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Old 2016-05-12, 9:58am
Robin Passovoy Robin Passovoy is offline
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Join Date: Dec 31, 2009
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Default The working notes

Here are my notes on working with the various bottle glasses, and a few warnings.
Firstly, beware of the pricier bottles, you know, the ones with the pretty color-shifting and anything that is painted or frosted. Those are usually clear with the fancy stuff printed on, and the frosting's usually just a coating of some sort of plasticky gunk. To find out whether or not you've got a genuinely etched bottle, scratch the bottom with a metal implement, preferably aluminum or brass. The nail-file portion of a fingernail trimmer is perfect. If the cloudiness comes off, it's coated. If your implement leaves a shiny metallic trail behind it, it's etched. To find out the true color of the bottle, look at any area that is not etched—the matte finish tends to be misleading. As for the painted ones, unless you've got really good ventilation, don't bother. The stuff that actually costs money is the slosh inside. The bottle's worth maybe five cents.
Secondly, be very careful how you break up the bottle! Those shards can and will cause serious injury if you don't take proper precautions.
Thirdly, do not mix the glass from different bottles together, even if they're the same color. Bottle manufacturers do not have to worry about getting a consistent COE from batch to batch and so there is a high risk of incompatibility.

And now, the fun part. Please note that my standard technique is to take a piece, melt it into a lump on the end of a steel punty, and then pull stringers from that. Any mention of “shocking” and “shattering” refers to how those pieces act when first introduced into the flame during the initial melting process. “Shocking” is when the glass cracks as it is introduced to the flame. “Shattering” is when it flies to pieces all over the bench.


Clear Glass

Sprecher's Cream Soda
A very good clear with no tinting, very soft and easy to work with. Does not shock or shatter much.

Light Cyan
Those bottles that have a faint bluish tint to them, often seen in bottles of white wine. While they are quite easy to work, they are also entirely indistinguishable from the glass from picture frames. (I use the frames for mounting mosaics.) Stick with the frame glass—less material, but often cheaper and more versatile.


Aquas

Eimad A Island Reyka Vodka
Surprisingly well-behaved, even in chunks half an inch thick. Tends to devitrify a little which melts off fairly well in the flame, but it does scum somewhat. Does not snap even in thick stringers and is reasonably stiff and easy to work. A very pale aqua color, almost invisible unless in thick applications.

Don Julio Blanco Tequila
Soft and well-behaved even in big thick pieces, although there is some shattering if said pieces are heated too quickly. Does well as thick stringer and does not devitrify or scum. Color is a very pale aqua, slightly darker than Reyka, but much lighter than Opala. Works best in solid beads and other thick applications.

Matua 2014 Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough New Zealand
Quite soft and easily worked, although the raw pieces tend to shatter if heated too quickly. Scums a little, but that burns off quickly. Needs to be worked a little cool but makes good bubbles if proper care is taken. Color is a very respectable pale aqua, firmly between Don Julio and Kikusui.

Kikusui Junmai Ginjo Sake
Another interesting find from Mitsuwa. A very nice light aqua. Does not scum or devitrify and is quite soft, although care should be taken to avoid air bubbles during pulling, since those will cause the stringers to snap like sugar candy. Needs to be worked very cool when making bubbles or else it will unbalance very easily.

Bombay Sapphire Gin
A very good deal here—those square bottles are double-thick, so you get a lot of glass out of one bottle. A little tricky to pull but otherwise well-behaved. A very nice light aqua that is similar to Moretti Light Aqua, but perhaps a bit lighter. Work it in an oxidizing flame and make sure that it's clean! Any dirt or smudging will show up very clearly.

Sake Pure Ozeki
A tad shocky but quite easy to work. The color is a shade darker than the Bombay Sapphire and doesn't burn, but it does tend to scum just a little. The color is most similar to CiM Pulsar, if a little lighter. Very nice!

Cobalts

Opala Vinho Verde, also found labeled as Orlana
Cranky, very prone to shock and shatter. Scums like a bog monster and is tricky to work. Worth it, though. The color is a pure pale azure, like blue lace agate—the real stuff, not the dyed rocks. Most similar to Vetrofond Blue Ocean Pale Transparent Odd.

Pinnacle Vodka
A bit shocky and devitrifies on the initial melting, but that burns off very quickly. Easy to work and quite well-behaved. The color is a fine medium-light true blue that's related to the Moscato, just several shades lighter. A lovely color that is most similar to CiM Carribean Ltd. Run.

