Squaring Panels

When building leaded glass panels to be placed in existing wooden frames, you need to make sure the panel is as square as the opening in the frame. The first requirement is to make sure your cartoon is squared, or has right angles at each corner.

I use a “roofing iron” as it is called in the UK. It is a steel tool about 600mm on one side and 400mm on the other. Its original use was to work out the pitch of roofs and check the same pitch was maintained all along the building. The first important thing – now that all roof trusses seem to be prefabricated – is that they still are in production. The second thing is that they all have a fixed right angle.

Using this roofing iron will ensure your corners on the cartoon are right angles. This helps in the drawing of the cartoon as you only need set the iron on the base line and draw the verticals without having to measure the width higher up the cartoon. Of course you should check that the width is still correct at the top, just in case there has been a slip.

Then you have to stick to the cartoon.

When you are setting the battens to ensure the sides are held where you want them while you continue with the leading, the roofing iron again will ensure that you have placed the battens at right angles. You choose which line is to be your base, and nail or screw it into place. Ensure it is exactly parallel to your cut line and then align one side of the iron against it. Place the other batten snugly along the length of the other leg of the iron and you know you have a right angle.

When you are completed leading, but before soldering you can check on the accuracy of the angles by using the roofing iron again at each corner to check on the “squareness” of the whole panel. If the panel is out of square, you can tap on the battens not yet nailed/screwed in place to ease it all back into “square”

Vase Caps

Attaching the vase cap securely is important as often the whole lampshade hangs from the attachment points between the cap and the solder seams of the shade.

Once you have assembled the shade and tack soldered it together, perch the vase cap on the top covering the opening and apply solder so it joins the vase cap with the solder seams. It is a good practice to turn the lampshade over and apply solder from the seam to the inside of the vase cap. A good strong joint at each seam will be perfectly strong enough to hold the shade in position for many years.

Another another method of attaching vase caps will be given soon.

Tinning vase caps

Sieves, Gauges and Grits

The commonly used designation for grits has become the gauge This is a confusing measure as it increases in number as the size of the material decreases in size. This is because the number of wires per unit increases with decreasing size and the gauge refers to the number of wires used to sieve the material.

In an attempt to indicate the actual sizes of material refered to by the gauge sizes, I have used part of a standard table of equivalents.

12 gauge is 1.7mm or .0661inch

14 gauge is 1.4mm or .0555inch

16 gauge is 1.18mm or .0469inch

18 gauge is 1mm or .0394inch

20 gauge is .85mm or .0331inch

25 gauge is .71mm or .0278inch

30 gauge is .6mm or .0234inch

35 gauge is .5mm or .0197inch

40 gauge is .425mm or .0165inch

45 gauge is .355mm or .0139inch

50 gauge is .3mm or .0117inch

60 gauge is .25mm or .0098inch

70 gauge is .212mm or .0083inch

80 gauge is .18mm or .007inch

100 gauge is .15mm or .0059inch

120 gauge is .125mm or .0049inch

140 gauge is .106mm or .0041inch

170 gauge is .09mm or .0035inch

200 gauge is .075mm or .00295inch

230 gauge is .063mm or .0025inch

270 gauge is .053mm or .0021inch

325 gauge is .045mm or .0017inch

400 gauge is .038mm or .0015inch

450 gauge is .032mm or .0012inch

500 gauge is .025mm or .001inch

635 gauge is .02mm or .0008inch

Soldering techniques

My experience leads me to say that the tip of the iron should be in contact with the surface of the material being soldered. If the metal is not hot, it will not take the solder well. In the case of copper foil, the metal is so thin it will heat up almost instantaneously. The solder should be added to the heated metal to obtain a good joint. All the advice to hover just above the surface and allow the molten solder to heat the metal below seems to make for hard work suspending the iron, and for possible cold joints.

The principle is that both metals should be hot for a good join. In leaded work you can sweat a joint and get as good (and in some way a more lasting) joint as by having a bead. That is because by adding the minimum of solder (sweating) you will have to get the base metal hot for the thin layer of solder to flow. I feel that many people do not understand the principles of soldering, but look only to the finish. It is possible to have a beautiful joint, or bead and have the joining of the metals technically weak.

Residues

Sometimes a white residue appears alongside the solder bead sometime after a piece is finished, covered in patina, and waxed. This seems to have two causes.

