Smooth Rotation for Even Heating

By Mandy Buckner

Even heating of your glass in critical to good lampworking. You must be able to control the rotation of the tube or rod in the flame. If you get one side of your tube hotter than the other there is no way it will blow it out evenly. Like a clay pot, the sides must be even or your vessel will be off center.

Below is a step-by-step look at how to hold a tube or rod and spin it in your fingers. In this demonstration I am using a pencil.

For some real tasty technique, try dipping about a half inch of the tip of the pencil into honey. Practice keeping the honey centered on the pencil as you roll it in your fingers. If you roll to fast or too slow the honey will bunch up and drip off.

Hey, that sure is some tasty technique you got there!

When I was first learning how to do this I practiced with a pencil everywhere. Sitting watching TV, driving (I don’t recommend this however), walking the dogs, wherever.

Try to get in as much practice with this as you can before coming to class.

Also work on spinning the other direction with the same hand – moving up the fingers instead of down. Then for the real hat trick do it with your other hand! Your goal is to develop confidence rotating the glass at various speeds, in both directions, and with either hand.

	1. Start with the rod between your thumb and first finger - just under the largest knuckle of your first finger.

	2. Roll the rod down towards the tip of your finger with your thumb.

	3. At the end of your index finger catch the rod with your pinky and allow the rod to roll down the middle two fingers, again, starting just under the fold of the largest two knuckles.

	4. At the bottom of your two middle fingers, catch with your thumb and index finger. Allow the rod to roll easily down these fingers while you reposition the thumb and index finger to the starting point.

	5. Again, roll towards the tip of your index finger. You can see in this photo how the middle two fingers are extending and the pinky is ready to catch the rod when it gets to the tip of the index finger.

	6. Catch with the pinky and roll over the middle two fingers. In this photo you can see the index finger extending for the next catch and the thumb coming up.

	7. Here we are just past the catch and rolling the rod toward the tip of the index finger.

	8. Middle fingers extending and pinky getting ready to catch the rod when it gets to the tip of the index finger.

	9. Middle fingers rolling while thumb and index finger reposition.

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Stained Glass Studio

4317 West Beltline Highway
Madison, WI 53711
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between Verona Rd. and Seminole Hwy.
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The Vinery Stained Glass Studio

Smooth Rotation for Even Heating