Boro feedback... why do you use it or not use it???

[Cosmo]

Originally Posted by FlameDancer

What's the best palce to get boro, at a GOOD, sale price? I missed all the sales during the holidays. I need a couple lbs to start out with.

I get mine from www.lampworkingsupplies.com most of the time. But I also buy from www.generationsglass.com and www.mountainglassarts.com. Both of the second ones are in NC, so you'll get it pretty quickly. Of course, I get my stuff in a couple days from any of those places.

[Cosmo]

Originally Posted by Lenda

What clear do you all recommend? I think I got Simax or something like that when I got it 2 years ago, but I don't remember.

I use both Kimble and Simax. Sometimes in the same piece. I can't tell a difference. Looking at the cold rods from the end, Simax looks slightly blue, and Kimax looks slightly yellow, but I can't see difference in finished work.

Haven't tried Schott or Pyrex...

[Mr. Smiley]

Originally Posted by FlameDancer

What's the best palce to get boro, at a GOOD, sale price? I missed all the sales during the holidays. I need a couple lbs to start out with.

I can get you a good price on a small starter order. Just PM me and let me know what you want.

[HardwoodTrailGlass]

Originally Posted by Mr. Smiley

I can get you a good price on a small starter order. Just PM me and let me know what you want.

Well, shi*, I wish I'd known

[FlameDancer]

Thanks Chad. I just bought a couple of things from Kristian at Generations...what a sweetheart to deal with and very fast shipping. I missed his killer sale though I did buy 9 rods of glass...I got Momka's Citrus Grapefruit, Momka's Almond nugget, Momka's Charles Brown, NS Amber Purple, NS Dbl. Amber Purple, NS Caramel, NS Egyptian White Sand, NS Onyx and GA Chocolate Crayon. I also got Doug's DVD, so now I need the colors that he uses, so I can get a good start. I do have a couple of the 6 inch boro starter packs but no warm yellow

I LOVE Chris over at Mountain Glass...gosh what a neat guy he is. And, Steve is pretty cool too. They have helped me out tremendously. I didn't order from them because they didn't have the DVD, which I REALLY wanted.

Now I just want to get a really GOOD deal on my glass. lol

Thanks

[FlameDancer]

Ooooh Brent...yay!!! See the colors that I listed to Chad. That's what I have a single rod of. What other colors do you recommend? I'm off to shoot you a PM

[seafire]

I work with both soft and boro glass. I love the boro for the exotic colours. While the soft is faster with sharper colours. Annealing is different with boro, i run my kiln at 1050 while working in the flame, the glass goes directly from flame to 1050 kiln. (30 mins min) The soft glass is batch annealed every two or three days 50 to 100 at a time. I like to work standing up with the tunes thumping in the background, I think that is called flamedancing....The tutorials posted are most helpful..cheers vic

[Cosmo]

Originally Posted by FlameDancer

Thanks Chad. I just bought a couple of things from Kristian at Generations...what a sweetheart to deal with and very fast shipping. I missed his killer sale though I did buy 9 rods of glass...I got Momka's Citrus Grapefruit, Momka's Almond nugget, Momka's Charles Brown, NS Amber Purple, NS Dbl. Amber Purple, NS Caramel, NS Egyptian White Sand, NS Onyx and GA Chocolate Crayon. I also got Doug's DVD, so now I need the colors that he uses, so I can get a good start. I do have a couple of the 6 inch boro starter packs but no warm yellow

I LOVE Chris over at Mountain Glass...gosh what a neat guy he is. And, Steve is pretty cool too. They have helped me out tremendously. I didn't order from them because they didn't have the DVD, which I REALLY wanted.

Now I just want to get a really GOOD deal on my glass. lol

Thanks

Okay, let's see...

Encase the browns, or work them really cool, or they'll boil.

Amber Purple and Double are pretty easy to work. Work them hot and let them go clear, let them cool a little, then flame strike.

All the Momka's colors seem to be pretty boil-resistant, so no problem there.

