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How to Do Stained Glass - Locating the Workplace

Stained glass work may be done on any flat surface similar to a work bench. In our classrooms we use Homasote fiberboard on our tables. You can usually find Homasote at one of those mega-size hardware stores, although sometimes the staff doesn't know it by that name. If they look at you blankly, try calling it fiberboard or soundproofing board.

Homasote can be easily cut to a manageable and portable size, like 18" x 24", which is big enough to work on stained glass suncatchers and small panels. Homasote accepts metal pushpins easily, which I use to hold my glass in place while you solder it. Some people use ceiling tiles instead of Homasote. They are lighter and cheaper, but less robust.

Morton Glass Works offers a honeycomb surface that collects the "droppings" (glass shards), making it possible for you to work on the kitchen table, suitably protected with newspapers. See Morton Glass Working Systems for a description of these glass-cutting surfaces and all the amazing accessories that go with them. A Morton surface is an especially good investment if you plan to to do lots of repeated cuts, because the accessories allow you to set up jigs for straight lines and neat arcs.

A well-lighted basement workbench is probably ideal, and would require no special concern about glass chips and other leftovers. If you have no workbench, then by all means buy a Morton surface.

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Mini Surface Plus (SS02P) - 2 Panels

Item no: 8083

Morton Glass Works item: SS02P

Retail price: $34.38 /each

In stock: 15 (units: each)

Click to view or buy this item

The Mini Surface Plus (SS02P) is a modular set of surfaces, sold in pairs, that can be assembled and rearranged a number of ways, thus allowing you to enjoy the advantages of a small, medium, or large surface, depending on your needs.

The Morton Surfaces, as you may know, are hard molded plastic surfaces that are smooth on one side and have a 1/2" grid on the other. The grid system allows you to add innumerable devices and jigs to help you cut glass more easily and accurately. The grids also aid in cleanup, because they catch many of the tiny glass shards that inevitably fly about whilst you cut glass.

These panels are designed to work with the Morton Portable Glass Shop and their Circle cutting systems

Click the image to read more about the Mini Surface Plus.