Stained Glass Transom - Advice?

Greetings, All -

I've just taken a commission on a stained glass transom, about 12' by 2',
and I'm wondering if any of you have any thoughts on its "installability" if
I build it all in one piece. Transportation is no big deal - I can build a
custom "carrier" for the glass rack on my truck. The client's home is only
about a mile and a half from my studio.

The piece will be mounted inside a piece of tempered glass that's
permanently installed over their 6'-8" sliding glass doors. I'll be adding
new trim strips to hold it in place.

With a few helpers and a few ladders, how do you all like my odds of being
able to lift the piece into place without breaking it? I hate to ruin a
good flowing design with the lines that would be required to divide the
panel into two or three separate pieces...but I'd also hate to have to haul
a broken panel back to the studio. It'll be copper foil in 1/2" zinc. I'll
bring it into the house on the truck rack carrier.

Am I crazy? Is this something that's just not do-able? Or is it an idea
that's workable with eough care?

TIA-

~s

Am I crazy? Is this something that's just not do-able? Or is it an idea
that's workable with eough care?

TIA-


50/50 chance, with in enough care, possible, will it give you a heart attack
with every step, probable.
Why do you have to join the panels at straight lines? By using different
lead widths in the design you can build in the spots to join with a wider
line, and they needn't be straight . Just a thought

You have a 12' long work table? Cool. I could never do that. I lose my
tools all the time in the mess on an 8' one. 50% more clutter would be
unmanageable...;)

Maybe you could build a plywood "stretcher" to carry it on? a pc of plywood
18-20" wide with a cleat along the bottom edge and then tape the glass work
to the plywood? YOu could hoist it up to the opening on the stretcher,
slide the bottom edge in place, and then tilt the plywood upward, tilting
the glass into the opening. A few well placed holes in the stretcher would
help you maneuver and position the artwork.

"Scribble" wrote in message
ink.net...
Greetings, All -

I've just taken a commission on a stained glass transom, about 12' by 2',
and I'm wondering if any of you have any thoughts on its "installability"
if
I build it all in one piece. Transportation is no big deal - I can build
a
custom "carrier" for the glass rack on my truck. The client's home is
only
about a mile and a half from my studio.

The piece will be mounted inside a piece of tempered glass that's
permanently installed over their 6'-8" sliding glass doors. I'll be
adding
new trim strips to hold it in place.

With a few helpers and a few ladders, how do you all like my odds of being
able to lift the piece into place without breaking it? I hate to ruin a
good flowing design with the lines that would be required to divide the
panel into two or three separate pieces...but I'd also hate to have to
haul
a broken panel back to the studio. It'll be copper foil in 1/2" zinc.
I'll
bring it into the house on the truck rack carrier.

Am I crazy? Is this something that's just not do-able? Or is it an idea
that's workable with eough care?

TIA-

~s

i would design it as a diptych or triptych so the separation lines are part
of the design. IE: do your design on half and reverse it on the other?? all
depends on subject matter how you would go about it. If they ever wanted to
move an take it along it would make that easier for them, too. m
"Moonraker" wrote in message
.. .
You have a 12' long work table? Cool. I could never do that. I lose my
tools all the time in the mess on an 8' one. 50% more clutter would be
unmanageable...;)

Maybe you could build a plywood "stretcher" to carry it on? a pc of
plywood
18-20" wide with a cleat along the bottom edge and then tape the glass
work
to the plywood? YOu could hoist it up to the opening on the stretcher,
slide the bottom edge in place, and then tilt the plywood upward, tilting
the glass into the opening. A few well placed holes in the stretcher
would
help you maneuver and position the artwork.

"Scribble" wrote in message
ink.net...
Greetings, All -

I've just taken a commission on a stained glass transom, about 12' by
2',
and I'm wondering if any of you have any thoughts on its
"installability"
if
I build it all in one piece. Transportation is no big deal - I can
build
a
custom "carrier" for the glass rack on my truck. The client's home is
only
about a mile and a half from my studio.

The piece will be mounted inside a piece of tempered glass that's
permanently installed over their 6'-8" sliding glass doors. I'll be
adding
new trim strips to hold it in place.

With a few helpers and a few ladders, how do you all like my odds of
being
able to lift the piece into place without breaking it? I hate to ruin a
good flowing design with the lines that would be required to divide the
panel into two or three separate pieces...but I'd also hate to have to
haul
a broken panel back to the studio. It'll be copper foil in 1/2" zinc.
I'll
bring it into the house on the truck rack carrier.

Am I crazy? Is this something that's just not do-able? Or is it an
idea
that's workable with eough care?

