Working with No Days Glaze - The Quick Cure Method
Using the Quick Cure Method of construction with No Days Glaze, you build the window, solder the joints, clean the flux, heat set the glazing and the window is ready to install.
If you’re using the No Days Glaze pre-formed glazing strips, begin by inserting the No Days Glaze into the edge came and lead channels.
If your No Days Glaze isn’t sized for your came and wants to slip or curl out of the channel, you can use a tool to heat set the glazing in the channels of your lead or zinc.
For proper sizing of the No Days Glaze for your lead, contact Streuter Technologies for a free NO Days Glaze Gauge Kit.
Since you’ll be building with the No Days Glaze in the lead channels, you’ll need to adjust your stained glass pattern for the width that the No Days Glaze adds to the heart of the lead came.
This can be accomplished by using the No Days Pattern Cutters, which, when used to cut along the pattern line, will compensate for the 1/32” that needs to be added to either side of the line.
The No Days Glaze Pattern Shears are used like scissors and as you cut along the pattern line, the shears remove a strip of the pattern. You would then use these paper pieces to cut out your glass.
Alternately, you can use a fine point sharpie to trace over your pattern lines. A sharpie with a blunt tip works the best. After adjusting the pattern, you will be able to cut your glass to the right size and prevent your pattern from growing.
As you’re constructing your window, don’t forget to keep No Days Glaze in the lead and edge came spacers that you use to measure your lead lengths. This will ensure that you don’t end of with gaps in your lead.
When working on larger windows with the pre-formed glazing strips, it’s helpful to prep your lead with No Days Glaze before beginning construction. Then, you can work on the piece in a more efficient manner.
Streuter Technologies offers pre-stretched, pre-glazed lead, zinc or copper came custom made to order. When using the pre-glazed lead, there’s no need to adjust the pattern, and no prepping the lead.
You construct the window in the same fashion as traditional stained glass.
After you’ve constructed the window, solder the joints. The soldering iron will reach temperatures of 600-700 degrees F, which is much higher than the 160 degrees F that’s necessary to cure the NO Days Glaze. It’s okay if the NO Days Glaze melts in the joints as you solder. This won’t affect it’s performance. Once you’ve soldered the window on both sides, clean the flux off of the window. Make sure that the window is dry, before you begin to heat set the NO Days Glaze. If there is water in the lead channels, it will turn to steam and may thermal shock the glass as you heat the window.
With the Quick Cure Method, you use a standard heat gun to heat set the glaze.
Turn the heat on low and begin to heat in 8-10” sections of the window, concentrating the heat on the lead channels. Hold the heat gun about 4-6” away. If you concentrate the heat in one area for too long, you may end up thermal shocking your glass, which can make the glass crack. Be sure to keep moving the heat gun, so that the heat is evenly dispersed.
If your glass is transparent, you’ll be able to see the NO Days Glaze melting as you heat. If you’re uncertain of how long to heat the NO Days Glaze, it’s recommended to work on a small sample piece with the heat gun and the heat as you go Hobby Cure Method.
Continue to heat set each segment of the window. Once you have heat set the whole side, there is no need to flip it over and heat the other side...unless the window is going to be exposed to the elements as a single pane window.
When you’re done using the heat gun, make sure to set it with the point facing straight up to ensure the longevity of your heat gun. This forces the residual heat to rise up through the end of the gun, instead of getting trapped and burning out the elements.
If there are areas where the No Days Glaze was overheated, the glazing may have spilled out of the lead channel and onto the glass. In this case, you’ll need to clean up with a razor blade or a paper towel and mineral spirits.
The window is now ready to be installed. The beveled window in this video took roughly 2 ½ hours to construct from cutting the glass to heat setting and clean up. This window is now ready for installation and can be moved off of the table immediately to make room for your next project.
To cure the window even quicker, try using the Profesional Fast Cure Method with the No Days Universal Curing Station.
For more instructional videos, visit http://www.Streuter.com.
For ordering information or help with questions, email info@streuter.com.
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