First - Residual acid

As there is a possibility of some acid remaining on the piece, rinse with a bit of bicarbonate of soda added to the water. This will neutralise the acids from the flux and patina that may still be lurking under the foil and solder beads. If you get a frothing while cleaning with the soda, you will know there is still acid present. Wash - rather than scrub - those areas again with the water and soda solution until there is no foaming.

Second - Trapped moisture

Moisture can also produce this as it allows minerals to migrate from under the solder seams. The advice seems to centre on cleaning. First do not use much soap in the initial cleaning solution. After rinsing ensure the piece is completely dry by setting it aside in a warm dry place for a day or two before waxing or sealing.

Those that use paste waxes seem to have less difficulty than those who use thin or spray on waxes. The heavier waxes seem to seal any moisture within the structure. The moisture seems to be able to migrate through the thinner waxes. It is not optimum to have moisture sealed within the panel, as it will eventually come through the wax as it ages.

So it seems the best long term result will be achieved by ensuring everything is absolutely acid free and completely dry before waxing.

Scoring Glass

Cutting glass is done by “scoring” the surface of the glass with a glass cutter, then breaking it along the score line. The break you make will always follow the path of least resistance, so you want to be sure that the score you make becomes that easy path and glass breaks the way you want it to.

Holding the Cutter
Generally, you use the cutter by moving it away from you, so you can see the cartoon lines as you score. When using a straight edge such as a cork-backed ruler to guide your cutter, you can pull the cutter toward you, or push it away as suits you. The cutter should always be held at a 90 degree angle (left to right). You can determine this by looking down the cutter to the wheel and to the cartoon line below.

It is important that the work be done from the forearm rather than the fingers or the wrist. The forearm should be held closely to the body. This reduces the freedom of movement, giving clean flowing score lines. It also reduces the actions that can lead to repetitive stress injuries. Any turning required by tight curves can be done by turning the body from the hips or shuffling around the bench with the glass at a corner.  Of course, for long cuts your arm will have to extend from you body in a parallel direction with the score line.

Scoring Pressure
The second and very important element in scoring glass is the amount of pressure used.  Very little pressure is required.  You should hear no more than a quiet hiss on transparent glass and almost no sound on opalescent glass.  However some manufacturer's transparent glass has almost no sound either.  So the important element is the pressure, not the sound.   Most people start with applying far too much pressure. Tests have shown that only about 2 kg of pressure is required for a clean score.

You can test the effect of this amount of pressure on a bathroom scale.  Place a piece of clear glass on the scale and without touching the glass with your other hand, score it noticing how much weight is being recorded.  Keep trying until you are at the 2 kg area of pressure.  Try breaking the glass.  Score a curve with the original amount of pressure and break the glass.  Then using the same curve score the glass with the 2 kg pressure and break the glass.  You will see and feel the lesser pressure provides a clean break.

Excessive pressure leads to breaks showing significant stress marks on the edge of the glass.  Too little pressure has no effect on the glass, making it impossible to break along the score line.  The correct pressure (ca. 2 kg.) leads to almost vertical stresses being put into the glass which assists the breaking along the score line.  Too heavy pressure creates stress marks which are at increasingly large angles with the increasing pressure.  This will still break cleanly on straight lines, but when working around curves the glass can follow one of the lateral stress marks away from the score line.  Excessive pressure is often the cause of glass breaking away from the score line on a curve, especially a tight one.

Foiling Nuggets

Grinding of the edges of the nuggets is not required for foiling. Roughing up the surface helps some adhesives hold better, but it depends on the viscosity of the adhesive and the degree of "roughness" of the surface. The adhesive on copper foil sticks better to a smooth than a rough surface. Try sticking it both to glass and to fine sandpaper and see which is easier to scrape off, for example. You will find the foil easily comes off the sandpaper, which is the texture of the surface you leave when grinding.

So you do not need to grind. You may need to wash them with soap and water to remove any oil that may be on the surface to ensure a good contact, however. Just put the foil on the clean nuggets. Then put a bunch of the foiled nuggets in a plastic container and shake around until all the nuggets are nicely burnished.

Check each one to ensure they are fully burnished to the nugget. Smooth any lifted parts of the foil with a fid and they are ready for soldering.