Super Chief

Chapter 121: Glass blowing

   Strictly speaking, glass does not melt. This peculiar substance can only be softened at high temperatures to form a special state called glassy between liquid and solid.

   To make glass reach the glassy state, a certain temperature is required. However, this temperature is not fixed, it depends on the minerals contained in the glass.

   is like the lead glass of later generations, it only needs a temperature of five hundred degrees to start softening, while the softening temperature of pure quartz glass is as high as one thousand six hundred degrees.

   However, most of the glass made by Europeans in this era is ordinary glass, so Ishikuma estimates that it can be softened at a temperature of about six or seven hundred degrees. After all, the temperature of the alcohol lamp used in the laboratory of later generations is only about one thousand degrees, but the alcohol lamp can soften most of the glass.

   Ishikuma does not have an alcohol lamp, let alone a higher temperature gas burner. He can only use a crucible to soften all the broken glass, and then use an iron pipe dipped in the liquid glass to blow what he needs.

"These glasses will soften in a while, and then I will use this iron pipe to blow some glassware that I need. Quick horse, I need you to help me." Taking advantage of the warming time, Shi Xiong began to call the name. .

   Kuaima nodded affirmatively.

"After a while, when I start to blow glassware, you need to hold the heated tongs to hold the bottom of the glassware. Then the glass will adhere to the tongs to a certain extent. At this time, you need to hold the glassware slowly and uniformly. Pull down from the bottom, not too fast, but not too slow, it's about this speed." Shixiong said, holding the tongs in his hand and making a downward motion.

"do you understand?"

   Kuaima nodded again, he took the tongs, made a gesture of lifting, and then pulled it down slowly and evenly as if holding something.

   Although it is the first time to do this kind of action, Kuaima does it very well, and there is almost nothing to be faulty about. Shixiong is very satisfied.

"You should practice this action more now, don't really get out of the glass in a while, you panic again." Shixiong faintly commanded, Kuaima executed this command without hesitation, and started practicing with a pair of tongs. Up.

Shi Xiong picked up a pair of tongs and a pair of iron scissors and handed them to Hard Bone. "In a moment you hold this pair of scissors to prepare. When I say to cut, you must cut the glass I pulled out without stopping. You only need to cut the upper end of the bottle I blow out, but you need to hold the glass tube with tongs before cutting, otherwise the glass tube will break when it falls on the ground."

   Seeing Hard Bones, he didn't understand. Shi Xiong explained to him again while making gestures. After Hard Bones had completely figured out what he needed to do, Shi Xiong sent him to practice like a fast horse.

"Finally, you must remember that the temperature of this softened glass is very high. You must never directly touch the glass with any part of your body, otherwise it will burn you a certain part of your body. If it's too heavy, it will burn you to death!"

   Shixiong’s remarks are not alarmist. Once the glass starts to soften, it means that the temperature at this time is at least six hundred degrees above. This kind of temperature is not something that a human body can handle.

  Because there is a layer of crucible, the glass heating speed is much slower than the direct heating speed with an alcohol lamp.

   But it was too slow. The broken glass still started to soften as the temperature in the crucible continued to rise. When the broken glass became soft and began to become a pool of glass, Shi Xiong knew the time had come.

   "Everything is ready. I'm going to start blowing glass. Don't panic. Just keep your mind at ease."

Shixiong said, he took the one-meter-long thin iron pipe, dipped one end into the softened glass, and then took a deep breath and held the other end of the iron pipe in his mouth, and it started to continue and stabilize. Of blowing.

   Blowing glass is not as easy as imagined, and this kind of work is still very dangerous.

   Whether it is ancient or modern, glass blowing has always been done only by experienced people, or when blowing glass, an experienced person must be around to guide you.

   Blowing glass requires strength, because glass in the glass state is not as simple as blowing bubbles with soapy water. It requires a strong lung capacity. Moreover, when blowing glass, you must maintain sufficient pressure in your mouth. Once you feel exhausted, your mouth should immediately leave the blowing tube. Otherwise, the inside of the glass that has just been blown will have a high possibility of causing the pressure inside the glass. Compressed by hot air.

Those hot air with a temperature of several hundred degrees can only be sprayed along the blowpipe. If your mouth does not leave the blowpipe at this time, tsk, imagine the horror of several hundred degrees of hot air spraying into your mouth..... .

   Although Shi Xiong had not blown glass several times in his previous life, at that time, Mr. Wu told Shi Xiong a lot of glass blowing tips.

As Shixiong blows his breath slowly and evenly into the blowpipe, several people are surprised to find that the glass that was originally stuck to the other end of the blowpipe has begun to bulge~lightnovelpub.net~ until it's not midwinter. When the shape of the small bottle was formed, Shixiong's other hand immediately made an action towards Kuaima. Kuaima immediately picked up the heating tongs to catch the small bottle, and then followed Shixiong to turn the direction of the blowpipe. Kuaima dragged the tongs and began to pull the small bottle down slowly and evenly.

   As the small bottle continued to pull down, the bottle mouth was continuously stretched. Because Shixiong has been blowing air at this time, under the action of gravity and tension, a slender glass tube begins to take shape.

When the length of the glass tube reached about 20 centimeters, Shixiong made another gesture at the hard bone, and the hard bone immediately picked up the big scissors and another pair of tongs that had been heated, and dragged the slender glass with the tongs. Then use the scissors to cut two scissors at the mouth of the bottle and the end of the blowing key steadily.

   The small glass bottle was cut off and was held by the fast horse with tongs. The glass tube was also cut off by hard bones and held it with tongs.

Shi Xiong took a sigh of relief and blown the glass at the mouth of the nozzle. Then he put down the blowpipe, looked at the glass tube and the small bottle, nodded in satisfaction and said, "Yes, yes, this time you did a very good job. Pretty. Let's continue to do this next!"

   The praise of the guardian lord made the faces of several small attendants smile, and they were gearing up to wait for the second glass blowing.

   Lieutenant Ferguson looked at this scene enthusiastically. He knew that many glassware were blown out, but how to blow it was the first time he saw it with his own eyes.

The glass has been heated in the crucible, so the next work of blowing the vials and glass tubes went smoothly. Not long after, there were four round vials about the same size as the vials and four glass pieces of more than 20 cm in length. Guan appeared in front of Shi Xiong.