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Hulk

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Everything posted by Hulk

  1. Workbench has some recently glazed wares waiting on foot polishing, inspection, and washing; and some just handled raw wares as well. The test tiles are IMCO's new "Terry" clay.
  2. ...the host advised bisque firing to cone 08 to avoid pinholes and blisters." Interesting! I'm curious why, as I'd thought bisque firing higher, with extended hold(s) at lower temperature(s), and with continuous atmosphere exchange* was standard advice for burning off "...products of decomposition..." Bisque (digitalfire.com) "Bisquit should be fired as high as possible." *via powered kiln vent, else convective scheme...
  3. Good question! I'm in my seventh year of throwing*. The sessions when most (or all) goes into the recycle bin (else dried a bit and then wedged up to re-throw) still occur - not as often tho'. The belts slipping could be throwing your throwing off! While waiting for your new belts, can you tell if there's slippage? The motor noise changes as you throttle the pedal - does the sound change without throttling? ...as drag on the wheel increases, does the motor rev? Hope it turns around for you, please do post updates. *At a hobby level, serious hobby, but not anything like full time. There's still improvement! Just recently I feel, think, and believe that I'm almost back where I was before injury and moving put a hold on my progress. There's plenty of room for improvements...
  4. Seeing (just a minute ago) there was an update on this thread, thought of some of my Parents' and Grandparents' tools that I treasure. The needle/pin tool I use most in the Studio was made from a small screwdriver that my Dad ground down to a point; it's a convenient length, and I like the handle as well. There are several, err, a few dozen potential replacements in the bad screwdriver bin, but the one I'm using is special, because. That's a nice caliper Hyn! Is there a vernier on the inch scale as well? I've several of Dad's calipers. There's a large one (it's big!) he bought when we were in Italy, and several smaller ones, both the vernier and dial indicator types, which will get you within a few thousandths or so. In the Studio I use inexpensive plastic calipers, similar to the brass one depicted in Hyn's post, above, except the jaws for measuring inside are opposite the outside jaws. When it wears out, there's several more queued up for "next"...
  5. Hi Mia00, Welcome to the Forum! I'm not finding anything on Email pottery wheels in general, let alone the particular Type and Catalog spec (which I'm not able to read) stamped on your ID plate. If the motor, speed controls, drive mechanism (are there pulleys and belt(s)?), wheel head shaft, bearings, et cetera, are in good shape (else can be refurbished/repaired), perhaps you can use the damaged/swollen parts as templates for replacements? Email Industries in New Zealand was involved with metals (particularly pipeline and plating), appliances, building and industrial products, and more ...interesting! The "Email" moniker is/was an acronym of Electric Meter and Allied Industries, coined in 1951, well before widespread use of Electronic Mail. Email sold items branded Westinghouse, Kelvinator, Simpson, Chef (and others) under license from overseas companies...
  6. I'm seeing a layer of slimy yuck against the plastic bucket, some reclaim batches, but not always - almost certainly organic growth, which goes on to its reward when growth/flourishing conditions turn "against" them...
  7. Definitely have some favorite small tools, however, not much special about any - easily replaced. I do like the MudTools metal rib that has a nice arc for bowl interiors. I use it only for that - other metal ribs for throwing and burnishing, for with use, the edges get thin and sharp*. The kiln and wheel, don't want to lose them! *taking the edge off with a file helps, but also changes the arc just a wee tiny bit, and those bits add up.
  8. Be sure to carefully check for application defects! This may be what was nagging at my memory? During yesterday's glaze session, while checking for tiny bubble marks and pinholes, an "ooh yeaa" moment: microtips - Studio Operations and Making Work - Ceramic Arts Daily Community Where any air can be trapped in the clay, or at the edge of applied underglaze, or at the edge of wax resist, et cetera, as the glaze dries, then the bubble pops - there's a pinhole! I'm checking the glaze layers more carefully than ever!
