Hulk

Dusts - a recurring topic. In general, how to reduce/manage dust, how dangerous, types of dust... ...and specifically, working surfaces, flooring, filtering systems... Hence, suggested specific-ish question: From a recently liked thread, "...how much air movement do you have in your studio, do you use fans, is cleaning to reduce blown dust part of your process?" The winds here typically ramp up over the course of the day, peaking late afternoon 15-25 mph from the Northwest* in the dry season, somewhat less in the wet season. There are variations, particularly the hot/dry winds from the east/southeast, and wet/rainy from the south/southwest. With the doors closed, the air in my Studio is rather static. Any road, when a breeze whips through the Studio, it will pick up dust! Hence, I'll pop on the P100 afore opening the doors, if it's breezy out, run the mop and sponge, then hang the P100 back up on its hook once it's aired out a bit. I don't use fans in the Studio. Cleaning up - so that what is on the floor, working surfaces, storage surfaces, etc. doesn't get blown about - it is part of my process. *capitalized on account o' the NW wind is the boss here on the Central Coast!

Still feeling lucky to have found a deal on a used wheel (pre-owned, it hadn't been used), several years remaining on original warrantee. It needed a bat pin upgrade and a bit of commutator polishing, that was right after getting it home. I went with stainless socket cap heads, washer, lock washer and wing nuts on t'other side, threads prepped with Permatex Never Sieze. I didn't invest in a special tool for polishing; instead, a soft wooden stick with a piece of 600 grit sandpaper taped on there - there weren't any flat spots, ridges or grooves to clean up. After working with it for a few years, I twiddled the controller adjustments a bit, wanting a smidge higher rpm at full gas, and a bit less of speed holding.

I'd like to hear (read) about your experience; please do post back. I don't have a single favourite. Earlier on (am just starting year five now) I did look at (and touch) a lot of local work, also books, magazines, and online, however, the looking has tailed off to almost none over the last year or so. For now I'm good with working on technique/skill - four basic forms with a few variations. Since the last day of Wheel II class at the local JC, I've been very much missing being in a communal studio, surrounded by work in progress and other students. I don't miss the dust, commute and carrying, and fragrances. Hope you have a great workshop! Thank you for your post, gets me thinking. Gilbert and Kleon's books are linked on Hill's website.

Hi MikeS, See John's post, above, "The direct fit replacement ...NTN 6005LLU/LP03..." Still listed by Misumi, also Grainger, and several others. I'd recommend measuring height, ID and OD afore ordering, at which point you'd already know if the bearing could be removed without damaging/destroying the bearing holder. See also MTN Flange Block Bearing, might save some headache? I'm seeing two and four bolt options, but didn't go so far as cross referencing the dimensions, etc. The models with zerk fitting, oh, I like that. Looks like MTN has stateside tech support: BearingQuickReferenceGuide-EN-Web.pdf (ntn.ca) see pg 2 Good luck! Post back your results please.

It's a rather long run to Los Angeles basin, Bay Area, or Sacramento - allow four or more hours one way. So far, have stopped in whilst on the way to somewhere else, or on the way home from somewhere else...

Hi Kswan! I use the Peltor earmuffs quite often. For something really loud, I'll put in the foam earplugs and the Peltor earmuffs over. More often, I'll do earbuds (to tune into, or stream my favorite local public radio shows) with the Peltors over - music/entertainment, plus hearing protection, plus clean ears! Pottery related, the only time I use the Peltor earmuffs is when I have the overhead kiln vent system cranked up and I'm spending more than a few minutes in the Studio. The fan is rather loud. Un-pottery related, I use hearing protection ...quite often. My studio is actually a studio/bike shop/repair shop/workshop. I'm also wearing my P100 when cleaning up, and leave it on for a short while afterward, whilst the air wafts through via the rollup on one side and person door on the other. Awesome lighting is a key part o' good safety strategy, imo!

Didn't know that ice is a poor conductor compared to (impure) wet/water - not that I'd want to test it with anything other than an instrument - was just curious. Yeah, there's some stuff I'm no longer using very often: hard hat from the steel mill days, organic vapour/mist respirator and cartridges, foam ear plugs, assortment of gloves, steel toed metatarsal boots. Stuff that sees regular usage: Peltor earmuffs; 3M P100 particle mask; safety glasses (prescription); kiln glasses; powered kiln vent; overhead/hood kiln vent, which doubles as a dust hood for glaze mixing; gfi protected electric outlets; rubber gloves, the thin kind; rubber gloves, the heavy duty ones with a long cuff; wet mop bucket, wringer, and mop; water buckets, sponges, towels; radio; cell phone; Studio shoes; overhead lighting and more lights for each work area; surround sound; hats; coffee; water and snacks. Stuff on standby: three fire extinguishers in the Studio, one on the landing outside the door to the Studio, two more in the garage next to the Studio; smoke alarm set at appropriate height. Several items for dust control, aye. Adequate lighting helps prevent eye strain, which leads to fatigue. I almost always wear a hat; the brim helps reduce glare, which leads to eye strain -> fatigue. Surround sound, oh aye, that's important! Keep groovin', stay happy, be safe! Mad, angry, hangry, thirsty, tired isn't as fun, nor safe. Didn't know that gfi and gfci are "same thing" according to some sources - ground fault interrupter and ground fault current interrupter. There are some outlets in our garage protected by a gfi in the downstairs bathroom. One would think the romex run would cost more than an additional gfi - I many never figure that one out... Likely forgot a few things...

