Elmoclayman Posted February 20, 2014 Report Share Posted February 20, 2014 Greetings all, I have been making mugs with tiki faces carved in them. I have made molds that have been working so I can reproduce them fairly quickly. The problem is that the molds chip very easily, leaving holes in the mold which then create unwanted that then have to be smoothed out after the pouring and drying. My question is: Is one plaster better or more durable than the others? I have been using pottery plaster #1. However, at my ceramics supply company that I order from I see that they have a number of different types of plaster: Plaster, Hydrocal White with 4500psi compression strength Ceramical Gypsum Cement with 6500psi compressions trength Puritan Pottery Plaster with 2400psi Compression Strength Pottery plaster #1 has a 2000psi compression strength. I'm going to go out on a limb here and guess that the higher the compression strenght, the harder the plaster. If someone could confrim this, that would be great Second question: Who has used a "harder" plaster for mold making and what are the disadvantages or advantages you have found? Still kind of new to the mold making and production process and trying to avoid the years of trial and error, so any information would help a bunch. Thanks, Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colby Charpentier Posted February 20, 2014 Report Share Posted February 20, 2014 Hi Brian, I've only ever used #1, except for making ram press molds. I can say that the way you mix your plaster will effect the "hardness" of your plaster. With harder plaster, you're going to be dealing with different rates of absorption, and different saturation points (as far as how much moisture the mold can take on). This will effect how well your molds cast. Maybe someone else can say more.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted February 20, 2014 Report Share Posted February 20, 2014 THIS will give you some info on the different types of plaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mart Posted February 21, 2014 Report Share Posted February 21, 2014 One of the most important ratios you need to understand is water:plaster ratio. It will make huge difference how your final mold behaves. Same plaster can give you very different results. Last time we made molds we used about stetson hat more than a 1/4 of a metric ton of plaster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elmoclayman Posted February 21, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 21, 2014 So, does more water mean a softer mold or harder mold? I am only making one mold at a time. Only mixing around 2 lbs of plaster at a time. With the smaller amount of plaster I understand that the water: plaster ratio will be much more sensitive. Agian, trying to avoid the years of trial and error. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
High Bridge Pottery Posted February 21, 2014 Report Share Posted February 21, 2014 It took me many failed molds to get comfortable with mixing plaster. I found that it was more in the mixing as long as the water is saturated with plaster. The longer I mixed made it better and stronger. I am still no pro, but my advice is to work with the cheapest plaster until you understand the ratios and mixing process to get the best from the plaster then buy the harder more expensive ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted February 22, 2014 Report Share Posted February 22, 2014 Different types of plaster take different amounts of water. Be sure to follow the manufacturers recommendations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted February 22, 2014 Report Share Posted February 22, 2014 Smaller amounts are more senitive to weighing mistakes-mixing errors (Agian, trying to avoid the years of trial and error.)This is how we learn in this field and as the years go by you will learn that you never get it all down as errors are the other name for ceramics Read up on how to mix for best results I googled it for you Heres some good info on small batches http://lindaarbuckle.com/handouts/plaster.pdf Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elmoclayman Posted February 22, 2014 Author Report Share Posted February 22, 2014 Thanks Mark. Just trying to to avoid reinventing the wheel. I appreciate the info. Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff Longtin Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 Brian, Are you weighing your materials beforehand? Weak plaster is usually caused by high water to plaster ratio. I used USG #1 Pottery for many years and did not experience much chipping. I don't weigh my materials everytime I pour but I do when I get a new batch of plaster. (So I can gauge how old the plaster is.) Pottery Plaster and GP K-60 are the best for slip casting. GP Densite and USG Hydrocal are usually best for ram pressing. They can be used for casting but your set up time will be much longer. Good Luck Jeff Longtin Minneapolis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dolly Posted March 15, 2014 Report Share Posted March 15, 2014 I use Keramicast never had any problem with this plaster , and it's strong absorbent I've got moulds down the garage 13 years old that we're made from Keramicast and still pourable today. hope that helps..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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