Stabilising Stringers

Stringers and rods never seem to stay where you put them.

• Glue them and they move after the glue has burned away.  
• Grinding a flat side to them seems a lot of work.  
• Easier, is to put them in the kiln and take them to a tack fuse to give a flat spot. But that takes a lot of kiln time.
• For stringers you can put a kink or curve in it by heating over a candle.  Rods require more heat than that. Of course, this is of no use for straight lines, and takes additional time.

A simple method which can be used with a tiny amount of glue, or not, is to sift clear powder around the stringers and rods. A fine film is enough to keep them from moving during the heat up.  Large amounts will give a rough surface or have a greying effect from the multiplicity of tiny bubbles developed between the particles of powder.

Assembled panel by Kathleen Watson with the stringers surrounded with clear powder which can be seen as white

The frit should be put on the assembled panel once it has been moved to and placed in the kiln.  Any movement will disturb the powder and defeat the purpose of keeping the stringer or rod in place.

The fired result

This was fused to a rounded tack fuse and no signs of the clear supporting powder is visible.

This is a quick simple method to stabilise rod, stringer and other small items that may shift in the firing.

Revised 30.7.25