JohnnyK

Hi Sophie and welcome to the forum...Can you upload some photos of the crawling effect. Sometimes the what and where can give us an idea of why...

I would check your wiring again just to be sure. If you didn't take pix when you took things apart, I would refer to the wiring diagram for your specific kiln...

Slowing down is good, Mark! Sometimes it's difficult to stop what you've been doing for decades...I was in the remodeling business for more than 35 years. I retired from it 3 years ago but still have a few long time clients that I do minor handyman stuff for. I've moved on to farming, pottery, and now drone photography to keep the creative juices flowing...How are the hands doing ?

Hi Spring... If you look at the foot pedal, you will find a pivot pin about 2" from the heel of the top plate on the side, near the top. (Make sure your wheel is unplugged.) The pins are spring loaded and by depressing them you can release and remove the top plate. Inside you will find a gear driven potentiometer which is controlled by the white plastic lever with teeth on the end. What may have happened in your case is the teeth on the bottom may have worn or broken, thus keeping the pot gear from turning to full zero. Another thing is the pot retaining nut may have loosened causing the pot to rotate slightly. I think it improbable that the teeth on the pot gear have worn or broken. You can press the pins in and release the white lever to remove it so you can check to see if the teeth are worn or broken. If they ARE worn or broken, you might check with Speedball to see if parts are available. If not, it may be cheaper to just buy a new foot pedal. Otherwise you might contact a machinist to fabricate a new part. As you and I can see in the pix, I have to clean and lubricate the guts of my foot pedal.

You have learned a lesson here, Katie, but it is good...Your questions will be answered when you open the kiln and removed your pieces. As you look at the outcome of this firing, remember what you did to get the results that you get so that if you want to reproduce something that turned out well, you can reproduce it in the future! JohnnyK

Welcome to the Forum, Raymond. What is the quantity of this mystery powder that you have...1 kilo. 5 kilo? If it is not a lot, I would get rid of it responsibly...

A large damp box might be helpful... I am running a looong term experiment in one I made back in '13. I have 2 pots that I put in there back in 2013. They are still pliable, but the rims they are sitting on are starting to deteriorate from the moisture. Mine is a good plastic storage bin with a good sealing lid about 16wx24lx16h with about 1.5" of potters plaster in the bottom. I think I put about 2 cups of water in it on day 1 and I put about a cup of water in it about every 3 months and it does a really good job of maintaining the moisture level in it. Depending on the amount of work that you do, you might want to have 2 or 3 on hand...

What cone did you fire to?

A few ??? Where in CA? How large a tile? Do you have pix of the look you desire?

Can you provide a photo of the crack on the piece you're talking about?

The summer means more time growing, tending, and selling vegetables and more time doing yardwork on my 3 acres...less time in the studio...

Welcome to the Forum, ShadePeg...The WC401 is NOT a porcelain clay although it is a smooth clay similar to porcelain. The firing pegs you show here look like they could be slip cast or press molded from something other than a smooth clay. The bubbles would tend to indicate slip cast... I would think that the B-Mix would stand up to repeated firings in your environment but I would take some time to run some tests before you make your final selection. Since you already have the clay on hand, I would run a number of pins you have fabricated through a series of test cycles along with the firings you do on a day to day basis to see if it works for you....

Another alternative to the duct tape which can get sticky over time is the flexible black automotive wire loom material in 1/4" or 3/8". You can get it at any auto supply store and even Amazon.

I'm guessing that the translation for "torch" would be "Flashlight" on this side of the pond...