Bill Kielb

Those look great!
Several  years ago I made lidded jars and it was a good lesson in designing around things so they were aesthetic and functional. Those look great! Any plans for a handle that fully pivots away for storage?
 

Those look great!
Several  years ago I made lidded jars and it was a good lesson in designing around things so they were aesthetic and functional. Those look great! Any plans for a handle that fully pivots away for storage?
 

I've been trying to figure out this design for at least two years, and think I have finally done it. A ceramic tea steeper with a stainless steel handle.  It works with any cup, or at least all of the cups I make. I plan to start making teapots that will also accommodate the steeper. 

Nice jar, @Bill Kielb! Making air-tight storage jars is also on my list of things to figure out.
I hadn't thought about a pivoting handle for the tea steeper. The item is so small, I don't think storage will be an issue. But I have one in my own kitchen that I plan to use a lot. If the need for a pivoting handle makes itself clear, then I will work on it!

Unloaded glaze load #4 yesterday; overall, pleased I am.
Only two crazed, over a new clay - everything else, clays and glazes (except new green, Rutile Green, from Bill Van Gilder's book), had been done afore, hence better chance - four pieces got bits of clay stuck on from blown up cone pack (ah was in a hurry there, oops). Speaking of oops, forgot to put in alla test tiles, hence first report on lower expansion clear will be next time; it does look very good on the one red clay piece, (thanks Min!), nice gloss, lays flat, and cleared bubbles well.
Aforementioned Wollastonite Clear liner on all (but one) red clay pieces; some of the buff clay pieces have Kitten's Clear, which behaves well on the buff, but not the red - microbubble-icious. The colors are Lakeside Clear Blue (Lakeside Pottery); Variagated, Rutile Green and Teal Blue (Bill Van Gilder's book); and matte white (Aardvark Clay).
Have a nice holiday e'body! 
 
 

I have one for the house I could steal, but I also have a little space heater out in my shed that does ok.  It's just that I'm out of rack space in my shed.  I actually did have to bring everything in last night though because we got down into the 20s and I didn't want these freezing and breaking.  They're probably too dry now lol.

First, overall impression, "gestalt" - shape, colours, texture, design; from there, feel, utility. 
For my own work, still experiencing the Frankenstein effect, where love and awe for the "monster" I've created when it first breathes fades to "what have I done?" It's getting better, however, as more are recognized as such and tossed to the recycle pile before bisque fire.
On the other hand - and the reason for the question - have found that some less positive first impressions will fade with familiarity through handling and use.
What elicits "I love this" has evolved, and will likely continue to change; I'll try to keep an open mind!
I like to see other's work, and as possible, handle as well.

I sure like all these answers but the one question that pops into my head when reading the honey jar story is : did you find the modification worth the effort? If so, then I would say it now is acceptable to your standard.
Folks who master a craft often produce fine precise things almost impossible to recreate by machine. Not taking away from handmade, but many things handmade are crazy precise as  a function of mad skill and a personal standard of excellence.
so In the end, did the built in spoon enhance functionality to your personal satisfaction?
I think I like both the randomness as well as skilled  intentional precision.

Beginning "No. 7 " in my Hidden Mask series. This is a raku piece to be fired at Hampton Pottery, NH, in the spring.
 