  9. Here I'm using side light whilst touching up right after glaze (dipping, upside down). Light from the side casts shadow in the/any tiny holes*! There's a spot to touch up, center (almost) in the image above. I've an old desk lamp set in the roll around stand, that's the lamp's metal shade on the left. There's another spot, same mug. These little holes might just close up during firing, ooorrr maybe not. Easy enough to put a drop of glaze on the spot with a small brush, then, when the drop is still wet but the edges of it have lost sheen, smooth with a damp finger, but check later to ensure the hole hasn't persisted! Recent thread(s) about tiny holes, I'd forgotten about application issues, like this, where a bubble forms during glazing. In my quests against glaze defects, inspecting the damp glaze, and rechecking once thoroughly dry seems to help! *I'd learned to drag a droplight around with me while looking for defects when I worked as a house painter; the side light really helps. At this point, I'm working with "sunglasses" on all the time, early cataracts. ...also, I don't wear the latest prescription in the Studio.
  10. Good question. That hole in the lid might be original? Kiln has to "breathe" enough to move water vapor (early in the firing) and the various fumes (later in the firing). If the kiln can reach temperature with the vent unobstructed, perhaps just let it be?
  11. I broke a half shelf in the moving process last year. The pieces (I'd trimmed off the ragged edges with the tile saw (wet saw) can be handy. A full shelf, or another half shelf is on my shopping list; the vendor was all out last time...
  12. Ceramic Shop lists this part: SBCBWHA From Clay Planet website: "14” wheel head with sturdy steel structure and long lasting polypropolene[sic] composite surface "
  13. Check to see if this Operating Manual matches your unit? There's wiring diagrams at the end. Note the thermocouple spec, page thirteen. See also the current/power specs... Topworker P59750 P59760 P59770 P59590 manual A.pdf (wsimg.com)
  14. Might get more than ten years! Post part number(s) if you have them Pluton, please. That rack and pinion potentiometer brings back memories! ...many instances of "come with me" to point out a failed potentiometer - some were gear driven, some had a cable that wound/unwound a reel - providing position data on sheet steel production lines in the steel mill where I once worked*. When automation failed, just finding the fault/problem/cause wasn't enough, no, there "had to" be concrete proof. *the mill is fully closed now. The 87 acres "under roof" to be converted to a Ama*** warehouse!
  15. Hi Nawaf, Welcome to the Forum! I'm not finding a wiring diagram for that kiln. The cut wires (third and fourth images), each color is unique, that could help?
  16. Hope you can get the set screws loosened/removed without damaging the threaded holes. A drop of LiquidWrench might help - it dissolves rust/oxidation. We've used heat to loosen threaded fasteners*; warming the surrounding metal causes it to expand. Tap-tap, some light percussion - a hammer*** - can help loosen the oxidation/rust. Repeat the heat, the taps, the time while the LiquidWrench soak in thar... Stubborn/broken threaded bits sometimes respond well to screw extractor type tools. I've had better luck with the straight tapers, e.g. over the spiral type. Be careful to drill the stuck part without damaging the threads in the surrounding material(s)! Added: if the threads are damaged, "chasing" the hole with a tap might save it, else, if there's room to drill it out and cut new threads to the next largest size - that could save it. *One must be very careful when using heat! Not burning oneself, others, the shop, its furnishings and tools, check. Add: beware generating fumes; beware changing the surrounding metal's temper; beware cooking any seal, bearing, grease, paint, etc. ***Tap-tap! Careful there, so easy to allow frustration to boil over and over-hit, heh.
