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About Pres
- Birthday 08/20/1949
Contact Methods
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MSN
bisquefire06@hotmail.com
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Website URL
http://picworkspottery.blogspot.com/
Profile Information
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Location
Central, PA
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Interests
Camping, kayaking, family, travel, Art in general. I have a small studio in my garage. Two electric kilns, two wheels, wedging table etc. I am primarily interested in cone 6 Ox. but like to see what is going on at all ranges. Read about ceramics voraciously and love the feel of the clay and throwing. Have to admit that my greatest joy is in the making, not the glazing. That said I do mix my own glazes, some of my own formulas, some borrowed. Retired from teaching art, in 2009 after 36 years, taught ceramics 34 of those years.
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Hulk reacted to a post in a topic: glaze test tiles (can I use both front and back side?)
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HenryBurlingame reacted to a post in a topic: New Skutt Wheels
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Like @Mark C., I have used a number of wheels over the years. I have found even in these later years that I can torque some wheels when centering for throwing off the hump. I also have not noticed much in the way of noise difference between 1/3, 1/2 or full. Years ago I used a Brent CX that was a gear drive, it was noisy! I throw on a CXC, and am using the original belts and have only had to replace a potentiometer when the shop got flooded. Over 20 years old now, but then I don't throw on it every day. best, Pres
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Pres reacted to a post in a topic: New Skutt Wheels
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Pres reacted to a post in a topic: New Skutt Wheels
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glaze test tiles (can I use both front and back side?)
Pres replied to s6x's topic in Clay and Glaze Chemistry
Great question, and as you see, there are reasons for different answers. I dip all of my test tiles, so the are the same on both sides. Then I use small shot glass type testers to see if the glazes interact with each other in weird ways. . . . why the shot glasses? Easy to throw off the hump, simulate a pot form and allows me to test inside and outside combinations. Finally if there are any weird interactions from different glazes that may cause the pot to crack, craze, shever or anything else, the shot glass shape is more stable and will keep the glaze from doing too much to the kiln. Lots of them can be fired as extras in any load. best, Pres -
Pres reacted to a post in a topic: A large 24" tall sculpture has some crazing. Is there anything I can do to save it? Sorry if this is wrong forum
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When recycling clay for the ceramics classes before summer vacation, I would add a few ounces of vinegar into the pug mill. Over the Summer months the clay would set in 50gal plastic buckets with damp towels with a water vinegar soak in them. Every Fall the recycled clay was better than the clay direct from the boxes. Students noticed the difference and I did take the time to explain that the organic material in the vinegar had chance to age the clay with organic material. best, Pres
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Pres reacted to a post in a topic: Gare K-10 Kiln
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Pres reacted to a post in a topic: Clay recommendations for wheel thrown sculptural work
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Rae Reich reacted to a post in a topic: Clay recommendations for wheel thrown sculptural work
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Pres reacted to a post in a topic: Clay recommendations for wheel thrown sculptural work
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Clay recommendations for wheel thrown sculptural work
Pres replied to tman123's topic in Studio Operations and Making Work
Are you certain the cracking is clay related, or is it process related? best, Pres -
Pres reacted to a post in a topic: QotW: How do you level the bottoms of thrown pieces?
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Hulk reacted to a post in a topic: QotW: How do you level the bottoms of thrown pieces?
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Pres reacted to a post in a topic: Glazing large piece
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Hulk reacted to a post in a topic: Glazing large piece
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QotW: How do you level the bottoms of thrown pieces? I have been working on some chalices lately, trimming the bowls and the stems before joining and got to remembering how . . . . in the day I would use a needle tool to the level pieces up, whether the were thrown off the hump or on a other wise. In the first days of learning to throw I threw on the venerable Randolph motorized kick wheel with the cup heads where a plaster bat would fit for throwing. They were marvelous as the next day things would be dry enough to remove and trim and then move on. Then came working with metal wheel heads, and trimming of and removing the pots from the wheel or working on a wooden bat. Seems I always got things a little wonky and out came the needle tool to even small things up. Then at Penn State someone introduced me to the hack saw blade held perpendicular to the pot held by both hands to level the pot. . . Wow! To this very day, any throwing with leveling needed is done in the same manner. Double that if throwing off the hump, as I whip out 20 cups in an hour and worry about level in the trimming. Same works for plates as 12" of surface with a cutting wire is not always level! QotW: How do you level the bottoms of thrown pieces? best, Pres
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Pres reacted to a post in a topic: Kiln identification
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Pres reacted to a post in a topic: Is this an unusable wheel head? Please help me
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Min reacted to a post in a topic: Glazing large piece
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I have made several vase forms that have 8-10 inch bases, and some bowls that have 12-14 inch bases. Presently I use a bat covered with a felt type rug with rubber backing. Using the wheel running slowly, with some dampness on the rug I can clean the surface of a foot ringed of flat form quite easily. The larger the bat the bigger the form can be covered. Two people holding the form should be able to make it work pretty easily using the weight of the form against the covered bat with the hands of the two individuals holding it steady. I use the same technique to clean the bottoms of chalices and patens for communion sets. best, Pres
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Rae Reich reacted to a post in a topic: QotW: Have you had to reformulate any clays or glazes due to a shortage of materials?
