Metal blow tube?
 

This may be a dumb question...I have not seen this addressed..

I would like to make some ornaments for Christmas. Rather than tubing and pulling points, can I build a bubble (ornament) on the of a blow tube? If so, how would I get it off the steel tubing?

If you want to make small, bulb ornaments, this is what I do.

The recent glut of stainless straws on the market make for nice blowpipes.

Dip one end in bead release. When dry, make a thin wrap of glass on the end ~¼" wide. From there, you can add a gather of glass to the opening making sure you make a good seal to your end wrap, but make sure not to plug up the hole. When ready, blow your bulb.

Anneal.

When finished, soak the ornament end of the straw in water. The bead release will allow the ornament to come right off. You can put a metal ornament cap for hanging on the top.

Tom

Thankyou Tom, it works great! I wasn’t sure if I could bypass the bead release or not. Made a couple nice bulbs today ��

Pretty good idea using the steel straws. I wonder if you can just treat them like hotshop blowpipes and crack off the end.

If someone does decide to break off then quench them, make sure you cap the end so you don't fire steam up through it.