@Magnolia Mud Research
In  general we do not, much simpler.  So if you look at the typical  potters oxygen probe you will get an output between zero and let’s say 2 volts. The probes marketed to potters today are generalized by results (Fired work)  and the sheer Limit of a typical gas fire kiln utilizing primary and secondary air.
In the kiln above, the owner purchased a probe from Geil which can measure from  approximately 20.9%  to 1E-11 percent oxygen. Very similar to Atmos Engineering  probe (for industry). Generally these things use the Nernst equation %O2 = [Ref O2] x e (exp) (mv/(-0.02155xTemp. K) ) the output is generally logarithmic and correlates to partial gas pressures and therefore a related percentage oxygen content.
Of that 2 volts, the practical range potters experience are about 0 to 1 volt where 1 volt is near unachievable by ordinary kilns. Our 1 volt output corresponds to  let’s say .00001 - .00002% O2 content (temperature dependent) this small amount of oxygen or lack there of, results in a super heavy reducing atmosphere during ordinary reduction firings.
so for all the fancy stuff above we need to only report the output  (mv) and relate it to a chart that indicates its relative strength of reduction to a Potter with a gas kiln. Which generally simplifies to 0.7 v  is heavy reduction, 0.5v is medium and so on. So to answer your question, it’s really not converted to anything thermodynamically. Potters now know heavy reduction is X -volts, medium -Y, and neutral-Z so to speak
Take a look at the various charts below and it should make more sense with ultimately the simplest form you see there being a very popular potters form..
The plot is actually a spreadsheet we give them,  formatted so they can  easily creat their own  reduction profiles to follow and can easily install in the program for on screen display during their firing. Notice the R1.....R4 . So the goal here is to allow them to be programmers without having to do any meaningful programming. The X axis is time but dependent on their firing speed. The  demarcation temps are the O2 levels they have picked for their reduction schedule. Most simple schedules translate to: body reduction (heavy) from 1600 - 1700 degrees and some lesser reduction the balance of the way.
Most ordinary pottery kilns are powered and insulated such that at cone 10 they are lucky to maintain 100 degrees per hour in medium reduction anyway so this really ends up to limit their choice of reduction schedules toward the end of the firing. But having said all that, they can vary their schedule, formulate and glaze  and repeat once they discover the magic combination.
The PLC and touch screen allows them to store up to four of their favorites easily,  and does a whole bunch more as you can set alarm points, see your firing rate, get texts, monitor remotely on your phone or tablet, display on a TV as a lecture aid, record the entire firing and data etc..... 
So far we just help private entities  build these and license the software to them for nothing other than a commitment to give back to the community and promote any knowledge gained. It cannot be used commercially or resold commercially but is intended as a tool to help educate as well as develop new schedules, firings and glazes to be shared with the larger community. None of these  are automatic in anyway, they are simply monitors allowing the user to learn how to fire more readily. You would be amazed at the answers I get when I have to ask how fast do you want to fire?
so far so good actually. Anywhere that has had one the learning curve has accelerated greatly .
 

So I spent the last Month off and on to: 
Congratulations Dawn & Ray!
We Just finished the fourth Kiln monitor, interfacing with their Geil car kiln,  and made further improvements to the programming to help folks reduction fire more easily, repeatable, and hopefully share their results with everyone in the pottery community.
First reduction test run was designed to calibrate and hopefully allow schedules to be created that are effective and finish in about eight hours.   From an initial peek inside the kiln, All test tiles reduced everywhere as expected ……… they are on their way to creating cool stuff and sharing their results and new schedules / techniques. Next build I think we are gonna find a cool dressy enclosure though.
Generation  Four- Finished!
Pictures of some of the peek inside the kiln and other stuff below
 

Sounds like that is your new personal standard. You continued to think about it and intentionally improved it. Good for you, credit deserved -  selling well or not.

Bill, in answer to your query, when I said lots of variation, with different efforts, this took years with gestation time in between, thinking about what would work better. The last one are better, and once you understand the process, and can throw consistently these little thing off the hump, making 20 at a shot is not difficult or majorly time consuming. They certainly have sold well.
 
