Lead came color glass set in double glazing.

Some time ago we were asked to restore some lead came colored glass in an older house and upgrade it at the same time.

We happily accepted this project because we just extended our skills with this double glazing technique.

We started this restauration project with removing all the old layers of paint from the woodwork.

After this we removed the window and took the stained glass piece out of the frame.

Not too bad we only broke 3 pieces of clear glass.

In the double glazing technique, the stained glass is put in a y-profile making the original size of the piece a wee bit too big.

This means that we will have to take the whole piece apart, clean it, re-cut it and put it back together again.

In this case the owner wanted to incorporate more transparent glass to get more light into his house.

After putting the lead came piece back together again, it was time to start making the aluminum frames that go on both sides of the y-profile.

This aluminum profile is filled with a drying agent that will get all water molecules between the layers of glass out to prevent condensation when the temperature goes down and the heating goes up.

You always must use different thickness of glass on either side of the lead came piece to prevent mirroring of items in the finished product. For example 4 mm complemented with 5 mm etc.

When all of this is done it's time to clean all the glass and fill the space between the outer pieces of glass with rubber putty to get an airtight seal around the whole piece.

This putty has to dry out for about a week. Then the time comes to place the piece back into its frame and see the results.

The last thing to do for us is to put sealant on the glass frame connection to make it waterproof for years to come.

Fred Hebing

Types of Glass - Uroboros

Maybe our favorite glass is made by a company called Uroboros.

Uroboros glass is hand mixed and rolled sheet by sheet, in doing so every sheet of glass they produce is unique.

To see the production process we can recommend a visit to their website ( www.uroboros.com ) and click "about us" and then "video library". A good few minutes spent.

 
The diversity of color combinations and surface textures makes this glass perfect for lampshades and other items made in the copperfoil (Tiffany) technique.

Typical for Uroborus glass is not only the natural colors but also the balance of transparent and opalescent glass for the field of glass fusing.

Because of the uniqueness of the glass it's best to go to your supplier and pick their glass on a project base. The pictures of Uroboros glass on websites or in catalogues don't do justice to the real splendor and translucency of their product.

Despite this, I'm going to put some pictures of their glass on this page.

Fred Hebing

Soldering Problems and Tips 1

When you start soldering you will see things happen that makes you think mmhhuu??????? 
Is it supposed be like this?

To answer that here are some pointers and actions to take to improve your soldering technique. As usual practice makes perfect (most of the time).

Beading of seams is too flat.
Not enough solder.  

Beading is lumpy or peaks instead of flowing.
Iron is too cold. 

Can't seam to get beading smooth.
Did you flux? Iron too cold or too hot. Too much or not enough solder. 

Solder won't stick to copper foil or lead.
Did you flux? Copper foil may be oxidized.

Solder splatters into little balls all over the glass.
Iron too hot: purchase rheostat for your iron. This will control the current to your iron and control the heat output.

Solder falls through seams to other side when soldering copper foiled pieces.
Soldering iron is too hot or you are holding the iron in one area too long.


Try to solder in a well ventilated space, or even better, do it outdoors if you have space and the weather is on your side. It's not very beneficial to breate in the fumes from the soldering process.


Hope this helps.
Fred

Coming soon: The different types of solder and lead-free solder.

Tips on Foiling and Soldering.

THE COPPER FOIL TECHNIQUE

This method was made popular by L.C. Tiffany at the turn of the century, it involves wrapping the pieces of glass with copper foil and soldering them together along the length of the seams.

Copper foil can be used as an alternative to lead in any instance at the personal preference of the user. It is much stronger than lead when soldered, needs no putty, is waterproof, and allows you to do intricately detailed projects where the bulky look and weight of lead would detract from the aesthetics of a delicate design.

The copper needed for this technique is of a thin, foil-like gauge. It has an adhesive on one side and is backed by protective paper. Copper foil is sold in 33 meter rolls and is available in several widths and gauges. Some of the common sizes used are 4 mm, 4,8 mm, 5,5 mm and 6,4 mm. The actual gauge of the copper can be 1 mil, 1-1/4, or 1-1/2 mil. the thickness of the glass you are using and the finished look you want to achieve will dictate your choice.

