Marble Demo Notes

Marble Demo Notes:

Marble tools you need to have:
	Marble molds
		Graphite
		Infinite Rim
		“Holeez”
		Ring
		Wood (mold bucket) – buy or make your own
	Punties
		Glass
		Stainless steel
	Annealer
	Marble tweezers
		Modified hemostat
		Hot fingers
		Make your own
	Torches
		Hot Head type – 5/8” marble
		Minor type – 1-1/6” marble
		Phantom type – 2-1/2” marble
	Clear glass
	Scale – Only needed if you want to make exact size marbles
	Calipers – Making: only needed if you want to make a specific size marble
	– Selling: needed to sell marbles to marble collectors
	Patience

Nice to have:
	Diamond shears
	Pan & popcorn salt/silica sand
	Rod warmer – hot plate
	Pick-up plate
	Gloves
	Glass writing tool
	Leather apron

Beading tools you should have:
	Tweezers
	Graphite paddle
	Tungsten picks
	Nippers
	Bit bucket
	Mashers
	Rod rest
	Glass shears

Books:
	Torchworked Marbles, Vol. 1 Beginner to intermediate techniques Drew Fritts $29.95 ISBN: 0-9725266-3-3

Videos:
	Killer Beads Presents: Garry Colman The Basics of Making Marbles

	Contemporary Marbles A Borosilicate Flameworking Video Josh Grant

	Crystal Myths Inc. Presents Albuquerque Flame-off 2002 - Marble

Web Sites:
	http://pub82.ezboard.com/bmarblemakersforum50852 - ezboard marble makers forum
	http://frittsartglass.com - Drew Fritts - book, how to make wood molds, tweezers, and more
	http://frittsartglass.com/marbles/molds/index.html - Dan Grumbling - “Infinite Rim” marble molds & graphite rings
	http://www.toolsforglass.com - Jim Moore Glass Tools - diamond shears & rings
	http://www.glass-supply.com/tool-marble.html - Glass-Supply.com - 6 in 1 graphite marble mold
	http://www.artglass1.com/ - Sundance Art Glass - graphite & wood marble molds, hemostats, hot fingers, kilns, controllers, etc.
	http://www.waleapparatus.com/ - Wale Apparatus Co. - diamond scriber, titanium writing tool, plus a whole lot more

FAQ:
	Q: Do I really need an annealer? Can’t I just use a fiber blanket?
	A: You can cool a single marble no larger than a 1/2” in a fiber blanket. I have never been able to do two in the same blanket without one or both cracking.

	Q: How do you use a marble mold?
	A: When you first look at a marble mold, the type with the half spheres cut in them, you think. “Oh, I fill the hole with glass, get it round, then do that again, and put the two halves together, but, how much glass do you need to fill the hole? And how do I get the pattern to match?” But it doesn’t work that way. You actually use just the rim on the next size smaller hole; that’s what took me six months to figure out.

	Q: How may ways are there to make handmade glass marbles?
	A: There are two ways that marbles can be made by hand. One way is at the torch or burner; these marbles are usually one-of-a-kind marbles. This is the method that will be demonstrated. The other way is to make ‘marble stock’. Marble stock is basically latticino that is the diameter of the marble you want to make, you then cut off a piece and round it into a marble. With marble stock you can easily create a number of “identical” marbles. The technique it usually used by off-hand glass workers.

	Q: How are marbles sized?
	A: Marbles are sized using a calipers and are measured across the longest dimension (not all marbles are 100% round). Standard sizes are: pee wee: less than 1/2”, average or target: 5/8”, shooters: 1/2” to 3/4”, hogger: 7/8” to 1”, and bamboozer/bumboozer: 1” and larger.

	Q: Should marbles I make be signed?
	A: Some marble collectors will not even look at your marbles if they are not signed. They feel that signing contemporary marbles is a way to prevent fraud. Some marble makers sign all of their marbles, some refuse to sign, and others will sign if asked. There are a number of ways to sign your marbles, you can use a diamond scriber, a titanium writing tool (I have never been able to get mine to work), or you can embed a signature chip in the marble. I sign if asked; I work hard to get the nice smooth surface and it bugs me to scratch it up with a diamond.

	Q: I got my marble round and then all of a sudden I get this little flat spot?
	A: I'm assuming you are not talking about the punty location. These little flat spots are caused by air bubbles just under the surface of the marble. When you are rounding the marble, the air in the bubble is hot and has expanded forcing the surface out and round. When the marble begins to cool, the air in the bubble also cools and contracts and the surface of the marble over the bubble goes flat. To stop this from happening you need to get rid of the bubble (pop it) or put more glass over the bubble so it will not affect the surface.