We're having some unusually warm weather here this week; a typical year may see a few days over 80F, however, typically in August to October. I've been watering some in the yard (gray water system), wearing summer clothes, and enjoying shorter cycles in the studio. Throwing, hrrrm, needle tool, sponges (I'm a count that as one*), metal rib, wooden knife, wooden rib. Trimming, hrrrm II, needle tool, small two ended loop, bladed tool*, metal rib, chattering tool(s). Forgot calipers - use them a lot, to determine where the clay ends when trimming feet; I'd trade the loop tool for the calipers to keep it at five... *From one large sponge, I've cut two small purpose-shapes for wetting and drying, leaving a large (large!!) chunk for clean ups. I'll credit Bill van Gilder for sponge cutting idea; later, had seen that several folk do the same thing... **repurposed hack saw blade A towel-y rag is handy as well, for drying hands, cradling work to be handled, etc. - change out if/when any clay gets on there, afore it starts puffing dust.

Pop (an' Grampa, Gramma, uncles...) called 'em "Humboldt" crabs; seems they are same Dungeness (aka Market) crab that we see further south. Grampa used to pull his friend's pot and replace a few crabs with tall Coors cans. Grandma would bring home a dozen from Katy's sometimes (she and Katy were close friends); my brother and I picked. Cal Poly, heh, my Pop came here (San Luis Obispo, on the GI bill) for the course of study he wanted; back then, it was a loong drive back to Crannell to visit the folks.

bein' curious, ah: The OxiClean™ formulation is a combination of ingredients, the key ingredient being sodium percarbonate, sodium carbonate, surfactants and polymer.

Photocopies o' glaze formula binder from local JC Ceramic lab (huge thanks to the instructor!); I ended up trying/using just one of the recipes, however, having the recipes to ponder, along with the fired results, priceless. Bill van Gilder's book (via local library); Glaze-The Ultimate Ceramic Artist’s Guide to Glaze and Color, a book by Brian Taylor and Kate Doody (also local library); Hesselberth's website (FrogPondPottery, tested glazes; I haven't yet got my hands the book he wrote with Mr. Roy); Tony Hansen's website; Lakeside Pottery website; this forum. Usage notes, history/strategy/development notes, results/images, test results, all helpful. Mr. Hansen's website, great resource. This forum, great resource.

Interesting! I enjoy pulling handles and will very likely keep plodding along with it for ...ever. Seems that extrusion is the common alternative, however, handling would be required to get the taper. I've been curious if stamping out handles could be an alternative?

Mixer, then some re-formulating later on. Once decided on putting together a home studio, acquiring material and tools for glaze mixing won out over prepared glazes, several reasons - cost per unit and formula control being near the top o' that list. From a stack of recipes - those used by the local JC ceramic lab (thanks to my instructor for access to the notebook!!) and several dozen from books - I chose some to try; the rest, that's history, and the present reality as well. My suggestion for that moment would be to choose fewer to start with, ooh well. Several of those first experiments are in my regular rotation today, coming up on four years later. Adjusting recipes came up on account of liner glaze crazing. I tried a few different recipes, then narrowed in on adjusting one to fit, abandoned that choice, chose another, and tweaked it down to fit over several iterations. I had some help with and encouragement in the first steps into re-formulating. I may never try to invent a new glaze.

Hope you're recovering well and quickly Denise! We had some oven toasted tacos (grain mixture and shredded cheese) topped with chopped parsley (farmers market) and just made guacamole (lemon and lime juice, local avocado, minced onion, minced cherry tomato from our ludicrously surviving volunteer out in the flower bed, and salt), pan seared greens, and leftover broccoli (and other veg) frittata from the day afore.

aka Mikhail Zakin ...am enjoying reading about these artists, thank you.

...if you pull back a bit when wedging, consider leaving the backer board pieces long enough such that your hip/tummy/belly holds it in place, else some other scheme for holding it down...

Hi Irene! I have several pieces of the 1/4" that I use for wedging clay - one each for dark, red, buff, and white clays - leftover from tile projects around the house. I'm just setting the board on the workbench, the end up against a scrap piece of wood tacked to the wall. It wipes off easily, and then can be stored out o' the way as well. We scored both sides with a razor knife, then snapped it over a straight edge for a fairly clean cut; I haven't used the heavier board. For reclaim, I'm using two inch thick slabs of pottery plaster (cast in a cake pan), which will absorb a lot of water; propped up on 1x1" sticks, five sides are exposed to air for evaporation, which helps a bit as well...

