Screen Melt Too Thick

[KellyBowman]

I tried my new screen melt yesterday and it came out 12mm thick. I used the round 8" round screen melt system. I went to the manufacturer website for the instructions. They said the volume of glass for that size is 750 grams. I weighed it out and stacked it. I am please with the glass but it came out very thick. Does anyone have a recommendation of a firing schedule that I can use to thin it out? Also, should I use kiln wash or fiber paper?

Thanks, Kelly

[JestersBaubles]

Fire to a high full-fuse, longer hold.

No clear recommendation on the kiln wash vs. fiber paper... The kiln wash will likely stick to the bottom, especially if it is opaque glass. With fiber paper, you might not get a lot of movement since the volume of the glass is not that great, and the bottom will be very textured. With a separate like Thin Fire or Papyros, there's the possibility that the paper will move, getting trapped in the glass.

So... you have to decide which you are willing to deal with. I would probably go the Papyros route, but that is just my preference.

Dana W.

[KellyBowman]

Thanks for the info. I have used the paper with puddle cabs and it didn't get into the glass but they are less than 1". Since there is some opaque glass aand I have no way to sandblast, I will try my luck with the paper.

Thanks again,
K

[Morganica]

Just as a check on my calculations, I occasionally cut 3mm sheet to the same dimensions I need and weigh it, then divide the desired thickness by 3mm, multiply that number by the weight of my 3mm test sheet. You might try that, just to verify.

You can pretty much dial in the thickness you want by cutting some fiber paper and stacking it to the desired thickness, then set your glass piece in the center of the kilnshelf. Put your fiber paper stacks on the far corners of the shelf and set another shelf on top of the glass. Add some mullite brick, stainless steel rod, stainless bowl of sand, etc. on top of the second shelf. Then fire to a full-fuse schedule but leave it at process temperature for at least a couple of hours (I usually leave it four hours or more).

The glass will spread out into a very smooth, flat sheet of the right thickness. It will have kilnshelf texture on both sides, so this method is best used for components that will be fused into something else, or that will be coldworked. You can also substitute kiln furniture or pieces of cut-up mullite shelf for the props (the fiber paper stacks). Just be careful to position the props away from the edge of where the glass will spread, or you'll have a mess.

[KellyBowman]

Thanks. Cynthia. I checked out your website, Your art is amazing!

K