Bartenura Moscata
Surprisingly well-behaved. Melts easily and does not shock much, quite easy to work. A very nice blue, one of my favorites, and the color is similar to CiM Sapphire.

Perrier
Stiff, shocky, prone to shattering. Must be heated slowly and gently and drawn into thin stringers; thick ones tend to snap during use. Slightly darker than the Moscata, similar to CiM Azure. A very nice light cobalt. The bottles I used were old, however, and this color may no longer be in production.

Saratoga Springs Water
Doesn't shock or shatter much. A bit stiff but workable. Color is all but indistinguishable from the Perrier and is a good substitute. Easier to work with, too.

Bawlz Guarana
Knobbly bottles of liquid insomnia. Mostly corn syrup and caffiene—do not drink more than once a month unless you're a hardcore gamer, a programmer, or have to drive for ten hours straight. Not available in most stores for good and sufficient reason. A very stiff blue, shocks a bit and will shatter if heated too quickly. Tends to scum, although most of that burns off, and takes practice to balance in hollow beads. A good medium cobalt blue, though, not as dark as the Bud and darker than Saratoga. Worth the aggravation, especially in microbubbles.

Bud Lite Platinum
Lousy beer, great glass. Little in the way of shocking or shattering, but the stringers snap if air bubbles get caught in the initial mass. Reasonably easy to work, and the color is very good—a deep cobalt blue with a hint of violet. Very nice.

True Greens

Topo Chico mineral water
Surprisingly stiff, prone to shock and shatter, and a tad cranky if the stringers are drawn too thick. The color is a tiny bit greener than the picture frame glass and light cyan, and better yet, the color doesn't vary between bluish and greenish, but stays a reliable cyan. Very cheap, too—only 75 cents a bottle. The color is most similar to CiM Mojito, but perhaps a tiny bit grayer.

Coca-Cola
Another stiff pale green, shatters very easily; the initial melt is best done by layering small pieces. Quite workable even with thick stringers. The color is precisely the same as Topo Chico, and is probably the same glass. Not a bad thing, actually; Topo Chico's cheaper, but Coke is everywhere.

Welch's Sparkling White Grape Juice
Very soft and easy to work, no shocking or shattering. Work high in the flame because it will melt very quickly if not kept comparatively cool. Scums a little. The color is very close to Apple Green, but not as bright; sort of a pleasant mossy color. Most similar to Effetre Green Yellow Premium, but just a touch darker.

Apple Green
From a bottle of Marsala that I can't remember the brand of, drat it. Soft, easy to work, doesn't shatter much. A lovely color. Similar to Vetrofond Light Grass Green.

Wandering Poet Rihaku Sake
Drunken poets are great fun. The bottle is etched, but that effect doesn't last. The torch just firepolishes it back to shiny. A surprisingly easy green, hardly any shocking. Quite soft, so work it cool. The color is very similar to Apple Green, but just a bit more intense.

Sprite Lemon-Lime
Those odd bottles with the dimples. Quite stiff, shatters if heated too quickly. Devitrifies a bit, but that burns off quickly. Can be pulled thick without having to worry about the stringers snapping. Color is a tiny bit darker than Apple Green—almost indistinguishably so, actually. In some lights, it's also slightly more intense a green than Rihaku as well. A good substitute for a brand that I will probably never find again.

Costco brand Italian Volcano Lemon Juice
Stiff but well-behaved, little shocking or shattering. Best handled in small amounts. A fine clear grass green, similar to Vetrofond Dark Grass Green.

DHC Japanese Hair Tonic
A small etched bottle with printed lettering. Sandpaper takes most of that off. A small bottle, but the walls are thick. Shatters a bit. A tad stiff to work but performs well in thick and thin applications, although it does tend to snap if heated too quickly. A very respectable true green with perhaps the tiniest hint of blue; the color is most similar to CiM Emerald City Ltd. run.

Weinkellerei Romerhof Riesling 2010
Very stiff and prone to shattering, and the stringers snap when drawn too thick. Quite a hard glass, but good in hollows. Color is a true dark emerald green without any of the yellow or brown overtones of the olivines. Most similar to Effetre Transparent Dark Emerald Green.

Loosen Brothers 2010 Riesling “Dr. L”
Counted among the greens only by default. Very stiff, shocks a bit, but is otherwise easy to work. Color is a true green teal, but with enough cobalt in it to make that a topic of discussion between purists. Most similar to Effetre Teal Dark Premium Transparent, or perhaps CiM Leaky Pen, only lighter.

