Stringers

[Chelly77]

Afternoon Guys,

I have had a few goes at making stringers and they all come out either really thin or about the thicknes of a pencil lead but lumpy.  Is there a trick to making them just thick enough to form dots and not frizzle up when they go anywhere near a flam becase they are too darn thin?

[♥♥Tan♥♥]

They are coming out too thin because you are pulling the blob too hot and too fast, they are coming out lumpy and thick because you are pulling to cool and too slow.

They frizzle near the flame because you are putting them too near the flame.

When you make your blob to pull stringers, make it about small marble size, let it cool ever so slightly, it needs to be molten but not gloopy, when you pull keep your arms even and the pace steady, keep your eyes on on it as it leaves the molten blob you are pulling away from that will help you gauge the thickness and keep it even.

Before you put it onto a bead just sit with your stringer at the flame and introduce it slowly from the side until it just starts to glow, if it balls up quickly then you are going to near to quick

[Jolene]

Hi Michelle, there are some great links to tutorials in the Canes and Stringers tutorals section on the forum......including some video ones which should help you on your way

Jo x

[Chelly77]

Thank you for all the fab advice.  I will have a play when I get home and let you know how I got on

[♥♥Tan♥♥]

Oh no, thats not good enough, I expect step by step photographs and a detailed essay on how you went about it and the results presented in bound format...........ok?

[Chelly77]

Of course of course,  everything in triplicate yes?

[Trudi]

I found that to pull a thick stringer (like the commercial ones) I used the end of a 2.4mm mandrel as a punty!

[Redhotsal]

If it's lumpy you may be pulling it in the flame??
If so you dont' want to be doing that.
Get a molten gather going on the end of your rod, and when you have a marble size gather and it is glowing orange take the whole thing out of the flame.
Take a pair of needlenose pliers or a pair of tweezers and nip a very small "pinch" out of the gather on the round end, but don't do any pulling yet.
Count to five. The gather should have lost it's glow.
Pull slowly and speed up as you feel the glass start to stiffen.
Most people pull the glass too quickly - experiment with leaving the gather for a longer or shorter peiod of time prior tp pulling.
Never pull while the gather is in the flame.

[lemon kitten]

I absolutely LUUUURVE pulling stringers.....just can't apply the damn things evenly! 
Janey x

[Lush!]

I found that to pull a thick stringer (like the commercial ones) I used the end of a 2.4mm mandrel as a punty!

Or even use a commercial stringer as a punty, I find it helps to remind me what thickness I'm aiming for 

[Trudi]

I found that to pull a thick stringer (like the commercial ones) I used the end of a 2.4mm mandrel as a punty!

Or even use a commercial stringer as a punty, I find it helps to remind me what thickness I'm aiming for 

Indeedy! 

[♥♥Tan♥♥]

Or buy them from Martin and parade them as your own in all their perfect glory


And twisties from Jolene

[TiaraHelen]

I love pulling stringers too, but I recently bought a set of white ones from Martin and I love them - they are way more consistent than I can manage!  I bought clear too for really quick encasing - I'd really recommend them at least for beginners like me who can't get the perfect straight even thick stringer.

[Kaz]

I have to admit it is only within the last few months that I have begun to make my own rather than rely on shop-bought ones! Though I did always have to make SIS of course! My dot work has got more precise though since I started making my own and now I am making it a lot thinner than the commercial ones.
Kazx

[squirsygirl]

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get the picture?