Stained Glass Cutting Tools, Tips & Tricks

[@Rtfhg56853]

This woman sure has commanding knowledge of her craft! Thanks for the tips and tricks

[@MakeitMosaics]

Thanks for being a fan!

[@caranoland1409]

This video dropped my jaw...the glass cutting instructions answered so many questions I've had for years. Thank you!!

[@MakeitMosaics]

Thanks for all the positive feedback!!

[@katesanderson5472]

I'm so glad I found you on KZbin! I used to shop with you in Rio Grande and was so sad that you moved. This video is just wonderful.

[@lindahill1636]

I love Anything in Stained Glass, shopping with them for 30 years!

[@timeenuf4200]

GREAT video - thanks Paula.

[@ursulabourget1073]

Wonderful information and instructions. I learned so much! Can't wait to give it a try.

[@MakeitMosaics]

Have fun!

[@patriciaflanigan7437]

Thanks, Bonnie. This was really helpful

[@meribonavita4983]

Thanks Bonnie and Paula !!! This was so helpful!!! Can’t wait to see you !!!

[@lisascarbath2122]

I always love getting a notification that you’ve posted another video! This is so informative and well done! Thanks to you and Paula for sharing your knowledge with us.

[@kimthatsallyouneedtoknow5684]

more videos more often PLEASE!!

[@MakeitMosaics]

Thanks for being a fan. More videos soon.

[@shanemacintyre3200]

Wow that was really great thanks

[@MakeitMosaics]

Glad you like it! Thanks for being a fan!

[@LEONRIMES]

Extremely informative for a newbie like me....thanks!!

[@MakeitMosaics]

Happy to help. Keep creating!

[@sallyjoligocki5011]

Very I formative. Thank you for sharing.

[@mashaleder]

Thank you very much, this is the most comprehensive video about the cutting of class that I have seen. I have a question about a small screw at the top of a pistol-grip cutter. Should it be very tight for a straight cut? I have noticed then this screw not being fully tightened makes the entire metal part quiver which is not what I need for cutting straight. Please advise if it should be fully tightened for straight cuts. I understand when I'm cutting a wave-like shape it should not be fully tightened to make the tip flow, am I right?

[@MakeitMosaics]

I keep mine loose, I wish I had the ultimate answer. Your best bet is to experiment with the tightness on some scrap glass and get a feel for what works best for you.

[@kim00mik]

Very helpful!! Wish I had saw this when I first started… but live and learn! I won’t be afraid of this inside curves…

[@irenetucker8882]

Really excellent information! The details of the "why" really help you to remember the importance of each of the tips.

[@MakeitMosaics]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@edelchadwick]

This is a really great video, really well explained. Thank you

[@MakeitMosaics]

appreciate your positive words!!

[@abiggs66]

Thank you for this video, great information ❤❤❤

[@MakeitMosaics]

Thanks for watching!

[@DenineS]

Some great cutting tips! Thank you!

[@cocacolafiesta]

Absolutely useful! Great information.

[@MakeitMosaics]

Thanks for being a fan!

[@patsyw6477]

Super helpful! Thank you so much for explaining this so well.

[@MakeitMosaics]

Thanks for being a fan!!

[@en2336]

Amazing straight to the point packed with information video! great!

[@annaj310]

Love this! Best video I've seen for my learning experience

[@MakeitMosaics]

Thank you!

[@gayebrandon9623]

Thank you so much . I learnt a lot.

[@MakeitMosaics]

I'm so glad!

[@emem009]

Thank you for this! Excellent to remind me of the basics - oh and I highly endorse your store.

[@MakeitMosaics]

Thanks for being a fan!

[@anniewhit9963]

Very useful and helpful to know the why...thank you

[@MakeitMosaics]

Appreciate your feedback!

[@wendykain2178]

Whoah! Thanks so much.

[@LucasBorioMakeUp]

THANK YOU!

[@MakeitMosaics]

You're welcome!

[@samharman198]

Very informative thanks

[@sylviaprudhomme5417]

Learned a lot

[@j.c.7555]

Such a awesome helpful info I can’t thank you enough for such clear informative info I had no idea before! Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge! 😘

[@MakeitMosaics]

our pleasure, keep creating!!

[@carrielankford3404]

There are a few of us from New Windsor, MD. & We are very interested!

