My old way of heating up a gather felt like a total waste of gas

I used to just jam my rod into the glory hole and spin it fast, hoping for even heat. My teacher at the Tacoma studio would always say, 'You're cooking the outside and leaving the middle cold.' For years, I thought more time in the hole was the only fix. About six months ago, I started holding the rod still for a solid ten seconds on each side before I even start to rotate. It lets the heat soak in deeper from the start. Now my initial gathers are way more consistent and I'm not fighting cold spots when I start to shape. It feels like such a simple shift, but it saved me so much frustration and reheating time. Does anyone else have a small change to their heating routine that made a big difference?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_seth1d ago

Wow, took you years to figure out not to just spin it in the hole.

haydenburns1d ago

Remember that guy who always tried to force his key into the lock by jiggling it like crazy? My buddy did that for a solid two years at his apartment. He just assumed the lock was cheap and finicky. One day his dad visited, took one look, and showed him you had to lift the handle up first, then turn the key smooth. His mind was totally blown. He'd been fighting that thing every single day for no reason.