THANK YOU, SUSAN! This is precisely the information that I needed in order to make my own custom texture molds for my glass projects. 3 weeks of researching and I finaly landed here😁 Also, dont feel bad for longer videos where you digress with many ideas. This is the perfect kind of video to help others to not repeat the same mistakes (like the ceramic molds) thank you so much!
ive ordered the investment from Delphi. need to ask a question.. will making a flat disk(carving out a leaf shape) for using in a vitriograph kiln work
A solution of baking soda and water will break down plaster of paris it might work to get the investment out of the hard mold. I use it to dissolve my used home made plaster molds.
That is really neat. Could you fuse it again though like with frit added in the empty spaces of the glass or would that ruin the investment mix shape that was created? - Heidi
As always, very informative and great ideas, thank you! I just visited Victorian Art Glass and they don't offer anything by this exact name, Investment Mix. They offer Casting Compound, Pottery Plaster, and Silica. Do you know if the Casting Compound is the same thing as the Investment Mix you used here, just renamed? Appreciate your insight.
Maree Dawson yes, no need to prefire the pieces because after firing they become brittle. Investment mix might not be available in Australia but you should be able to find the ingredients at a store where potters buy their clay.
Hi, Susan. I'm beginning to fuse glass and I have a project in mind. I want to make a glass arrowhead that imitates obsidian glass. I'm thinking about making a two-part mold and I'm looking for a material that I can use in my microwave kiln and which withstands the temperature and can hold the glass inside the mold. Can you help me? I'm becoming a little desperate here because I've used several materials and nothing.. Thank you very much for your videos.😊😊
Josué your project has a few challenges. Making a 2 part mold that can withstand not only high temperatures but the extremes of a microwave kiln are going to be difficult. Many experienced fusers don’t know how to do this. I would recommend going into the Glass Campus group on Facebook and post a question to Dennis Brady. He’s an expert at making low cost molds. 😁
Hi, Susan. Sorry to bother you again. I have one question: Is it possible to melt glass in the microwave kiln to the point it's liquid? Have you tried it? I know glass never reaches a state in which it's "runny". But can you get to the point of being able to pour it into a lost wax cast? Thank you so much for your help! 😊
Sweetie Locs that video would be very short. It would be just me telling you to buy a digital programmer. I started with an infinite switch kiln. I ruined just about everything until I got a digital programmer. They can be pricey but can be used on many kilns (1at a time). Or you can buy a new or used kiln with a digital programmer built in. Check Craigslist for a great deal on a used kiln. And if you’re tech savvy you can set an alert on Craigslist to be notified when someone posts a kiln. 😁
Jill Groves I’m not familiar with Perfect Cast. Maybe they have different directions. I had a few stick but I was able to chip them out because the investment mix becomes fragile after fusing. For extreme sticking I can even soak the pieces in water to help dissolve the investment mix pieces.
Bill Chavez not a silly question. Silica is one of the materials in glaze & claybody for potters. It provides the melting or glassifying agents in a claybody that allow the material to fuse together. It’s also known as flint & quartz. So to find it I’d suggest calling a store that sells clay to potters and ask for silica flower and if they don’t know it by that name tell them what it does and maybe they can tell you what they call it. Best of luck.
Joeann Knehr I believe Bullseye Glass sells it but you can also make it. You can get the silica flour usually where they sell potters clay & the plaster is easy to find.
And what do they charge for such a small container of investment? I've been running Bandust101 from glass-cast in the 50lb box. If kept dry, it will keep for a long time.
worldtraveler they only changed $20 and it will makes tons of stuff! I can always make it cheaper (if I want lots) but is was a cheap way to give it a try.
@@SusanMcGarryGlass 20bucks is fair enough. I think my 50lb box ran me about 70bucks with shipping. I'm using it to cast chunks of glass for a bronze lamp. Getting a shiny finish where glass touches the investment is proving to be a royal pain. I've learned there is ZERO out there on casting glass and the bozos I've talked to about it know ZIP. I feel like the last Mohican out here. Hey, quick questions for ya... have you ever tried flame polishing a chunk of glass with a torch? I've been casting my chunks, then refiring them to gloss them and of course>>>> slump happens. Not everyone wants slump. Would preheating just below softening point followed by a torch yield a shiny surface? After torching, I could quickly get it back in the kiln for anneal??? Sound plausible to you?
worldtraveler it sounds possible but it also sounds dangerous. Lol. Glass is so temperamental that I’d give it a try then check for stress. Maybe see how torchworkers (lampworkers) handle their glass. It’s a similar process.
Well, I tried it. Nothing dramatic happened, but I also didn't get the desired result. Do you know anything about mold mix 6 or 7? It doesn't look like your traditional cheapo silica/flour mix. It can be reused many times and they claim it yields a much shinier surface unlike the hazy finish left behind from silica/flour... Here's a link for ya. www.zrci.com/material/refractory-sheet-moldable-type-mold-mix-6-2/
