JohnnyK

I'll continue experimenting with forms and glazes and building stock for when I have the opportunity to open a booth at the local Farmers' Market... Watching more artists' kiln openings videos for suggestions on future glaze combos and getting into crystal glazes by the end of the year...

I'll continue experimenting with forms and glazes and building stock for when I have the opportunity to open a booth at the local Farmers' Market... Watching more artists' kiln openings videos for suggestions on future glaze combos and getting into crystal glazes by the end of the year...

Well Mark- you have a 35CF car kiln=== just sayin... I would love nothing more than to stay where I am at. Yet, I know that I will not be able to take care of it as time marches on. 

From what I see in the last photo, your pieces were too dry when you scored them, of uneven dryness between the pieces, and not enough slip was used between the pieces. AS @sorce says: "Those score lines shouldn't be visible at all, that clay should be homogeneous".

NO!

As far as I'm concerned, anything goes if the technology will help., but you also have to consider that "technology" does not just mean computers or electronics. It could also mean advancements in materials, metals, etc...

As far as I'm concerned, anything goes if the technology will help., but you also have to consider that "technology" does not just mean computers or electronics. It could also mean advancements in materials, metals, etc...

As far as I'm concerned, anything goes if the technology will help., but you also have to consider that "technology" does not just mean computers or electronics. It could also mean advancements in materials, metals, etc...

I'm of the opinion that just because I may not be inclined to use a piece of tech in my own practice, that doesn't make it an invalid approach. I've seen some really interesting things done with a 3D printer for mold making, or even for it's own sake.  But I am not a drafter, and my mind doesn't think along those precise lines (heh).  I will likely never use a 3D printer, but I love the work a friend of mine is doing in printing masters so he can slipcast screw tops for some bottles he's making. I personally dislike using a Giffen grip, but allow that it's a perfectly valid tool for others to use. 
For me, I think it's a matter of asking whether a given tool will actually assist me in doing what I want to do or what I need to make, and whether or not it's the most efficient and cost effective tool for doing the job. How badly do I want to make a given thing, and is that desire strong enough to motivate me to learn a new skill? Do I want to dedicate the necessary time and energy into doing that?
I think various forms of digital presentations of  your work or your working process also fall into this category.

Thanks for the kudos! Here is the awarded submission and the PDF of the news article... citrusheightssentinel.com-Meet John Klunder the Citrus Heights man who works wonders with ceramics.pdf

Thanks for the kudos! Here is the awarded submission and the PDF of the news article... citrusheightssentinel.com-Meet John Klunder the Citrus Heights man who works wonders with ceramics.pdf

The recent PBS Juror's Award for my Horsehair Raku submission and the follow up interview with a local news source has been my recent pat on the back!

Thanks for the kudos! Here is the awarded submission and the PDF of the news article... citrusheightssentinel.com-Meet John Klunder the Citrus Heights man who works wonders with ceramics.pdf

Thanks for the kudos! Here is the awarded submission and the PDF of the news article... citrusheightssentinel.com-Meet John Klunder the Citrus Heights man who works wonders with ceramics.pdf

Thanks for the kudos! Here is the awarded submission and the PDF of the news article... citrusheightssentinel.com-Meet John Klunder the Citrus Heights man who works wonders with ceramics.pdf

The recent PBS Juror's Award for my Horsehair Raku submission and the follow up interview with a local news source has been my recent pat on the back!

The recent PBS Juror's Award for my Horsehair Raku submission and the follow up interview with a local news source has been my recent pat on the back!

The recent PBS Juror's Award for my Horsehair Raku submission and the follow up interview with a local news source has been my recent pat on the back!

All three...depending on what it is that I'm fabricating. 

All three...depending on what it is that I'm fabricating. 

Tough decisions as we get older @Dottie. Most o f this is personal decision, but I will let you know what I have been doing. Retired 2009, do part time pottery mostly in the non Winter months. I have had cysts, with bone spurs, one operated on, and it killed the joint on the rt thumb. I recycle all my clay with wedging, and throw most of my pieces. I used to pull handles with my rt hand, but now use an extruder to make handles for mugs and other pieces that require handles. I used to take NSAID for pain, mostly just before bowling, as I am an avid bowler at 3 times a week. I have found that the pain of the hands goes away when I am using them. The more I use them the longer the pain seems to stay away. However. as I used to teach most handbuilding techniques in HS, I know how much the pinch pot forms can affect the hands, especially as you get older. Maybe you could resort to a hybrid form with coils, or extruded forms working on the sculptural pieces that way. I think if you love what you do you will find ways to adapt.
 
best,
Pres

I started out (after learning the basics)questing for now what I refer to potato chip pots super thin. They broke easily -I sold them to the public-I did not know any better. Time went by. I got feedback over time how fragile they where-I made lots of replacements. I learned that funtional =daily use pots for the open market need to hold up well. More stout. I made this change and never looked back. I'm not in the art pot business . I can throw a thin one for me but not for sale.People like them to last.
Shapes is a different deal thats an evolution of learning what you can do with clay and mastering it.

Sometimes OEM parts are the way to go -that said If I can make it better/stronger/work longer with other better parts I'm all in with that.
So really its a mix.
 

I like to tinker so I always try to reverse engineer anything I use.  Doesn't always turn out well, but I feel like I understand what I'm doing a lot better once I've tinkered with it.  In my head, everything can be fixed and companies do not invent things.  That means anything can be fixed if it's not some kind of structural deficit.
When I tell people that, so many people say yeah you can fix anything yourself but it's not worth the time.  Well I guess that depends on your definition of worth?  If knowledge is worthless then I agree!  In that case ignorance is bliss.  But if you find value in knowledge then any experience repairing or maintaining your equipment is priceless.
So this is sort of in the same vein as last week... If I can see a path, I will take it!

It depends on the piece of equipment and the part. Many manufacturers of pottery equipment; wheels kilns, slab rollers, etc,  use stock parts that are also used in the manufacture of other items, industrial equipment and more.  I agree when it comes to elements. My experience with third party elements over the years has been inconsistent and years ago I decided to only use elements manufactured by the kiln maker. However, fuses, drive belts, bearings, motors, status lights, switches,  insulated wire, switches, electrical connectors, and other parts are often available from other sources.. The key to success is to be sure that the replacement part is either an identical part or a direct replacement. If you aren't confident in your own knowledge, or experience, or that of the source of the replacement part, your only option is  the manufacturer of the equipment that you're repairing.