[@MakeitMosaics]

Anything in Stained Glass (Frederick, MD) owner teaches a “Boot Camp” , worth you all looking into. I teach there a few times a year and take all levels, so a crash course in cutting during those workshop too. Thanks for your interest. A small group I can take in my home studio in NoVA, send me a note via email.

[@Chris-iq1gc]

Hi, I enjoyed your glass cutting video. I have a question. I noticed that besides the fact that your glass cutters have a reservoir for oil, you are manually oiling the cutter tip from a jar of oil. Why is that? Thanks! Chris

[@MakeitMosaics]

You almost can not have too much oil. I usually do not fill the reservoir as dang tool almost always leaks, even really good quality ones, especially for me because I travel back and forth to workshops with the tools. I have muscle memory of dipping in the oil. Hope that helps.

[@lindsaymiles9304]

Thank you!!!

[@carrielankford3404]

Do you offer a day or weekend glass cutting class?

[@MakeitMosaics]

Sorry, at this writing I do not. But I do personal mentoring and happy to do within that context, visit www.maverickmosaics.com Also, check with your local stained glass store, they often offer such a course.

[@mikedeitel8920]

WHERE can one buy a pistol-grip glass cutter like the one you are using, having interchangeable heads, too?

[@MakeitMosaics]

Witsend has the grips not sure if they have the heads witsendmosaic.com/mosaic-tools-supplies.html, Anything in Stained Glass has both (I am not seeing the bigger heads but simply may not be on their website, any questions call them, super friendly and helpful customer service) www.anythinginstainedglass.com/tools/glasscutters.html Good luck, keep creating!!

[@teresal5959]

I loved it!!!! Very informative!! Thanks

[@MakeitMosaics]

And THANKS for being a fan!

[@mistyhefner3790]

when I practice scoring on plain hobby glass I hear the scoring sound but when I am scoring the stained glass I don't hear that cutting sound or hear it very lightly and its throwing me off. Does different types of glass sound different or am I doing something wrong?

[@MakeitMosaics]

In theory you should never hear the score, you use that much oil. All glasses are different, no one size fits all answer, great question! Thanks for being a fan.

[@mistyhefner3790]

@@MakeitMosaics thank you for your help!

[@barbaralevy7831]

Best! Didn't know any of this! No wonder scoring wasn't fun.

[@MakeitMosaics]

Me too! Paula is so knowledgeable. Glad this video roved helpful!

[@septegram]

Oil is also available in lots of places other than Wal-Mart. Let's not suggest the Evil Empire. Fascinating video! Thank you so much.

[@MakeitMosaics]

Thanks for being a fan! Yes there are purchase options for everything,.

[@johnj.publicus1371]