For instance, if you use very wide foil such as 9,5 mm to wrap thin glass, you will have very wide seams in your finished project. Wide foils such as 7,9 mm and 9,5 mm are usually used where strength is an important factor or when very thick glass is being used. Beginners using standard 3 mm thick machine-made stained glass should start with 6,3 mm or 5,5 mm foil. These sizes are easy for the novice to handle. With a little more experience at cutting, you may like the narrow seams that 4,7 mm foil produces. The choice of width and milage is one of personal preference. As you do more stained glass, you will find that you have definite preferences.

The allowance between your pieces of glass using the copper foil method is 0,79 mm. This means that the lines of your pattern should be 0,79 mm thick. This allowance is the space that your copper foil takes up. When cutting using the traditional method, you must cut every piece of glass to the inside of these lines. If you use the paper pattern method this allowance is cut out of the pattern. If you are using a full-size pattern that is drawn with 1,5 mm lines, and using the traditional method, cut slightly to the inside of these lines. Alternatively use a Tiffany scissor, which will cut the correct amount of paper away so you'll end up with a perfect template for cutting glass.

APPLICATION OF COPPER FOIL

After all of the pieces of glass in your project are cut and refined to fit properly, you are ready to begin foiling. Every piece of glass must be wrapped in copper foil. Before you begin it is important that your glass is clean and free of dirt and oil from your cutter or the foil will not adhere properly.

Remove the protective paper backing of the foil as you work. First, center the glass on the foil. Make sure that there is an even amount of overhang on each side of the glass. Wrap the foil around each piece of glass, overlapping it at least 5 mm from where you began.

Crimp the foil around the edges of the glass. With a blunt piece of wood or a fid, burnish the foil on both sides of the glass and along the outside edge so that the foil adheres to the glass firmly and smoothly. A sloppy wrap job will ruin the appearance and affect the strength of the finished project.

Tip: the warmer the copperfoil and the glass pieces are the better foil will stick to the glass and later during the soldering it will not loosen. Try to work in a place where the temperature is above 20 degrees.

(the higher temperature the better)

Lining up and soldering your piece

After wrapping and burnishing all of the pieces of glass position them.

Apply flux to the foiled seam joints. Tack solder to all of the joints in your project. Melt just enough solder onto each joint to hold the pieces firmly together so that they will not slip or slide apart. Neat, skillful soldering is not necessary at this point because during the next step the tacking will be remelted.

Apply flux along the foiled seams of the project that you will be soldering during this work session. If you apply flux to the copper and leave it unsoldered for too long, it will result in badly tarnished, oxidized foil that will be difficult, or impossible to solder without a thorough cleaning. Should this happens, you can remove the oxidation with a soupy mixture of water, vinegar, and table salt.

The final soldering step is called "beading." This process involves building up the solder to a uniformly rounded bead along all the seams. Move the iron (with the tip held horizontal to the seam) and the solder continuously along the length of the seam. Remember that you can't bead a seam if you don't use enough solder. Likewise, too much solder will be difficult to uniformly bead. You will get the hang of it and use the proper amount. Bead both sides of your project.

If you are not going to frame your panel in a wooden frame or U lead came, you will want to take the outside edges have a more finished appearance. You now want to bead the perimeter. First apply a very light coat of solder to the perimeter on both sides of the piece. This is called "tinning."

Now bead the edges.

If you are not going to frame your project, solder on loops for hanging at this time. Pre-formed circles of brass or copper can be purchased from your supplier or you can make you own simply by curling 18 or 20 gauge brass or copper wire around a dowel.

Wash your project in warm water and mild detergents to remove the flux or use a commercially prepared flux remover. You are now ready to apply patina to the solder. Patina changes the silver color of the solder to an antique black or copper. Commercially approved chemical mixtures are available. Wear rubber gloves to protect your hands from the chemicals, and follow the directions on the label. When finished, wash and dry your panel.

Fred Hebing