Mark C.
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Posts posted by Mark C.
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HP rating are not all the same -that said 1/2hp is usually enough for all size pots one could ever what to make. The 1/3 hp is a bit weak for larger work
- HenryBurlingame and Pres
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Laguna will be carring these potassium feldspars .Mahavir and Vardham from India and G-200 depending on availability
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Gillespie borate is still around at some places as well as Custar-just need to look harder and stock up. IMCO in Sacramento Ca has the gellespie for cheap cost
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If you are firing in the cone 10 range and these clay items are just sculpture then Laguna's WSO is the most forgiving clay I have ever found.I feel Bmix with grog is not your best sculpture clay no matter what temp range-get a more loose body
It's more like a cement feel than clay and very tough to crack. I made a 3 foot wall fish from it and it came out fine spanning 3 -12x24 kilns shelves on a waster slab
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small forms like mugs and other with no feet are thrown on plaster bats and no leveling is needed as the clay pad is flat and so is the plaster bat. If the form is not lever we tap it level on a plater bat.
Trimmed foot forms are do not need any adjustment ever . When I switch to larger forms not on plaster bats (over 8#s ) I use a wire to cut and trim the bottom foot.
This all is second nature after a few decades in the business
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(After thinking long and hard about what you have said and after reading through all my glaze books I think I just need to go gas, I can’t help myself.)
Welcome to my world
- Hulk and HenryBurlingame
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No permit and easy for gas then I suggest gas but I am a cone 10 gas potter myself so I am a bit bias. Learning with gas and cone 10 is a big learning curve but very doable.
- Babs and HenryBurlingame
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I love the L&Ls -not to famailar with Canadian cone arts to much. LL has the great element holders and has well thought out details like cooler held off controls.
Just a note about cone 10 in an electric-if thats the goal (cone 1 firings) then spring for the high cost elements or plan on replacing them a lot even with the high price ones they wear fast at cone 1O. Also consider the S thermocouples for better life . Neil here has the most experience with them and I'm sure will advise.-He is also a distributor in the east.
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kyanite is something I use in my home made ITC mix and comes in many mesh sizes. Does not shrink
The crystals are long and its one of the strengtening things say in mulite kiln shelves
It great stuff
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On 4/21/2024 at 5:28 PM, Dick White said:
All the time now. Gerstley is gone and Gillespie is not a perfect match. 3134 requires a complete rewrite of the recipe. Custer is gone from the market, but I still have some. G200EU might be ok, haven’t tried it yet. Still have some old Amtal talc, but some Fabi is in my future. What’s next?
Custar is back now Dick at least from Laguna locations
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On 4/23/2024 at 6:03 AM, fergusonjeff said:
Since you are not too far away, here are a couple options. About 10 years ago I convinced Alsey (a hard brick manufacturer in Illinois) to sell me three pallets of "seconds" for a significantly reduced price. When they arrived they looked perfect to me and have done well in my wood kiln. These were super duty bricks. I think they were not really seconds and they were just being nice. They normally crush up any rejects as grog in future batches. https://www.alsey.com/
One other option: There was a second-hand refractory store near St. Louis that closed a few years ago. A local guy that makes an occasional pizza oven bought all the remaining inventory he could move. I bought a large load of 4x3x9" really nice bricks for only around $1/brick just a few months ago. He probably still has a large inventory, particularly of large and odd-shaped bricks. I can try to contact him if you are interested. Would be a bit of a drive though.
This is several solutions all in one from Jeff who I had the pleasure of meeting a few weeks ago.
Dealing direct with the manufacture on seconds or even a pile of used ones is really a lead worth exploring . I know of several huge piles of them in my area from tow sources as most potters are long gone and the hoarders (I only have a small pile) do not know how to get rid of them here now.
Rent a heavy duty truck and go pick them up in MO or have them trucked to you from the factory. I have moved more hard brick in my life than I will ever need. I built several kilns with them ,my salt being the last.
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1 hour ago, Dave Earley said:
Ttwo years ago I rebuilt a 4ft x 4 ft catenary arch kiln that I had saved in a pile of bricks for several decades. While rebuilding it i found I was short 4 #3 arch bricks. I bought a bag of refractory cement, rated at 3000 degrees F, made a form using an available brick and cast them. I have also recently made some bricks using wild clay from my back yard.
I could have mailed those 4 #3 bricks to you from my hoarder fire brick pile.
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I have seen lots of hard brick over the years on many sites from potters web to craigslist and others-search a thread here thats old on ceramic sites for sales ( not facebook marketplace) They make the bricks in the east where you live by the way.
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also old mills that used bricks in say kiln drying or boilers can be a source.
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classic fast firing with wet wares
after you clean up the shards from kiln use a soft brush on a vacuum to suck small pieces from the element grooves -be gentle doing this.
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Laguna now sells a flameware body so you can get a 25# at Laguna/Aftosa location in Fl
- Kelly in AK, Rae Reich, neilestrick and 1 other
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I used 2 old fashion galvanized hoops with brass screens for decades with two sticks over a bucket until I bought a Talisman. Now I have three if them hanging -bought two used from other hobbyists who sold out. I have one for white glazes and one for dark and one that just hangs. Many people buy one and find their set up cannot clean them well. The trick is a tall faucet in studio with a rubber or in my case silicone hose as I can put a 5 gallon bucket in sing or spray out the sieve when done with it. Once you master the plumbing they work fine. in a small sink its to hard to clean them. I have been to NZ to the factory on the north Island in thge 90s and bought spare parts as well. I have about 30 years now in using them and never looked back. Now the other day I was doing smaller than 1000 grams and used one of the tiny smaller Talisman from Laguna clay baby sieves .These are made from PVC with stainless screen. I use an 80 mesh for all sieving as well no matter what the sieve.
The Talisman is made for large batches like 5 gallon buckets or larger. I do not consider it a hobby size deal as its to big.
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New Skutt Wheels
in Equipment Use and Repair
Posted · Edited by Mark C.
I only use Brent wheels -I have a model A (1/3hp) for trimming and Model B (1/3 hp) and a model C 1/2hp to thrpw and a CXC for throwing .They use IR and I like it. I cannot imangine not having it. I have demonstrated on a whisper shimpo and it was super quiet but I could stall it with medium size clay and a load on it. I would never as a pro have one. Its a great beginner or lite use demo wheel. I'm a brent fan and yes they make noise but its never been an issue as I like music and hear it fine and can talk just fine while throwing. I have zero red skutt experience.