February 2023 Newsletter

Monthly Membership Meeting

March 1  7:30pm to 8:30pm

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Leesburg Workday TBD  9am - 2pm

Purcellville Workday March 4   9am - 2pm

There's something for everyone - get those volunteer hours in!

President's Message

Adam "Squirrl" McClintock

Makersmiths Education Initiatives

Glass Fusion

Suzanne Parisi

Glass fusing is the process of joining compatible sheet glasses together in a kiln until the glass fuses at approximately 1490 degrees Fahrenheit. Disparate pieces of glass must be compatible in order to ensure they can be fused properly. Most glass fusing involves involves stacking, or layering thin sheets of glass, often using different colors to create patterns or simple images.

Generally Soda-Lime glass is used for fusion. The compatibility of glass is a significant challenge in glass fusion as different types of glass expand at different rates. Glass manufacturers will offer fusing glass with COE (coefficient of expansion) numbering.

Step 1 : Assemble materials you will need to cut glass and begin drawing out a design. Cut glass into the desired shapes and grind down edges to create clean lines and close connections between the glass. Glass crystals (frit) and glass powder can also be used to decorate the design.

Step 2: Clean and Assemble your design. The glass must be thoroughly cleaned before firing. If the design is detailed, you may want to tack down pieces with a small amount of glue.

Step 3: Assemble and fire your piece. The stack is then placed inside the kiln and heated through a series of ramps (rapid heating) and soaks (holding the temperature at a specific point) until the separate pieces begin to bond together. The longer the kiln is held at the maximum temperature, the more thoroughly the stack will fuse, eventually softening and rounding the edges of the original shape. Once the desired effect has been achieved at the maximum desired temperature, the kiln temperature will be brought down quickly through the temperature range of 815 °C (1,499 °F) to 573 °C (1,063 °F) to avoid devitrification. The glass is then allowed to cool slowly over a specified time, soaking at specified temperature ranges which are essential to the annealing process. This prevents uneven cooling and breakage and produces a strong finished product. This cooling takes place normally for a period of 10–12 hours in 3 stages.

Step 4: Optional Glass Slumping. Once your piece is initially fused you may want to finish and refine the edges by grinding and sanding. You can also choose to sand blast the piece which gives it a matte finish. Once your piece is finished and cleaned, place glass on a mold for the desired shape and prepare for an additional firing to mold the initially fused glass into a bowl or plate. The bowl I made went through 2 firings: the first to fuse the glass and the second to slump the glass into a pal shape.

editors note: I did check with our Kiln Crew over in #ceramics and they are willing to try this in our MSP kiln to determine best practices. Our MSP kiln is not a glass kiln, specific to this purpose, but could potentially be used for glass fusion. Please reach out on #ceramics if you want to explore this further. Suzanne Parisi created her piece at the Art Glass Center at Glen Echo MD

I Took A Sewing Class!

Tom Cotter

ZZZZZIIIP! Time flew by during the recent ‘Getting to Know Your Sewing Machine - Lined Drawstring Bag!’ class, recently held at MS-L.

This class provided a great introduction to the brand-new sewing machines at Makersmiths. During class we covered machine setup and operation, different stitches and material types, attachments, and the other sewing tools available to members. Jessee has a wealth of knowledge and did a great job teaching the class, answering our questions, and keeping us on track.

This course was unique in that it provided a RedTool overview to start using the sewing machines on your own and at the same time it was a project-based so we finished with a lined drawstring bag!

The class is also open to non-members so my wife and I signed up to learn more about our recently inherited sewing machine. Having access to the Makersmiths community and tools along with machines at home the project options have been expanded for both of us.

If you are interested in getting started sewing, enjoying the company of other community members, or looking for a fun project-based class then this is a great opportunity to make that happen.

Editors note: Have you taken a cool class recently? Would you be interested in sharing a short article about your experience? Please reach out to the #newsletter-committee channel on Slack!

Heard around...

Have you seen the #hire-a-maker channel on Slack? Perfect for someone looking for a few jobs in their skill set or expanding their maker business!

Do you have a business you run using Makersmiths? Post about your business in the #makerbiz channel! We could all use some fresh holiday gift ideas!

The Newsletter could always use some new blood - share your projects, pitch some article ideas, tell me about something cool you've seen in your Maker travels! 

Cricut Basics Class Project - crafty!

Did you know...

Makersmiths has a blog on their home page? 

Makersmiths is on Instagram?

Makersmiths has a YouTube page?

Red Tool Classes are an important step in your Maker journey!

MS-L

Cricut Basics - 3/4

Red Tool Woodworking - 3/6, 3/20

3D Resin Printer 101 - 2/7

Big Red CnC Operation - 3/8

MS-L Electronics Night - 3/9, 3/23

MS-P

Red Tool Metalworking Basics - 3/9

KidWind Tunnel Testing Day - 3/11

Introduction to SETI - 3/11

Red Tool Woodworking-Adv - 3/12, 3/30

Monthly Social - 3/12

MIG Welding Beginner - 3/13, 3/27

Red Tool Metalworking-basic - 3/15

Red Tool Woodworking-basic - 3/15

Makersmiths runs on volunteers!

Consider teaching a class or holding a workshop, especially in the lead up to the gift giving season!

check out the #host-a-class channel on Slack to get some help with your idea!

check back on the website - new classes are added all the time

TOOL AUTHORIZATION GROUPS

Dean Williamson

Makersmiths has lots of cool and useful tools, machines, and equipment.  Many of them require training or authorization before you can use the equipment.  The training can be as simple as an orientation, to a more formal “red tool” class, to demonstrating proficiency to the tool steward.  Such mandatory training helps ensure that all users understand how to use the equipment properly and safely, thus helping to keep the equipment running smoothly and minimize maintenance downtime as well as ensuring the safety of our members.

Below is a list of the tool groups which require training and for which we are tracking authorizations, or tool “sign-offs”. The tool steward(s) are listed next to each tool group, along with the method by which to get authorized to use the tools independently. Please contact the steward for more information about each tool. This list is not exhaustive of the tools available at Makersmiths and is updated regularly as we get new equipment or as needed.

The most current version of this list is posted on the Makersmiths wiki under “Tools, Materials & Training”.  Please check out the list.  You might discover a new tool that you didn’t realize Makersmiths had.

Makersmiths Leesburg: 106 Royal St SW, Leesburg, VA 20175

Makersmiths Purcellville: 785 S. 20th St, Purcellville, VA 20132