Dichro Magic Hot Styx coe 104

[Blue Box Studio]

Was having a dig around in the back of a dark cupboard and came across a couple of short rods of Dichro Magic Hot Styx coe 104.  One side of the dichro is covered with glass, the other uncovered.  I have searched and can't find an answer, but how best to use these?  I assume I can wrap around a bead but how to keep the uncoated side out of the flame, else it will presumably burn away?  I tried using uncoated side up and melting on to a bead, but the heat of the flame seems to have burned out the dichro.  It's probably because it is such an obvious thing, I can't get my head around this one.

[Steampunkglass]

I'm guessing this is the same as some of the boro versions of this  so until someone more 104 knowledgeable comes along here's what I'd do with the boro stringer versions of these - try working further up the flame where it's a bit cooler, and possibly with a narrower direct flame. As you said keep the coated side pointing directly to the flame and the coated side towards the bead - if you keep it at 90degrees to the flame the 'wake' of the front will help direct the flame away from the back and sides of the dichroic strip. As it softens you should be able to wind it onto a nice hot bead, (if the bead is hot enough you can anchor the tip of the strip into the soft bead)  again keeping the front always facing the flame. I guess the best way to think of it is imagine the bead is a bobbin and you are winding the dichro onto it like thread? 

I hope that make sense, I think it's one of those things that are easier to see and do than to explain. 

[Blue Box Studio]

Thanks, will give it a go. Its far wider than a stringer, a generous 5mm oir so wide.  No idea where I got them from.

[ajda]

I occasionally use pieces of dichro sheet, also boro, so maybe similar to working with your wider strips though not quite the same as 104. What I sometimes do is to give the coated side an encasing of clear first. Lay down stripes of clear directly onto the coated side, working high up and on the edge of the flame, but keep the encasing layer reasonably thin or you end up with an unwieldy blob. Basically, use any way you can to avoid the flame hitting the coated side directly - and avoid moving/shaping/manipulating it more than you have to or the dichro layers break up and lose much of their effect.

[Trudi]

I use pieces of dichroic .. cut them up and leave them to warm on my torch marver or kiln.

Work in a cooler flame

Spot heat my bead

pick up a piece with tweesers and flash through the flame a few times (bringing it coated side first through the flame)

attach to the bead, and gently heat each raised side and pat down flat.

[Blue Box Studio]

Thanks for the suggestions.  Will give them a go and if I don't get on with it, they'll be in the next studio destash!!