. I can cope with the little bits popping off and the likes, its when it breaks off away from the gather which means you have flying glass with a very hot end and no control. I am very pleased that I bought a leather apron!!