Stacy7 Posted July 12, 2012 Report Share Posted July 12, 2012 Hello everyone! I’ve been lurking for a few days and it seems like a very nice community you have here. Like so many others, I need help. Those of you who do not like malleable new blood feel free to flee. Here is my situation: I’m very new to ceramics. In fact as of this moment, I haven’t fired a kiln or poured a mold. I’m still in the prep stages or cataloging and figuring out what I've got exactly. I did a limited amount of slip casting as a kid and loved it, but I've never touched a kiln. When I came across someone who was selling off their entire collection (molds, kilns, glazes, etc) I decided to jump in with both feet. I need some advice on things I haven't really found a concrete answer on during my research...there are many answers out there, but it’s always nice to have some interactive advice. First is a question about one of my kilns. I have a Paragon AA-8 (http://www.paragonweb.com/A-88B.cfm). There is some damage to the brick. The broken bits are either missing or ground into rubble at the bottom of the kiln so repair is not possible. The missing pieces are also rather large for rebuilding. I’ve read that it can still fire the kiln without worry but I’m wondering if I’m just sacrificing efficiency or result as well? Second is the slip pump in the attached photo (it looks much better now that it's cleaned). It's a Power Potter from Lehman under the Studio Star name. The motor is ½ HP model 5k158C. I assume this is an older model that is out of production but I'm looking for care and use instructions. Is anyone familiar enough with this type of equipment to point me in the direction of a substitute model? Thanks for any help, I’m looking forward to getting to know everyone during my steep learning curve ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted July 12, 2012 Report Share Posted July 12, 2012 I can help with slip equipment-clean up the motor and tank and use it-Keep water ,clay and clay dust off motor.<div>If that stuff works then just use it. There may be a oil hole on motor bearings but often not-If the motor burns out replace it with same motor from WWW.graingers If you want a whole other slip setup I can give you that info as well. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arnold Howard Posted July 12, 2012 Report Share Posted July 12, 2012 First is a question about one of my kilns. I have a Paragon AA-8 (http://www.paragonweb.com/A-88B.cfm). There is some damage to the brick. The broken bits are either missing or ground into rubble at the bottom of the kiln so repair is not possible. The missing pieces are also rather large for rebuilding. I’ve read that it can still fire the kiln without worry but I’m wondering if I’m just sacrificing efficiency or result as well? The brick damage is marginal. You could fire the kiln without repairing the brick. However, it would be better to replace the damaged top bricks. Heat the top element with a propane torch, gently move the element out of the grooves, and slide the damaged brick upward and out of the kiln. Sand a new brick, and slide it in. Sanding may be necessary on the new bricks, because bricks shrink slightly with age. So the new ones are probably a little larger than the old ones. After replacing the bricks, heat the element and push it into the grooves of the new bricks. Sincerely, Arnold Howard Paragon Industries, L.P., Mesquite, Texas USA ahoward@paragonweb.com / www.paragonweb.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted July 12, 2012 Report Share Posted July 12, 2012 Yeah, the brick damage is mostly cosmetic. You could replace the top ones, as Howard said, or just wait until the elements need replacing and do them all while the elements are out. If you leave them for now, you really won't be sacrificing enough efficiency to matter. To get to the bricks at the bottom, loosen the steel jacket and remove all the bricks above them. Best to do them when the elements are out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacy7 Posted July 13, 2012 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2012 Wow, thanks for the prompt and helpful replies! I'm sure to have many more questions as I go, but so far I've found a ton of great ideas and techniques to try from the Ceramic Arts Daily site. So much of this is just getting your hands dirty and seeing what happens, it's very exciting and overwhelming at the same time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diana Ferreira Posted July 13, 2012 Report Share Posted July 13, 2012 lol, I know that huge factories use slip pumps, but I never ever could have guessed that it would be sold to small studios. I just cannot see why it would be necessary. Ok, slip is heavy. But, I am still shaking my head. I slipcast 7 days a week. Some of my work needs a full bucket of slip (10 litres) for one item, and I can easily run through 2 buckets of slip in one day. But, saying this, I am desperate for a blunger. It would take hours per week off my labour in the studio. My slip is 'setting' between filling buckets. I suspect that it is due to the clay content. And I have to use a cutter on a drill to thin out the slip between filling my pouring bucket. (It also 'deflocculate' if left for a few days. Causing me to test the slip each day before I use it, adding a few drops of flocculant before I start the day.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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