Dichro on dichro

Isabell · Post by **Isabell** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 4:04 pm

Hi everyone!

I have just fused two thin dichro layers of glass. The thing is that the bottom dichro is facing up and the top layer dichro is facing down, so I have dichro film on dichro film. After I fused it I was able to cut it out into small pieces and grind them OK. No problems so far. The question is: Since I have dichro on dichro will the glass stay this way or will it give me some problems later?
Does anyone know?
Thanks
Isabella

Kitty · Post by **Kitty** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 5:07 pm

it'll probably stay together, but fusing coated sides together doesnt work unless you're sandblasting away areas before fusing, etc. so, avoid putting the coated sides together in your future work, and all will be OK. i sometimes make a mistake and put a top piece on a pair of earrings, with the coated sides together, and it of course balls up, but it doesnt come off usually. anyway, you have just learned one of the key things about working with dichro.

Isabell · Post by **Isabell** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 6:41 pm

Thanks Kitty.
I am glad to hear that sanblasting is an option. I guess I would need to sanblast around the edge of one of the dichro coatings.
Isabella

Jane · Post by **Jane** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 7:12 pm

I put dicro to dicro all the time. I love the carckle look. I took a class from Shriley Webster what seems like a long time ago. She suggested this look. I like it, when it works. Other wish it looks like anything piece. I've never had to sand blast....maybe I've been lucky.

Jane

Kitty · Post by **Kitty** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 7:52 pm

you can also remove dichro coating with glass etching cream. but i kind of think for your purposes, just not facing the coated sides will solve the problem.

Tom White · Post by **Tom White** » Sun Feb 15, 2004 10:23 pm

With dichro to dichro fusing the coater which applied the dichro to the glass plays a part in success ratio. In my experience glass coated by CBS has a better chance of fusing well dichro to dichro than glass from other coaters.

Best wishes,
Tom inTexas

Tim Swann · Post by **Tim Swann** » Mon Feb 16, 2004 1:26 am

Isabell,

It has been my experience that you will eventually have problems with Dichroic-to-Dichroic fusing. There is a very thin quartz coating that is on top of the metal coatings. This quartz coating can tack fuse to the other quartz coating on the other piece. However, to get better than a tack would require much higher temperatures than what you are likely to be using to fuse. If I do Dichroic-to-Dichroic fusing I place a small amount of very fine glass frit between the glass layers. Another method I use is the create a very thin boarder on one piece of the Dichroic, so that in a small area there is only one layer of Dichroic between the glass.

Tim