best,
Pres

@Magnolia Mud Research
In  general we do not, much simpler.  So if you look at the typical  potters oxygen probe you will get an output between zero and let’s say 2 volts. The probes marketed to potters today are generalized by results (Fired work)  and the sheer Limit of a typical gas fire kiln utilizing primary and secondary air.
In the kiln above, the owner purchased a probe from Geil which can measure from  approximately 20.9%  to 1E-11 percent oxygen. Very similar to Atmos Engineering  probe (for industry). Generally these things use the Nernst equation %O2 = [Ref O2] x e (exp) (mv/(-0.02155xTemp. K) ) the output is generally logarithmic and correlates to partial gas pressures and therefore a related percentage oxygen content.
Of that 2 volts, the practical range potters experience are about 0 to 1 volt where 1 volt is near unachievable by ordinary kilns. Our 1 volt output corresponds to  let’s say .00001 - .00002% O2 content (temperature dependent) this small amount of oxygen or lack there of, results in a super heavy reducing atmosphere during ordinary reduction firings.
so for all the fancy stuff above we need to only report the output  (mv) and relate it to a chart that indicates its relative strength of reduction to a Potter with a gas kiln. Which generally simplifies to 0.7 v  is heavy reduction, 0.5v is medium and so on. So to answer your question, it’s really not converted to anything thermodynamically. Potters now know heavy reduction is X -volts, medium -Y, and neutral-Z so to speak
Take a look at the various charts below and it should make more sense with ultimately the simplest form you see there being a very popular potters form..
The plot is actually a spreadsheet we give them,  formatted so they can  easily creat their own  reduction profiles to follow and can easily install in the program for on screen display during their firing. Notice the R1.....R4 . So the goal here is to allow them to be programmers without having to do any meaningful programming. The X axis is time but dependent on their firing speed. The  demarcation temps are the O2 levels they have picked for their reduction schedule. Most simple schedules translate to: body reduction (heavy) from 1600 - 1700 degrees and some lesser reduction the balance of the way.
Most ordinary pottery kilns are powered and insulated such that at cone 10 they are lucky to maintain 100 degrees per hour in medium reduction anyway so this really ends up to limit their choice of reduction schedules toward the end of the firing. But having said all that, they can vary their schedule, formulate and glaze  and repeat once they discover the magic combination.
The PLC and touch screen allows them to store up to four of their favorites easily,  and does a whole bunch more as you can set alarm points, see your firing rate, get texts, monitor remotely on your phone or tablet, display on a TV as a lecture aid, record the entire firing and data etc..... 
So far we just help private entities  build these and license the software to them for nothing other than a commitment to give back to the community and promote any knowledge gained. It cannot be used commercially or resold commercially but is intended as a tool to help educate as well as develop new schedules, firings and glazes to be shared with the larger community. None of these  are automatic in anyway, they are simply monitors allowing the user to learn how to fire more readily. You would be amazed at the answers I get when I have to ask how fast do you want to fire?
so far so good actually. Anywhere that has had one the learning curve has accelerated greatly .
 

So I spent the last Month off and on to: 
Congratulations Dawn & Ray!
We Just finished the fourth Kiln monitor, interfacing with their Geil car kiln,  and made further improvements to the programming to help folks reduction fire more easily, repeatable, and hopefully share their results with everyone in the pottery community.
First reduction test run was designed to calibrate and hopefully allow schedules to be created that are effective and finish in about eight hours.   From an initial peek inside the kiln, All test tiles reduced everywhere as expected ……… they are on their way to creating cool stuff and sharing their results and new schedules / techniques. Next build I think we are gonna find a cool dressy enclosure though.
Generation  Four- Finished!
Pictures of some of the peek inside the kiln and other stuff below
 

So I spent the last Month off and on to: 
Congratulations Dawn & Ray!
We Just finished the fourth Kiln monitor, interfacing with their Geil car kiln,  and made further improvements to the programming to help folks reduction fire more easily, repeatable, and hopefully share their results with everyone in the pottery community.
First reduction test run was designed to calibrate and hopefully allow schedules to be created that are effective and finish in about eight hours.   From an initial peek inside the kiln, All test tiles reduced everywhere as expected ……… they are on their way to creating cool stuff and sharing their results and new schedules / techniques. Next build I think we are gonna find a cool dressy enclosure though.
Generation  Four- Finished!
Pictures of some of the peek inside the kiln and other stuff below
 

