soldering fused glass elements
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- This topic has 7 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 12 months ago by
betnca.
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- January 30, 2014 at 3:28 pm #10089
foxsunni
ParticipantHi I am attempting to solder fused glass elements into a stained glass panel. They keep cracking. I am using Spectrum 96. Can anyone help, any ideas?
January 30, 2014 at 5:10 pm #13235Vernelle
ParticipantWhat size are the pieces? Did you anneal them? I’ve put fused pieces in stained glass panels before and they didn’t crack. Are you getting them too hot with the iron?
January 30, 2014 at 5:53 pm #13236foxsunni
ParticipantHi, the peices are 8″ long 2″ wide, single layer with tack fused design. Yes I annealed them. Perhaps my iron is too hot. So are there any precautions or advice you can give me on soldering fused glass?
January 31, 2014 at 9:39 pm #13237Vernelle
ParticipantI’m not sure why your pieces are cracking. The soldering iron isn’t as hot as being in the kiln. How long did you anneal and at what temperature?
February 1, 2014 at 2:55 pm #13238wordana
ParticipantIf you’ve ever done any stained glass, you know it’s very easy to crack glass. It’s not about “how hot it was in the kiln”, but basically thermal shock.
With a 2″ wide piece, you can easily get the glass hot enough to thermal shock. Go slowly, allow the glass time to cool as you work, don’t work in any one area for too long… I’ve also been pondering (saw your question on another board), if there is a way to work on top of a surface that acts as a heat sink but I haven’t come up with any good ideas
.
It’s tricky. I used to do stained glass vases and there was one design I worked on that I would crack the same piece several times before getting a good one set in place (solder, crack, solder out, cut new piece, solder, crack, solder out, cut new piece…). . The real pain is soldering out what you’ve already soldered in! (without cracking more glass!!)
Dana W.
Jester’s Baubles Fused Glass Designs
February 2, 2014 at 8:02 am #13239Stephen Richard
ParticipantYou could use lead cam to make the panel. Much less heat transfer to the glass
Stephen Richard
blogs at: http://www.verrier-glass.blogspot.com/ and http://www.glasstips.blogspot.com/
February 7, 2014 at 2:09 am #13240thomas decker
ParticipantYears ago some one told me if you solder your piece on a thick towel the towel will absorb some of the heat and the piece is less likely to crack. I don’t know of it is true, but might be worth an old towel to givre it a try.
February 7, 2014 at 5:35 pm #13241betnca
ParticipantI put a damp cloth under areas I think might crack then solder in very short segments letting the area cool before I solder more. It takes longer but has been worth the effort.
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