Jump to content

Quick Question: Progressing From Test Glaze Batches To Production Batches


Recommended Posts

  • Replies 115
  • Created
  • Last Reply
  • 3 weeks later...

Ok so everyone talks about "insight". What is reason for knowing all the details of a glaze? What in its calc tells you it may be a problem? Does one have to know chemistry to understand too much of this or too little of that? Help.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If you understand some of the basics of a glaze and what its made of and the chemistry in it, you can modify it to do the things you want. For example say want the glaze to run more, you can add more flux and watch the melt numbers increase. That is just a simple one. Say you want the glaze to be more matte, you could add things that increase CaO, and the MgO, while balancing the other ingredients. It is just tinkering basically. You make small changes, make test batches, test fire. Make more small changes, test batch, test fire. It's rather enjoyable when you get to what you want.

 

 

There are millions of other things you could do on there, but basically all I use it for right now is slightly modifying glazes and changing ingredients from things I don't like to work with to things I do. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest JBaymore

Ok so everyone talks about "insight". What is reason for knowing all the details of a glaze? What in its calc tells you it may be a problem? Does one have to know chemistry to understand too much of this or too little of that? Help.

 

Go to the Digitalfire website and download the demo copy of Insight.    http://digitalfire.com/       Follow the tutorials to get going with it.  Use the Digital fire public pages to help.  Using it you will begin to understand what such an approach can do for you.

 

An example....... industry has studied what makes "good glaze" a lot.  From that scientific research they can say for example that at cone X a durable etch resistant glass should contain a certain amount (in molecular terms) of silica.  You put in your glaze recipe and it turns up to be WAY low compared to the recommendation.  You then can decide if you want to fix it... or move on to another recipe.

 

Some colors develop simply when the right ratio of certain molecules are present along with certain colorants (this is how they develop stuff like the colorants known as Mason Stains).

 

There are tons of ways that it can help you aesthetically, legally, and so on.

 

best,

 

......................john

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ok so everyone talks about "insight". What is reason for knowing all the details of a glaze? What in its calc tells you it may be a problem? Does one have to know chemistry to understand too much of this or too little of that? Help.

 

If you have a look at the Currie test tiles thread in this forum (amongst many others) you will see some examples and discussion of how actual glazes can change as their chemical composition is slowly carefully altered, little by little, systematically.  Knowing what is in the glaze and what makes it tick can help you get just what you want, rather than always depending on someone else's cookbook of recipes which work, but without you ever really knowing why, or how to modify them if you wanted to.

 

Insight and other glaze software lets us explore what is in any given glaze (or clay) recipe and play around with it to learn how to use it better or even develop our own completely new formulations! Very exciting stuff, because using the computer we can now do with a few keystrokes what used to take hours of laborious manual calculations.   The end result is (when it all works out :lol: ) better results and less wasted time with random experiments.  Again, this can be done for glaze you know well, or for a completely new and unkown one. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Now to mix a 10 gallon trash can full of glaze! Oh how life changes so fast!

 

Man oh man Tin Oxide is expensive.

so use some zircopax?? Trying to remember the American name here. Makes for a harder glaze also.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So what containers are people using for a glaze they don't need a ton of, but still want to dip a mug in. Like I know I want a 10 gal bucket about 3/4 of the way full with one glaze, but I want a few other glazes and I want to be able to dip bowl rims, or mugs in etc. 

 

I have been looking through amazon, but I haven't found anything besides the 1gal pails. So a 3.7K gram = a gallon, so I assume something like 1.5K Gram with 1.5K ml water will fill up a gallon pail, and leave room for displacement. Id have to test, but I presume its close. I have several glazes I would like to have 1 gallon of. Just not sure what to put them in for a variety of shapes, mostly mugs and cereal bowls.

 

What type of container do you use for that? I was thinking 1 gallon pail with a lid, but I figured there might be better shapes for mugs that are taller? Any recommendations that you have found better than the 1 gallon pail?

I use paper coffee cups for 100 gram tests. Then 1,000 grams fits an ice-cream pail with a lid.

