GRINDING
ON BITS
Joan Bengston: On the subject of grinder
bits, I have had grinders with both the 1" and the 3/4" bits. Either one
is fine although I think the 1" cuts a little faster because of its larger
circumference running the same speed. My grinder also has a platform for
the 1/4" bit and I have an aquarium pump drip that can easily be toggled
between the sponges on either level. At one time I bought one of those
angled bits made for lamp glass. I found it wasn't all that handy to keep
changing bits. Besides, not all lamp pieces should have beveled edges.
Take a cone for example. The side edges should be beveled to wrap around
the cone but the top and bottom edges on the straight part of the cone
should be regular ground. It is more efficient to just hold the glass
at an angle to a regular straight bit when needed. Someone mentioned wanting
a bit that cuts faster. There are coarse abrasive bits for fast grinding
but I believe they chip the edges more. That being the tradeoff, I will
stay with the regular bit. As mentioned before,
though, I use my bench grinder with a fine green wheel for a lot of my
small piece work. I don't have to worry about the templates washing off
because there is no water. Of course, I do have to wear a dust mask but
that's no problem.
ON DIRECTION
Walt Boepple: I move my glass in all directions when grinding but there is a natural way it is easier with the torque of the head. I know the pressure that I put onto my fingers changes as I move the glass into the head knowing which way the glass is going to be pulled when it touches. Mostly I move from right to left as the head is turning counterclockwise.
Deb Sossi: I move the glass in a counter clockwise direction against the grinder bit starting at the left side of the glass and grinding towards the right side.
Barb Grollo: Speaking of grinders, I know I asked about grinding procedures, and mentioned to Pat the response I had gotten. She came across an article that she had saved from an earlier book or magazine and it states very clearly that the "correct" (according to them) way to grind, is to move the glass from the right side of the grinder to the left side, "never" back and forth. It states since the head rotates counter clockwise, you should move your glass into it, not with the rotation. They guarantee less chipping using this method.
ON GRINDING SEQUENCE
Marie Jo Murray: I cut all the glass for the entire lamp then grind...clean pretty much the pieces and with the pattern on the pieces, put them on my mold. When I am ready to foil, I take the pattern off, clean the piece of glass better , foil it and put it back on the mold...( I found out it was saving time by writing all the pattern numbers on the mold) Very few pieces need " fine grinding " because I try to do my best the first time...
Jennifer Buckner: When I'm working on a project, I cut the glass as nearly as I can to the pattern I've traced on it, then I grind it along those pattern lines until it fits perfectly (or close) on its corresponding place on the paper pattern I use for the layout. All my grinding on each piece is done in one step, and, once ground, the pieces stay on the layout copy until I'm ready to foil them.
Barb Grollo: For my last lamp, I cut pattern pieces for all three repeats of the Peony, and cut quite a few pieces, then would take a break and grind them right up to the pattern. Then I'd soak off the pattern, clean the glass and mark the pattern number on the glass (itsy, bitsy mark, so as not to interfere with foiling) After that, I placed them on the glass easel and continued. When I finished the three repeats on easels, I started placing the glass on the mold and just had to do some "fine-tuning" with the grinding.
Jennifer Buckner: I own a pair of pattern shears, but never use them. I cut the pattern through the middle of the black line, but then TRY to cut the glass right on the line. However, when I'm grinding, I grind so that, when the glass piece is lying on the layout copy, you can see at least half the thickness of the pattern line all around the outside of the glass. This is where my pins come in - I hold each piece of glass in place on the layout board with the same pins I'd use on a Worden mold. I stick them down into the cork (under the layout pattern) just enough to keep them upright, but not deeply enough to make them difficult to remove. This way, I'm assured of having a tiny space between each piece. When the grinding is completely finished I have (ideally) black lines between all the pieces. This leaves enough room for the foil (usually 3/16 or 7/32) and a tiny bit of solder to run down, giving the final project some strength without having excessively thick lines. My panels that are ready for soldering look like tiny pin forests, but it works for me.
HELPFUL GRINDING TIPS
Jo Anna Vitale: Here's a tip to help save your fingers...I wear those "rubber fingers" on my thumbs to protect them against slices and cuts from the glass. It really works and you can pick them up at any office supply store or maybe even at K-Mart. For really tiny pieces, I use a plastic gadget that holds the glass between two rubber things so my fingers don't touch the glass at all!
Carl Chapman: I try to cut accurately, but am not ashamed to let the grinder do some work on difficult curves. One thing that I do that helps avoid finger cuts, is to make a light pass with the grinder over the piece to take off any nasty burrs, then, if I have to press hard to get to my line, there is less chance of getting cut.
Susan Slack: I use a product called Mark-stay to keep lines on my glass when using the saw and sometimes the grinder. It comes in a small jar and costs about $4 retail.
Shauna Palmer: Try using gold, white or black solvent based permanent paint markers to mark your glass (Faber Castell is a good one, you can remove the marks with acetone). The second best alternative method is china markers (you know those wax markers you peel down the side with a piece of string), they come in lots of colors. Paint markers are available at any art, craft or office supply outlet. China markers can be a little harder to find, but I have found them at major office supply outlets (and various other suprising places).
Nancy Pimental: a great product to keep your pen lines on glass while using the band saw, ring saw or grinder is called "Mark-stay". It is manufactured by K.S.G.G. -Rt. 5, Box 36A Kimberling City, MO 65686.
Marcia Holtzclaw: I found that it helped a lot to draw a line around the base of the grinder bit with a black magic marker. It was then easy to raise the bit just high enough to grind a piece of glass and not waste any of the surface.