Magnolia Mud Research

I had 3 bones taken out of my wright wrist in 2012-I have not wedged  any clay from a bag  of new clay since then to speak of. I bought a peter pugger (used shortly after surgery) and do wedge that output either. I can wedge but choose to do so very rarely. I work with  high fire porcealin and have not seen any issues without wedging. 
At one time I weged the heck out of clay. These days  why bother the clay really does not need it out of the bag or pugger.
If the clay is homogenous and air free its ready to throw in my world.
I feel the montra of must wedge all clay is a false statement and should be questioned.
Modern clay is air free and homogenous these days ,at one time that was not the case
 Test the the limits and see if it matters you may find it does not.
My hands /wrists are much happier now-If I had it to do over I would have not wedged for the past 40+ years either 

I understand that I can do things like that. I believe that I will have to see what the present settings do, look at what I see going on, and then set up some sort of custom setting that allows me to fire up, and fire down the way I was used to doing it. I knew that there would be a learning curve, after all it took me 25 years or so to get to where I could fire the old one intuitively. Hopefully this one will not take that long!
 
best,
Pres

You can still fire by color if you want to. Set it to cone 7 medium speed, then manually turn it off when it hits the color you want.

My initiation to ceramics I: the semester started with specific cone 04 Earthenware with a choice of white or red; fired to cone 3 in an oxidation gas kiln producing fully matured ware.  at mid-semester the clay body was changed to a specific cone 10 stoneware with a  choice of white, tan to dark to be fired a cone 10 in reduction kiln.  
Ceramics II was again cone 3 (earthenware) firing first half and cone 10 (stoneware) second half.
(several years later all classes was cone 10 stoneware reduction).  
Some where along between earthenware to cone 10 was a semester or two it was all cone 5 (midware) fired in reduction.  
Today the studio is all stoneware at cone 10-ll reduction. 
I now use cone 10 clay bodies (because that is the way the kiln is fired) -- any kind -- for structural purposes of an object and use a clay of any cone -- earthenware to wild clay bodies -- as exterior coatings supported by any available high fire rated clay body.  Some of my ware uses a cone 04 clay body as a glaze.  This works for me. 
After determining the properties of the "earthenware" clay bodies fired at cone 10, I am comfortable with the way I am using the low fire clay bodies fired in the kiln I use and the way my ware is fired.  I am making ceramic art even though the forms are often based on bowls and platters.  The clay bodies are mature, the exterior surfaces are glazed with safe glazes.  
Firing low fire to a higher fired temperature is not normal, but then "ik ben niet normaal!".  

The cone 3 firing of earthenware was an easy way to make matured ware with bright simple studio glazes.  If I were in the business of making drinking and eating ware with a bright strong color palette, cone 3 oxidation of earthenware clay bodies would be high on a choice list; but then I would not be making art, I would be making drinking and eating objects. I am making "interesting objects" with clay ceramics.  
Over the last five years and so, I have chosen to use any clay body easily available to me, and I make objects that I consider to be "interesting"; I use the term "container" for items that might be considered to be "mug" or some other use; the functionality decision is controlled by the user of the object not by the maker.   Each batch of clay is different, and this reduces the boring tendency of making the same form over and over with the same appearance.  The leftover low fire clay bodies from my early semesters was available, and I was given the latitude to experiment and to learn something.  Improvise, Adapt, Overcome is the driving force for what I make and how I do it.
Min, I suggest you take the available low fire commercial clay bodies and find the firing cone that will vitrify to the point that it won't leak without glaze.  use that clay body to make your ware, take low fire glazes and fire them to that temperature.  Start with firing low fire glazes at the mature temperature for the low fire clay.  
LT
 

They're fun to make, but my arms are killing me! 95% of what I make is under 5 pounds so this is rare. When I do these I center the 12 pound pieces in two parts- center half, add the other half, center all that. It's easier that way, and almost as fast. Saves my wrists a lot of strain. I could just muscle it all when I was younger, but now I try to work smarter when I can.

