Megga

I received a new VL-Whisper wheel a few days ago. I sense a pulsing, especially at higher speed. I can feel it through the clay when centering, and on my legs through the machine. It's there when there is nothing on the wheel as well. I'm quite surprised & disappointed, due to the weight of the wheel and its reputation, that there is any vibration. I've written to Shimpo, and not heard back yet, but wanted to ask other potters- is this normal? Unfortunately I can't upload a video or audio. It has also, on several different occasions already, surged ahead for a ½ second, startling me a great deal. I don't think it was through mis-use of the foot pedal- I'm an experienced potter. Thank you for your time.

Thanks @Mark C. The pump is not as big in relation to the pugmill as the photos make it look. The rubber sheet idea is what I've always done in the past, and what I'll go back to between the 2 halves, but I've found it leaks a lot over the vacuum chamber, and around the screen covers. I tried an auto "gasket-maker" in a tube (a type of silicone), and the odour was low, but the seal was SO tight that I thought the plexiglass was going to break when I had to pry it off. It was also more effort to scrape off. *My current favourite gasket solution: plumber's putty! Stays soft and pliable, low odour, easily removable, and makes a good seal. @oldladyThank you for the suggestion! I can see why it looks too big in the photo. I get my Mason Stains from Bailey, so I'll keep that in mind if I need to replace this cover. I finally figured out what was going on with the vacuum pump. Actually, the idea credit belongs with my Dad. I used a tiny pipe-cleaner to clean the 2 little exhaust holes (area circled in photo below), and TA-DA!!! Only dropped suction once in about an hour instead of 2/3 times a minute. Poor thing was clogged up with oil and dirt, and couldn't breathe. That step of maintenance wasn't mentioned in the manual, but it's evidently important. On another vacuum note, for those reading this later, the vacuum pump from an old dairy milker might work (also my Father's idea. Very clever man). I got to 70 kPa with one my uncle had, without trying very hard. Could have got stronger suction with more tinkering, perhaps?

I'm using an old Venco de-airing pugmill to reclaim porcelain clay. This style pugmill has stainless steel screens that turn the clay to spaghetti just before the de-airing chamber. There is a small vacuum chamber on top, with a plexiglass lid and gauge. The vacuum pump sits on the floor and connects to the vacuum chamber by a hose. There is a slot at the bottom of the vacuum chamber through which air is drawn away from clay in the barrel. It's normal for some clay to be sucked up through the slot. The manual says it need only be removed if the chamber becomes full. The kPa on the guage should be high- btw 95-100. Okay, so I'm actually getting that peak of 100 kPa for the first time. Difference could be that I used a caulking as a gasket this time. BUT, it flutters quickly down to 60 then climbs back up on a regular basis. This will happen even if only the vacuum pump is running, and the pugmill is not. It seems to be more frequent the LESS clay there is sucked into that vacuum chamber. It was staying pretty steady yesterday but I thought the chamber was too full and possibly the main area being de-aired, so I pried up the plexiglass and cleared the chamber. It was quite difficult to get the suction high again, and the frequency of fluttering is still increased today (I can't seem to post a video, but it's several times a minute now). My question is, is this normal? I'm curious why it's happening. I've no idea if I could buy a separate vacuum pump that would be suitable for the pugmill, but maybe that would be worth considering. At the same time, the clay seems to be de-aired well enough. It's not as good as boxed, but probably the best reclaim I've had, so there's that. Also, can anyone suggest a putty-type product to use as a gasket, that would be both low odour, and easy to remove when necessary?

@glazenerdSo, do you think there a solution for a loss in plasticity in porcelain? I really hope you don't say Epsom salts. I had a lot of flaws in the engobe and glaze when I tried a version of my porcelain that had Epsom salts added at the factory. While de-airing may not change the chemistry of the material, doesn't it still affect the function/ behaviour? A moist clay whose particles are not as tightly packed together will crack more when bent, won't it?

Today I found several bags of clay intended for reclaim, that had been tucked under a step and forgotten about for... gosh, I've no idea how long... but YEARS. What I found very interesting was the consistency. I've seen clay dry into a solid mass before, but never anything like this. It was still damp, but had broken apart into crumbles. I think it could be an example of what I've heard about porcelains becoming thixotropic when the soda in the feldspar leaches out over time. (?) I think that's why some porcelains don't reclaim well. Or, it could be a result of freezing and thawing repeatedly. (?) Or, a combination thereof. I find it interesting, anyway. I'm trying a few different things with the bags to experiment with it. Sorry the photo is a bit blurry, but this is what it looked like. Now That's short.

Thank you @Callie Beller Diesel. I couldn't figure out how to delete it myself. I don't know what it is about this forum, but I seem to have a really difficult time with it. I thought I responded yesterday, but nope, it didn't post. When I say that some of the ingredients settled in the throwing water, I mean immediately, and very firmly. I scooped it into the garbage for a long time because when I added it to the reclaim, I got big clumps of dried material that did not blend in. In the future, however, I'm hopeful that a small amount of vinegar in the throwing water will keep these materials in suspension long enough to evenly distribute them in the reclaim bucket. I wrote to PSH to ask for advice as well. He advised against adding more bentonite, because it would increase the dry shrinkage and raise the risk of cracking. He advocated for epsom salts, again, but I had problems with my engobe and clear glaze bubbling up off the surface back when I first tried their 909 clay (which is just 910 + epsom salts). I've already learned a lot since posting my questions a few places, so thank you all so much!

