Posted by Mike Jackson on December 01, 2003
Robare M. NovouRoderick's post below brings up an interesting topic for me. When we first started hearing about Rick's glue chipping booth at one of the earliest conclaves, he had devised a quite elaborate contraption. It had the normal wooden box with the normal lights, but it also had an external motor powered air supply. He would sit there and explain the theory of the system. The external air supply would either take away moisture, or add moisture...I can't remember now. Anyway, the next time we came to a conclave, he had removed the external air supply, explaining he found out it wasn't necessary. I can only imagine a few people going home and building the same original contraption and getting a surprise the next year.
One year, he had "discovered" that part of getting a good angel gild was relative to getting a quick mixture when combining the two gold components. So, he purchased a mixer which spun a little magnet in the bottom of a pyrex vessel. Well, I bought one on Monday after the conclave and used it for a year. When I went back the next year, I noticed he didn't use it anymore. So, for a year or two, I used the mixer. (I do think it helped)
For several years, we all learned to run a bead of glue around the edge of a piece of glass to build a dam for the angel gilding process. We all bought expensive glue guns and glue. Then, in the later years, he determined it was often more efficient to just pour the solution on the glass and let it set right on the surface, rocking it around as necessary. After watching the newer, sometimes better method, I couldn't help get a flashback of all the glue and time I wasted.
Similarly, you might find Japan colors going in and out of favor for certain tasks. Same for certain glues and additives. I always found it a bit comical, even when I had bought into the previous years technique.
Others probably have similar "Glawson" stories. Feel free to add them here.
Mike Jackson: co-host
Rick SacksJust before Rick died...he was bidding on a desicating machine on ebay. it was a large commercial unit...about the size of a V-8 engine.
Cant remember if he got it or not...that would have been at the next onclave for sure if he did.
RMN
Mike JacksonWhat Rick used for the air movement was a modified air conditioner. The idea is that it functions as a dehumidifier, pulling the moisture out of the air. Rick also had instruments to measure the moisture content. I think they were for measuring the dryness of lumber. Rick's enthusiam kept many of us on a gleeful high, with us not questioning the thoroughness of his investigations. They left us with numerous almost worthless tool that seemed like the key to life at the moment. I recently saw Frank Maesen selling one of those two head sprayers. I think the mineral lights might still be a valid tool for angel gilders????
Lee Littlewood - Mineral LightHi Rick,
I was hoping no one would think I was being critical of Rick. In fact, the post and comments are a tribute to his never ending curiosity about how to solve a problem or make something work. It always depended on which level of development he was in during February each year. At the time he was explaining something, everyone sat there shaking their head as though they had a clue what he was talking about.
I have one of the industrial two headed silvering guns here, too, along with the mineral light.
For some curious about the light, Rick observed that some pieces of glass angel gilded much better and much easier than others. Not knowing if it had to do with the age of the glass, the manufacturing technique, or any number of similar variables, he found out more about the actual process of making glass. From there, he discovered glass had a tin side and a clear side. The black light would identify which was which. So he started selling the small hand held mineral lights (also used for a lot of other things such as finger printing). Personally, I believe there IS something to consider on this theory. I don't absolutely know if he was right or wrong, but I do know we still test the glass and get all the tin sides opposite the side we angel gilded. If nothing else, it at least gave us the confidence of consistency and eliminated a possible variable.
For those interested, you can still buy the mini black lights at a variety of places. (4 Watt-UV Light UVG-4)
HARD TO FIND SIGN SUPPLY PAGE
http://www.theletterheads.com/supplies/index.htm
Mike
Kent SmithOne of the best uses for the UV light I found was camping, out on the Oregon plains. I got up on a dark night and shown (shone? showed?) the light on and got lots of bluish glows under rocks and around. Turns out that chitin glows, so I found a bunch of shed snake-skin and LOTS of little scorpions. Who knew??
It will tell you which side of glass was tinned, but if the glass is somebody's window you can't do too much about it...
RoderickI think you have it exactly, Rick was always searching, learning and investigating. I do recall that he rarely suggested that there was only one way to do things. He was always sharing his latest discovery like a kid with a new toy but more playing with it might let it fall out of favor for another method or material. I think sometimes it was the quest itself, not the result that was the drive. I remember how excited he was to find that Ronan Quick Rubbing varnish was more clear than other brands and became his preferred material. Then after negotiations with Cecil Sanders in Pheasant Run, he retained the rights to Commonwealth, that became his favorite. It was not so much that it was "his" varnish at that point but that he had the formulas and understood the chemistry. That also precipitated reformulating all the varnishes once he had them in house, multiple times to improve them...perhaps an experiment too or perhaps not.
Gary GodbyThanks Mike for bring up the subject of experimentation.My interest in 0% humidity started when I mentioned to my nephew (A graduate physics student)about chipping and humidity.He wondered why everything was very controlled except the humidity.Thats when he told me you could purg the tank with gas and have a truly controled experiment.It would be interesting to try it and see,who knows in a year you might blow it off and do it in a tupper ware container( my wife thought that was funny).
As for a "Rick"story.When Rick turned me on to angle gilding I got very excided because at the time we where doing alot of gold windows for a major restaurant chain all over the country.So we bought a "kit",packed it in a cooler and took it to Hawaii to do a job.Got everthing ready and could'nt get it to work so we did it the old fashioned,lucky for me we brought the old stuff.My partner was so mad that we spent all that money but Rick made it look so great I just had to try it.
In his memory lets never stop trying new things even if they flop.
Roderick
Robare M. NovouHow about the use of "Super Glue" to adhere Abalone, which then later..."Frog Juice" was used instead.
I did one of those large convex watch crystals on my front window like rick did on his...I used damar and quick rub varnish...and some resin gel.
It was last December, very cold, ... thing keept falling off the window...finally I used silicone around the edge...hasn't fallen yet...and its been a year. Gotta love that silicone!!!
RMN
Denver Chapter of the Letterheads