Here I will mention some steps on how to use a glass cutter on a bottle. There are several methods by which you can cut a glass bottle. Among them, cutting it with a glasscutter is easy.
You need to follow some basic instructions before cutting it with a cutter. With a few stuff, you can properly cut the bottle. If you are cutting a bottle for the first time, a glass cutter will help you.
After cutting the bottle, you can make it attractive and usable. You can use your creativity to recycle these glass bottles. The recycled bottles can be turned into something useful.
Things to Know Before You Start Cutting
Firstly, remove any paper, label, or glue that is attached to the bottle. You can take off the label by following the easy steps given below:
– Wet the bottle using water so that it makes the label softer, and it gets easily removed.
– After removing the label, remove the glue using your nail or any sort of rug or scrapper.
– If the glue is still there, remove it with an adhesive remover by applying it to a rug. Use the rug to get rid of any glue that is remaining.
How to Use a Glass Cutter on a Bottle Properly
Here, you will get an idea about how to use the glass cutter on a bottle. There are many glass cutters. Some come with a cutting kit. Inside that kit, you will get different tools related to cutting.
A simple hand cutter can do your job. Different manufactures bring them with a new edition. The dry wheel cutter ensures smooth cutting. It doesn’t need oil to cut the surface. But there are some options for oil cutters as well.
The things you need to gather before cutting:
- Glass cutter
- A tape
- Goggles
- Hot water
- Cold tap water
- A pair of gloves
Steps of Cutting a Bottle Using a Glass Cutter
Specify a cutting line
Using masking tape, you can specify a line. It will help you cut the bottle according to the marked line.
Place the tape where you want to cut the bottle. Make sure the tape is well adjusted. It should be straight. This will avoid any incident that creates a snag.
Again, you can leave the label where it was. The label can also work as the marking line. You can remove it later after you cut the bottle into two pieces.
Start scoring
Hold your cutter and place your arm somewhere comfortable. Your hand should angle from a steady place. If your arm moves, the cut will not be precise. It will be jagged.
You can put your arm in a higher position. This will make your job comfortable. You can do it by placing a piece of cloth under your arm by folding it up.
Place the cutter along the line of the masking tape. Start to mark it around the whole shape. This will help precisely cut the bottle and make your task easy.
While scoring with a cutter, make a continuous line. The intervals of lines can make it look jagged. Though it is a matter of practice, you can still try to make it perfect.
Hold it inside the hot and cold water
Run the scoring lined bottle inside hot water. Wear a pair of gloves and rotate it inside the warm water.
Then, take the bottle and run it under cold tap water. Repeat the steps again and again. You will hear the scratching sound of the bottle. In this way, the bottle will be divided.
Safety measures
If you use a rotating cutter, be sure to take some safety precautions. You must use goggles or a face shield to protect your eyes and face. Wear a long-sleeved dress to protect your hands.
Don’t forget to wear gloves. Wear gloves when you put your hand into the warm water.
Other Methods
– You can tie a rope around the bottle where you want to cut. Then soak it in a flammable liquid. Once it is soaked, set it on fire. Then by rotating it into cold water, the flame will be dead. You will get two portions of the bottle in your hands.
– You can use adjustable roller cutters to cut the bottle into two sections. The bottle is placed against the blade and rotated in the counter-clockwise direction. This will score the bottle. Then you can use the hot and cold water to break it.
However, these methods don’t work properly and can’t be used for a long time. So, it is convenient to use the hand cutter to score and break the bottle.
How to Polish the Edges of the Cut Bottle?
To make your bottle more appreciable, you have to smooth the edges. Without smoothing, you cannot even craft or work on it. There are many ways through which you can start polishing. It depends on you how perfect you want your bottle to be.
The smoothing methods are given below with details.
Using a diamond file
You can use a large 600 grit diamond file to polish the surface. There are many shapes of these files. You can use any of them.
This one file can work on both sides, as it is big enough. On small bottles, these are very effective. You will get a good surface finish after this.
If you want it to be smoother, you can use the black silicone polisher. Before polishing the edge, you can remove the bumps by using a cylinder burr.
These are abrasive tools. You should carefully use them. Otherwise, the bottle might slip and get cracked.
Using a sandpaper
Eighty-grit sandpaper can smooth the edge. You can use an emery paper if you don’t get the sandpaper easily. Wet the paper before rubbing the surface.
Hold the paper with one hand, and with the other hold the paper. Hold down the edge on the paper and scrub on it in 2 to 3 circles. Continue to do this for at least 5 minutes to get a better finish.
Use higher numbers of grit papers for a better finish. Don’t forget to smooth the inner surface as well. Clean the whole bottle with a piece of cloth once you are done.
If you find it difficult because of using your hands, you can switch to another method.
Using silicon carbide
Take a float glass or any piece of scrapped glass and place it on a surface. Add water at the center of the glass and then put silicon carbide on it. Stir the powder gently using your fingers. Use gloves while doing this activity.
Press the rough edge of the bottle on the silicon carbide solution. Spin the edge there for 30 to 60 seconds.
Use an emery paper to smooth the surface inside. Then wipe off the bottle with a clean cloth.
How Can You Use the Bottle?
Once you are done preparing the bottle, you can start making it look good. Recycled bottles can be turned into useful items as below:
- Pen holder
- Flower vase
- Toothpick holder
- Candleholder
- Windchime
- Decoration piece
Conclusion
In the end, I hope you all have an idea of how to use a glass cutter. There are many ways to prepare your bottle for recycling items. The easiest one is to use a glass cutter. This will be safer for you if you are trying this for the first time.
While using a cutter, don’t forget to take your safety measures. After cutting the bottle, smooth it to create a perfect look. For polishing, use any method stated above.
Use your creativity and showcase your talent by recycling bottles. With your ideas, you can inspire other people to turn a scrapped bottle into something exceptional.
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