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Hulk reacted to a post in a topic: QotW: Have you had to reformulate any clays or glazes due to a shortage of materials?
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I have a favorite glaze that uses talc, and up until lately have had quite a bit to use in glazes that I bought several years ago. However this last glaze batch found me with none left. Last year I had heard about a shortage of talc, and believed I would have to reformulate my glaze to work with a different component, maybe dolomite. Imagine my surprise when I found Fabi Talc listed at SC. So I will be ordering some to use in my glaze. However, it makes me wonder if anyone has had to reformulate glazes or clay bodies due to a lack of materials? QotW: Have you had to reformulate any clays or glazes due to a shortage of materials? best, Pres
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Rae Reich 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?
Pres replied to ABlanc's topic in Clay and Glaze Chemistry
@ABlancBest bet here is to assess the kiln problem, fix it, and then re-fire the load to ^6. Check your elements to make certain none of them has broken first. If they are in good shape, then the problem is probably in the lead boxes. Is this kiln run on a cone setter or a programmable controller? If in a setter was the cone in the setter still as if unused? best, Pres -
Density of the load has an effect on the way heat moves in the kiln. Kilns are heated by 3 different forms of heat transfer: Radiant, Conduction, and Convection. Understanding these will help you to understand the need to pack the kiln consistently. Radiant heat is occurs first in the kiln as the elements radiate heat to heat up the air and the pottery. The pottery on the outer edges will heat up to radiate heat towards the center of the kiln. Please note that while Radiant heat is going on Convection is also occurring in the kiln as air heats up and begins to move to the top of the kiln forcing cooler air downward. Overly tight loads will inhibit the movement of air in the kiln causing areas that do not get air to not reach expected cones. However, as this is going on Conduction, where heat is moving through a solid, is taking place, Conduction is a slower process but it allows the pots to heat up from the outside to the inside, and the kiln from the inside to the outside. This good reason to have proper distance from the kiln to outside walls or other materials that could ignite. Hope this helps to answer some of you concerns. best, Pres
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@Gonepotty, could you include a little more information on your kiln. Are you doing a manual ramp with a kiln setter, or are you using a programmable controller. Balanced packing on all shelves will help with evening out the temperatures, so yes having a tighter pack in the bottom will effect the firing. best, Pres
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Hi folks, we covered this a few years ago, but I was mixing glazes yesterday with my plastic bucket sieve, and a brush to run the glaze through the sieve into a spare bucket, and then back into the rinsed out original bucket. I have often wondered about buying a Talisman sieve, but in the long run the cost scares me away, and I really get along fine with my bucket sieve. I will pick up a digital scale as the cost of them has come down. QotW: Talisman, Bucket or other type of sieve for glaze mixing? bestg, Pres
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Welcome to the forum! You may do searches using the search tools in each strand area, or you may do a search in the main screen to search all areas for a specific question/subject. Hope you get all the help you need to grow into producing for yourself and your grandchildren. best, Pres
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Couldn't help myself the other day. . . .I was at NCECA, and noticed a book cover I didn't recognize. . . looked closer and decided I needed a new book! It is another glaze book with Low, Mid, and High-Fire recipes. However, it sets itself apart by showing combinations of the glazes in 2 and 3 dipped coatings with rich photos of test pots showing the layers.Amazing Glaze Recipes and Combinations, Gabriel Kline. best, Pres
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I'm sure we have had this discussion a few years back, but good to return to it for those newbies out there. Over the years I have used all three, and found that I prefer the Magic Water. When teaching HS in the early years, I had used slip as that is what I learned to work with. If you you were diligent about your scoring, and your paddling/compressing the seams along with regular gap filling and smoothing you would have a good seam with no problems. However, being lax in any way could leave a seam that would split, or leave and ugly hole to be noticed even after glaze firing. Students took a long time to discover diligence. Vinegar was the addition that I started adding to my slip containers, as the mild acid did help to work the seams better. However, I came to believe that it was too easy for students to cover up a bad seam with slip of any sort than to get the seam right. Along came Magic Water, and when I started using it myself, I knew that I had to start using it in the classroom. It did not change everything, but worked wonders with making seams and at the same time it was hard to hide a bad seam. QotW: Slip, Slip with vinegar, Magic Water: What is your choice, and why? best, Pres