Pres

I believe that the big problem was the rough first start and then a few short errands that did not allow the battery to recharge from the first start. Live and learn, but the car is a 2019, and the battery had not needed changing.. . . nor anything else! best, Pres

Once again, from the Question pool for the QotW @Min asked:QOTW would be "do you sell seconds and if so where?" First part of the question would be to define what you consider a second. I will rephrase this as: QotW: What do you consider to be a second? Do you sell these seconds, and if so where? This is a tough one, and my memory is not as good as it could be with these things since it has been a long time since I have sold much of anything other than the chalices and patens. These days, if a piece has anything in the way of a visible crack, or glaze flaw, it either gets broken, or goes to my wife or kids. If the piece is really a disaster it gets broken and thrown out. However, these days I check things over so carefully on every stage of firing that nothing makes it to a bisque if questionable, or after bisque if there are flaws it never goes to glaze. After glaze, the pots get handled a lot during bottom grinding, and wrapping for shipping. If I have any reports of flaws coming back, the piece is replaced no charge to the customer. Verification is required by photo.

Like @Mark C.I have never locked down a bat pin. I keep a lot of Allen bolts in a small cup in a drawer. I make certain to keep them clean, and oil them to protect from rust. I use a pad under my bats with water to aid in holding the bat in place. In the beginning I used one of those thin sponge pads made for potters, but when I couldn't find it one day I improvised with a used clay bag. I cut the bag in 1/2 and placed one piece over the pins flat, placed my bat over top and pressed it down over the plastic onto the pins, with the wheel spinning use a utility knife to cut the excess plastic off. Remove the bat, soak the plastic in water and place it back on the wheel. The water and the pins help hold the bat on even when centering large pieces . . 15-20# of clay, and I usually get about 20 uses before the plastic is worn out. best, Pres

We had a -3 here on Saturday.. . . my car battery froze, and had to be replaced. . . . .brrr! Hate the extreme colds! best, Pres

If you look to the past with some of the popular glass and ceramic baking dishes, they were all accompanied by literature warning about thermal shock. I can remember my mother telling me years ago that you take the corning ware out of the fridge, and place it in a cold oven to be heated up as the oven heated up. She even said it was better to take it out and let it set for a few minutes before putting it into the cold oven. best, Pres

I believe that depends on your clay body, and what you intend to do. There are some pots out there that are not glazed inside or out for cooking that are soaked in water and then used. However, true casseroles are at least glazed on the inside, and these days probably on the outside also. It all depends on the durability of you clay and glazes and how you use the pots. I have mad several casseroles of varying sizes on the potters wheel and some with slab lids as the casserole was an oval shape. These I glaze inside and out. The only bare places on the pots are the gallery of the lid and pot, along with the base or foot ring area. Whatever you decide, if done for sale I would make several and use them before putting any out for sale. best, Pres

Mercy, such good karma! best, Pres

Mark, As all of yours have been, a great booth set up, and such a beautiful display of fine work. Hope the future brings bright days ahead with more time for diving, and other "elderly pursuits" , best regards, Pres

@PaulineNL, I am looking at an article right now that describes using nichrome wire feet on the bottom of mugs. The article might be worth you looking for as it may fit your needs. It appears in the January/February 2023 issue of Pottery Making Illustrated. Best, Pres

Over the years, it seems the answer to the question of vitrified depends on the beliefs of the potter. Considering this, I believe that the best way to confirm your beliefs is by testing. I have found that most suppliers are willing to supply sample clays with orders if the potter asks. I know that the folks at Standard Ceramics have been very accommodating when I mention looking for a clay with specific numbers in relation to absorption and shrinkage rate at cone 6 in that they will suggest a few clays, and let me have some samples for testing. I usually only take one at a time, and use it on the wheel and handbuild a bit to get a feel for the workability, then check the clay out in firing and then with my glazes. It is a really good idea IMO to make good connections with your clay supplier in order to get the best service possible. best, Pres

This week, we have another question from the pool for QotW. This one comes from @Babs as an aside from a discussion of @Mark C.and his pottery business where a woman collected a large amount of pottery by him. Babs question is: QotW: When you buy a number of a potter's pieces do you feel the need to meet the maker? Over the years, I personally never collected pieces other than a few mugs here and there, At the time we really couldn't afford to collect pottery, and if we needed a piece. .. I made it. There just wasn't the room in a teachers budget for that. However, I did go to conferences with the specific reason of meeting a potter I had read about or seen their work in some magazine or book. John Glick was one of those. Another was Martha Clover. At the same time, I would wander the Penn State festival looking for potters and pots that I had seen examples of their work. In these later years, we have made purchases at the Penn State festival of work that I have seen or from potters that I have met digitally. It is interesting to see how the pots made seem to fit the personalities of the potters. best, Pres

