Permanent nose butter and check fixing
Posted: Sun Sep 21, 2003 5:11 pm
Nose butter is the stuff you put on sandblasted surfaces to shine them up a little and protect them from finger prints. A lot of people use ArmourAll or stone sealant for this, but they both eventually evaporate off.
John Lewis, who does A LOT of glueing, taught us in a Pilchuck class, that you can use clear epoxy diluted with acetone for nose butter that will last as long as the glass. I've done some testing of it and it is working for me so far. I've just been mixing the epoxy first, very well, then mixing in acetone untill it is almost water consistency, then rubbing it on with a rag. Clean up with pure acetone. Throw away the rags when you're done. It can leave a very subtle pattern from the wiping but you have to look very hard to see it. You could probably spray it or paint it as well.
He also taught us how to fix checks in the surfaces of pieces with diluted epoxy. (You can also use UV glue for this.) Heat the glass first with a hair drier then paint on the watery mix. Capillary action will pull the glue into the check. It may help to start the glue at the leading edge of the check then work your way towards where the check started. This gives the air in the check a way to get out before it is blocked in by glue. Use a throw-away brush and leave it in the extra epoxy so you can wiggle the brush to see if the glue has set up, without disturbing the glass. I fixed a check in a piece on Friday that just completely disappeared.
As always, glue in well ventilated places, try to keep your skin away from epoxy and acetone and test these techniques on scrap before you do it on valuable pieces.
ch
John Lewis, who does A LOT of glueing, taught us in a Pilchuck class, that you can use clear epoxy diluted with acetone for nose butter that will last as long as the glass. I've done some testing of it and it is working for me so far. I've just been mixing the epoxy first, very well, then mixing in acetone untill it is almost water consistency, then rubbing it on with a rag. Clean up with pure acetone. Throw away the rags when you're done. It can leave a very subtle pattern from the wiping but you have to look very hard to see it. You could probably spray it or paint it as well.
He also taught us how to fix checks in the surfaces of pieces with diluted epoxy. (You can also use UV glue for this.) Heat the glass first with a hair drier then paint on the watery mix. Capillary action will pull the glue into the check. It may help to start the glue at the leading edge of the check then work your way towards where the check started. This gives the air in the check a way to get out before it is blocked in by glue. Use a throw-away brush and leave it in the extra epoxy so you can wiggle the brush to see if the glue has set up, without disturbing the glass. I fixed a check in a piece on Friday that just completely disappeared.
As always, glue in well ventilated places, try to keep your skin away from epoxy and acetone and test these techniques on scrap before you do it on valuable pieces.
ch