SaeChoi

I thought if the speckled buff was fired higher it would be more toasty, but it ended up being a gray color. So I’ve been firing to cone 5, still not producing the results I’m used to from the studio I used to fire at. and examples of the issues I’m having with speckled b-mix fired at cone 5 (it recommends not exceeding past it) with all the bubbles.

I bought my first kiln for home use, an Olympic Doll-E kiln, after someone recommended it. The pottery studio I used to go to has a Skutt kiln. My main clay bodies have been Laguna Clay speckled buff and b-mix speckle. Whenever I fired at the studio, the pieces came out great- no bubbles, smooth finishes, bright underglaze. However my kiln at home, the speckled buff comes out slightly discolored (more of a grayish-yellow than tan) and the b-mix speckle surface bubbles on the glaze and unglazed surfaces. Even underglaze I use comes out much darker than they’re suppose to. And all the textures come out tougher than they’re supposed to. I bisque fire at cone 04 slow and have tried different cone 5 firings for glaze- slow, medium-slow and medium, some with holds and some without. But every time, the results come out the same. I know the much smaller kiln size is a factor to the results, but it’s getting discouraging to try new test fires when they’re all coming out the same. Has anyone else have this issue with a small kiln using those clay bodies? Or any solutions to how to remedy this? (Additional info: I use Amaco Velvet Underglazes and Amaco Sahara H-9 Zinc-free Clear glaze. I’ve used these for 3 years with the same clay bodies. At the studio, the results always came out great)