By: David H.
Submitted: 2008-12-10 10:09:19 | Word Count: 690
Glass Blowing Torches or Lampworking is one of the most popular techniques in making glass products at home or in business. The process in fabricating this unique creation can be easily done by following simple procedures.
Glass Blowing Torches is also dubbed as lampworking. It is a science of shaping a particular glass to achieve the desired form. This type of glass work undergoes the process of melting rods and tubes of cleared and colored glass by the use of gas fueled torch .It is one of the most popular art form which utilizes a unique technique.
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The art of lampworking was first practiced by the people in Italy during the 14th century. It was done by manually blowing the air into the oil lamp flame through a pipe. Many lamp work techniques were extended for the production of glass dishes, torches, and sculpture. The old ways were now changed into easiest procedure to create lamp glass art. In some countries, most artists usually utilize propane, natural gas, butane, and fuel gas as oxidizers to burn the torches. Some of the experts utilized systematic glass blowing to produce large pieces of glass arts.
A lamp worker is a person who plans the making of art glass in careful manner. The blower of glass is also billed as “gaffers”. Lamp working also identified as flame working or torch is employed to create scientific tools in chemistry and laboratory procedures. There are general methods in making fine molded glass art applying glass blowing torches.
Here’s basic lampworking procedure:
• Put the glass tube or rod slowly into the fire in order to avoid breakage due to thermal shock.
• Heat the glass until partially soften.
• You can use a coated steel cylindrical arbor that can be cut around the glass and create a base head. This covering is a bead release that tolerates the bead to be detached from the arbor in an easy manner.
• Put your glass work in a place where there is an equal temperature to avoid it from shattering.
• Using modern techniques and exclusive materials, you can ornament your finish glass work and create more remarkable products.
Annealing is the next procedure after partially molding the work piece. Annealing involves heating a piece with appropriate temperature in an oven. The temperature to pre heat the glass piece must be enough to arrive at a stress relief point. This point is a temperature wherein the glass is extremely hard to bend however should be adequately soft for stresses to slacken off. Then, the piece should be allowed to heat soak until heat temperature becomes uniform. The heating time duration is dependent on the thickness of glass section.
Lastly, the product must be slowly cooled at appropriate temperature rate which is below the critical point that won’t cause internal pressures or breakage. Afterwards, this art piece can be now lowered down to room temperature. The less relieve of internal pressures is a result of a long lasting art glass piece. Annealing is one of the important factors in flame working; this will avoid shattering or cracking of glass piece due to minor change of temperature.
The Classic Colored Glass
You can make a classy yet colorful glass piece by adding metals, metal oxides and other compound upon melting the glass tube or rod. The physical properties of glass use high concentration of coloring agent to produce a color changed. Colored glass adds distinctive outlook to its quality. The best kind of color for glass blowing is the one that is not changed when the glass is heated.
Two Types of Glass Division:
1. Dependent on chemical composition
2. Dependent on temperature
Dependent on Chemical composition is a type of colored glass for glass blowing that won’t alter during glass pre heating. These colors are in the array spectrum of purple blue green. In general, the dependent on temperature colored glass for glass blowing comes in red, yellow, and opal. They have the least usage in glass blowing because most of these types loss its color after being heated. Glass blown products are more commonly seen in the scientific glass blowing industry.
