Tempered glass vs. non-tempered

trickman

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I've been told time and time again that you want to get tempered glass for a table-top/cocktail machine. I was under the impression that this somehow "fortified" the glass in some way, resisting it to cracking, etc. However, after talking to a local glass cutting outfit near me, I was told that tempering only determines how the glass shatters if it is broken. Tempering makes the glass shatter in hundreds of small pieces, leaving no sharp edges to fool with, and is required by law for businesses, etc. Non-tempered glass will break in larger pieces, leaving sharp jagged and most likely dangerous pieces behind where someone could more easily get cut. Sending a piece of custom glass away to get tempered also costs more money. So, other than breakage safety, what is the advantage?

I have a Frogger cocktail that needs a top glass and I will be getting specs for cost once I measure it and get those measurements to them for a quote. I will figure tempering in there, but I wanted to know from others if it was worth it to spend the extra for it or not. Thanks.
 
Tempered

I think the extra expense is worth it for the safty aspect alone. I have a couple kids so i seem to error on the side of caution most the time.
 
TEMPERED.

I've seen some non-tempered pinball glass broken and it is very scary.

Would you rather take your chances with 10,000 pieces capable of inflicting a 1/8" cut or 10-20 pieces capable of inflicting cuts that are inches long or deep?
 
Tempered glass is much stronger than regular glass. The side effect is that breakage is brittle and catastrophic. I could explain it in more technical detail from my college days, but:
A: You wouldn't understand it
B: I have forgotten most of that crap other than the general knowledge. :D
 
Tempering stress relieves the glass making it stronger by a factor of 4 typically.

Whoever told you it was only to control breakage was wrong. Do it right and get it tempered.
 
Tempering stress relieves the glass making it stronger by a factor of 4 typically.

Whoever told you it was only to control breakage was wrong. Do it right and get it tempered.

Doesn't it also make it incredibly strong for a direct blow to the face? It typically only fails when struck from the edge or if there is a scratch or compromise in the surface when struck directly.

I always think of the glass at a hockey rink that gets besieged by 100mph pucks and large players all game and rarely fails but can shatter catastrophically when hit between the panes.

Chris
 
Tempering stress relieves the glass making it stronger by a factor of 4 typically.

Whoever told you it was only to control breakage was wrong. Do it right and get it tempered.

I was just going by what was told to me by an actual glass cutting establishment. You tend to believe what one of those places would tell you, as they would most likely profit from the increased cost associated with the process.

Good discussion. Thanks for all the advice.
 
I was just going by what was told to me by an actual glass cutting establishment. You tend to believe what one of those places would tell you, as they would most likely profit from the increased cost associated with the process.

Good discussion. Thanks for all the advice.

I don't know, my glass guy is nice enough, but isn't the smartest or most savvy individual that I ever met. I never believe half of what he tells me. Ironically, he is almost legally blind and wears the thickest glasses I have ever seen. Cuts plexi and acrylic like a champ though. He did tell me that tempered glass cannot be cut if that makes any difference.
 
I don't know, my glass guy is nice enough, but isn't the smartest or most savvy individual that I ever met. I never believe half of what he tells me. Ironically, he is almost legally blind and wears the thickest glasses I have ever seen. Cuts plexi and acrylic like a champ though. He did tell me that tempered glass cannot be cut if that makes any difference.

Right. I was told the tempering process has to be done after the final cut. Probably because any more cutting would shatter it.
 
Right. I was told the tempering process has to be done after the final cut. Probably because any more cutting would shatter it.

You are correct, make sure the measurements for the piece you need are accurate, if glass does not fit you will need to order a completely new piece,
if you go and try to cut a tempered piece of glass you will only destroy it and it will shatter into a thousand pieces, I'm speaking from experience actually tried to cut a piece of glass once that I thought was just regular glass.
 
You want the tempered glass. There's a reason it's in your car's side windows. It's safer and stronger.
 
You want the tempered glass. There's a reason it's in your car's side windows. It's safer and stronger.

The reason it's used in car side windows is because of how it breaks. Strength really has nothing to do with it. I mean if you wanted strength you would use laminated glass like the windshield. The windshield actually supports the roof in a roll over crash. That's why you should get chips in the windshield fixed as soon as you notice them. If the side windows were laminated glass and you became trapped you would have a very difficult time breaking the window out for escape. On that same note if it was non tempered and you were in an accident you could have huge chucks of glass flying at you. The tempered breaks into millions of tiny pieces allowing easy escape and less of a cutting hazard.
 
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I have a Frogger cocktail that needs a top glass and I will be getting specs for cost once I measure it and get those measurements to them for a quote. I will figure tempering in there, but I wanted to know from others if it was worth it to spend the extra for it or not. Thanks.

Get the tempered glass! As previously mentioned, tempered glass shatters into large numbers of very small pieces. It's easy to cut yourself on them, but it's really hard to sever an artery with them. Normal glass shatters into small numbers of larger pieces, which makes it easier to slit your wrist or your throat and actually kill yourself.

You should also consider Plexiglas. It's often a good bit cheaper, and MUCH harder to break than glass. On a cocktail machine (where it's got plenty of support), the plexi will be no problem. The downside is that plexi is MUCH easier to scratch.

Good luck, however you decide!
 
The reason it's used in car side windows is because of how it breaks. Strength really has nothing to do with it. I mean if you wanted strength you would use laminated glass like the windshield. The windshield actually supports the roof in a roll over crash. That's why you should get chips in the windshield fixed as soon as you notice them. If the side windows were laminated glass and you became trapped you would have a very difficult time breaking the window out for escape. On that same note if it was non tempered and you were in an accident you could have huge chucks of glass flying at you. The tempered breaks into millions of tiny pieces allowing easy escape and less of a cutting hazard.

True. By strength, I meant resistance to shattering. Not structural.

TRUE STORY: I had a glass shop *try* to install a windshield in my 88 Grand Wagoneer. He couldn't do it right, so I had them take it out. He then said that I had to have the vehicle TOWED out of his shop because it was unsafe to drive without a windshield! So I had a friend "tow" me to the gas station next door where we unhooked and I drove it home.

As I was leaving, the guy comes up to me and "warns" me that I'm taking my life into my own hands by driving without a windshield!! Now, this is a 1988 Jeep and the reason he couldn't install it correctly was because it doesn't glue in, it actually uses a rubber gasket that surrounds the glass. No glue involved. I've seen Jeeps like mine roll before and trust me, there is NO structural support provided by this design. I thought it was funny that he was all concerned about safety when the design precluded any structural support anyway.

MVGC (Mandatory Video Game Content): I used this same truck to bring home my T2 video game. Laid it down and slid it in the back. Ended up sticking out over the tailgate. But a ratchet strap secured it well enough for the ride home.
 
It's easy to cut yourself on them, but it's really hard to sever an artery with them. Normal glass shatters into small numbers of larger pieces, which makes it easier to slit your wrist or your throat and actually kill yourself.

Does this happen often with games?
 
I was just going by what was told to me by an actual glass cutting establishment. You tend to believe what one of those places would tell you, as they would most likely profit from the increased cost associated with the process.

Not really... they cut the glass and send it out to be tempered... I've yet to see a glass shop that tempers in-house. They may take a little markup, but it's prob more of a pain in the as to them than anything.

Just make sure they flame the edges before tempering... you can't polish/grind them after tempering.
 
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