The Caramel can fume colors around it if you aren't careful. If it does, heat it up pretty hot and you will be able to see the fume burn off.

As for other colors, obviously get some clear if you don't have it already. A bunch of clear, in different sizes.

Here are the other colors I use regularly:

GA Cobalt Light
GA Cobalt 2
GA Twilight Chameleon
GA Peacock Chameleon
GA Amazon Bronze
GA Purple Luster
GA Black Violet
GA Solara
GA Blush
GA Silver Strike 3
GA Silver Strike 5
Elvis (not sure who makes it, but it's easy to find)
NS Blue Moon
NS Irrid
NS Multi
Gold and Silver for fuming

[Just Nancy]

Originally Posted by suzanne

I have to adjust the propane knob at least 15 times before I get a nice and steady flame.

My bobcat still does this and it is way past the break in point. In fact there is also a spot that it produces a huge flame but if you keep opening it, the flame goes back down. I haven't checked to see if there is any difference in how full the propane tank is.

Hopefully yours is still in the break in period. The only suggestions given to me from one of the 'twins' was not to tighten them too much in the off position. Good luck.

[Just Nancy]

Originally Posted by Cosmo

I get mine from www.lampworkingsupplies.com most of the time. Of course, I get my stuff in a couple days from any of those places.

I'll second the lampworking supplies! Love their service. Especially if you are in the MidWest. It's nice to have a supplier of both soft glass and boro that's not far away.

[firefreak]

Why boro? Because i want to blow glass! I got bit by the glass bug in a hot shop. working with the glass on a blowpipe, and watching it expand is a Awesome feeling. For me working on a mandrel is just not the same. I admire the skills it takes to work on a bead, I just cant seem to wrap my head around working on something that small!
I do make some solid pieces. About 1/3 of my stuff is solids.
Finding tubing in soft glass is hard to do, and there is no where near the size and wall thickness available. So if your going to blow, it just about has to be in boro.
The thing that sucks about boro in color selection. there are so many more colors in soft glass than in boro.I cant find a royal purple in boro! Lavender, violet, grape, etc but no true purple that will work in my pieces! And everyone wants a purple piece!
The funny thing is I'm not really very good at making pieces. But I do 8-10 shows a year and people buy my stuff. At least it allows me to buy more glass and keep trying to get good at it!

[IF-Designs]

I love the colors, I love the naturalness and organicness of it, I love the way it melts and behaves...its my favorite glass to use by far. The boro recipe book that was mentioned earlier in this thread I highly recommend its A W E S O M E ! Doug Remschneiders boro DVD is good too but I found the recipe book from Lori and Rocio and Ron more helpful and way more handy Im also finding the more I do and want to do the more I really need a hotter torch...id love to get a baracuda but I dont see that happening any time soon....just me and my lil old bobcat on 2 salvaged oxy cons for me its frusterating many days but i have no other choice. If you can afford a bigger torch get it.

[FlameDancer]

Chad, those colors sounds great to start out. I still need to put my glass color order together. I've been taking care of a sick puppy and it's just about to whip me Just when I think we've rounded the corner, she declines again.

Thanks again for the color list.

[Cosmo]

Yeah. I'm also a big fan of gold and silver fuming. It seems like everything I make these days is fumed.

And, I just got into dichroic - http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/sh...ad.php?t=12007

[FlameDancer]

Cool marbles Chad. I got a couple of the quartz rods the other day, to do some fuming. Do you know how to fume with them? I have searched and searched but can't find any info.

[Mr. Smiley]

Your heat up the rod and pick up the gold or silver on the end. Then you put the metal into the flame. The metal will go liquid long before quartz... I doubt your torch will melt quartz, so hold it at an angle that keeps the metal on the tip. When the metal starts to fume, you'll see a vapor trail. Put the piece you want to fume in this vapor. The metal will coat the piece and you will get different effects with different thicknesses. Have fun and good ventilation is a must.

