Over cooking?

[Alison G]

Today is only my second lamp working session and I am really pleased with shaping etc but my beads rarely seem to be the colour they started out as!

I have a hothead on bulk, I light it with the foil collar up and then move it down after a while, with it off altogether it's hard to see the cone in the flame. I have the regulator set at about 3.5 bar.

Today I did a Lauscha clear bead, which is more like smoky quartz, a red one that ended up red with grey streaks, and a lovely CIM Phoenix orange that looks more like a sodding conker! Only the very core is orange and one end is lightly pitted, almost like lava.

I can't seem to get an even orange glow and I have to keep telling myself to stay out of the hottest part of the flame, I think I try and compensate.

I must be burning them I think, the Lauscha clear in particular looks like I made a soot stringer!

They are hard to get off the mandrels too, I always need pliers and a husband

As for my Ekho, it's metallic grey and my Aurae is metallic poo.

I use either ninja coolie bubbles or a fire blanket, no kiln as yet.

Thanks in advance, Alison

[GaysieMay]

Did the colour not change again once they'd cooled?  I think you've answered your own question though, make sure the mandrel is not too close to the nozzle of your torch, it sounds like you are burning the colour out of them.  Also you may find you have to cover the air holes in the side of your hothead to produce a reducing flame for the aurae and other dh glass.  Hope this helps and keep your chin up.

Gay x

[helenfc]

Alison, it sounds like your flame is too reducing, ie there is not enough oxygen in the mix. Is the dial on the torch turned up to full when the collar is off? x

[Kalorlo]

Work higher up in the flame, and make sure you take the foil collar down completely when you're making normal beads - it helps you light it and you can use it very briefly to reduce silver glass, but you don't want it on the rest of the time.

What you can do is start very high up, peer briefly over the top of your diddys, and when you get the orange soda flare show up around your bead, it's in the right place. You can go in a bit further than that, but don't go as far down as the blue cone.

[Alison G]

Nope, stayed weird :0.

Thanks ladies, I will try that. 

[Alison G]

Hi Helen, no I don't think I did have the torch all the way on and it sounds like I left the foil collar on too long.

Min you, it's fun learning! I hope to have a lesson in February so that will sort me right out. Either that or I'm so dumb that even RedHot Sal can't teach me 

[Lush!]

If you go too low in the flame, the Hothead will roar even louder at you ... and so will we 

[Alison G]

Oooh it does that Auntie Julie!!

Lol, I have one of your toggle sets and a lentil by Kate Sullivan, both liberated at the GBUK fair, hanging near my bench. The idea is to inspire me and make me not give up!

[jammie]

I have to remind myself to stay higher up in the flame with my hothead so after i find a good bit of the flame like krysia says how to get to that bit, i wedge my elbow against  the handlebar bit of my creation station so my arms/hands dont start to drop down while I'm making. Dont know if you have a creation station but I guess anything would work that keeps your arm in the right place, thats given you have  your elbows on the table mind you. Helps me to find and keep in the right place this way though.

[awrylemming]

I still have some rods of glass from my early hothead days with black ends    I think most of us toast the heck out of the pretty colours at first, turning them into a rear end wreck    In a week you'll look back and wonder how you ever did it - or if you're like me, you'll continue producing the same shades on a Minor!

[Alison G]

As usual you all were perfectly correct

All beads today are the colour they should be! I even managed some encasing, rubino oro over white went a bit wrong because the core wasn't cool enough, but I had fab results with CiM marshmallow and also the very pale ivory. I even managed a Mojito BHB with my fab new mandrels from Mango Beads. Luscious Julie recommended them and they are the best thing since, well BHB mandrels lol.

I was so chuffed to do a three colour cylinder and it turn out perfectly after yestday's debacle.

One thing though. Out of 14 beads, 7 cracked. One was my fault for mashing it too thin, but all the others cracked whilst being removed or cleaned.

I'm buying a kiln and no one is going to stop me...

Thanks again and sorry to ramble!

[Lush!]

I'm buying a kiln and no one is going to stop me...

... it was only a matter of time 

[Alison G]

Yep....says she who said I wouldn't need a big girl's torch for months, and upgraded from a HH herself in under a month!

I want a UK made one so I have asked Lee for some advice, maybe an SC 2.

[james M knox]

Lush,

I usually hold the mandrel in a vice to remove my beads, I found i was not pulling the bead straight off the mandrel when I used pliers, and this was causing my beads to crack. I got mine cheap at a Sunday market, and cause i only use it for the mandrels as long as it works its condition is not that important. If you want to try this _DON'T_ get one that is held down by a sucker as it can pop off at the most awkward time, Mine is help onto the side of the bench with a G-Clamp (Got that at the market at the same time).

Hope this helps

JMK

[Mand]

Yep....says she who said I wouldn't need a big girl's torch for months, and upgraded from a HH herself in under a month!

I want a UK made one so I have asked Lee for some advice, maybe an SC 2.

SC2 is made by Paragon and they're American.