oldlady

Round 1
 

Today I mixed up a couple new glazes and sacrificed a few pots to see what they'll look like.  Doing a glaze firing now, it should be cool enough to open up and take a look tomorrow night!
This week I will go back to trying to throw repeat bowls.  I need to step up my bowl game, I'm pretty decent at mugs now. I just need to finish putting handles on all of last week's mugs and then it's bowls bowls bowls.  Gonna force myself to figure out getting them to the gauge every time.
Oh yeah, and I have to finish editing my latest YouTube video.  Hah.  I don't think people realize how difficult editing video is until they're neck deep in it.  Kudos to any YouTubers out there

A four point star.  I have a mock up piece floating around here some place. It has some design issues, which I will have to overcome with a special clay blend to prevent warping.
T

I throw forms to practice and to test crystalline: the bowls mostly go to family members- 0 profit margin. The shows and shops around here are stuffed with $10 mugs, no need to even attempt competing.
i still make geometric tile: I rarely sell jobs; but when I do $$$$$. It works for me at the moment. I am currently working on a geometric pattern consisting of 12, 8, and 4" interlocking circles. The added bonus of having a professional CAD system, with a 24 x 36 printer- I can create  precise cut sheets.  One of my favorite patterns - makes for a beautiful shower.

enjoy every minute!!

So I know this is my kitchen counter, but the light on my workbench turns most photos very yellow. This medicine set will be my own entry to the mug portion of the “Bonspiel: Canadians and Their Love of Winter Sport” show at NCECA this year. After some adventures I had with my kids and ear infections last month, I feel like avoiding illness is a winter sport!
If you’re coming this year, check out the show. We’re on the Minneapolis Picks bus tour and shuttle route on Wednesday.
 

hello, allen, and welcome to the forums.   it almost looks as though your question may have been overlooked but it was not.   the original series of posts discussed what to do with the alumina hydrate once you have some but your question seems to be centered on getting some in the first place.  you do not say where in the world you are so we guess in the USA and so our replies are based on an assumption.  sometimes that is wrong.
liam has told you where to get the alumina hydrate and since that is what you were looking for, his answer should be enough.   but nobody has said where to get the wax.   that is also at ceramic supply houses wherever you might be.    it is a liquid in this case, not some solid wax that needs heating up to liquify. 
if you need more information on your particular situation, just ask until you have everything you need.

hello, allen, and welcome to the forums.   it almost looks as though your question may have been overlooked but it was not.   the original series of posts discussed what to do with the alumina hydrate once you have some but your question seems to be centered on getting some in the first place.  you do not say where in the world you are so we guess in the USA and so our replies are based on an assumption.  sometimes that is wrong.
liam has told you where to get the alumina hydrate and since that is what you were looking for, his answer should be enough.   but nobody has said where to get the wax.   that is also at ceramic supply houses wherever you might be.    it is a liquid in this case, not some solid wax that needs heating up to liquify. 
if you need more information on your particular situation, just ask until you have everything you need.

Ahh, yeah that's the stock yellow sponge, it was also very soft when I attached the handles, gonna clean them both up once they're not quite so floppy.  I will try using a cut up grout sponge, thanks for the tip

whatever sponge you used on the first 3 handled pot left trails that you would have to remove.   i didn't see the video until after my post.

Put handles on it! Three of em
 

You will stop looking for new glazes when you "kick the bucket". If you believe in an afterlife, then never.  Firing results may vary in heaven vs hell

I put a bit of Bag Balm (kinda like Vaseline) on a cotton ball and lightly coated the metal press--which I think may be brass, not iron. I finally got a good impression today.  Yes, I rub from the back! Not fooling with plaster, tho I know I "should".  No picture of the best mother mold------I looked up and saw this---ran for the camera, which of course had the wrong lens on it...there were FOUR of 'em wandering through. I've lived here for 16 years and never seen this out my windows. 

Not clay, but glass.  Still goes into the kiln.

very nice!   
i did notice that you are stretching a long way to reach the water.  and whatever is behind you to the left.  maybe it is time to look at your setup for speed and comfort.   just curious about why you throw water and clay under your bats?  

