Glass blowing

[mountain_necro_goat]

Hello All,
I have just found out that learning the art of Glass Blowing would be a really valuable skill to have in my current job. Does anyone have any information on this, courses or people to contact.

 

[Mike Ameling]

Check out the Art Department of various colleges and universities near you. They MIGHT have glass blowing as part of their art classes. There are a few here in the U S that offer glass blowing - as part of their Art program.

And a web search should bring up several specific art/craft schools. There are several here in the U S. But you might find one near you. These Artist Training groups usually have several different things they offer - depending upon the demand and the time of year. The Pendland school is one. I've heard about them because they offer various blacksmithing classes and/or training sessions.

The other option is to find a working glass blower near you, and see about helping out and "learning the trade".

Hope this helps.

Mikey - that grumpy ol' German blacksmith out in the Hinterlands

 

[Mesquite]

What kind of glass blowing do you want to do as there's 2 types. There's traditional glass blowing where bottles, glasses etc are made but there's also scientific glass blowing where glass vessels, tubes etc are made for scientists.

As for where that's harder to learn over here because a lot of colleges steer clear of it due to H&S issues and costs. If it had of been making stained glass windows I could have helped out as I teach that part time at my local college

 

[mountain_necro_goat]

its actually scientific glass blowing I'm after as I work in a radiolabelling lab, but the thing is
in this lab being able to repair and customize glassware would really improve my sitution and with the state of the economy and a family to support I need to keep my horizons as broad as possible.

thanks for all the info please keep it coming.

 

[burning]

The people here may possibly be able to help put you in touch http://www.worldofglass.com/

 

[spamel]

No idea but good luck with it. I used to visit the glass blowing place in Hameln, Germany and it was incredible to watch these guys making their glassware. If you get to do it through work, then you are a lucky so and so!

 

[JonnyP]

its actually scientific glass blowing I'm after as I work in a radiolabelling lab, but the thing is
in this lab being able to repair and customize glassware would really improve my sitution and with the state of the economy and a family to support I need to keep my horizons as broad as possible.

thanks for all the info please keep it coming.

Good idea, and good luck with it..

 

[Mike Ameling]

There's a good section on making/modifying your own glassware for a home laboratory in the book Granddad's Wonderful Book of Chemistry by Kurt Saxon isbn 0-9602258-0-6. It's mostly reprints from home hobby magazines from the late 1800's and early 1900's. The part on glass blowing is a reprint of ELEMENTS OF GLASS-BLOWING by H. P. Waran M.A., PH.D.(Cantab.), F.INST.P. originally published in 1923 in London by G. Bell and Sons Ltd. It's only 34 pages long, and most is on modifying existing glass tubing to bend it, taper it, flair it, or even bend/roll it into cooling coils. And all geared towards setting up your own lab at home.

But many of Kurt Saxon's books are on those ... banned books ... lists in numerous countries. Ever since he got the book rights and republished The Anarchist Cookbook, those guv types hate him (altho the info in that book is generally more dangerous to the person following the recipes than it is to anybody else). The info he published was common knowlege and freely published and used in the early 1900's. But now some of that info MIGHT be ... misused. So they have banned some or all of his books.

You might be able to find an original copy of that pamphlet. It would still require a bunch of work/experimentation to develope any skill at modifying glass tubing. But it might be a start.

I have my doubts about getting enough "training" through an "art class" in glass blowing for your job. But you might investigate any medical/laboratory tech type classes. Or ask a researcher at a nearby college/university about who makes up their specialty glass wear in the lab. And then talk with that company about how/where to learn the trade.

Mikey - that grumpy ol' German blacksmith out in the Hinterlands