tluvs2create 0 Report post Posted April 1, 2011 Just purchased some of Amaco's Old World Crackle Glazes and followed directions - 3 coats - applied cross hatched, fire to cone 05. Took them out of the kiln this morning and there are no cracks. I did a google search for why this might be the case, and there is nothing. Any ideas. I so love that crackle look but I am not into making my own glazes. Thanks much! BTW: My kiln fires cone 05 to just over 1900 degrees at a rate of 270 degrees an hour. NOt sure how fast it cools, but seems it was about 300 degrees cooler after 2 hours had passed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Matt Katz 14 Report post Posted April 1, 2011 Just purchased some of Amaco's Old World Crackle Glazes and followed directions - 3 coats - applied cross hatched, fire to cone 05. Took them out of the kiln this morning and there are no cracks. I did a google search for why this might be the case, and there is nothing. Any ideas. I so love that crackle look but I am not into making my own glazes. Thanks much! BTW: My kiln fires cone 05 to just over 1900 degrees at a rate of 270 degrees an hour. NOt sure how fast it cools, but seems it was about 300 degrees cooler after 2 hours had passed. "Crackle" is actually a glaze defect called "Crazing". Crazing occurs when there is a fit mismatch between the Glaze and the Clay. Because of this it depends, on the clay as well. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Denice 453 Report post Posted April 1, 2011 Just purchased some of Amaco's Old World Crackle Glazes and followed directions - 3 coats - applied cross hatched, fire to cone 05. Took them out of the kiln this morning and there are no cracks. I did a google search for why this might be the case, and there is nothing. Any ideas. I so love that crackle look but I am not into making my own glazes. Thanks much! BTW: My kiln fires cone 05 to just over 1900 degrees at a rate of 270 degrees an hour. NOt sure how fast it cools, but seems it was about 300 degrees cooler after 2 hours had passed. You probably should take something that would stain the crackle like strong instant coffee. There are many different sizes of cracks in crackle glaze and different glazes give you different sizes. I have had some glaze take a full month or longer to finish crackling. I'm not that familiar with premixed glazes but the coffee should give you an idea if you have any crackle. Denice (Wichita, KS) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tluvs2create 0 Report post Posted April 1, 2011 Yep, looks like it is still cracking. I kept hearing little cracks while they were sitting there and upon close inspection, there are cracks. Unfortunately, they aren't as noticeable as I would like. Is the coffee just for me to test the cracks or will it stay that way. I have heard to use india ink. I have no india ink, but I do have coffee. Thank you! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Denice 453 Report post Posted April 1, 2011 Yep, looks like it is still cracking. I kept hearing little cracks while they were sitting there and upon close inspection, there are cracks. Unfortunately, they aren't as noticeable as I would like. Is the coffee just for me to test the cracks or will it stay that way. I have heard to use india ink. I have no india ink, but I do have coffee. Thank you! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Denice 453 Report post Posted April 1, 2011 The coffee stain will stay or you can get rid of it with bleach water, the india ink is more of a final finish you can put it over the coffee stains. You might experiment with other colored liquids such a oil paints that you can thin with turpentine. You might be able to find a larger crackle glaze premixed on the internet from places like Glazemaker.com and other sites. I mix my own so I'm not to familiar with what's online. Good Luck Denice Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Idaho Potter 64 Report post Posted April 1, 2011 Could it be that perhaps opening the kiln a little earlier could make the crackle more pronounced? I only use crackle on raku pieces, and the amount of crackle and/or the size of the crackle depends on the thickness of the glaze and a lot on how many times I swing the piece through the air before putting it in the smoke pot. Just a thought. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Marc McMillan 44 Report post Posted April 2, 2011 Just purchased some of Amaco's Old World Crackle Glazes and followed directions - 3 coats - applied cross hatched, fire to cone 05. Took them out of the kiln this morning and there are no cracks. I did a google search for why this might be the case, and there is nothing. Any ideas. I so love that crackle look but I am not into making my own glazes. Thanks much! BTW: My kiln fires cone 05 to just over 1900 degrees at a rate of 270 degrees an hour. NOt sure how fast it cools, but seems it was about 300 degrees cooler after 2 hours had passed. I've used the Georgies crackle glazes with great success. Its a cone 6 glaze. I use calligraphy ink. If you use Georgies, they have a great instructional sheet on it. Good luck. Marc Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