We've got 2 huskies, a 3 year old white one (Kita), she's 65lbs, and a 10 month old cream one (Kodi) and he's 45lbs so far.  We also have a 12 year old daschund (Scotch) and a 15 year old tuxedo cat (meowzer)!
 

liam, they look like they are a barbershop quartet singing a very happy tune!

liam, they look like they are a barbershop quartet singing a very happy tune!

liam, they look like they are a barbershop quartet singing a very happy tune!

liam, they look like they are a barbershop quartet singing a very happy tune!

liam, they look like they are a barbershop quartet singing a very happy tune!

liam, they look like they are a barbershop quartet singing a very happy tune!

nataniajoy,  you are very fortunate to have such a nice manual kiln as a gift.  i thought by now you would have received an answer that addresses your problem as a totally new kiln user.
couple of things might help you understand the manual fred has so helpfully found for you.  you need to realize that the kiln is a very old one as far as its manufacturing date is concerned and there was a slightly different vocabulary used then.  "Automatic"  back then meant your kiln was equipped with a Kiln Sitter that would mechanically turn off the kiln when a particular temperature was reached.  the manual keeps referring to it as the ASD, automatic shutoff device (or sitter. prior to the use of a sitter, the potter had to watch the firing and turn it off at the end by looking into the kiln peep holes and judging the temperature at which to turn off the electricity. ) cones have been use for over a hundred years to help do that.
the temperature you select for each firing is commonly referred to by a cone number.   that means the same kiln can be used by potters who fire earthenware or stoneware which is usually fired to a higher temperature.  so you need to select the cone number for the clay and/or glazes you are using.
the number on the cone indicates a temperature but the firing can take a little longer as the elements wear out over time.  so the cone ,which you place HORIZONTALLY across the two little arms, will determine the time and temperature of your firing.  the arms hold up the cone and the rod end of the "claw" of the sitter sits over the cone resting on it.   SINCE THE INVENTION OF CONE BARS MANY PEOPLE USE THEM IN THE SITTER.  bars are of a uniform size end to end.  cones are tapered and some people have trouble putting them onto the arms and getting the claw rod in the middle of the cone.
when the cone gets hot enough for a long enough time, it will melt.  that means it sinks down and allows the rod end of the claw to sink as well.  the other end of the claw, the part outside the kiln, is really the claw looking end and it is holding a weight that will be released by the rising of the claw.  the weight will snap down and activate a round electrical shut off button that is located on the outside of the sitter.   (if you find you cannot start your kiln at any time, check that the claw is holding the weight and the button is close to the kiln, not sticking out.) 
i hope this is enough to help you read the manual and that will explain your particular kiln.  
the most important thing you need to learn is that it is CRITICALLY IMPORTANT that you understand the cone numbers of your clay and glazes.  look at a CONE CHART and read the numbers and the temperatures carefully.   there are some essential facts that are commonly glossed over when experienced potters are talking to each other.   
09 08 07 06 05 04 03 02 01 AND THEN CONE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 ETC.  are each a little hotter running from left to right.  check the chart!  and check your clay.  write the cone # on the bag of clay so you  DO NOT make the mistake of thinking that cone 6 is the same as cone 06.  that is a completely different temperature and if you use cone 06 clay and use a #6 cone in your sitter, you will probably melt everything and ruin the kiln.
see the recent post by benzine for what can happen.
hope you bothered to read this long post and understand it.
 
 

If you really want to do a stress test for freeze/thaw, the best time to do it is in the fall when things are beginning to freeze but the days are still nice, or at the first hint  of spring when you have warm days but nights are still below freezing. You want a nice temperature vasilation between -3 and +3 C. I’ve killed more terra cotta pots by not covering them up soon enough.....

Drill bits are less likely to crack the piece, since they remove material as they make the hole. Hole cutters force the clay to expand to make room for the wall thickness of the cutter. If the clay is too firm, or the hole is too close to an edge, it will crack.
The biggest problem with all holes, and one that many, many people do not address, is the sharpness of the edge of the hole. Rubbing out the edge with a sponge or finger takes forever. The simplest solution I've learned is to use a countersink LIKE THIS ONE. Just twist it lightly in the hole once it's just past leather hard, and it will knock off the sharp edge. I use this on all my colanders, and I can do all the holes in a matter of a minute. It puts a nice little bevel that looks rounded once it's glazed.