Then about 6,000 grams fits into a 5 gallon pail. you get these from bakeries. Sometimes people leave them in the back lane. You could even buy them. I think they cost $3.00 now. Never bought one.

TJR.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest JBaymore

 

Then about 6,000 grams fits into a 5 gallon pail. you get these from bakeries.

 

As an "oldie but goodie" type person here in the States...... I still tend to call these 5 gallon buckets "Dunkin' Donut buckets" when I talk about them...... because DD used to get their donut icing and fillings in 5 gallon buckets and they had them by the TON at the stores to get rid of.  Potters used to flock to the stores to take them away for free.  Now they get it in plastic bags in cardboard boxes.  No more DD buckets.

 

best,

 

.......................john

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Man, buckets cost too much IMO. I went to home depot and bought some because I couldn't think of any one to check if they were giving them away. I need to be more resourceful in that area and find stuff people are getting rid of. What is funny is 2 gallon buckets cost more than 5 gallon ones! But I need the depth of a 2 gal for most of my cup forms. Also a 2 gal is a nice size to make a batch up and get a good feel for it. I enjoy that size. Only issue is large bowls dont fit, so they dont get that glaze on the outside. 

 

We need a new DD supplier John!

 

@babs, I tired zirco as an alternate to the tin, if you check back a few pages i posted results. I prefer the tin coloring that it provides. I bit the bullet and made a 5 gallon batch. 50 bucks worth of tin(2 lbs). Woo wee.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

Then about 6,000 grams fits into a 5 gallon pail. you get these from bakeries.

 

As an "oldie but goodie" type person here in the States...... I still tend to call these 5 gallon buckets "Dunkin' Donut buckets" when I talk about them...... because DD used to get their donut icing and fillings in 5 gallon buckets and they had them by the TON at the stores to get rid of.  Potters used to flock to the stores to take them away for free.  Now they get it in plastic bags in cardboard boxes.  No more DD buckets.

 

best,

 

.......................john

 

Tim Hortons, mate.

TJR.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

some supermarket "bakeries" have buckets like the donut shop.  some still get 2 sizes of buckets full of icing from a company called Brill.  they come in 3 1/2 gallon and 2 gallon sizes.  these buckets are smaller than 5 gallons but good for a quantity of glaze.  the 5 gallon size seems to be only available free from drywall mud users.  if you are going to pay for 5 gallon  buckets, white Sherwin Williams buckets are best because the bottom of the interior is rounded and a rubber spatula cleans it more completely than the sharp edged buckets allow.

 

for some reason, some supermarket bakeries are happy to save buckets for you and some do not want to give you one even if you arrive just as it is being emptied and you are willing to take it without being washed out.  they give crazy excuses.  some also get the icing in plastic bags and never have buckets.  try another supermarket.

 

i mix dry ingredients and store the base recipe in the larger buckets.  when i want to glaze, i mix the base with whichever color i want and put that into a smaller bucket.  keeps more colors available without having all big bucketfuls.  the Brill buckets are white and have lots of room for sharpie notes about what is inside.   and sharpie words come off with cotton and hairspray to change the names.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Man, buckets cost too much IMO. I went to home depot and bought some because I couldn't think of any one to check if they were giving them away. I need to be more resourceful in that area and find stuff people are getting rid of. What is funny is 2 gallon buckets cost more than 5 gallon ones! But I need the depth of a 2 gal for most of my cup forms. Also a 2 gal is a nice size to make a batch up and get a good feel for it. I enjoy that size. Only issue is large bowls dont fit, so they dont get that glaze on the outside. 

 

We need a new DD supplier John!

 

@babs, I tired zirco as an alternate to the tin, if you check back a few pages i posted results. I prefer the tin coloring that it provides. I bit the bullet and made a 5 gallon batch. 50 bucks worth of tin(2 lbs). Woo wee.

Yeh, sorry posted before I read on thro' the post, I  agree that tin makes for a richer glaze, poorer potter!

With Old Lady, I get buckets from the local  Bakery, but they now charge a few dollars for them. A friend in the hotel catering business is what everyone needs, buckets galore there.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.