Is Reichenbach 733 Purple Rose the new Zimmerman 99?

Left bead = Z99, Right bead R733

On Olympic Color Rod’s (OCR) website I saw this new color (I don't know how new it is, but it is new to me), Reichenbach 733 (R733) in lampworking cane. I was excited by the possibility that Reichenbach was trying to recreate the beloved and in very short supply Zimmerman 99 (Z99)which is no longer being made. Despite my trying to not buy glass this year, I caved. Not only is purple my favorite color but, Z99 is so cool. On the website OCR said: “Purple Rose, similar to Zimmermann's "Purple Rose Special."

I got my Reichenbach 733 (R733) very quickly (as I live less than an hour from OCR) and it was in my hot little hands. Here you will see a group of R733 beads all together. You can see the undertones are very blue (maybe even some greens), but check out that dark purple disk on the top! YUMMERS.

At the very top you will see 2 peace sign beads in Z99 and R733, here you can see the real difference. These are solid colors so no reactions between anything. I don’t have any Z851 Lilac Blue but I think R733 maybe closer to that color, if my memory is correct.

FOCALS

First bead Z99 frit on Opal Yellow Effetre and shaped with gravity (not the best photo of a cool bead). This bead has been etched.

Second bead R733 frit on Opal Yellow Effetre and shaped with gravity.

On the Z 99 bead you can see a lot of pink. I’m not sure this is a super fair comparison as the Z99 bead was really heated a lot and worked on a lot longer than the R733 bead. On the top of the R733 bead you can see some dark pink coming out, but there is a lot more blue.

ROUNDS

All of these round beads were made the same way: a twisty of Opal Yellow and the purple color on top of Copper Green Effetre.

On these Z99 beads you see a lot of pink coming out on the beads and a tiny little bit or orange peeking through (it was there, I promise). I think I had a lot more purple in these twisties.

These were the first beads I made with this technique and they are the Z99. This is what is so cool with this glass, you can do the same technique and the same colors and get something different. These beads made the same way had more orange/mustard colors.

On the R733 beads the Opal Yellow turned very mustard, much darker than the Z99. I think they are not as pretty as the Z99 beads, but still very interesting. A couple of the beads didn’t turn mustard at all (they are hiding in the back). Check these out on Etsy.

Conclusion: While it is not the same, it is cool on it’s own, and a good first start. I hope that Reichenbach continues to tweet the formula. It has a lot of possibilities and I’m excited about what I’m seeing.