Mark C.
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Posts posted by Mark C.
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I have full blown large set of speakers(cerwin-vega) in studio also a set in outer kiln loading area-and 5 more sets spread around like kitchen living room salt kiln-office all hooked to two 300 cd disc players and also can pipem pandora thru the system.Most speakers have their own volume control nearby. The players and amp is in the living room so its dust free.There is a 8 speaker control as well. Player goes all day on shuffle .Or pandora on a shuffle mix .
Music is must for me.
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Working on a kiln load -bowls mugs and glasses so far. Been doing remodel work mixed in . Helping my sheet rock finisher and getting ready for new windows and the flooring guy on the 15th. Moved out of bedroom June 1st-sheet rock mud will be done on Friday -then painting before wide plank maple hardwood floors
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I seem to have started to really use less tools these days
sponge/water
needle tool
wood stick with point
screwdriver to pry plaster bats off of clay pad
I rarely use a cutoff wire unless the pot is over 10 #s as its thrown then on a plastic bat and need one vs not using one on plaster bats.
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some times my salt refires come out spectacular in reduction fires as well.
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Un loaded two kilns this week and have dispersed most of it. I'm taking a break from clay some (still putting in a few days a week) in next 6-8 weeks.
The last remodel project is starting on the house .Its a big one -but only one room-the main bedroom. About everything one can do to a room-
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I do not use or have a damp box (never did) I use plastic sheets-some are dry cleaner bags from friends but most are plastic just a little thicker(tougher) from items we have recieved.I keep a tub full of them and use them about every day.I think I was in a dry cleaners in 1963 with my mother? but am unsure .
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3 inch brick is the way to go with all firing as far as I am concerened as it s better insulated and does not use as much energy.I even no\tived this in bisquing in electrics.
If I was going to cone 6 all the time it would be in a 3 inch wall with elements made for higher temps than cone 6 . You will get more life from them if they are cone 10 elements fired to cone 6.
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We have been traveling for 1 month trips for the past 3 years (this year was my wifes new hip surgery so we had a rehab break).
You could take a year off shows with not much worry as well.
I feel with shows a year off is very doable-the wholesale orders are not as flexible .My Grocery store wholesale is diffently hard to be gone with. I have had friends take in the work to the markets when I'm traveling .I like to be gone in dead of winter months.
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1 hour ago, liambesaw said:
There will be plenty of time to retire when you're dead.
Yes indeed
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Gep said ( I also plan to travel, and pursue some recreational interests that I haven’t had time for while running a pottery business. )
This is possiable as well as a pottery career . I have traveled alot on this planet as well as enjoyed lots of other activities. It can work if you schedule the times off well.
Its worked for me since I got the travel bug in the middle 80s.
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I have a slow down plan
My slow down plan has been in effect for about 5 years now-I cut out 5 shows in that time. One gallery went out of business and I did not replace-one wholesale place cut their orders in 1/2.
Thats the good news on slowing my pace but I have picked up 3 grocery store wholesale orders two years ago. Thats been a lot of success money wise but that means more work has happened. I no longer will take new wholesale orders.
In 5 years I plan on doing way less production-and it may be next to none by then. Its hard for me to let go as I like certain parts still like talking to customers . Shows are hardest and the most profitable-I have 3 traveling still and 2 local ones left. These will be pared down in upcoming years.
I may still have a few wholesale acounts and one local show in 5 years we shall see.Pottery keeps me moving (I have 4 tons to move today with a helper) it also takes it toll so its a love hate thing on the body.
I'm throwing less this past year but I also broke nmy arm and had two months off from throwing. In 5 years my plan is alot less for sure.
Right now I could quit (retire completly)but I like this business and am not good at relaxing.The hard part is the happy meduim.
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No I have not seen any videos on PPuggers. I did stop by the factory as I pass by it several times a year.When I redid all my seals-I pulled the shaft as well a .. nd took it to them and bought my parts from them at that time-I also replaced the pressure guage and bought some spare parts,I do have the VPM 30. I bought it used online. It was pitted from low fire clay inside. I'm ok with that as I'm pitting it more with porcelain.Not much to fix with this machine.
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In my 35 forms they vary from larger cannistyers to 20# large bowls to 1/2# spoonrests.
Size maters depending on the form.
For me right now the real income is in small stuff-like the 120 spongeholders I sold to one outlet-they pay the bills.