So you folks seem to be saying we need a QotW about the mentality of potters? best, Pres

At the same time, check on the voltage of the kiln. Many school kilns were 208V , not the 220/240 V appliance most are used to. best, Pres

I like @Hulk thought that a gas kiln was my dream kiln. I would burn fuel, and like any fuel burning kiln would use up the oxygen thus being able to reduce the clay as in reduction. Fuel burning kilns could also do Oxidation, by making certain that plenty of oxygen was allowed into the kiln during firing. All of this could be done by adjusting the air coming in and going out. However, reality hit while teaching, electric was easier in a city/town situation. Further that with the cost of a gas line to the back of the house to the garage, and I caved for an electric kiln. I did make certain that the kiln could fire at least to the stoneware ranges so bought a kiln designed to be able to reach ^10. even though I wanted to fire to ^6 as that is the same as where I fired in the HS I taught at. The rest is history. In the beginning, firing at ^6 was difficult as many were not doing it, and even the glazes commercially available were limited. However, ^6 has become a very good area to be after the exploration of the 70's and 80's in the firing technique and with many esteemed potters making the switch to ^6 Oxidation, and others still doing reduction, but firing at the lower temp in their fuel burning kilns. best, Pres

Youuuuch! Send in the snow crew!!! best, Pres

This week we have another question from the pool for the QotW: This comes from two folks on the forum, @Min and @Kelly in AK . . . brought up an Issac Button video and just how much physical work was involved in his making pots. My suggestion for a QOTW comes from Kelly's thread and would be how has the physicality of making pots effected you? Positives and negatives. QotW: How has the physicality of making pots effected you? Please include Positives and Negatives. This is something I have often considered in my own life of teaching, and working with mostly clay while teaching and working at home. I am a small man, even more so than when younger weighing in at 180 at my heaviest for about 6 months. These days I weigh in at 150. I used to wedge 15-25# of clay at a time in the classroom, and at home. This would allow me to demonstrate the effectiveness of different wedging techniques, Kneading, Rams Head and Cone. It was because I worked with the clay so much that I was able to do this. However, the process of wedging, as much as it is maligned for its wear on wrists and joints, it was a blessing for me. I found that days when I was feeling large amounts of soreness in my back making it difficult to get out of bed that wedging would make me feel so much better.. I believe it was the rocking motion along with the shoulder pushing my torso upwards would stretch the spine. So a Positive. Negative, over the years the throwing has reshaped the joints in my hands, left hand fingers 1 and 2 now naturally bend to fit together as when pulling on the inside of a pot. They never straighten out unless forced. Right hand fingers want to always rest as if holding a sponge in the hand and making a pull. All of the work has made my hand strength surprise folks that shake with me, and others when they find that I can lift and move much more than they would have expected for my size and age. All good! best, Pres

Since getting the new kiln, I have worried over using wax with the downdraft system. My thinking is of residue from wax building up in the downdraft components. I used to dip the bottoms of chalices, mugs and smalls of all sorts, but now everything is hand wiped or using the felt pad on the wheel. best, Pres

Use those every time I glaze patens for the communion sets. Great tools along with a short wide storage bin for dipping. best, Pres

There are thin rubber pads with a felt like carpet on top that are used as inserts to entry way mats. These work very well attached to a bat cut to shape and dampened on a wheel head to spin and thus remove glaze on the bottom of functional ware. best, Pres

I used to teach that there was dipping, pouring, sponging(often overlooked), brushing, and spraying when applying glaze coats. Some cases such as really large pieces would require lots of thought, and usually lost of coats of glaze and in those cases sponging can work very well. best, Pres

The only solution I would have is to use 3 point pin setters upside down on the piece, then put a kiln post on top of that to force the piece down. This will leave setter marks, that can be ground and then polished out. Tough situation given your time frame. Firing on the side does not seem to be an option and it will probably not change the warping problem. Good Luck... Really! best, Pres

Consider a flat piece of metal, about 3" wide, maybe 8 " long. Bend the metal perpendicular to the length 1" from the end at 90 degrees. then on the other end, which will be the handle end cut an oval hole to create a handle. Wrap the handle with tape, cloth or foam to protect your fingers from the edges. Another alternative would be to take two hand dirt rakes, and cut the tines about 1" long from the bend, as the gripping edge, then modify the wooden handle to be able to lift the shelf comfortably. Hope this makes sense to you or you Hubby! best, Pres

If I were doing what you want to do, I would consider spraying the underglaze on from and angle so that it would pick up and edge of the texture leaving a bare area on the other edge. I have used this technique with 1, 2 and 3 colors from different directions to accent a texture. best, Pres

Some things get the hammer, and others my wife insists on having??? best, Pres