[Cosmo]

For some really good information on fuming, check out Kenan Tiemeyer's article in the June/July 2005 Glass Line magazine - http://www.hotglass.com/online.html#_INDEX_1

[dogmaw]

I second that Brent.... extra extra extra good ventilation is needed. That is a lot of metal fumes, and they accumulate in the lungs. So you might not notice anything the first time you do it, but it might make you sick the 10th.

[Cosmo]

Originally Posted by dogmaw

I second that Brent.... extra extra extra good ventilation is needed. That is a lot of metal fumes, and they accumulate in the lungs. So you might not notice anything the first time you do it, but it might make you sick the 10th.

Yeah. I have good ventilation, but I still lean back away from the torch and hold my breath when I'm fuming. I know I should probably wear a respirator, but I don't...

[Mr. Smiley]

I try to inhale as much as I can... I figure if my lungs are gold plated, my smoking won't be able to penetrate the hard shell... I'll be healthier in the end... Just kidding.

[Cosmo]

Originally Posted by Mr. Smiley

I try to inhale as much as I can... I figure if my lungs are gold plated, my smoking won't be able to penetrate the hard shell... I'll be healthier in the end... Just kidding.

Plus, when you die, your lungs can be sold on Ebay...

[Mr. Smiley]

Originally Posted by Cosmo

Plus, when you die, your lungs can be sold on Ebay...

That's a phenominal idea! Maybe then they could afford something other than cardboard to burry me in.

[suzanne]

maybe they can be incorporated in jewelry, a big old chain with boro beads and gold-tar fumed lungs?

[Moth]

Originally Posted by Mr. Smiley

Elizabeth. The M-10 and the M-20 are about the same output on volume. The pressures are different. The M-20 just pushes hard, which is what some torches need (GTT especially). The number you need to know is how many LPM or LPH your torch consumes... which is liters per minute or liters per hour. Then you will know if the M-10 is enough. The M-10 does 10 LPM or 600 LPH. I hope this helps... it's a bit technical and I wish I knew what the wildcat specs were. It sounds like the M-10 will work, if it recomends 5-10 PSI.

Tell me what I need to run a redmax and I'll just get that one.

[FlameDancer]

Thanks so much Brent. I just couldn't wrap my head around how to do it. Now you've solved that problem And, thanks for the link Chad. I'll check it out.

[PaulaD]

I've been wanting to try boro since I found out that it doesn't spit at you at the Lowell Gathering. So far I have justbeen collecting colors but my Barracuda is on the way and I just got a Wildcat so should be able to start soon.! For anyone who wants to take a class we have Lauri teaching here in March, Andrew Brown over Memorial Day weekend, and I hope to get Brent here later in the year or 2007..Hopefully I will do better at hard glass than at soft glass...Paula

[Mr. Smiley]

Originally Posted by Moth

Tell me what I need to run a redmax and I'll just get that one.

I don't think either of the ones out will push a redmax. I think you are in the same boat I'm in... waiting for the M-30.

[Mr. Smiley]

Krissa, You are very welcome.

Paula, Let's set a date... email me after your torch arrives.

[Mr. Smiley]

I also wanted to say that there are some really easy color combos that work in off mandrel applications. A lot of people pull their hair out trying to get Dougie pink. It's a technical combo and needs to be set up perfectly in order to get good results. As hard as it seems, it's much easier on a mandrel than off mandrel. I like to be able to get good results in a number of applications. Since ruby is difficult to work with on uneven pieces, I just leave it out as much as I can. Uneven heating will result in livery ugly colors for me. Since most of what I make isn't round and easy to heat evenly, I've worked to find other colors that behave themselves. I don't think anybody should have to pull out their hair for good boro color. I'm go bald on my own and don't need to speed the process. Try AP, DAP or Triple passion over white... amazing warm pinks, orange and purple colors can be acheived without so much fuss.

[suzanne]

ANd here I was thinking it was me. I could not get the bright pink I saw on Doug's dvd!! I will have to give the dap or triple passion a go, thanks!