Kiln Formed Bracelet

Kiln Formed Bracelet Making Instruction

 

Place a fused bracelet strip of the desired length on the prepared bracelet mandrel so that it is centered lengthwise and perpendicular to the mold. Turn the tabletop the kiln on high and monitor the bracelet until it has softened and the ends have drooped and are pointing straight down. Important safety note: Before manipulating the bracelet, turn off the kiln, put on the heat protective gloves and remove the lid of the kiln.
Wearing protective gloves, hold the bracelet tongs with both hands and starting at the top of the bracelet begin to gently glide the graphite paddles along the surface of the bracelet until you have slid down past the bracelet mandrel. It's important to note that you are maintaining constant contact with the glass and are actually gently pressing the glass into the mandrel and not pushing down on the glass. This "locks" the glass to the mandrel so that it doesn't move off center and out of position.
To push the ends of the bracelet up and under the mandrel, gently rotate to the right and continue gliding along the surface of the glass until you have reached the right end of the bracelet. The handle of the tongs should nearly be touching the collar of the kiln when you have completed this motion to ensure you have a secure wrap.

Now repeat this same motion and gently rotate the tongs to the left and push the left end of the bracelet up and under the mandrel.


Once complete, place the lid back on the kiln and check the pyrometer. It should be in the 1000-1100 deg. Fahrenheit range. If it's higher, remove the lid for a few seconds to allow the heat to dissipate and continue to do so until the pyrometer is in this temperature range. Turn the kiln on low and allow it to soak for 30 minutes to anneal the glass properly. Once complete, turn the kiln off and wait for it to cool off to room temperature before removing your completed project.



To learn more about creating kiln formed bracelets, or to locate supplies, simply use the search feature on DelphiGlass.com and type in "kiln bracelet" for a list of the latest supplies.

brylynn1

Wednesday, August 31, 2011
3 Posts

@jhaan Thank you.

jhaan

Monday, August 29, 2011
57 Posts

Copper wire works best.

brylynn1

Monday, August 29, 2011
3 Posts

What kind of wire should I use if I am using Bullseye Thinfire shelf paper instead of a kiln wash for my kiln formed bracelets. Will any wire do or does it need to be specific for a glass kiln?

sofiadragon1979

Thursday, January 27, 2011
10 Posts

@jhaan Thank you for the reply I'll keep that in mind & add a table kiln later for bracelets.

jhaan

Wednesday, January 26, 2011
57 Posts

The reason the tabletop kiln works for bracelet making is the small firebox. This allows for intense heat in a small space which will heat the blank and allow you to manipulate it quickly. The ability to flash vent is what keeps the bracelet from falling open after it has been bent. Even if you were to turn off the top element in the 15-6, with the temperature needed to heat the blank there would be too much surface space radiating this intense heat (1350 degrees) for you to reach in an form the bracelet. Because of the amount of heat generated, as well as the size, flash venting becomes an issue as well.

sofiadragon1979

Tuesday, January 25, 2011
10 Posts

I'm going to be getting the ez pro 15-6 kiln & I was wondering if since I can turn off the top heating elements (going off of an above comment) will it be easier for me to do bracelets?

DelphiHelper

Monday, April 5, 2010
38 Posts

Without knowing the size of the kiln or the fusing temperature I can only guess, but it sounds as though the glass is getting too hot.  This may be due to it soaking too long at the higher temperature.  We like to bring the bracelet blank to a point where the edges are rounded (1350-1450) then turn off the kiln and flash vent to 1200 degrees.  The kiln is allowed to cool from this point on.  Do not open the kiln after 1000*. Kilns vary in the temperature reading so visual inspection is the best way to monitor what is happening with your glass.  Flash venting creates a shorter soak time when the full fuse temperature is reached. Hope this helps!

cevansdesigns

Tuesday, March 9, 2010
1 Post

I'm new to fusing and decided to start with the glass bracelet. I cut and stack the two pieces of glass (together they are 1/4 in) and begin the fuse process. The ends of the bracelet come out wider than the center section. Am I leaving the glass in too long? I plan on cold working the piece to make the width the same on entire length, then putting it in kiln again. Any suggestions...

aboilore

Wednesday, August 5, 2009
5 Posts

Usually the best kilns to use for this are the tabletop kilns that do not have heating elements in the lid so that you can remove the lid once the glass is soft enough and start shaping it.  You do not have much time to shape it so we recommend putting the lid back on and reheating until you have the shape you need.

Barbara R.

Sunday, July 26, 2009
2 Posts

do you need a small kiln for these bracelets?  I have a bigger kiln but I am having problems with the shaping.  according to the instructions above, I am doing this however, it seems that the glass is getting hard too fast to finish shaping.  will a smaller kiln prevent this?