Jed’s Notes

I’ve been working with the SP-722/723. These are my observations. I’d love to hear yours.

These opaque pinks require a sequence very similar to our regular striking sequence but the Reset and Cooling stages are exaggerated.

RESET*
For these glasses a normal Reset (heating the glass until it is transparent) is inadequate to activate the gold. Beads made without the focused heating will remain white even after being struck. I’ve been getting the glass extra hot, either during the initial gathering and/or with an additional, focused heat. In the initial gathering, I work it up in a hot flame, roasting it for a little while in a moderate-to-hot flame, then gathering it onto the mandrel. For an additional heat, I roast the bead for maybe ten seconds right in the hot spot of the flame. The glass does not have to get running-off-the-mandrel hot, but it’s hot enough to move under gravity. If the core is nice and cool, the outer surface can be roasted without the bead moving.

(*in the case of this opaque pink, the reset isn’t actually resetting the gold, so much as activating the gold/nuclei system so that it can strike, but the process is exactly like a hot, exaggerated reset, so I’m going to use that more familiar term)

COOLING

This glass requires an exaggerated cooling cycle. I’ve been air-cooling beads for 60 seconds. The use of marvers, presses, and beadrollers significantly decreases the required cooling time. Once it’s cooled enough, you may be able to see a faint pinkness develop. Beads that have been inadequately or inconsistently cooled will display a pink and white fade instead of a more consistent pink.

STRIKE

Strike lightly in the tip of the flame. 30 seconds of gentle heating seems to develop the color. Longer works too, just keep the bead temperature on the cool side. The color continues to develop a little in the annealer, evening out the color.