I've not done enything like that, but when crfty_lady used my saw she tried different methods and the rubber cement and pattern worked best.

maria

I would use rubber cement. That is what i use. Glue it on the glass and cut each peice out. I haven't done that many at once. But will sometime soon. Good luck.

I'm anxious to hear what the other stained glass people tell you about "Do I trace and glue the whole thing at once?, do I cut individually?,". You know I'm a total newbie at working with glass, and working with the ring saw, but when I tried to work with one big piece and cut the individual pieces from it, it didn't work for me. The saw cuts away too much of the glass - so my pieces didn't fit together. So I had to trace and cut each individual piece.

I have worked with a scroll saw - with wood - and you ARE able to do what you mention on that - but I guess it's because the blade is so much thinner.

oops sorry crafty_ lady. Didn't mean to loose your 'a'

Maria

See like lyndalu said but, make it a little bigger for the lose of glass from the blade. I hope you know what i mean.

Ahhh, there just ain't no easy smeasy way!!! Give me GOG anytime eh?!lol! I do love stained glassing, but sheesh, mosaicing is soooo much faster and WAY more forgiving! I really hear ya about the glass lost from the blade and think I'll cut a few sections out at a time...THANK YOU SOOO MUCH FOR THE HELP!

This week I used the rubber cement to glue the paper on my glass then covered it with a layer of rubber cement. The paper stayed in place. I was cutting letters one at a time though.

If the magic markers don't work, try paint markers then put the Mark II Stay over it. I've found it works much better than markers on some glass.

Let us know what you find that works for such a big piece of glass with such small cuts.

I use a white paint pen. Doesn't wash off while grinding.

I personally would glue the pattern on as a whole (and cover it well with rubber cement to keep it dry) cut it all out as one piece then cut the individual parts off. That way each one is coming from the bigger "puzzle" assuring it will fit against what it was just cut from.

Calamity - you have a lot of work ahead of you.

My experience with the ring saw is if you have too many pieces of the pattern as a whole & try to cut it out, after a couple of pieces the pattern will let lose from the glue. Been there. Done that.

I went to my SG store & bought a silver marking pen by Sharpie & it don't come off under the water unless I scrub it. He said it wouldn't work but it works for me.

I will tell you what helped me alot and I learned it from Hazie!!! She will glue the pattern onto the glass with glue stick. It works really well. But with that many pieces I would coat the pattern with rubber cement to help waterproof it.

When I have cut out patterns with my saw I learned that I had to cut out the whole thing at one time or I wouldnt get it to match up when I put it back together. Do you remember the frog oar I did?? I used the saw to cut out all those pieces and they were some small freakin pieces and I had to cut it out twice because I didnt do it right the first time. Make a practice piece before you cut t he real one if you can it will save a lot of headache.

Hope any tips we give you help.

Oh ya...I also heard (havent tried it yet) if you coat the paper with plain chap stick it will help to water proof it!!!!

I use a white paint pen ( or gold) or I stick the pattern piece on with double sided tape. The water kind of ruins the pattern pieces - so keep a good back up piece of the pattern ~~

I don't have a saw but have done my fair share of grinding which is pretty wet business and can be murder on paper patterns.

That said - I sometimes print my pattern pieces on cardstock rather than regular paper and then cover the top of the pattern with clear contact paper. The I cut the shapes with pattern shears and adhere to the glass with rubber cement. That combination seems to work well - preserving the pattern for multiple uses.

Last weekend I visited with a friend who had a ring saw and we played with it for a bit. Based on the amount of glass loss I observed I think I would cut each pattern piece out and use your saw on the perimeter of each piece which will keep the size intact. The one thing I'm not sure about is whether the clear contact paper would gunk up the blade of the ring saw.

Whichever method you use - your piece is beautiful. I love your color choices and can't wait to see the finished product!