So I spent the last Month off and on to: 
Congratulations Dawn & Ray!
We Just finished the fourth Kiln monitor, interfacing with their Geil car kiln,  and made further improvements to the programming to help folks reduction fire more easily, repeatable, and hopefully share their results with everyone in the pottery community.
First reduction test run was designed to calibrate and hopefully allow schedules to be created that are effective and finish in about eight hours.   From an initial peek inside the kiln, All test tiles reduced everywhere as expected ……… they are on their way to creating cool stuff and sharing their results and new schedules / techniques. Next build I think we are gonna find a cool dressy enclosure though.
Generation  Four- Finished!
Pictures of some of the peek inside the kiln and other stuff below
 

I wonder if the apparent 'bleeding' is a technique used at the time the blue colorant was applied to the pieces - that was the way I achieved similar effect on canvas with water color and pastel crayons.  after lots of practice a "light" stroke with the "right" brush would produce the allusion of bleeding.   
LT
 

I have been glazing and firing bowls all weekend, no surprise. 
But today I am making a few carafes for a company on the east coast to see if they'd like to do business with me.  Just a little commission gig to get some money flowing.  Supposedly 20 a month at 40 a piece, that's at least enough spending cash to buy more clay and feed my real addiction lol.  

Hi PD!
We're still waitin'! 
<bump>

Two utensil holders (cylinders), one for throwing tools, the other trimming tools - tools that I actually use - switch places in the wheel's built in tray, right next to the one gallon water bucket; next to the holder are three tools that are used for both activities, needle tool, flexible metal rib, cut piece o' sponge. Right next to the wheel, a small table supports a slop plate (pie plate) that receives bits to be recycled, also a pen, pencil, and a dirty piece of paper to write notes on't'. In front of the wheel, a milk crate supports the other utensil holder, and two polishing/smoothing tools.
Most other tools are on tool shelf - spares/duplicates, rarely used tools, glazing tools …in utensil holders, small plastic toolbox. Wire tool (used to have two, hrrmm, have to get another one) sits next to wedge board, mostly, else next to slop plate.
Key for me being put the tool in "its place" - and when done for now, cleaned as well. In the machine shop, in the building trades, at the steel mill, in the local JC ceramic studio - have seen, on one hand, folk casting about for a frequently used tool (which may or may not be ready for use), as it/they are put down in different places, depending; on the other hand, folk who snap up the ready tool, as it has "a place!" ...big difference, imo. That said, the extremes of tool organization are demonstrated by beginners through the most experienced and skilled, it seems... 

hulk, may i suggest a simple replacement for the cutting wire??    i have always hated the ones with wooden toggle handles because they are too long and i have never gotten one out of its package without crimping it.   years ago i got some leader wires from walmart's fishing gear section.   i think at that time there were 6 of various sizes for about $1.   they have ends that fit on a key ring.   one without keys, of course.   the round rings are sold lots of places, walmart wants too much for the ones in the automotive section.   hardware stores are better value.
i can use the longer ones but find i really like the 9 inch size and the 12 inch one is perfect for slicing slabs from a new bag of clay.  AND THEY DO NOT TANGLE UP!

@Bloomfield Pottery
Yes,
That is quite high time wise. Have you downloaded the manual above and  set your switches appropriately? If yes, then you may need to check your elements. Elements wear and as they wear firings will take longer as their resistance increases their output decreases. Elements that wear or increase in resistance by 10% generally should be replaced as they usually have difficulty achieving high fire temperatures. This is especially true for cone 8 kilns more so than cone ten kiln firing at cone 6  as they simply have less power available.
your kiln. Is 240v, 24 amps so new, the combined resistance of all your elements will be 10 ohms. Once this combined resistance goes up by 10% or to 11 ohms its likely time to change them as making cone six with full power applied begins to take super long or cannot be achieved..
A normal fast glaze often takes about six hours and a slow glaze say 7 to 9 hours but this can vary from kiln to kiln.

Yeah lots of compression and when you grab a ball to start, really sticking with it for a bit before working on it.  Stupid S-cracks

Going to switch it out to a 30 right now, and if i get the 818, i’ll Switch it to a 40.  Thanks guys, so much!