Putting a shelf at the bottom, whether two halves or one full, is a must for two reasons. One, it helps to reduce heat loss through the floor so the kiln fires more evenly. Second, it protects the floor. It's much cheaper to replace a shelf than a kiln floor if something goes awry. Kiln shelf: $60. Kiln floor w/ freight delivery: $450. I've always just used pieces of kiln shelves as posts under the bottom shelf. It doesn't need to be any more than 1/2 inch. You'll get plenty of air flow from a downdraft vent with just 1/2".
If you use a full shelf at the bottom and use 1/2 shelves above it, then you have to use 4 posts under the full shelf, which runs the risk of the shelf not sitting evenly on all 4 posts. You do not want the shelf to rock, or it can warp or crack. If it's rocking at all, use very thin wads of clay dipped in kiln wash or alumina to even everything out. Be sure to use clay that is rated for the highest temp you'll be firing, or make wadding from kaolin and alumina.
I never stagger shelves unless I have to, and have never had issues from it, even in my big 21 cubic foot kiln. I've always found that staggering just wastes space. Unless you're firing very quickly, you shouldn't have evenness problems across a shelf.

I post this as sort of a "public service" to other pottery semi-newbies like myself.  I somehow never got the message that you can easily paint oxide (and mason stain) washes on top of glazes for a lot of added color or design.  The videos below brought this to my attention and I am really excited about the results.  It has opened up some new avenues for me.  I defer to Richard McColl for a full description but it could not be easier:
Just add some oxides (or mason stains), a little water, and maybe some gerstley borate as a flux -- and apply ON TOP of your glaze for great color and effects.  Goes on great with a brush.  Make it the consistency of ink.  Hard to screw up.
Some examples are at the bottom and here are the videos:
 
 
 

it is very hard to explain that i do not mean drown the pot and hold it underwater until it screams.   a quick dip will not get the pot wet, it will not even shine.  but the moisture will prevent the pot from greedily sucking up the wet glaze leaving an uneven surface.   and that quick dip takes less time than tediously wiping all surfaces.
usually there were more than 20 pots to glaze each time at my studio, they were dipped in water first and lined up before stirring and sieving the glaze.  by the time each pot was glazed, some time had gone by and they were never "wet".   
there are many words to describe moisture content, dry, damp, moist, wet, dripping.    it worked for me for many years until i started spraying glaze on greenware and single firing.  might work for someone else.
 

Hey--this is some serious art here! This is the art of resilience and adaptability. It is the art of pleasing women who shop at gift boutiques and are obsessed with gnomes. It is the art of kicking Peter Voulkus out of one's head and replacing him with a big nosed little creature in a valentine hat. It is the art of survival.  And, truth be told, it is the art of having a bit of fun. But we shall not speak of this ever again.

Easy suggestion for a QoTW  following last weeks question of the week; would you give up any of the technology you use in ceramics now and go back to a simpler not as technology advanced method? Maybe starting with defining the term technology as it pertains to ceramics making.

It's computer controlled extruding. Pushing clay out of a nozzle is nothing new.

Automated fire control likely predates Liamb's arrival (electromechanical logic, or relay logic goes back to about my Pa's grade school days), however, low cost cute lil' logic boards makes it available to hobby potters, much later ...thanks to development o' transistors, then integrated circuits.
The topic (thanks Pres!) sure generated some thinkin' for me - what is technology? bein' one o' the questions for sure.

Interesting how the discussion quickly centered on 3D printing! I like what Tom noted about how much technology we use in the first place, and have ever since we figured out how to light a fire. I had never seen anything 3D printed and had a terrible time even grasping how you could end up with a physical dimensional object. My potters' guild had a meeting at the University of New Hampshire ceramics studio (literally a year ago) and I was introduced to these pieces. They were the first ones that one of their student's had successfully printed after many weeks of study, designing, trial & error etc.  I do not find them cold or empty or "too-too" computerized--I am in awe that this can be done with clay via some weird process via some weird machine! And I am grateful that I won't be drummed out of the club because I use commercial materials, use mostly pre-programmed programs in an electric kiln, and have no clue what a si:al ratio is (and, gasp, don't care either). At one time, W.G. Lawrence's Ceramic Science for the Potter & Daniel Rhodes Clay & Glazes for the Potter were my bibles and I actually knew/practiced the stuff! Does lacking that knowledge (now) make me not an artist? You bet your sweet bippy it does not.  My cognition/memory retention is shot to smithereens due to minor (relatively speaking) TBI. Doesn't change my motivation, taste, ethics, vision or desire to satisfy Self and others with what I make; as such technology is just a tool and one I'm grateful for. I'd love the chance to use a 3D printer, at least as a starting point-that Simpson piece is luscious!!  I ain't scared of no bot overlords.

No, it was designed by a human. It was created using a computer as a tool for working clay.

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.

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 use epk out of the bag and alumina-hydrate, equal amounts by volume (use a cup); fire cone 10R.  

