Glass Edge Chipping

Hi

In these sections I am going to try learning different cold glass techniques from edge chipping, glue chipping and gold work etc.

Glass Chipping is a decorative edge technique that has been around for a very long time and is used by both the professional and amateurs alike, there are 2 ways of achieving a chipped or scalloped edge; the first requires nothing more than a hammer a bolt used as a anvil and a lot of practice.

SAFETY FIRST: Please always use safety glasses and gloves during any of the chipping techniques shown below.

This seems to a be rather radical approach but I would not disregard it as the finish can be rather good.

This next video is a little strange.

Still if it works for him.

The best and professional approach is to use the correct tool for the job, and there are a number to choose from, but the same basic design runs through them all.

They all consist of a handle, an anvil and a sharp edged 'tool steel' point where the distance can be adjusted.

These are not the easiest things to get a hold of as they are very specialised and quite expensive, I tracked down a Boele Silberschnitt from a UK business called Choice DIY

This is the European version, the American version is made by CR Laurence

Which like Boele in Europe (Germany) is one of the main glass tool supplier to the industry.

Angel Gilding

There are many very good instructional videos and Written Instructions by Angel Gilding which can aid the glass worker in many disciplines and an excellent one for Edge Scalloping. They even sell there own glass chipping tool.

Arizona Glass Classes
Another good site for learning is the American glass forum AZGC who have tuition on many subjects.

After studying the videos and the pictures of the tools I decided, as I normally do to make my own chipper.

I made this last year and it started with a lump of 20mm steel.

Lots of grinding and milling.

Then cutting the tool holder.

I wasn't to sure of the size of the tool so I cut for two sizes.

I wanted to experiment on a different shaped cutting edge, everything I saw and read about showed a pointed parallel tool so I ground a rounded edge on one side and a point on the other. One of the tools is made from 6mm and the other 12mm to test the difference.

I welded a cap and locking nut.

Then the anvil was drilled and threaded to 8mm, the anvil I made has a rubber tip glued on as to prevent damage to the glass.

Because I only had photos to go by I managed to get some of the scaling of the anvil distance from the tool post wrong, nothing that I couldn't fix and as it turns out the fix had made the end product work even better.

Testing.

I managed to get hold of a load of scrap (up-cycled) 6mm glass from a glazier last week by explaining to the boss what I was doing and he was more than happy to let me in the yard to help myself, I shall take some of the items I make in thanks.

The glass I was given was from an old shop window and as such was broken and pointed, I cut it all into squares and stupidly discarded most of the jagged broken bits, which I now realise would have been great for chipping practice.

There are 2 techniques used in the chipping process, a, hold the tool and clamp / hold down the glass or b, clamp the tool and hold the glass, both ways work well and depending on the size of the piece of glass will decide on the method used.

Even though the pieces I was working with were rather small I tried the hold down method first, because I had 2 different sized blades giving me 4 different edges I started with the large point first.

But before that I had to set up the best angle for the blade to anvil, which is between 12 to 15 degrees.

With my chipper, this angle changes as I change from large to small tip.

I need to change the height of the anvil when changing tip.

Once the angle was sorted then I tested the distance of the blade protrusion.

And there is a slight difference with the distance.

I have tried the round bit and these also give a little difference to the edge finish so I shall keep to the small point at 2mm out for practice.

My next testing was to clamp the chipper and hold the glass, unfortunately my big vice is stored and I didn't want to drag it out so my next option was to attach physically to the work bench.

The only way I could think of was to drill into the bench and chisel out the hole to accept the handle, which turned out to be an excellent idea.

The next problem to overcome was twofold I had drilled the anvil hole around 5 6mm to far from the blade protrusion and also I found that due to the width of the steel I was unable to chip internal curves of any depth as the glass stuck out further than the tip.

To fix both problems in one I cut a bit of material and curved it so as an internal curve can fit fully in and it makes up the distance.

I now got a load of small scrap pieces and got to work, I followed the instructions on the video and found it very easy.

As with all bits of broken glass these edges are extremely sharp very dangerous to handle even with gloves on, to fix this problem I have bought a pair of vice grips which I have lined with rubber to hold the glass.

Much easier to hold the small pieces.

I have seen many ways of removing the sharp edges from abrasive  paper, to sanding machine I have both but have used instead a Dremel tool with diamond burs.

These burs work very well, the only drawback is that the silicone base that the diamond are in wear very quickly, luckily they are inexpensive.

You can also buy the diamonds on a steel head which may last a lot longer.


So what to do with all these small pieces.

Surprisingly the smoothed chipped edges are very tactile so instead of throwing I decided to etch them, I have always loved Celtic designs and these are designs direct from the Dover Celtic design book.

Lots of different shapes to look through and picked the design to suit the glass shape.

I weeded and masked up as normal, before blasting.

Very pleased the way these have come out and I image they could be a big seller for small cheap pieces of hand made art.

Looks great on a glass table

I got busy today on a couple of more ambitious pieces.

The first of a larger piece of glass started to shape itself as I chipped and became very close to the outline of Africa so I got a picture of Africa and drew it on and chipped away.

What else but an Elephant to etch on.

The next piece was to be a flat bottom for mounting.

But decided to give it a little shape, and it came out skull shaped.

I had been working on a sugar skull design similar to Imagined Glass and decided to use this.

There are other ways of edging glass that can be explored and John Morrison from Cornerstone Glassworks has a fantastic way of edge decoration for thick glass using a huge pair of grozing pliers then masks and etches the edge.

Check out Johns other instruction videos, very good

Paul