Pir

Thanks, Min. I did start small, but I was doing the stir test, and a bigger bucket/amount seemed better... I'll have to see if I've ruined that portion now. Thanks for the quantity info! I think it was a saturated solution, I found a "30g ep salt dissolved in 100ml of water" formula, but adding more, it still dissolved. I wonder now if the salt had no effect because it wasn't saturated. I'd think it should've made some difference...? I fire bisqueware to 04. That's mainly because my friend does, and I use his little shed-studio. I considered 06, but there are so many other variables I'm contending with--I'm still playing with different sorts of clays, and now just beginning to follow glaze recipes in search of a good base clear glaze. What I'm finding with this clear glaze might be some general truisms... 1.) On some mid-range clays (speckled buff) it doesn't craze, and appears transparent (although under a magnifying glass I see a zillion tiny bubbles); on other bodies (Calico red) it crazes like crazy, and on some a bit (brown); 2.) the SG is 1.45, but with higher specific gravity it crazes more; and with lower specific gravity, it also seems to craze more; 3.) heavier applications seem to produce more crazing, on those bodies that craze. The clear recipe has a lot of neph sy and some Gerstley borate, and the K and Na content I understand can cause crazing. I'm thinking about tinkering with the proportions or trying a new recipe. Well, I guess I'm thinking out loud now. I never thought two years ago that as I was learning how to throw there'd be SO MUCH MORE to learn. It's a good thing, though. Thanks again, Pir

Oh, right! And I think the glaze was flocculated--or in a "floccululent condition"--already, because it was gelled at the bottom, water at the top, and easy to mix quickly. (I guess I'm back to not understanding the weirdness of the glaze--how it drips but then dries so quickly the drips remain. And how soft the dry glaze is on the body. If I dip with no movement, the application is more or less even.) I'll check out Macleod--I had just subscribed to something or other of hers.

Thanks Callie. That makes me feel better! Although it doesn't quite compute... But it seems true--my 100mL beaker gave one result, the 50mL another, again and again.

I brought about 75 ounces (2.25 liters) of the glaze to a 1.45 SG, then began adding an Epsom salt solution drip by drip while stirring... must've put 2 or 3 Tbs in there with little effect. Still takes about 7 seconds to come to rest after a stir, although there is a vague bounce-back, where at the end the glaze moves in the opposite direction a tiny bit. Unsure if I should keep on a'drippin'...

Thanks Tom. I think I read your post earlier, or was otherwise already directed that Hansen video. I'm just not sure if the glaze in question needs deflocculating-- which is what I understand adding epsom salts or vinegar to be doing. It is sort of settling at bottom...but not hard-panning (if that's the word). Am I understanding it correctly that before adding an acid, the glaze specific gravity should be lower (wetter/more water)? One difficulty I have is that almost every time I measure SG--with a 100mL syringe, or in a 100mL beaker, or in a 50mL beaker and doubling--I get a different stinkin' number. Last week the glaze was 1.56, today it's 1.63 (has been covered all week); it remains 1.6-1.63 if I measure it in a 100mL beaker and 1.48-1.5 if in a 50mL and then double it. I know it shouldn't be but I've done it five times in a row. (I feel like I'm going crazy!) I can say that stirring it, it takes about 5-6 seconds for the glaze "body" to come to a stop; there is no bounce-back. So, I'd assume that = thin? How much acid does one add? I've seen "add a teaspoon at a time to a 5-gal bucket," but I was thinking of testing it out on 2 cups, first. I guess I'd add a drip or two? Does the SG change after adding an acid? It should be thicker, but should will that make it heavier? Thanks Much.

Thanks! I'd never even heard of the damp cloth until watching Phil Berneburg vids (Washington Street Studio on YouTube).

Thanks. I mixed the glaze some weeks ago; after a few days, it was still pretty mixed (nothing much settled). After a few weeks, there was settling (water on the top). I mixed it up last night, and this afternoon there was a small degree of separation and settling. So, it seems to be deflocculating (I think?). Another observation is that the dried glaze on the pot is quite soft and comes off easily on the fingers. I could try two pint-size batches--one for deflocculating and one for flocculating... Thanks for your advice!

Hi, I'm new to glaze-making. While I'm just delving into making batches from scratch, I have a question about a commercial glaze that I purchased dry and added water to for dipping. This is a Spectrum glaze called Autumn, and as you might see in the photos, it's... well, I'm not sure... collecting and dripping and drying unevenly. The glaze measures a specific gravity of 156. (Being a commercial glaze, I don't know the ingredients or their proportions.) I mixed the glaze well before use. I ran a slightly damp cloth across the bisqueware (bisqued to 04) to remove dust and to prime the clay for glaze absorption. I used dipping tongs for a 3-second in-and-out dip (longer for the tiny thin-walled bowl); after lifting out, I rotated the pot and gently shook of drips. The glaze seemed to dry quickly--and yet drips formed and ran, and then dried as visible drips. I'll have to see how they fire. Test tiles came out great (on red clay bodies, not brown or buff), but the tiles were small and I didn't notice as much of this application ugliness. Any ideas on what this problem is, or advice on how to fix it (if it's indeed a problem) are greatly appreciated! Thanks!