Cutting narrow piece from 1/4" plate glass

[Lily]

Hello!

I just bought a piece of 22" x 32" x 1/4" plate glass, to make a light
box.

The glass piece is 1/4" too long on the long side, i.e. I'll need to cut
off a piece that's 1/4" x 22". Can anyone offer any tips for ensuring
that the glass will break properly? I cut a 1/4" piece of a smaller
scrap piece of 1/4" thick plate glass, and it broke off in chuncks. I'm
afraid of ruining my good piece.

Any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks a bunch,
Lily

[Wolfebas]

I can't do this either with a cutter and pliers. I would use my saw (a wet
table saw with a diamond blade), or I would enlarge the wood frame (if there is
one). You could break it off in chunks and smooth it with a grinder. You
could accept the roughness along one edge. Or you could take it to a glass
shop and have them saw it down, or maybe try to exchange it for a piece that is
the right size. they probably won't exchange it free since they have little
use for smaller pieces. Good luck, John Bassett
John and Christina

[Moonraker]

Is the pc. tempered?

If tempered, you need to modify the light box, it'd be much easier.

If not, I think I'd fire up the trusty grinder and go to work. Narrow
strips like that are tough to cut, even for the pros. A coarse diamond bit
on the grinder should cut that much off in just a few minutes.

If your frame is made from wood, why not just chisel out 1/8" from each
side. That would be another solution.

"Lily" <su...@home.com> wrote in message news:3A631629...@home.com...

[Bert Weiss]

Lily at su...@home.com wrote on 1/15/01 10:24 AM,in article
3A631629...@home.com:

Lilly

The rule of thumb is that it is possible to cut 1.5 times the thickness of
the glass. Just because it is possible doesn't make it easy. Measure twice
cut once--ouch. If you try to cut 3/8 off (use kerosene), you will probably
still end up chipping and grozing quite a bit. I would still find this
preferable to grinding or buying a new piece.

Bert

Bert Weiss Art Glass
http://www.customartglass.com
Furniture Sculpture Lighting Tableware
Architectural Commissions

[Michele Blank]

Too bad you can't just set it on TOP of the light box!? Michele

"Bert Weiss" <be...@customartglass.com> wrote in message
news:B688A311.3E8C%be...@customartglass.com...

[Lily]

Thanks for your suggestions. Here's what I did:

I scored the break off line, then made three more scores into the waste
area, then made vertical scores every few inches. Using a grozing pliers, I
was able to break off good size chunks of glass, then I grozed when I got to
the last score line. The cut was very rough, but a few passes on the grinder
made it safe to handle and it fits nicely into the lightbox.

Here's a tip when trying to cut narrow pieces off of 1/4" plate glass: DO
NOT fail to wear eye protection and heavy-duty gloves! The glass shards went
flying over great and small distances. I put on the gloves after I noticed
several blood globules forming on my hands, which I didn't feel. It was a
rather tension-filled 45 minutes of work.

Cheers,
Lily