Once you hold the canes in hand no one can fight off the temptation to indulge in its pricey allure. Once purchase and proudly brought into the studio, it then sort of sits next to the torch in a pretty vase mocking the beadmaker due to their intimidating size and shocky quality. We have all been there and thought it is so beautiful, but how can I use this wonderful artisan created material for small scale bead making, while retaining it’s stunning pattern? The answer is very simple; pull it down into manageable 2 – 3 mm stringers! The tutorial below will explain how to pull down large diameter pattern into cane as small as 2mm yet packed with the same pattern and detail as the larger parent cane.
Materials required: Torch of choice, Zanfirico/Reticello glass stock, glass punty stock of the same COE the Reticello or Zanfirico is made of, 6 x 6 inch marver or pick up plate for inside the kiln, glass score knife or rod nippers, torch marver or bench marver 12x12 size for under the torch, and most importantly your patience and sense of adventure! Note: The larger the torch the quicker the process will go, however this tutorial was done on a beadmaking torch.
NOTE: You don’t want to try this out for the first time with beads or marbles in your kiln / annealer. When learning, you will probably hold the kiln door open longer than you should during pick up’s, causing the temperature to fluctuate greatly. With practice, it should only take a few seconds to grab and close the kiln door.
Steps:
1.
Cut ½ to 1 & ½ inch sections off your Zanfirico cane. The cane size used for this tutorial is about 7-8 mm. If your using very large diameter rod around 13-15 mm, you will need to use a score knife to score & snap off sections. In addition, do not cut off sections any larger than an inch or so until you become familiar with managing a pull while retaining the glass pattern.
Cut ½ to 1 & ½ inch sections off your Zanfirico cane. The cane size used for this tutorial is about 7-8 mm. If your using very large diameter rod around 13-15 mm, you will need to use a score knife to score & snap off sections. In addition, do not cut off sections any larger than an inch or so until you become familiar with managing a pull while retaining the glass pattern.2.Place your 6x6 inch marver into the kiln / annealer and place your 3 - 5 sections of cane on the marver or pick up plate. Turn the kiln on and ramp up to about 950 degrees for glass that is 96 or 104 coe. I would also like to mention that you could place the cane on the marver inside of a hot kiln after your first set of pickups have been completed. It will not damage the cane.
Place your 6x6 inch marver into the kiln / annealer and place your 3 - 5 sections of cane on the marver or pick up plate. Turn the kiln on and ramp up to about 950 degrees for glass that is 96 or 104 coe. I would also like to mention that you could place the cane on the marver inside of a hot kiln after your first set of pickups have been completed. It will not damage the cane.3.Place your large 12x12 marver under the torch and grab your punty stock. It is a good idea to stick with punty stock that is the same coe as the Zanfirico stock you are pulling down.
Place your large 12x12 marver under the torch and grab your punty stock. It is a good idea to stick with punty stock that is the same coe as the Zanfirico stock you are pulling down.4.Form a small maria on the end of the punty and heat the top skin of the maria on the edge of your flame.
Form a small maria on the end of the punty and heat the top skin of the maria on the edge of your flame.5.QUICKLY, open the kiln door and touch the end of a Zanfirico section with the MOLTEN end of the punty. As you go into the kiln for your first pick up, take the time to make sure your attaching the molten tip straight and centered. If your attachment is very crooked, marver slightly as you attach. If your pickup is still crooked, don’t fret, just jump over to the next step. Additional tips provided will help you correct the minor error.
QUICKLY, open the kiln door and touch the end of a Zanfirico section with the MOLTEN end of the punty. As you go into the kiln for your first pick up, take the time to make sure your attaching the molten tip straight and centered. If your attachment is very crooked, marver slightly as you attach. If your pickup is still crooked, don’t fret, just jump over to the next step. Additional tips provided will help you correct the minor error.6.Immediately, take the attached section in a VERTICAL position into the preheating area of the flame / tip of the flame and heat the whole section from top to bottom while simultaneously rocking the punty rod between your fingers. Continue to do so for an additional minute or so. IMPORTANT! Do not heat up the punty past the maria joint. Doing so will be sure to cause thermal cracking of the punty. Also, do not bounce or take the attached section in and out of the flame in a jerking motion.
Immediately, take the attached section in a VERTICAL position into the preheating area of the flame / tip of the flame and heat the whole section from top to bottom while simultaneously rocking the punty rod between your fingers. Continue to do so for an additional minute or so. IMPORTANT! Do not heat up the punty past the maria joint. Doing so will be sure to cause thermal cracking of the punty. Also, do not bounce or take the attached section in and out of the flame in a jerking motion. 7.Keep the pickup directly in the center of the flame and gradually / slowly lower into more of the heating/melting area of the flame. You can now go in on more of an angle. KEEP ROCKING THE PUNTY AND MOVING THE SECTION UP AND DOWN TO KEEP THE WHOLE SECTION WARM.
