Dick White
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Magnolia Mud Research reacted to a post in a topic: Glazed pieces hung out at 800F degrees - ok?
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Roberta12 reacted to a post in a topic: Glazed pieces hung out at 800F degrees - ok?
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Glazed pieces hung out at 800F degrees - ok?
Dick White replied to ABlanc's topic in Clay and Glaze Chemistry
At 800 degrees, the glaze particles have not begun to sinter, they are just a little toasty. Fix the kiln and refire. -
Callie Beller Diesel reacted to a post in a topic: Chrome & Zinc - toxic?
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Beccap reacted to a post in a topic: Chrome & Zinc - toxic?
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Hulk reacted to a post in a topic: Chrome & Zinc - toxic?
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Rae Reich reacted to a post in a topic: Chrome & Zinc - toxic?
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Pres reacted to a post in a topic: Chrome & Zinc - toxic?
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As others have already noted, neither zinc oxide nor chrome oxide used in reasonable amounts in a stable glaze are toxic. A different issue arises when both are used together in the same glaze - ugliness abounds. Chrome is supposed to be green when in a glaze that does not contain tin. A combination with tin in the right amounts creates a variety of pinks and reds. Zinc with chrome, however, turns assorted shades of brown, when copious amounts are used. It won't hurt you, but you probably don't want to look at it. Perhaps your glaze recipe doesn't have enough for the adverse color reactions.
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Bill Kielb reacted to a post in a topic: Paragon ERROR CODE FTH
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Hulk reacted to a post in a topic: Paragon ERROR CODE FTH
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The Sentry FTH error is similar to the Bartlett E1, in that both are in response to the controller detecting the temperature not rising as expected according to the program. The difference is that the Sentry continues to fire, albeit slowly, until the target temperature is finally reached, whereas the Bartlett error will terminate the firing.
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Piedmont Pottery reacted to a post in a topic: Reclaim Tray / Pottery Plaster or Plaster of Paris?
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Help with making / recipe for good glazes for red clay
Dick White replied to Liat Avital's topic in Clay and Glaze Chemistry
There is no good clear glaze recipe for red clay; they all will turn the clay dark. The issue is that calcium in the glaze reacts with the iron in the red clay turning it brown. Calcium is a necessary component of a durable glaze. -
Use frit not listed in a glazy.org recipe
Dick White replied to Twitchy's topic in Clay and Glaze Chemistry
Digitalfire has a materials analysis of it here: https://digitalfire.com/material/451 -
Drop and Soak program for Cone 6 in Skutt
Dick White replied to Potpotpotter's topic in Clay and Glaze Chemistry
For Flux Sake is one of the offshoots from the inestimable Matt Katz, who in one of his webcasts long ago expressed an opinion that in addition to the usual list of pinhole suspects, poor application of the glaze was often a cause, particularly with brushed glazes. If the first coat of glaze had irregularities, those nooks and crannies could be covered by the next coat, leaving a tiny air pocket underneath. The problem is especially acute on textured surfaces. As the glaze melts during the firing, those little air pockets would rise to the surface and pop, leaving the pinhole. So, in Matt's opinion, pinholes could be from user error as well as decomposition of the glaze or outgassing from the body. Matt typically uses porcelain tiles for his testing, and bisques to 08 for consistent absorbency. A clean body such as porcelain does not need the higher bisque to burn out the organics and impurities. -
Drop and Soak program for Cone 6 in Skutt
Dick White replied to Potpotpotter's topic in Clay and Glaze Chemistry
Dunno, I don't have a Skutt Touchscreen, and the "user manual" is a help screen embedded in the controller. All I know is what I hear from others who are struggling with it. -
Troubleshooting my L & L manual Econo Kiln J230
Dick White replied to GrayB's topic in Equipment Use and Repair
Sometimes even when the elements look good and turn red, they are worn. The only way to definitively determine the health of the element is measure its resistance with a meter. The L&L manual kilns have variable controls for each section. If the bottom is running cool (common), you can compensate for that by have the bottom dial on full high and the middle and top a bit below high. You'll have to experiment with that until you learn exactly how your kiln behaves. -
