There are two construction methods for stained glass. One uses lead came (that's what you see in entry doors and kitchen cabinets). The other is copper foil tape which is primarily used for suncatchers and stained glass panels, although came can be used for these as well. In my years of doing stained glass, I have only found two brands of copper foil in the shops near me. The first in the photo is Edco brand copper foil, although you won't find their name on the packaging. The second is VentureTape. The stained glass store I "grew up" in only stocked VentureTape, so it was the only thing I'd used until I found the rather generic looking Edco foil. Over the years, I was constantly frustrated with how thick and difficult to work with the VentureTape was. It was cumbersome and easily split on the concave curves of glass pieces. The black and clear adhesives seemed to work OK, but the silver adhesive barely had any tack to it. It was a struggle to get it to stick to the glass. The lack of proper adherance with this foil only got worse over time and I've had to throw away rolls of VentureTape foil because the adhesive just didn't stick, and it was only a few months after I'd purchased it. I used it because it was the only foil available and I didn't know there was anything else. ... until I stumbled across that generic baggy of copper foil. I don't even remember where it was that I found it the first time.
The first time I tried Edco foil I was astonished by how easy it was to work with. The copper itself was thinner, and folded over the glass easily. <ding!> If I slowly worked the foil on deep concave curves, the foil might split from being stretched too far, but more often than not, the foil would stretch and not break. <ding!> The adhesive strongly adhered to the glass, and there have been times where I've had a roll of this foil open for over 2 years and the adhesive didn't dry out or lose it's stickiness at all. <ding! ding!> Over the years, Edco foil has been nothing but consistently excellent. I could be completely out of foil and I won't buy VentureTape if it's the only brand available. I'll wait to find Edco. Thankfully there are several places online that routinely carry this foil as well as my favorite local-ish supply shop.
It wasn't until this past year using the power of the Internet and a little digging that I found out that both of these copper foil manufacturers offer their products in different thicknesses. From what I can gather, the VentureTape is typically stocked in 1.5 mil or 1.25 mil. Edco seems to be either in 1.25 mil or 1 mil, but all three thicknesses are available from both brands. The thinner the foil, the easier it will fold and bend, so the easier it is to work with. It may also be the difference in the type of copper used. I've seen product descriptions for Edco that say they use "dead soft copper." This is the softest copper available and the hardness or softness of copper has to do with the manufacturer of the copper and the annealing process they employ. I would wager a guess that VentureTape does not use "dead soft copper" because it feels much more rigid when I work with it.
Are there other copper foil brands easily accessible out there, and what have you worked with? I'm always open to trying new brands, I just haven't seen any locally to try. If you're interested in hunting down some Edco foil, let me know and I'll be happy to help you find it.
The first time I tried Edco foil I was astonished by how easy it was to work with. The copper itself was thinner, and folded over the glass easily. <ding!> If I slowly worked the foil on deep concave curves, the foil might split from being stretched too far, but more often than not, the foil would stretch and not break. <ding!> The adhesive strongly adhered to the glass, and there have been times where I've had a roll of this foil open for over 2 years and the adhesive didn't dry out or lose it's stickiness at all. <ding! ding!> Over the years, Edco foil has been nothing but consistently excellent. I could be completely out of foil and I won't buy VentureTape if it's the only brand available. I'll wait to find Edco. Thankfully there are several places online that routinely carry this foil as well as my favorite local-ish supply shop.
It wasn't until this past year using the power of the Internet and a little digging that I found out that both of these copper foil manufacturers offer their products in different thicknesses. From what I can gather, the VentureTape is typically stocked in 1.5 mil or 1.25 mil. Edco seems to be either in 1.25 mil or 1 mil, but all three thicknesses are available from both brands. The thinner the foil, the easier it will fold and bend, so the easier it is to work with. It may also be the difference in the type of copper used. I've seen product descriptions for Edco that say they use "dead soft copper." This is the softest copper available and the hardness or softness of copper has to do with the manufacturer of the copper and the annealing process they employ. I would wager a guess that VentureTape does not use "dead soft copper" because it feels much more rigid when I work with it.
Are there other copper foil brands easily accessible out there, and what have you worked with? I'm always open to trying new brands, I just haven't seen any locally to try. If you're interested in hunting down some Edco foil, let me know and I'll be happy to help you find it.
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