I have an old Venco de-airing pugmill, with an aluminum barrel. I'm starting fresh once again with an empty, cleaned out barrel. My intention is to pug my huge pile of porcelain reclaim clay all at once (over a few days, perhaps). Then I should just clean it out, because when leaving clay in it, I've repeatedly failed to get back to it in time. I use ^6 porcelain PSH 910. Over many years I have never yielded reclaim clay that was a pleasure to use. I've always restricted it's use to a few items where the imperfections aren't as big an issue. But I feel like I should be able to do better, deairing pugmill and all. Some of the challenges: -When throwing, materials settle in the throwing water and form a hard lump in the bottom. (Primarily talc?) I've tried both adding this to the reclaim bucket (get dried gobs of material- but I could possibly deal with this more effectively in the future) and leaving it out has been my latest strategy. -As seems to be more common knowledge now, the aluminum barrel and porcelain clay react over time and form clumps of salts (?) that make hard horrible bits in your clay. A large part of my reason to try doing a big batch at once then clean it out. -Getting the PSI high enough to de-air the porcelain is difficult -The clay comes out short. The bags of clay have been sitting around for a long time. Any additives that I try now to improve the plasticity would be added as I pug. Ideas I'm considering: -Adding some vinegar, because it would swing the alkalinity to slightly acidic, which would draw the particles closer together and possibly improve the plasticity. -I could mix some bentonite and water, and roll the clay in a bit of that "snot" before pugging? -Epsom salts in the clay (straight from PSH) have not had good results for me. -A potter I worked for years ago used to mix her boxed clay 1:1 with the reclaim. But I'm nervous that the result would lower the quality of the boxed clay, more than improve the reclaim? Any brilliant thoughts and suggestions are appreciated.

I have an old Venco de-airing pugmill, with an aluminum barrel. I'm starting fresh once again with an empty, cleaned out barrel. My intention is to pug my huge pile of porcelain reclaim clay all at once (over a few days, perhaps). Then I should just clean it out, because when leaving clay in it, I've repeatedly failed to get back to it in time. I use ^6 porcelain PSH 910. Over many years I have never yielded reclaim clay that was a pleasure to use. I've always restricted it's use to a few items where the imperfections aren't as big an issue. But I feel like I should be able to do better, deairing pugmill and all. Some of the challenges: -When throwing, materials settle in the throwing water and form a hard lump in the bottom. (Primarily talc?) I've tried both adding this to the reclaim bucket (get dried gobs of material- but I could possibly deal with this more effectively in the future) and leaving it out has been my latest strategy. -As seems to be more common knowledge now, the aluminum barrel and porcelain clay react over time and form clumps of salts (?) that make hard horrible bits in your clay. A large part of my reason to try doing a big batch at once then clean it out. -Getting the PSI high enough to de-air the porcelain is difficult -The clay comes out short. The bags of clay have been sitting around for a long time. Any additives that I try now to improve the plasticity would be added as I pug. Ideas I'm considering: -Adding some vinegar, because it would swing the alkalinity to slightly acidic, which would draw the particles closer together and possibly improve the plasticity. -I could mix some bentonite and water, and roll the clay in a bit of that "snot" before pugging? -Epsom salts in the clay (straight from PSH) have not had good results for me. -A potter I worked for years ago used to mix her boxed clay 1:1 with the reclaim. But I'm nervous that the result would lower the quality of the boxed clay, more than improve the reclaim? Any brilliant thoughts and suggestions are appreciated. Cross-posting

Accidental post. Can't seem to erase completely, sorry!

I've been researching as well, wanting to add a wheel to my 'fleet' for students, but also to use myself and take some of the load off of my main wheel. Here are some things I've learned: -The Big Boss might have the power that you're looking for. 10 year warranty, I believe. -Called Laguna on Monday to ask some questions. I was concerned because I'd read some bad reviews on the Pacifica foot pedals. I happened to ask what was covered by the warranty, and the guy told me they had just decided to lower their warranty, he thought to 3 years. Gee, now why would they do that? Huge red flag on quality. But, it still says 5 years on their website, so maybe double check that. -I have 3 Shimpo VL-Lites that I use for student lessons. They're smooth and fairly quiet, but when they say lite they mean light. Weighing in at 51 pounds, they literally shake around a bit too much for my liking. I centered 12 lbs on one once, but while the clay was off-center it moved the whole wheel around. They're not as sturdy as a heavier wheel. I have a Bailey ST-X which I love, and Bailey has a 10 year warranty. But I ended up raising my budget enough for a Shimpo VL-Whisper. They're super popular, and I was slow to jump on the bandwagon, but I look forward to seeing/hearing what all the fuss is about. Hope that helps.

Can't find the receipt and it's not marked with a brand, but here she is. I built a little table under it, and cut the splash-pan in 2 for removal (fill the cracks with clay when in use). I was curious enough to buy it, and it's worked out okay for me. Function is smooth, and speed fast enough that it is more enjoyable to use than a very old Oscar Paul wheel I had (although that beast will outlive us all). I think it totaled about $400 CAD in the end (everything is more expensive here), and if I had known then what I know now, I would have spent more money on a better wheel. But, for occasional use it has served its purpose. I've even seen photos from someone using several wheels like this for their lessons. To be clear, I would encourage anyone serious about pottery to buy the best wheel that you can, without going in credit card debt. That amount is just different for everyone.

I'm a professional production potter. I bought a cheap eBay wheel probably 4-5 years ago, to use as an extra at home on occasion (my studio is not at my house). I have made enough pots on it to pay for itself many times. It's quite smooth and quiet, though not very powerful and slows down with pressure. I know full well that it will stop working someday, and I won't be able to get parts for it. And had I spent more on something of higher quality it would have retained it's resale value fairly well. So that would have been more forward-thinking, but at the time I didn't have that extra $ to spend. They're not evil or anything, and NOTHING in life is guaranteed.