Newbie question: Balanced beads?

Yeske · August 14, 2013, 05:41:47 PM

Hallo everyone. I'm sorry to be asking this very basic question, but I have practiced quite some time now but I still don't seem to get nicely balanced, straight round beads. They tend te be thicker at one side, or else the hole isn't in the middle. So my question is:

How do you achieve nicely balanced beads?

I've looked into other threads but this question seems to be too basic to have already been asked

or else my english isn't good enough to hit the search button with the right words.

Carl · August 14, 2013, 06:54:15 PM

Never be sorry for asking a question.

It is not difficult to get beads reasonably balanced but it does take practice. I't all to do with rotating the mandrel while keeping it horizontal, as the glass is being pushed towards your bench by gravity you are slowly winding it back on again. Take a little time to play with the glass watch how it moves. A bead I find good for practising on is a gravity bead (or that's what the lady who taught me called it) basically one makes a bead then add a large blob of another colour, keep it turning in the flame till its nice and soft then slow down so it starts to fall off then speed up to wind it back on again. As well as learning how the glass moves and practising rotating the mandrel while keeping it level it also makes a pattern that is simple but pleasing (to me at least). Hope this helps.

helbels · August 14, 2013, 07:06:06 PM

Try putting a mirror in front of you when you work. You will be able to see if you are keeping your mandrel straight at all times.

Yeske · August 14, 2013, 07:41:14 PM

Thank you very much, I will try that

So it doesn't matter if the glass is put on a little thicker on one side? Because I think thát's causing my askew-ness... I work with a single-fuel torch so warming the bead thoroughly through is difficult without reducing/burning the glass (at least I find it hard). Could it be that my beads aren't hot enough to get balanced by rotating the mandrel?

helbels · August 14, 2013, 08:00:25 PM

It could be that as well, try turning the mandrel slower, to ensure the bead gets soaked with heat, but working further out, so that you don't reduce the bead so much. If you think about it, when you put your hand through a flame fast, it doesn't get hot, so doesn't burn. But if you were to put your finger through a flame slowly, it would hurt because it would get a lot hotter.

Angie · August 14, 2013, 08:07:10 PM

I found that it helps as well to go back and forth heating the end of each bead rather than focusing in the middle. The middle will warm up automatically and also give you good ends as well as balancing the heat distribution of the glass.

Yeske · August 14, 2013, 08:41:24 PM

Thanks a lot for all your suggestions - I will try making basic beads again keeping your tips in mind

I find it easier to get large amounts of glass balanced.. I think it might have something to do with the adhesion to the mandrell which hampers a small amount of glass to move properly (I use 4 and 5 mm mandrels mostly)

Shirley · August 14, 2013, 08:46:53 PM

Ah, thicker mandrels are more difficult to get the glass moving, you are right. Try adding more glass at the point where you are short.

helbels · August 14, 2013, 09:13:38 PM

Is there any reason you are using such big mandrels if you are a newbie? As Shirley has said, larger mandrels are much harder to work with. I would recommend starting with 2mm mandrels if you are new to beading, much easier to get the hang of.

Kaz · August 14, 2013, 09:50:02 PM

Quote from: helbels on August 14, 2013, 08:00:25 PM
It could be that as well, try turning the mandrel slower, to ensure the bead gets soaked with heat, but working further out, so that you don't reduce the bead so much. If you think about it, when you put your hand through a flame fast, it doesn't get hot, so doesn't burn. But if you were to put your finger through a flame slowly, it would hurt because it would get a lot hotter.

Children - please don't try this at home

OK - try this! Use a 2.4mm or 3mm mandrel as they won't suck out the heat from the glass but they are slightly chunkier and easy to handle. Make the first wrap as even and as narrow as you can, by just touching the molton glass onto the warmed mandrel and turning the mandrel away from you. Melt that into a small even bead. To do this always heat the glass in the flame quite hot but then take the bead out of the flame to shape it. Holding it absolutely horizontally, turn the mandrel slowly in quarter turns and the bead should round itself up and gravity should pull it into shape. Then add more wraps onto the base bead keeping the base bead just below the flame when adding more glass (molton glass onto hard glass or as my first teacher used to say honey on bread, never honey on honey) - these wraps should, if possible, be added as disks and then melt each one down and repeat the process of taking the bead out of the flame to balance it. If you build a bead up slowly like this, it has more chance of being balanced and of having good puckers.
HTH
Kazx

Redhotsal · August 14, 2013, 11:29:00 PM

Quote from: Yeske on August 14, 2013, 07:41:14 PM
Thank you very much, I will try that

So it doesn't matter if the glass is put on a little thicker on one side? Because I think thát's causing my askew-ness... I work with a single-fuel torch so warming the bead thoroughly through is difficult without reducing/burning the glass (at least I find it hard). Could it be that my beads aren't hot enough to get balanced by rotating the mandrel?

Yes, your reasoning is correct. It DOES matter if the glass is a little thicker on one side. The shape of the glass when it is on the mandrel (sometimes referred to as the "footprint") is very important to ensure a balanced and straight (round) bead. If you are on a single-fuel torch then I agree it can be difficult to warm the bead enough. Here's another method that you can possibly use:

Try melting a large "gather" of glass on your glass rod before you try and wrap it round the mandrel. Try to see if you can make a gather around 15-20mm in diameter. When you have this and it is glowing orange take it out of the heat and touch it very lightly on the top of a heated mandrel. As soon as you have made contact with the mandrel turn the mandrel to wind on all the gather. See if you can do this in one fluid movement. When you have run out of glass use the flame to "cut" your bead away from the remainder of the glass rod. Now put the glass rod down and concentrate on your bead (I usually swap hands at this point). Put the bead in the flame until it is glowing orange and then try and centre it as normal.

I woudl suspect that becuase you are not getting the glass hot enough when you wind it onto the mandrel it is making your footprint uneven and then this is proving difficult to centre up the bead. Hope this helps and hope it makes sense?

ruth · August 14, 2013, 11:32:59 PM

Sals DVD demonstrate this very clearly. Along with lots of other useful techniques

Ruth

Yeske · August 15, 2013, 09:41:22 AM

Thank you very much for all the tips

I will try the two techniques you proposed as soon as I'm back from vacation (leaving today).

I use 4 mm mandrels because I like making my own pandora-style beads. I have this bangle (a stiff necklace) on which I wear these beads, but the hole has to be at least 3,5 mm or so, otherwise I can't get them on the bangle...

I will do more with the smaller mandrels soon

Yeske · September 01, 2013, 07:19:55 PM

Another question..
I looked on this glass-supplier's site (they sell mandrells as well)... Should I get 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 3.0 or 3.5 mm mandrells? Which ones are easiest to work with?

helbels · September 01, 2013, 07:24:41 PM

It will come down to personal preference to some extent Jeske.

I use 2mm as I find anything thinner than this a pain - they tend to get bent very easily when you take beads off the mandrels. I also find it's a good all round size for a lot of stringing materials.

3mm or 3.5mm are good if you are wanting to use anything thick as stringing material: eg rubber tube/thong.