Do you want your stained glass artwork to look clean and professional? Are you frustrated with stained glass cutting, scoring and breaking?
Our tips for cutting stained glass and cleaning stained glass could give you that extra detail you’ve been looking for.
Cutting, scoring, and breaking stained glass can be a tricky part, since you can cut yourself, have to start over, and other problems arise.
Randy the crystal wizard offers his insights on how he cuts and cleans his stained glass pieces.
Let’s not waste time and get down to work…
Tips for cutting stained glass cleanly:
**Warm glass is usually better and easier than cold glass.
**Use a flat surface to make life easier when cutting stained glass.
**Do not use excessive pressure to avoid a bad break.
**Make sure the cutting wheel is in good condition as it tends to wear out quickly.
**Mark the pattern line once and DO NOT go past the pattern line.
**Straight cuts:
Score once, then use your running tongs to break the piece. Then, grind down the edges to fit the pattern piece.
**Curved cuts:
Again, notate just once, then, following the pattern line just to the outside of the sheet music, tap the sheet music until the glass breaks (use the round ball on the opposite side of your breaking tool).
**Next, use your stained glass grinder to file down the edges to fit into the pattern piece. Keep in mind that when you’re marking your pattern piece, you’ll want to mark on the inside of the line. Also, always remember to wear your safety glasses, as small pieces of glass can fly everywhere.
These are just a few great suggestions, as there are many strategies for cutting stained glass.
Now let’s move on to cleaning up your stained glass art:
Since you’ve produced such a beautiful piece of stained glass, you want it to look good, shiny so the light shines through.
When Randy finishes a piece, he cleans it with mild soap and warm water. He dries it with a clean, soft towel, then applies finishing compound or car wax to the surface of both sides and wipes it clean with another clean, dry towel.
This gives the solder a sparkling shine and the warm water cleans the glass. We recommend doing this from time to time to keep your glass art designs looking their best.
Hopefully these stained glass cutting and cleaning tidbits will help you later if you’re stuck or just looking for something extra when creating your stained glass art.