Yes I can make the big sectional pots but I'd rather make lots of meduim bowls.I sell about 2-3 a week in my outlets where a large pots sit for 1/2 a season .
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I posted the wrong size pug /mixer mill, its a is a 30 vpm Peter pugger
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For me its many things but one was my power slab roller-I knew about slab rollers but the speed my 30 inch power Baily puts out clat as well as makes any thginkness out of any firmness of clay is amazing really-just wished I got it a few decades earlier than 20 years ago
I think the extruder which I got after about 10 years really made for stronger and faster handles-after about 20 years I got another one as well so I have two which saves lots of time messing with size dies.
Car kiln-well I built the 1st one in 79 and wish I had done it sooner-never looked back on that decision .To this day its saved my back loading its alight year ahead of a front loader and several light years ahead of any bend over electric kiln.
My fans-getting out of hauling pottery's to shows with a truck vs a van -my knessa and back all where saved -this one tyhing I should have done decades earlier -I'm on my 20 year with vans now.Yes I still use two trucks, just not for finished pottery's hauling.
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In terms of glaze colors on forms I have so many choices going the color part comes after the design part. I usually offer most forms in all colors so color is not part of the thought process. Also I know color is such a personal choice for the customer I never put my own choice in that mix. I just glaze forms with many choices-they decide what to buy.
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33 minutes ago, liambesaw said:
I don't know about you, but I've never had a test tile come out the way it comes out on a pot. Since I'm testing these glazes for a specific set of pots, I threw a few smaller but the same shape just for testing the glaze, hard to translate a tile onto a large vase. I do use test tiles for experimenting with glaze recipes, nothing works better for line blends or small adjustments.
Tiles are the start for me than a spoon rest or sponge holder-Before sellable larger forms-then a mug well you can see the work up
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Work bench is now empty after packing two kiln loads-packed up my small toyota bed full with pots in boxes and dolly and took a dozed boxes in to two outlets (both consignments)
Also finished up packing a Large whole sale order which I droop off in Santa Rosa. on way south to SF to take my wife to her 6 week doctor check up after hip surgery.
I'm also taking down 1bout 1200 # of scrap metal sorted into 17 different sorts-red brass-yellow brass-100 # lead ingot -400#s of wire -clean to insulated-all sorted well
dirty brass clean and dirty copper-you get the idea no steel all higher qualities -wire is from 30 years ago working as a sparky.
Lots of the brass is from shipwrecks over the past decades-all scrap no nice items.
I did this sort last summer and my electrician friend has yet to take it so I'm making this a multi pot's .metal, doctor run, also bringing back a copper dive helmet and some fish prints.
Liam said (I mixed up a couple new glazes and sacrificed a few pots to see what they'll look like.)
test tiles are easier than pots especial for 1st tests
I lost a good friend about over a year ago and yesterday I finally started to empty his pottery shop. He was my salt kiln partner.
I am cleaning it out for his widow. mush of whats there came thru me to begin with. I worked on his glazes for many hours and brought home what I can use and we poured the water off the rest to dry them out. I am going to take the whole lot so she can have a two car space back in a ship building.
I processed a large truck bed full today at my studio.This is a huge job and since he once was doing raku and low fire it complicates the mix. I am going to try to donate all the low fire to a school and will give some clays away as well. I found him the Geil kiln and we will deal with that later-I also brought him a small electric from one of my AZ show trips 10 years ago and he has a 3 zone new skutt electric which will also sell in the future year after the shop gets cleared out and some time goes by.All the kilns are in a new connected large kiln room-finished out with painted sheet rock.He fired the gas kiln twice.
This is familiar as I have bought out 2-3 living potters in my past but this is good friend and much of what I'm moving I have handled before. It sad but I promised when she was ready I would do this for her.
The clay and glaze and material alone will be 4-5 truck fulls.I will take a month or more to work thru this.
My work bench today had all his stuff on it but now its found a new spot in my stuff.
What’s on your workbench?
in Aesthetic Approaches and Philosophy
Posted
My workbench /wheel is now empty after a two week production run that may have been one of my largest output periods ever. The last two kilns are firing now and the van is about 2/3 full for an upcoming big show. This last two kiln loads has my wall fish and odds and ends in them. I plan on a small ceramic break after the show and do some diving before returning to my remodel for a few weeks in August. I'll get back to clay near end of month for fall shows .
Now packing for a huge show and a dive trip all in same vehicle .