TIA-

~s

"Scribble" wrote in message
ink.net...
Greetings, All -

I've just taken a commission on a stained glass transom, about 12' by 2',
and I'm wondering if any of you have any thoughts on its "installability"
if
I build it all in one piece. Transportation is no big deal - I can build
a
custom "carrier" for the glass rack on my truck. The client's home is
only
about a mile and a half from my studio.

The piece will be mounted inside a piece of tempered glass that's
permanently installed over their 6'-8" sliding glass doors. I'll be
adding
new trim strips to hold it in place.

With a few helpers and a few ladders, how do you all like my odds of being
able to lift the piece into place without breaking it? I hate to ruin a
good flowing design with the lines that would be required to divide the
panel into two or three separate pieces...but I'd also hate to have to
haul
a broken panel back to the studio. It'll be copper foil in 1/2" zinc.
I'll
bring it into the house on the truck rack carrier.

Am I crazy? Is this something that's just not do-able? Or is it an idea
that's workable with eough care?

TIA-

i'd use 1/2" H lead instead. it's easier to shave down to get an exact match
on the window shape. put a dowel in the bottom piece to prevent it from
sagging under the weight.

make a 12'x2.5' of 3/4" plywood carrier. put a series of 1/4" wooden pegs
down one long side each being the height of the thickness of the panel. put
the glass on the carrier. get three people on ladders up there. lift by the
ends of the carrier. tilt up to the window and it should just slide right
off onto the bottom of the transom. you could use double sided tape to
attach a thin piece of styrofoam on the bottom of the transom to cushion the
panel as it slides off.

regards,
charlie
cave creek, az

A transom this size will need rebars. You can divide the window in 3
sections, put together with vertical "meeting joints". Then put rebar
(needed anyway) over the meeting joints. It will look like 1 piece,
but easier and stronger.

Thanks for all your ideas -

To address a few:

Moon, I use 8' work tables in the studio, but one is on locking wheels, so I
can move it against the others when I need extra length or width. Losing
stuff isn't really an issue at my age - even if I used a 2' table, most days
I still can't find my buttocks with both hands and a copy of Gray's Anatomy.

I wonder if some sort of toolbelt would help. Maybe something like Batman's
utility belt, with an imprint of Saint Fletcher (patron saint of
glassworkers) on the buckle.

Just a thought.

Anyhow, Charles and Moon's plywood "stretcher" is along the idea I was
considering, building something like the TJI things they're using instead
of 2x10s under the flooring in some new stick-house construction. They have
2x2 "rails" at the top and bottom of a 1/2" plywood core. Real secure (even
in Florida's hurricane season). The panel could sit on the bottom rail, and
the holes you mentioned would help us get the panel off the carrier when it
was near position.

Michelle, yours' is probably the most sensible advice. If I used lead
instead of foil, I could build the beast as a triptich (haven't used that
term since we studied the "Garden of Earthy Delights") leaving raw glass on
each end of the middle piece, butt everything tight on install, and use a
few small blobs of black calk to simulate the missing solder joints. The
pattern is especially good for this, as well as for combining 1/8, 1/4, and
3/8 inch lead. I'm not wild about the idea of leading this one, but that
sure would help me sidestep Java's Cardiac Arrest prediction, which is
probably totally correct. I could use that brass-core 1/4" lead,
eliminating the (also probably sensible) requirement for rebar.

sigh

~s

~s

well, actually, i was referring to foil. just use thin wood mullions between
and make each piece individually framed with the zinc. m

"Scribble" wrote in message
news
Thanks for all your ideas -

To address a few:

Moon, I use 8' work tables in the studio, but one is on locking wheels, so
I
can move it against the others when I need extra length or width. Losing
stuff isn't really an issue at my age - even if I used a 2' table, most
days
I still can't find my buttocks with both hands and a copy of Gray's
Anatomy.

I wonder if some sort of toolbelt would help. Maybe something like
Batman's
utility belt, with an imprint of Saint Fletcher (patron saint of
glassworkers) on the buckle.

Just a thought.

Anyhow, Charles and Moon's plywood "stretcher" is along the idea I was
considering, building something like the TJI things they're using instead
of 2x10s under the flooring in some new stick-house construction. They
have
2x2 "rails" at the top and bottom of a 1/2" plywood core. Real secure
(even
in Florida's hurricane season). The panel could sit on the bottom rail,
and
the holes you mentioned would help us get the panel off the carrier when
it
was near position.