Keep the pickup directly in the center of the flame and gradually / slowly lower into more of the heating/melting area of the flame. You can now go in on more of an angle. KEEP ROCKING THE PUNTY AND MOVING THE SECTION UP AND DOWN TO KEEP THE WHOLE SECTION WARM. 8.Preparing for the secondary punty handle. As you begin to lower the section into more of the melting area of the flame, you will need to switch hands. Hold the Zanfirico section in your left hand, while grabbing a second punty in your right hand. Melt the new punty’s tip and make a small maria on the end using a flat marver next to your torch. Once you know the section has been heated uniformly, give a little extra heat to end of your cane section and attach to the second punty handle. TAKE YOUR TIME AND APPLY CENTERED!
Preparing for the secondary punty handle. As you begin to lower the section into more of the melting area of the flame, you will need to switch hands. Hold the Zanfirico section in your left hand, while grabbing a second punty in your right hand. Melt the new punty’s tip and make a small maria on the end using a flat marver next to your torch. Once you know the section has been heated uniformly, give a little extra heat to end of your cane section and attach to the second punty handle. TAKE YOUR TIME AND APPLY CENTERED!Heat control is essential during steps 6-8. You want enough heat to keep the whole section warm but the Zanfirico should NOT be in a molten state yet. Its shape should be retained as much as possible until you attach the other end to a secondary punty in the steps to follow. Your primary objective is to keep the section saturated with enough heat to bring it right to the point of almost pliable. 96 coe glass is slightly stiffer and will need more heat than 104 coe marble stock.
9.Reshape Zanfirico section if necessary. Having the section centered on your punty handles is essential for retaining the pattern during the final pull. If you happened to attach the second punty slightly off center OR overheated your cane section causing it to be somewhat crooked you can correct by heating the faulty section / maria end and marvering on the large marver placed under the torch area. REMEMBER to keep the whole package warm and not focus too much time on the uneven portion your correcting!
Reshape Zanfirico section if necessary. Having the section centered on your punty handles is essential for retaining the pattern during the final pull. If you happened to attach the second punty slightly off center OR overheated your cane section causing it to be somewhat crooked you can correct by heating the faulty section / maria end and marvering on the large marver placed under the torch area. REMEMBER to keep the whole package warm and not focus too much time on the uneven portion your correcting!10.Place the cane package directly back into the center of melting area of the flame.
Place the cane package directly back into the center of melting area of the flame. 11.Rotate the package SIMULTANEOUSLY clockwise very slowly
Rotate the package SIMULTANEOUSLY clockwise very slowly12.Move the package to the right, then the left. DO NOT heat the punty past the temporary joint at the maria. If you melt the maria, the clear will not only become a weak handle, but also melt clear into the package.
Move the package to the right, then the left. DO NOT heat the punty past the temporary joint at the maria. If you melt the maria, the clear will not only become a weak handle, but also melt clear into the package.Once the package has been heated uniformly and it is in a completely molten/pliable state without any “cool spots” your ready to complete the pull as shown in step 13.
13.Once the whole package is in a uniform molten state, pull the package out very very slowly while rotating one punty handle clockwise, and the other counter clockwise (in other words twist ends in opposite directions). As you sense the center becoming set / stiff pull package slightly faster and twist twist twist fast!!! The faster the twist, the tighter the spiral. This is the part that will take you a few try's to master. Understanding heat control and timing will come with practice.
Once the whole package is in a uniform molten state, pull the package out very very slowly while rotating one punty handle clockwise, and the other counter clockwise (in other words twist ends in opposite directions). As you sense the center becoming set / stiff pull package slightly faster and twist twist twist fast!!! The faster the twist, the tighter the spiral. This is the part that will take you a few try's to master. Understanding heat control and timing will come with practice.What to do with those little ends left?
14.Nip off the uniform section of your pull with rod nippers, but leave the little ends “dog bones” attached to the punty. You can pull a thin 6-8” section off with one of those little ¼ inch ends! Throw your largest end back into the flame immediately after cutting usable section off. Heat end molten, punty up and pull. The photo below shows a 2mm 8 inch pull off that little nib left!
Nip off the uniform section of your pull with rod nippers, but leave the little ends “dog bones” attached to the punty. You can pull a thin 6-8” section off with one of those little ¼ inch ends! Throw your largest end back into the flame immediately after cutting usable section off. Heat end molten, punty up and pull. The photo below shows a 2mm 8 inch pull off that little nib left!Alternate use would be to cut off ends, put them back in kiln for 15 minutes, then drop in cold water for wildly colored frit!
15.So how much cane can you get out of a 14” rod? I pulled all this cane shown below from one 7-8mm Copper Blue/Gold Ruby GGGlass.com veiled Zanfirico rod. It yielded a total of 39 cane sections ranging from 2 to 4 mm thick. NO KIDDING! It does take you some practice to get to this point, but it is more than worth it. Time spent pulling the cane down was 20 minutes total.
So how much cane can you get out of a 14” rod? I pulled all this cane shown below from one 7-8mm Copper Blue/Gold Ruby GGGlass.com veiled Zanfirico rod. It yielded a total of 39 cane sections ranging from 2 to 4 mm thick. NO KIDDING! It does take you some practice to get to this point, but it is more than worth it. Time spent pulling the cane down was 20 minutes total.QTY
212 inch sections
12 inch sections610 inch sections
10 inch sections59 inch sections
9 inch sections48 inch sections
8 inch sections67 inch sections
7 inch sections15 2-6 inch sections
2-6 inch sections Would you like to learn how to fabricate/construct & pull your own cane at the torch?
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