neilestrick

They may fire flat, depending on the type of clay you used, but they may not. The glaze may also come out different, but it may not. At this point you've got nothing to lose, so it's worth a try. In general, unless you're firing to low fire temps, you should always have the pieces sitting flat on a shelf.

It will actually survive the thermal shock better if it is thinner, because it will cool more evenly. The thicker the walls, the greater the difference between the temperature of the inside and outside surfaces. That difference is what causes cracking because they are contracting at different rates. IMO, functional work should never be more than 3/16" thick unless it's very large.

I use a popup, the Pro Expo from Instant Promotion. I've used mine through about 100 shows so far, and in some really, really bad weather. It's super heavy duty, all the connecting brackets are aluminum, and the sides and top are waterproof. The peak is super tight and tall enough that water won't puddle in it. The walls are tall enough that pro panels should work. To really make them sturdy, popup canopies need crossbars to keep the legs from moving and flexing. I built some that I can attach about halfway up, which stiffens up the frame and keeps the wall from flapping into my displays. Instant Promotion does have crossbars, but I haven't used them. They're made so that the sidewalls can attach to them to hold them tight. The only downsides that I have found are: 1. The canopy frame and top are heavy. The whole thing weighs like 70 pounds and it's bulky. 2. The top fits really tightly, so it takes some muscle to get the first leg or two locked into place. 3. The walls fit really tight, too, so it takes some practice to put them on so that the corners all meet up correctly. There's not much room for error. Once you get used to all that you'll find that it's worth it to have something that fits together really well and doesn't flop around in bad weather, unlike most popup canopies. For weights, you want at least 40 pounds on each corner. Some shows require 50 pounds. I use 36" long pieces of 2" square steel bar that weigh 40 pounds, and they work great. I set them on the feet and strap them to the legs. They're super slim and easy to haul. I got a deal on mine, but would expect it to cost about $100 each now. Instant Promotion has some weight options that are pretty good. The fact that the canopy itself is quite heavy really helps, too.

Yes, the controller will start in whichever segment matches the current temp.

Most if not all of your pieces will probably be fine. Some glaze melting will start at bisque temps, but shutting down at those temps usually doesn't cause any problems. Start it back up and fire to cone 5.

There's a good chance it will flatten out. I vote for waster slab as well. Coils will probably cause other warping issues. Put some alumina wax or kiln wash on the slab. The slab does not need to be bisque fired first.

This is a good product, and small pieces like rings can be fired with a torch. And it's fun to work with. There is a shrinkage rate, though, so fitting a ring may take some work. However the product has been around long enough that you can probably find charts that say how big to make it in order to finish with a certain ring size.

These appear to be brick makers, however it may be worth a call to see if they are willing to sell you sone clay. As brick clay it may be very chunky since they probably don't do a lot of refining. Why do you need it to be locally sourced? Is this a geology project, or are you just looking to reduce your carbon footprint? As potters we are at the mercy of industry, because all the potters in North America don't use enough clay to support any clay mining and processing operation. We have to buy our ingredients from whatever sources are available. For companies like Amaco and CSC that make clay bodies, they will source their ingredients from a nearby as possible, but that generally means from this half of the country. A lot of kaolin and balls clays are mined in Georgia and Tennessee, for example. Clay body suppliers on the east coast and in the midwest typically do not use clays that are mined out west unless it's a clay needed for its unique properties, and companies on the west coast will often use a lot of clays that are mined out there. For other clay body ingredients like feldspars we have very few options so they may be sourced from farther away. With glaze materials we have virtually no choice in where the materials come from. If you want truly local clay, you're probably going to have to dig your own.

Yes, ideally the blank ring should be in the middle, assuming it's made with the box connectors. The cone is over-bent, greater than 90 degrees. You should adjust the tab on the weight, moving it just slightly lower so it shuts of earlier. As for reaching temp, I would go 1 cone higher with the Sitter cone, which should get to the shelf cone.

What sort of burner setup is it? Does it have a ring pilot that goes around to all the burners? Baso valve(s)?

Digital kilns have a fuse for the controller, typically a 0.5 amp fuse. It can usually be found on the front or side of the control box. Kilns that pull more than 50 amps are required to have branch fusing, meaning a fuse for each branch of the wiring going to the elements. A manual Blue Diamond kiln probably does not have any fuses.

I wouldn't mess with the one with the big black pits. The others you can grind smooth and then coat them with kiln wash. Any small amount of remaining glaze will absorb the kiln wash and stiffen up, and can then be re-ground and re-coated if needed.

The cone in the Sitter should be bent to 90 degrees. If it's less than that then you need to adjust the Sitter.

Thank you!

All 6-50 power cords can handle 50 amps. Prices vary greatly, so get whatever is affordable for you. As for the ground, your main breaker box should already be grounded, so the ground wire goes from the breaker box to the outlet as one of the 3 wires in the circuit, and from there to the plug and power cord to the kiln body. If your electrical system is hooked up properly, then the kiln will be grounded when you plug it in. Just make sure the ground wire on the power cord is attached to the grounding stud in the kiln control box.

Sanding the area to be painted will also help with adhesion. I think most paints other than epoxy will be quite prone to scratching on a glossy surface.

I vote for paper as well. Because it's a simple shape, you should be able to get the edge sealed well and have minimal bleeding. The other option is to apply the underglaze first, then apply the stencil and wipe away the underglaze with a sponge. This method works well if you have large areas of underglaze or complex patterns where it's impossible to seal all the edges, and brushing evenly is difficult. It requires a smooth clay body, though. I used the wipe method for this piece, using a stencil designed and cut with my Cricut:

Have you checked out the community colleges?

Since you don't have a controller system, setting the venturi burners is going to be the same as any other brand. If you search here on the forum you'll be able to find lot of information about them. Once they're set properly you shouldn't have to adjust the air flaps on them, and you can control everything with just the gas and damper. I assume there's a pilot burner system of some sort? Those are usually just like a water heater- hold down the button, light the pilot, release the button once the thermocouple gets hot.

On a typical turn-up schedule- lo 1 hr, med 1 hr, high till done- anywhere from 5-10 hours. Depends on the kiln.

IMO, burnishing the bottom after trimming likely has very little effect on preventing cracking, because the clay is already pretty well set up to crack or not at that point. Sanding after firing is going to be necessary regardless of how well you burnish.

I agree, fire it up and see if it works before spending any money.

So sorry for your loss. I've also heard of people using plain old white glue, then soaking it with a bit of water to loosen it up when it needs to be open. I think the putty options are probably better, though. Always keep the ashes in a plastic bag, even when in the urn.

Depending on when it was made, a new head may or may not fit it. If yours is a CI wheel, it was made before Speedball took over those wheels, and I don't know if Speedball changed the design or not. You'll need to call Speedball and see what they know.

These wheels don't have the typical controls on them, , and I don't know them as well as other wheels, so I'm not going to be much help. Call Speedball.