Drop and Soak program for Cone 6 in Skutt
Dick White replied to Potpotpotter's topic in Clay and Glaze Chemistry
@Bill Kielb and @Potpotpotter The Skutt Touchscreen controller, while built by Bartlett to Skutt's specifications and similar in many ways to Bartlett's own Genesis, does not have the toggle to turn on the optional cooling segment as the final segment of a cone-fire (auto-fire) program. Such a capability was available in the Skutt KM series kilns using the controller logic adapted from the Bartlett native V6-CF controllers, Skutt removed that from their Touchscreen version of the Bartlett Genesis. With a Skutt Touchscreen controller, one now must build a custom ramp-hold program that mimics whatever cone-fire program on the way up and then add one or two more steps at the end of the program for a controlled cool. -
Many years ago, one of the students in the college class lost the bottom nut from the extruder die holder while cleaning it in the cleanup bucket in the sink. Irritating, but not the end of the world to have to go to the hardware store for a replacement nut. We periodically scoop the sludge from the cleanup bucket into the main recycle barrel, and when that barrel is full, I pug the recycle in to a proprietary mix that is so proprietary that even I don't know what I put in the pugged clay logs. Despite the unknown mix, it's usually nice enough to work with for class demos and experimental practice work. About a year and a half later, I was making a batch of Empty Bowls, and felt a lump in the wall of the cylinder. Thinking it to be an air bubble, I poked it with my needle tool, but it was a hard chunk. So I dug it out, and there was the long lost nut.
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There is some conflicting information about the first firing floating around, both from different kiln manufacturers, for different purposes, and even within the same manufacturer's instructions. L&L's printed manual has long instructed owners of their new kiln to do an initial break-in firing of the empty kiln (but with the furniture) slow bisque to cone 5 (yes, five, not oh-five) with a 3 hour preheat for the dual purpose of seasoning the elements to develop a protective oxide coating and to set the cement used during manufacturing to hold the kiln bricks together. Their newest manual indicates these instructions are for both the Dynatrol and Genesis controllers. Conventional wisdom by some other kiln manufacturers instruct owners of their new kilns to do the initial firing slow to 04. This is consistent with the recommendation from the manufacturer of the Kanthal elements for seasoning newly installed replacement elements, again to develop a protective oxide coating on the wire. Out on the interwebs, many commenters who own these other brands of kiln will adamantly (but incorrectly) assert that new owners of all brands of kilns should do the initial firing to 04. And now we have this new video from L&L for programming the first firing on a Genesis controller that instructs a glaze firing to 04 with a 1 hour preheat. However, if one looks around on the L&L website, there is another video for programming the older Dynatrol controller for the first firing that is consistent with the printed instructions, i.e., slow bisque to 5. Is the basic kiln constructed differently for a Genesis vs. Dynatrol controller that it would need a different initial firing? I don't work there, so don't take my word for it, but the conflict seems fishy to me. With 3 instruction sources to choose from (the printed manual and 2 videos), I would go with the 2 that are consistent, i.e, the printed manual and the Dynatrol video. But maybe that's just because I am a recovering accountant...
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Identify chemicals and what they are used for
Dick White replied to LinR's topic in Clay and Glaze Chemistry
DigitalFire can tell you about the usage of most of those. https://digitalfire.com/material/list -
Interesting Cooling Cycle Info
Dick White replied to neilestrick's topic in Equipment Use and Repair
Ok, now download the firing log and feed that sweet thang into @jay_klay_studio's graphing program to visually see the tracks of the 3 sections. And if you really want to have some fun, add another 9999 drop all the way down to 100 after your regularly programmed cool to log how looooonnnggggg it takes for the last several hundred degrees. Several times over the years I've printed the extended graph of a few kilns as a teachable moment for the students of the virtue of patience, i.e., "Can I get my piece tomorrow?" "No, next Friday." -
Been rode hard and put up wet.
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For the brush hair, you can go to a full line fishing store and get squirrel tail and deer tail used to tie fishing fly lures.