I use epk out of the bag and alumina-hydrate, equal amounts by volume (use a cup); fire cone 10R.  

And to clarify, you do not need to change your password on the forum, as it is on a separate platform than the main Ceramic Arts Network site.
Thanks!
 

Hello all,
Some of you may have received an email asking you to change your password on Ceramic Arts Network due to a hacking attempt. Some thought it was an illegitimate phishing attempt, but it actually was a legitimate email from Ceramic Arts Network. The company that hosts Ceramic Arts Network had a security breach and while we are unsure if it reached Ceramic Arts Network, we do recommend users change their passwords. We can confirm that no financial information was accessed in the breach. 
If you have an account, please update your password at your earliest convenience.
Thank you and sorry for the confusion!
-Admins

What are other other activities that influence your ceramic work or keep you mentally heathy other than daly directly. For me its other passions that are just like clay. I have to do them-what are yours.??

Mea, throw your old form with and inner wall up. Cut out the center of the inner wall to drain to the bottom lip, but still holding the soap.
 
 
best,
Pres

Wayne and I got together when I was halfway through art school for pottery, so he knew it was part of the package. He tried one afternoon to center a bit of clay on the wheel and decided it was NOT his thing, but that it didn’t need to be. 
 
He has been my biggest source of emotional support the whole time. He made sure I got my pottery wheel at a time it wasn’t the most financially sound move ever and I told him not to. When we moved into our current house, my birthday present was him stripping the carpet out of a basement bedroom and scraping the floor so I could have a studio space. He gets me out of my head when I’m overthinking myself into anxiety. I truly have one of the best ones. 

New "scraps" shape. Best use of scraps yet!
I have had a bunch of roof shingle pebbles coming out of my gutter, so I used it for grog in some reclaim.
That oughta be interesting!
 
Sorce

One answer to the "Thrown Sphere" problem is to first know how much clay is needed to make "the sphere", or to know how big will be "the sphere" for the known amount of clay being used.  (gotta do some math here: get the volume of the sphere outside diameter and subtract the diameter of the inside sphere of air to find the minimum amount of clay needed. add about 1/3 more for trimming, etc). make a thick wall cylinder and expand the in the middle. rib the bottom of the cylinder to the shape of the inside.  
The top 3/4-th of the sphere is thrown directly from a cylinder using the skills of throwing the shoulder and spout of a bottle; close the bottle into a sphere; you now have a closed form of the top 3/4-th done.  Let the form stiffen for a while; then trim the bottom 1/4-th to complete the sphere. [Practice by making hollow thrown doughnuts.]  
Or take the approach I did in a class assignment for making a "thrown sphere":  Take a 4x4x4 inch cube of wet clay; shape the cube into a smooth sphere; throw the sphere up in the air and let it fall onto a sheet of paper the floor (or on to your work table if you don't like to bend over); carefully lift the piece from the floor (table) add some decorative slip, dry, remove the paper, fire, and present on a pedestal with the title "Thrown Sphere".   Others in the class made two half sphere bowls that were joined one over the other.  
Seriously (and more on-topic) one must recognize that most thrown forms are monotonous unless we deliberately switch from being a throwing machine and use our artistic skills to produce something interesting.  I have colleagues that uses simple plain thrown bottles and bowls as canvases for painting with slips and glazes.  I use simple thrown forms with applied "dry slips" to produce random tactility textured canvases for a ground for "painting" with a glaze.  The thrown form becomes an three dimensional canvas for making interesting marks.  Look at the work by Tony Clennell ( http://smokieclennell.blogspot.com/ )  over the last five years.  His forms are simple bowls, cylinders, platters, etc.  are canvases to be used to apply handles, feet, and glaze.  Or the work by Antonette Badenhorst:   https://www.porcelainbyantoinette.com/  or https://www.aic-iac.org/en/member/antoinette-badenhorst/  the forms are simple bowls and cylinders.  Look at the work of Voulkous, Paul Soldner, Marcia Selsor, etc. --  the thrown forms are just their starting point.  But they were/are past the making bowls for food service; they were/are making art objects not bowls.   
.  i quit making "bowls" when the family said we've got enough "bowls"!!!!;    switched to making "interesting 3-d stuff" out of clay -- some of which can be used as a food container (or napkin compressor,  or sling-shot target, or ...); the owner chooses how to use it.    
try making square bird-houses with slanted roofs using thrown lidded cylinders.  
LT