I have been doing art glass for almost 35 years, I was schooled by masters in the craft. I am a juried glass artist that has had art displayed in museums. I have been researching and developing techniques for a very, very long time, what I am going to write isn't spiteful response, its scientific gospel. Please take it in the spirit it is offered, to dispel rumor and myth and pass on the actual skills and knowledge for this craft that is being lost . Here is the physics of glass and glass scoring: Glass is a FLUID in a SOLID form, like ice. It behaves like a fluid (not a liquid-its easy to confuse these) and a solid at the same time. We use oil while scoring glass because the action of drawing that carbide wheel over the glass at those speeds creates friction, and therefore heat. The 'fibers' you think you see are cracks caused by heat. Press harder, more heat (try it while rubbing your hands together; -press harder, they heat up faster, right?). The oil is a liquid that reduces the friction, therefore the heat, therefore the cracking. This is one way that glass acts as a fluid in a solid state. We also use a liquid when cutting (as opposed to scoring) glass on a diamond saw to reduce friction, that would be water. ___________________________________________________ The angle of the cutter does not matter, as long as it is fully engaged and under steady pressure. This is the reason bottom of the head is angled. In fact, using a small angle allows for a smoother score, especially when 'push' scoring. _______________________________________________________ The Thomas Grip cutter is designed to go between your thumb and forefinger, just like the Thomas Soft Grip does, not between your fingers. But if you can cut comfortably with it between your fingers, go for it! ___________________________________________________ The large head IS for straight lines SPECIFICALLY against a straight edge. It also has more mass. This creates a 'heat sink' effect which helps draw more heat from the scoring wheel that a pattern head does. Why? Because we push down harder, and score faster along a straight edge than we do freehand. Therefore more heat. The increased mass helps dissipate that extra heat. Wiping oil down the path of the score helps with this too (like wiping the sheet down with oil, it has it's place) _____________________________________________________ Lamp oil does not 'fall into the grooves to keep them open' This is under the category of oil to reduce friction while scoring. If your scoring tool is flowing oil well, this is not needed in any way. This was an old fashioned way to score a lot of small pieces with scoring wheels that had no internal oil reserve. Legend has it that the method was developed in the Lamp Shop of Tiffany Studios in Queens NY. Some sheet glass workers still use the 'swab on a stick' method when scoring large sheets of float glass. One reason is that their scoring speed is probably 2 - 10 times the speed we use on art glass, and they rarely use oil reserve scoring tools. ________________________________________________________ Running pliers leverage a 'fault' that is created in the glass by the scoring wheel. If you looked at this fault (score) under the microscope, it would look like a scratch in the surface, which is essentially what a score is (this is why diamonds have been used-lots of scratches without wear). Your running pliers leverage this fault to break the glass. If you point your pliers on an angle, the glass will chip on that angle, it may not even run straight, though glass does tend to break in 'straight-ish' lines when left to it's own. Curves are more difficult due to the fact that glass breaks in the 'path of opportunity' or 'least resistance'. Scoring too hard sets up more cracking and fracturing along the score (due to heat) and gives the break opportunities to 'deviate' from that score at those cracks (junctures). Scoring too light does not set up a clear enough 'path of opportunity' for the score to break along it's path reliably. _____________________________________________________________ Pro hint on running glass; If you gently 'pulse' your hand, the pliers actually sets up a 'wave' in the glass that 'gentles' the breaking. The science is that the pulsing allows for progressive pressure to be applied, and not OVER applied. You do it naturally too. Just 'squeezing' creates a perfect opportunity to 'over squeeze' the pliers and the break goes wrong (straighter). Also, use the breakers on the beginning or end of score to avoid that little 'under-spald' of the glass near the center. In the end, a breaker and a runner do the same thing, convince the glass the break along the score. Would you begin with a running pliers in the middle of the score? ___________________________________________________________ Love to see you keeping the supplies available to the crafters!!

[@MakeitMosaics]

Wow that's a lot of information, I appreciate your detailed explanations and some of our viewers may find this insightful. Our teaching style is to first inspire creativity and get folks working and enjoying the process. Technical specifics follow. I am curious to see some of your artwork, I am always interested to learn about artists I do not know. I could not find you Mr. Publicus.

[@jefferyeckes5343]

@@MakeitMosaics Hi, I'm not revealing my name Bonnie. I really hate stealing anyone's light on their video's, that's also why I try to make sure you don't think I'm criticizing you in any way. For that reason it's also difficult to share my art online, but I'm working on a solution to that. We did a few instructional videos for stained glass back in the 90's that go over a lot of this, so I'm thinking of posting them up on KZbin. The image quality, being back in the bad old days of low-res, is poor. Two of the things I looked forward to every year was teaching at the glass conferences and studios around the country, and the other was writing about glass... In fact I'm thinking of doing it today maybe. Good to see others taking it forward!

[@MakeitMosaics]

@@jefferyeckes5343 I have old videos that I have re-purposed, the information is more important than the quality. That is the beauty of KZbin! Crate a channel, I'll share it. Like I said some folks will be very interested in the "why".

[@jefferyeckes5343]

@@MakeitMosaics OK, so I got them online. Not fancy, and really old resolution, but the information is sound and clearly presented. Feel free to ask me for specific citations on anything I say. It may take time, but I should be able to come up with something besides my 'institutional knowledge'. And remember, glass workers score every day! kzbin.info/door/Ya_zk8cg-K0oI4PBH9ARTg

[@mmo4754]

Glass is not liquid, it does not flow. Your explanation for the purpose of oil makes no sense. Are you saying that without the oil, the glass will fuse back together or something?

[@MakeitMosaics]

Of course the glass will not fuse back together. Once it is broken it is broken, but we want to control the breaks. The oil allows the wheel on the scoring tool to smoothy crack the glass surface. I think of it like a frozen pond, breaking the surface, in a controlled way, with my oiled scorer, then running the score with a plier or grozer.