Almost all (err, all) my handbuilt efforts are comprised of wheel thrown parts.

Clay/pottery/ceramic specific stores within reasonable driving distance, we don't have, however, when passing near one on our travels, I've fenagled time for a stop and shop... Hence, for pottery specific parts, e.g. Dawson sitter tube assembly, new thermocouple, etc. it's internet and/or telephone, unless repair can be put off until the next trip. As for generic parts, e.g. threaded fastener, if it's a small number of pieces, I also prefer matching up hands on from the locals' drawers/bins and paying the premium. If the part count is more than a few, and I can wait, then I'll look to match up at the locals' bins, buying one or two, then placing an order, when the saving$ are significant*. *examples: We bought hidden/European style hinges for our cabinet refinishing project from D Lawless, where per piece difference was a few bucks - multiply by the required count, two or three hinges per door - total savings buys tires and tubes for over a year of bike riding (I ride "a lot")... For our steel door restoration project, we bought new low series stainless button head hex screws at a bit over six cents each (vs forty five cents each) from Albany County Fasteners (their minimum was twenty five pieces, if I'm recalling correct - we needed a few hundred). For local botanical garden bench restoration project, bought carriage bolts from Albany County, saving just under 75% (but for hot dip galvanized, not electroplate). ...

Good question! Everywhere. FaceBook marketplace; Craigslist; https://www.govdeals.com/; nearby pottery places, including universities and Junior Colleges, suppliers, studios, etc. Good and fair stuff goes fast - keep looking.

I'm good with flame and/or smoke tests on a cold kiln for proof of concept - that the fan system does indeed pull from the kiln, also for getting an idea how/if adjusting the shutters influences the pull. In use, however, the warm and smelly outflow provides a positive indication - it's working*. As for hanging about the studio whilst firing, I'm ok with only very minimal exposure to vapors, fuming, etc., hence, if the overhead system wasn't in place and working, I wouldn't be in there - even with the rollup door, windows, and man door open - except for checking pyrometer readout (whilst holding my breath). Yep. *I've little doubt that it is possible to overdo downdraft venting. How much is too much, just right, not enough air movement through the kiln? idk

Hi Moonzie! I built up a diy downdraft kiln vent as well (seven cubic foot Skutt electric), using an inline fan*, four inch ducting, galvanized sheet for the box, which has two adjustable vents. I'm running it with the vents closed down to leave about 3/8" square on one side, the other almost shut. I believe the vent does work, that is, it pulls a small stream of superheated atmosphere from the kiln (which is replaced by ambient through the various cracks, small vent hole, etc.), for the exhaust end (outside) is definitely warm! ...and there's strong wax smell outside (where it belongs) early in glaze firings... There were significantly less fumes, however, not enough that I was comfortable hanging about in the studio, even with the rollup (it's a single car garage) door, windows, and man door full open, so, I've since set up an overhead hood with 400 cfm fan, which does a job on the heat and fumes. I wouldn't expect a downdraft setup to ameliorate fumes entirely. Note: any fan system will require provision for adequate make up air. *When the inline fails (it will, a matter of time), I'll replace with somewhat more suitable.

"...the old manual controller is very crude and does not show the current temperature" Aye. I use an inexpensive pyrometer setup for feedback, and pyrometric cones to verify. Since developing some trust in the pyrometer, I've stopped looking at the cones whilst firing - I'm just checking them out afterward. However, I've gone back to setting a target where it can be seen from the peep, just in case the pyrometer goes pfftt...

You'll need that gpio instance, no doubt. Glancing at volume o' discussion on " ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'RPi' " (via simple query) - my guess would be permissions, aye, perhaps where the user/account the program is running under doesn't have the required permissions; do you have a sudo command in thar at all (and observing proper/required case, note Case Sensitivity) *? My reason for posting, however, was to suggest manual firing as an alternative - my kiln has three switches (one for each zone/level), with options off, low, medium, high. I run the kiln up to about 200F the night afore, then set "High" on all three the day of, both bisque and glaze fire. From there, I twiddle the switches to get my holds in, which is a bit of trouble, but not too bad. * sudo allows a permitted user to execute a command as the superuser or another user, a specified by the security policy.

Likely I'd turn away if there were no power available to turn the electric wheel. There is clay nearby - many of the California Mission roof tiles were made here - it'd be a whole project; however, I'd give it a try. If glaze choices became more limited, I'd likely roll with that. If firing became difficult, I'd like to think I'd still throw, trim, and finish, but recycle a lot more. I'm enjoying the whole process; however, throwing is what got me into it, and I'm not seeing running a kick or treadle wheel.