  17. How the boards hold up, and how well the paint withstands the wear and wet/dry cycles, tbd.
  18. Update on the cement siding board* bats. I recommend sanding them smooth, painting/sealing them so the working surface is less abrasive, and trimming the edges with a tile saw (wet saw). The bats are very stiff, not heavy, store nicely, are easy and not terribly expensive to make, even if paying full retail for a plank or two. The material is somewhat brittle; I'm curious to see how they hold up. Per prior, sanding with the powered random orbital sander gets them smooth enough to use; I used 120 grit discs. ...smooth enough, yes, but I didn't use them - my other bats are smoother. Also, I can choose between a bit absorbent (powder board), not absorbent at all (plastic), or very absorbent (plaster). The cement board bats are between "a bit" and "very" absorbent - which I haven't been interested in. So, I sanded off the six demo bats more, washed and dried them, then shot them with aerosol can "epoxy" paint (I found Krylon appliance paint at the local box store). The new cement board is "pre primed," hence, two coats seem sufficient. Between coats, allow to dry, sand off the gloss, clean (!important!), then apply next coat. The bats made from older cement board - that isn't pre primed - three coats seem sufficient. The fibers stick up when wetted by the paint but are easily sanded off once the paint is fully dry. Above are a few of the second batch of bats (after one coat of paint). The wet saw cuts are smooth and tight - almost polished. I've knocked the edges off with the sander and rounded off the 45° corners as well. Clipping the corners at 45°, I recommend that, for even a rounded off 90° doesn't feel good if/when it whacks your hand; besides, the clipped corners are tougher. In the shot, there's a kitchen squirt container, very handy for glazing; a cut in half sponge; a corner of a sponge, and some greenware. Here's two of the first batch of bats. I'd cut the corners and lengths with siding board shears. The shears leave some crushing along the edges, which is fine for siding hung on a building, but not so much for this application, for little bits will eventually work loose and end up in the reclaim, so these edges were cut back a bit more with the tile saw. I'd tried for a rounded corner, eeh, they look a little ragged. In the shot is a Skutt wheel, cut in half sponge, a one gallon plastic bucket (coming up on forty years, that bucket), and clothespin chamois keeper. *Cement siding - HardiPlank here - has embossed wood grain pattern on the "show" side, mostly smooth on the back side. We're using the back side, which is somewhat smoother than tile backer board's back side, per my assessment... The plank thickness seems perfect, just enough to cover the bat pins.
  19. Hi Mak, Welcome to the Forum! Are you more interested in application and techniques or theory, materials, recipes? Both? For theory, material and recipes, I've found Tony Hansen's website DigitalFire.com to be very helpful, also threads on this Forum. I'm using a few recipes from Bill Van Gilder's book, Wheel-thrown Pottery. See also Hesselberth's website (archived here: Tested Glazes | Frog Pond Pottery (archive.org)) and the book he and Ron Roy wrote, Mastering Cone 6 Glazes. There are many threads on recipes here as well. I'm still grateful for the help with my liner glaze that regular members offered... I've a copy of Peterson's The Craft and Art of Clay, which I found very helpful, generally, and particularly for the explanation of "Unity" and discussion on materials. Software can be very helpful; there are several choices. I'm using Hesselberth's GlazeMaster. For pouring and dipping, adjusting the specific gravity and thixotropy of glaze has been super helpful to me, see Thixotropy and How to Gel a Ceramic Glaze (digitalfire.com) ...which made glazing fun!
  20. Yep! See also Craigslist? ...widen your search to include metro areas within several hundred miles or more...
  21. Although the market for used pottery gear may have softened a bit, looks to still be very strong. My only suggestions would be a) peruse recent listings (new & used) - same as buyers would do - and price accordingly, and b) keep the wheel, if you've a place for it to wait
  22. Have done very little in kiln repair/maintenance ...so far, just disassemble, move, assemble a used kiln; rebuild used kiln's sitter; design (credit to several diy postings) and build powered vent; design and build overhead vent; install wiring for new kiln; assemble new kiln; minor troubleshooting of new kiln, aaand periodic vacuuming. So, low rating for Hulk. My siblings and I grew up in a diy household. We took apart just about everything ...an' put most of 'em back together as well. "Learn by doing" is. So is learn from mistakes (which is, imo, thoroughly baked into, endemic in Learn By Doing...). Know a lot? Good-oh, likely a lot of mistakes associated with that knowledge. A problem with knowing, as knowledge grows/widens/expands, so does the unknown - the border, the edges, the area, the vastness of the unknown expands right along with the known - so says the pundits, eh?
  23. Spreadsheet maybe? I use one for updating my Wordle average each day, another for the running list of used words. ...another for bike miles and bike related metrics. Another for bookkeeping, with a page/tab for each category. Several with pottery related stuff. They can be handy for repetitive maths. I'd learned to appreciate Excel through work - so handy for analysis (protocol, messaging, transcription...) as well as repeat stuff (students' grades, energy calcs...) I like the recycle idea! We've thrown rocks and cement chunks into fence post holes to save on concrete...
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