Having Trouble With Wax Resist Keeping Glaze Off Clay.

[Bobg]

I'm trying to make some mugs that have 1/8" thick slab attached to it that has a stamped design on it. What I'm trying to do is put wax resist on the stamped piece so the glaze doesn't stick to it. And then dip the mug in glaze. I was expecting the glaze to not adhere to the stamping, but it totall covered it. I tried blowing the glaze off, but that did not work.

 

Looking for a way to do this. Maybe my wax resist is not good. I bought it from Clay Art Center in Seattle, I'm assuming it's their house brand.

 

Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

Bob

[Rebekah Krieger]

Have you checked the packaging to determine if it is hot wax or cold wax?

[GEP]

When I use cold wax (I use Standard cold wax) I find it needs to dry at least 15 minutes. If I don't wait long enough, it will still be tacky and glaze sticks to it like crazy. I also thin it out with a little water, and try to apply the thinnest coat possible, which helps it to dry faster.

[Mark C.]

Let the wax dry as mentioned above-I also thin my wax just a bit. I apply with a cut sponge. It should shed off when blown on as you did.Whats the wax brand?

Mark

[Callie Beller Diesel]

I find if you apply the wax with any dust in your brush, it makes the wax hold the glaze. It creates a bit of a texture that the glaze sticks to. (I know. A dusty brush in a clay studio, right?)

[alabama]

When I make something like you're making, I don't use wax resist at all. What

I do now is to stain the applique with a black iron oxide stain. Leave it to

dry, dip the vessel in glaze, then with a wet sponge, wipe the glaze and stain

off to the point I prefer. Now, if I happen to be staining a vessel decorated

with stamps, I'll stain the stamped area, wipe off the stain, apply wax resist to the

stamped decoration, glaze, then wipe off any area where I didn't want glaze.

I've always thought that there is at least 5 different methods to do each or

any step of pottery. Sometimes, with luck, the best results are with the first

attempt... Other times it may be the 3rd or 4th method when the eureka moment

occurs. Try different ways.

See ya,

Alabama

[TJR]

I use round price tags from the dollar store to get a resist for my turquoise glaze. See galley.

You might try masking tape or rubber cement.

Also, consider that your glaze may be too thick.

TJR.

[Bobg]

I'll have to look at the jar and see if it's hot or cold wax, I'm just assuming it's cold.  I applied it with a foam brush, that way I can just throw them away when I'm done.  The wax dried for about 15 minutes, but it's currently 35 degrees outside and my shop is only about 60.  I'm going to make up some test pieces and try a variety of application techniques to see what works.

 

Thanks,

Bob 

[neilestrick]

Certain glazes will stick more than others. If you're trying to dip a brushing glaze then it will definitely stick to it. If your glaze is high in iron oxide or custer feldspar it is also likely to stick. If your glaze is too thick it will stick. Ultimately, the wax will make it easy to wipe the glaze off even if it does stick.

[Bobg]

What are some of the recommendations for wax resist.  Does it get old?  I've had mine for about four years.  

 

Bob

[neilestrick]

I've never seen it wear out other than drying up. I have seen it get really moldy, but that doesn't affect its performance.

[Pugaboo]

Another thing to try is Latex Resist, liquid latex. You paint it on let it dry glaze your piece then peel off the latex. This would mean even if there are bits of glaze stuck to the latex you are pulling it off so it doesn't matter. I use it when I am doing several layers of design and don't want to wax an area but still need to protect it from getting underglaze or glaze. Using latex means once I remove it I can do further design work on the area that was covered.

 

T

[Humboldt Potter]

I agree with the above tips: thin the wax a bit, apply the thinnest coat. But the most important thing is to let the wax dry thoroughly. If you can let it dry overnight, that works best for resisting glaze. If your studio is that cold, I'll bet the wax just wasn't dry enough.

[Min]

I've had a few lousy jugs of resist from Seattle Pottery Supply. The only way I could get rid of the stickiness was to apply it thin, diluted with water like already has been said, then with a heat gun on low I run the gun gently over the wax. The other thing I do is very quickly burnish the wax with a scrap of saran wrap, its then as good as hot wax for resisting glaze.

 

I wonder if Tacoma Clay Art and Seattle Pottery Supply use the same wholesaler for their wax?

[Don Kopyscinski]

I have great luck with Aftosa's wax resist. It's by far the best cold wax resist I've used. As others have mentioned it also needs to dry thoroughly to works it's best ( I usually wait a few hours ). Rather than struggle with an inferior product, treat yourself to some.

 

Don Kopyscinski

Bear Hills Pottery

Newtown, CT

[oki]

Wax resist aint what it used to be. When I asked the supplier about getting the wax resist we used to have, not this sticky waxy stuff,   they just said this is all that is available.  But I remebered it being much different.  This stuff now sold as wax resist in pottery shops doesn't seem to really have any good use, and I wonder what it is good for, but maybe I am wrong.  I have mostly not bothered with this step, and resorted to just wiping the glaze away. However the other day I could see I needed to apply two large areas of different glaze on some plates, so I thought about using a resist again.  As previous comments, I found there is a readily available latex masking fluid, which is used by water colorists, and I bought it at a large art store. There were several brands to choose from. It is perfect.  I used it quite thin, and it easily pealed away, leaving no residue at all.

[Bobg]

I found the wax resist worked to a certain extent.  The area I was trying to keep glaze off of was highly textured.  I had dipped one mug and when I saw that the glaze was not coming off put it aside.  I plicked it up last week and decided to try and clean the glaze off on textured area.  I had a small nylon brush in the shop so I started to brush it.  I came off quite easily, so in a way it did resist the way.  The rest of the mugs we brushed the glaze on, which takes more time and the glaze is more variable in it's appearance.  

 

Bob

[oldlady]

a damp sponge is better for your lungs than brushing dried glaze off the waxed area.  you won't hurt the color you have under the wax.

[ronfire]

For the bottoms I rub the glaze off on a wet piece of door mat and then sponge of anything that was missed.

[Bobg]

I do all my dusty work under a vent hood that I have over my metal lathe and milling machine.  The glaze would have been hard to get off with a damp sponge due to the depth of the inpressions.  If I can find a decent picts of the mugs I'll post one so you can see.

 

Bob

[Bobg]

Here's a pict of the type of mug in question.  The impression is just over 1/8" thick. 

 

Not the best picture, slightly out of focus.