How can I do to make stained glass to look at rings a chime to the outside? "I use to help my husband at the end of Stain Glass now I want to use the remants. I know I have to shave the edges down but I do not remember all this is done.
OK ... you have experience working with glass and then, and you understand that this can be dangerous, right? Eye protection must be used at any time, and protective gloves and apron if heavy.
If you need only make a small hole in the glass and then suspend the easiest method is to use an electric drill or rotary tool like a Dremel tool or a flexible shaft FOREDOM. Help for a drill press can be a great advantage to make holes in the glass because of its strength and precision.
You will obviously need a drill that can cut through glass. This would mean either a diamond dust coated / plated (glued) one, or one that diamond dust mixed in the metal itself throughout the cutting head. They are called bits sintered, and while they are preferable for industrial uses, they are more expensive. Bits covered with diamond dust are fine for amateur use and production of small series.
You can buy diamond drill bits online, in specialty shops or on eBay. You do not need very large, because the string or wire that you use to hang the glass is not very thick. You can get small diamond bit like this for a few dollars apiece, usually no more than three or four dollars. You might even be able to buy at local hardware stores, hobby or craft shops - I bought mine in a specialist shop for jewelry, lapidary.
They will not necessarily be a twist to them like bits of wood, and you do not need to resemble a hollow tube, unless you make large holes. They may just be small metal rods, like a nail without a head - with or without a point, and one end will have a pinch of diamond dust stuck to it. The other end obviously falls into the chuck or socket. You do not want the bit to rotate at a speed very high, because that can cause too much heat to accumulate.
When grinding or drilling of stone or glass, it is best to flood the area with a lubricant / coolant such as water or oil in some cases. Water will also help move the glass particles away from the hole you drill. Some specialized tools are integrated spray tank and circulate the coolant. You can also just work slowly and spray the area frequently with a bottle of water.
Some people will take a ring of plasticine clay and temporarily stick it on the surface of the glass around to where they want to drill the hole. The temporary dam can contain a small puddle of water that can be updated as needed, and you can run your wick into the center of it. Others have glass or stone surrounded by a metal tray of shallow water with a small piece of wood in the background as a work surface.
Obviously electricity and water do not mix - if you do not want to be holding an electric hand drill or rotary tool Dremel immersed in a water container. This is one reason people use something like a tool FOREDOM flexible shaft. There are also flexible shafts available for Dremel rotary tools. The hand piece about these tools, which holds the lock, the electric motor is isolated by a length of flexible rod - the part that you hold in your hand is not electrified and can not give you a shock.
You need to have an idea of your tools, so work on pieces of scrap glass, at first. Go slowly, and do not try to force the bit through the window. Apply a little pressure, then ease off, then apply a little pressure. It is a grinding process, not a process of cutting or digging, as with a wood bit. Sometimes, when you drill hardware.
Posted on June 20, 2010.