Olivines

Brancott Estate (New Zealand) Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2011
Fancy name, boring wine. A little stiff, but it doesn't shock much, even the thick pieces, and doesn't shatter. Quite workable stuff even in a thick stringer. Color is a very interesting yellow-green that is related to the Chardonnay; olivine, but much lighter than the Monte Remellino. Most similar to Effetre Green Yellow Transparent, only yellower and darker.

$3 Chuck Merlot
Very stiff but otherwise well-behaved, little shocking or shattering. Darker and more olivine than the Lemon Juice and quite attractive. Color is similar to Devardi Light Olive Green.

Trimbach & Ribeauville Riesling 2007
Doesn't shock much and is only a little stiff. Works well in thin or thick stringers. A good strong dark emerald, only slightly olivine, very, very similar to $3 Chuck. Perhaps a tiny bit stronger in color.

Martinelli Sparkling Apple Cider
Well-behaved but slow to melt and stiff to work. Not much shocking. A tad darker and more olivine than the Merlot. Turns dark quickly when laid down thickly. Color is similar to Devardi Olive Green.

Monte Remellino Lambrusco Grasparossa di Castilvetro
Impressive name, decent wine. This glass is also found containing less ostentatious red and white wines, and is often seen in olive oil bottles. A little shocky, somewhat stiff. A very decent olive-drab green, similar to the CiM Algae Ltd run.

The Art of Shaving Pre-Shave Oil (sandalwood)
A very small bottle, but an interesting shape. Very stiff and slow to melt, but very well-behaved—no shocking or shattering, and pulls easily. Very easy to work as hollows, and is a very nice medium piney grayish-green. Very nice!

Bailey's Irish Cream
Somewhat cranky and prone to shattering. Very stiff and needs to be worked very thin if any color is to be seen at all, even in direct sunlight. A superdark green that can be used as a substitute for black, or in very small spacers.

Ambers

$3 Chuck Chardonnay
Very cranky and prone to shattering. Must be heated with care. Worth it, though; the resulting beads look like drops of good-quality olive oil, gold with just a hint of green in it. Color is similar to Effetre Transparent Yellow.

Chateau Ste. Michelle Riesling (Columbia Valley) 2010
Actually drinkable, but not as good as the Loosen Bros. A bit shocky but otherwise well-behaved. Best in thin stringers, as they snap when too thick. Markedly lighter than Bronze, and a bit more golden. More closely related to the Chardonnay, in fact, than in the darker bronze or the Grieskirchner. A very interesting antique gold color, most similar to CiM Maple, only greener.

Grieskirchner Weiss Austrian Beer
Melts easily with very little shocking, quite easy to work. The color is a fine golden brown, like dark honey; very similar to bronze but without the green tone. Most similar to CiM Maple, but browner.

Freixenet champagne
Very soft and easy to work despite being so thick-walled a bottle—up to 1/4” in places! Etching smooths out with no residue, very little shocking. Color is extremely similar to the Grieskirchner, which is good, since that stuff's a Whole Foods specific and Freixenet can be found at any supermarket. In thin-walled hollow beads, the color is all but identical; in thicker-walled ones, the color is slightly darker and browner. Quite interesting.

Bronze
A very common color in wine bottles, usually for white wines. It's that sort of brown with a hint of green in it. Cranky, stiff, and shocky, but good for spacers and hollows. Color is most similar to Devardi Golden Smoke.

Point Premium Root Beer
A little shocky, but fairly easy to melt and is quite well-behaved in stringer form. The color is all but identical to the Sprecher's, but much easier to work.

Sprecher's Root Beer
Very stiff and slow to work, and a tad shocky. Work in small amounts. A classic rich brown, but it goes very dark very quickly the thicker it's worked. Color is similar to Effetre Dark Transparent Brown, but probably darker than that.

Bailey's Irish Cream
A very dark bronze. Very thick, slow, and sticky, and it cools and goes solid very fast. Another superdark, use it as a substitute for black, since it goes black and stays black even when used for very small spacers. Only under direct sunlight and in very thin applications can the color be seen.

Pink

Aladdin Bottle Fukushima no Sake (Nigorizake)
Surprisingly stiff and prone to shattering, stringers can be drawn reasonably thick without snapping. Color is an extremely delicate rose pink, stronger than the Champagne aquarium gems and rosier than the Spectrum Pink/White Wispy. Very nice! It's a shame that the bottles are so small and that the stuff inside them might as well be nail-polish remover. Very similar to Devardi Medium Light Champagne Rose.
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