Michelle, yours' is probably the most sensible advice. If I used lead
instead of foil, I could build the beast as a triptich (haven't used that
term since we studied the "Garden of Earthy Delights") leaving raw glass
on
each end of the middle piece, butt everything tight on install, and use a
few small blobs of black calk to simulate the missing solder joints. The
pattern is especially good for this, as well as for combining 1/8, 1/4,
and
3/8 inch lead. I'm not wild about the idea of leading this one, but that
sure would help me sidestep Java's Cardiac Arrest prediction, which is
probably totally correct. I could use that brass-core 1/4" lead,
eliminating the (also probably sensible) requirement for rebar.

sigh

~s

~s

"Scribble" wrote in message
news
Thanks for all your ideas -

To address a few:

Moon, I use 8' work tables in the studio, but one is on locking wheels, so
I
can move it against the others when I need extra length or width. Losing
stuff isn't really an issue at my age - even if I used a 2' table, most
days
I still can't find my buttocks with both hands and a copy of Gray's
Anatomy.

I wonder if some sort of toolbelt would help. Maybe something like
Batman's
utility belt, with an imprint of Saint Fletcher (patron saint of
glassworkers) on the buckle.

Just a thought.

Anyhow, Charles and Moon's plywood "stretcher" is along the idea I was
considering, building something like the TJI things they're using instead
of 2x10s under the flooring in some new stick-house construction. They
have
2x2 "rails" at the top and bottom of a 1/2" plywood core. Real secure
(even
in Florida's hurricane season). The panel could sit on the bottom rail,
and
the holes you mentioned would help us get the panel off the carrier when
it
was near position.

Michelle, yours' is probably the most sensible advice. If I used lead
instead of foil, I could build the beast as a triptich (haven't used that
term since we studied the "Garden of Earthy Delights") leaving raw glass
on
each end of the middle piece, butt everything tight on install, and use a
few small blobs of black calk to simulate the missing solder joints. The
pattern is especially good for this, as well as for combining 1/8, 1/4,
and
3/8 inch lead. I'm not wild about the idea of leading this one, but that
sure would help me sidestep Java's Cardiac Arrest prediction, which is
probably totally correct. I could use that brass-core 1/4" lead,
eliminating the (also probably sensible) requirement for rebar.


Vic's note on the rebar on a 2 foot tall panel is not without merit
considering the length,

Were it me I would never consider a raw glass joint, build it
properly(something all around, but I don't automatically go zinc), and allow
the leads to interlock, smaller into wider and put the bar over the joint,
and it does not have to be straight either, use some ingenuity to solve the
panels connecting and bent the rebar as needed. If the design can stand
3/8" and it is 2 foot high above a door, you should be able to put an accent
of 1/2" here and there, or simply use a 5/32" lead, shave the leaf off one
side and slide it into the other panel where you have left a piece of 3/8"
at that edge.
I don't ever count on the brass reinforced lead to take the place of good
structural re-enforcement, it works "with" not in place of.
Of course, this is all my opinion, and done without seeing the design, so
it doesn't mean much, the design would tell the story, for the most part.

Where can one find brass-core lead?

--
Connie Ryman
Cryman Studio

"Scribble" wrote in message
news
Thanks for all your ideas -

To address a few:

Moon, I use 8' work tables in the studio, but one is on locking wheels, so
I
can move it against the others when I need extra length or width. Losing
stuff isn't really an issue at my age - even if I used a 2' table, most
days
I still can't find my buttocks with both hands and a copy of Gray's
Anatomy.

I wonder if some sort of toolbelt would help. Maybe something like
Batman's
utility belt, with an imprint of Saint Fletcher (patron saint of
glassworkers) on the buckle.

Just a thought.

Anyhow, Charles and Moon's plywood "stretcher" is along the idea I was
considering, building something like the TJI things they're using instead
of 2x10s under the flooring in some new stick-house construction. They
have
2x2 "rails" at the top and bottom of a 1/2" plywood core. Real secure
(even
in Florida's hurricane season). The panel could sit on the bottom rail,
and
the holes you mentioned would help us get the panel off the carrier when
it
was near position.

Michelle, yours' is probably the most sensible advice. If I used lead
instead of foil, I could build the beast as a triptich (haven't used that
term since we studied the "Garden of Earthy Delights") leaving raw glass
on
each end of the middle piece, butt everything tight on install, and use a
few small blobs of black calk to simulate the missing solder joints. The
pattern is especially good for this, as well as for combining 1/8, 1/4,
and
3/8 inch lead. I'm not wild about the idea of leading this one, but that
sure would help me sidestep Java's Cardiac Arrest prediction, which is
probably totally correct. I could use that brass-core 1/4" lead,
eliminating the (also probably sensible) requirement for rebar.

sigh

~s

~s