Help Glass- How to make edges no so sharp?

Create a Post
i-m-chickie

i-m-chickie

SGF, Supreme Grumble Framer
Joined
May 13, 2009
Posts
4,647
Loc
Kissimmee, Florida
I have a customer that bought a kit that had glass panes in it that weren't so sharp (because they are put together with clips)...but broken...they gave her a discount on the kit and told her to go to a framer to get the glass replaced...

I don't know how to make glass edges not so sharp? Do any of you?
I reckoned a specialty glass shop...is there a trick I am missing?

Thanks for any help.
 
That's easy, Chickie.

Get a rectangular knife-sharpening whetstone -- I prefer a palm-sized stone of medium coarseness -- and make four or five strokes along the glass edges at an angle of about 45 degrees. Then turn the sheet over and do the other side. Then take a few extra swipes at the corners to round them off.

There is also a tool called a glass seamer made for the same purpose. It is about the size of a chalkboard eraser and contains two cylindrical stones about 1/2" diameter. Most framing distributors that sell glass have them available.
 
You can buy a diamond coated pad that is specially for this purpose, but a folded piece of 240 grit wet and dry silicone carbide sanding paper will work. Wrapping it around a block of cork or wood is safer.
A sanding pad will also work.
Most of these can be obtained at a hardware store.
 
Chickie,

I have the glass seamer, and I love it. Beware though as it does get shards on the UV glass and they can scratch the glass when you clean it. Just be sure to get the shards off before you scrub ;)

you can also use regular sand paper and a sanding block. You jut go through tons of sand paper :) Get the seamer, it is definitely worth it. If you sell any Uniframes, or glass to customers it is a great investment.
 
Baer, the United one is soo easy to use :) And I put a screw eye and wire lop on mine and have it hanging right by the F3000. Doesn't get lost (too often). I know I'd put down and never find a whet stone.
 
I found a sharpening stone on my husband's workbench and ....I can't have it...My husband has this thing with sharpening his woodworking chisels and the kitchen knives and his pocket knive and ancient knives found in his parents cabin, and anything that could be sharp again...
We work different and I think I scare him...no I know I do...so, I went to my nail files, the diamond grit ones...they were to pretty to part with...sandpaper thought scares me, I already have WAY too many glass scar stories, and buy band-aids bulk..some are REAL nasty, the scars not the band-aids!
So I have looked at the tools from United and Etsy ..Baer, your $2.10 is now $5.85 ...so we'll see, you may best stop endorsing cra p.
 
Chickie, Peter from United and I are on opposite sides of the political fence. And I have to say that if I lost my glass seamer I would definitely buy the one from United, with no hesitations. When I started framing I cut myself cleaning the glass all the time, and resisted buying the seamer. But when I scraped the top layer off a customer's poster I got the seamer right away!

Best "tool" I bought for the store as I pretty much stopped cutting myself overnight. Oh, and switching from paper towels to microfiber cloths really helped with the "getting cut by glass while cleaning" issue. Both the seamer and the cleaning rags have saved a ton of money for me :)
 
Check out this re-print of an article I wrote for PFM 100 year ago. http://www.frametek.com/HTML/Articles/Who_Swipes_Glass.html

If you get one of the "Hand seamers" it's a good idea to rotate the cylinders a bit fairly often to keep from grinding grooves in them. As the grooves get deeper, they start leaving marks on the edge of the glass.

Try this: Take 2 long narrow pieces of scrap glass (2 x 16 or so) bevel (swipe) all 8 edges of one piece and do nothing to the other.

Try to break these over the edge of a metal trash can and see the difference swiping makes in preventing glass breakage.
 
OK, Chickie..... let me be totally flat as a pancake honest here..... swing by the local antique store.... grab any sharpening stone.

Spit on said stone, and spread with finger. Rub along edges. Done. I just bought a broken half for $.50.... Black Hard Arkansas stone. 6000 grit. Worked great, no shards. And I won't ever care if I lose it.
 
Create a Post
Back
Top