Katie S

Oh the artist is well aware, I wouldn’t do anything without consulting her first. 

Oh the artist is well aware, I wouldn’t do anything without consulting her first. 

I agree with you, bisque firing - cone 04 just to sinter the material. Don’t want to make it really hard to glaze, assuming she wants to glaze it. All of my porcelains are bisqued to 04.

If she isn’t absolutely 110% sure it’s a cone 10 clay then I would pass on this. 
This makes sense to fire the clay to maturity / cone 10 if she doesn’t plan on glazing it and it is indeed a cone 10 clay. She might want to leave it as bare clay or be planning on doing a cold finish on it. Firing to maturity would be a clearer way to describe what she wants rather than calling it a bisque firing. A mature body is far stronger than a bisque fired body.

@Katie S I have become quite adamant about "what clay is it?"  Name, rank, serial number, when firing for others.  If they do not know, I politely decline.  A friend of mine just had a horrible kiln accident with that very thing.  Melted cups and plates all over the shelves.  Yes, they were low fire.  Fired to mid fire.  The person making the request didn't do their work.  You would probably be fine with 04,  probably.  But.....

No! She's got a sculpture piece.  It's also not cast but has been hand built and carved.  She was clear that her pieces will be put on a shelf for display and did not intend to glaze them - but might change her mind.  Also got me thinking about cone 04 firing.

No! She's got a sculpture piece.  It's also not cast but has been hand built and carved.  She was clear that her pieces will be put on a shelf for display and did not intend to glaze them - but might change her mind.  Also got me thinking about cone 04 firing.

All my flexible metal ribs are stainless steel, except for three, which are carbon steel (else a high enough stainless to rust*).
Steel may be "blued" - it's pretty (subject to opinion, of course) and helps protect against rust and scratches.
Bluing (steel) - Wikipedia
...blueing can wear away fairly easily, and additional measures against corrosion/rust may be necessary.
If you like the rib, rinsing it clean, then drying it off and giving it a wipe with an oily cloth may not be too onerous?
If you do keep an oily rag about, hang it up or put it in a fireproof container, for spontaneous combustion is a real thing, Spontaneous combustion - Wikipedia
Just rinsing and drying may be sufficient, try and see.
*Low series stainless steel contains more nickel and chrome.
Higher series stainless steels may rust.
 
added: metal ribs can become very sharpened through use!
Does anyone else square off the honed edges with a file (or grinder, sandpaper, whetstone, etc.)?
 

The maddening answer to just about everything in glazing is “it depends.”
IF it’s available to you, clear glazes are usually much easier to apply thinly and evenly via dipping. If it’s not, then brush away. 
If you’re mixing 2 glazes, this can often result in special effects that are partially due to running. When starting out you might only want to apply 3 layers in total, however you want to divide it out. Usually you don’t need a clear glaze over other glazes, unless you’re hoping it’ll do something interesting. If that is what you’re going for, make sure you have a waster or a cookie under your piece to catch any drips. Cleaning kiln shelves is not fun!
 Learning how to apply glaze is another skill that takes experimentation and practice to get the hang of, and it’s a good idea to do some test tiles before you start glazing your favourite piece. Recommendations on the label should be considered starting points. Your idea of a thick coat and someone else’s might not be the same thing, and you have to play around with it a bit to find your sweet spot. 
Generally clear glazes want a thinner application than other things for best results. An overly thick clear glaze will go a bit cloudy. This effect is more noticeable on dark clay or underglazes than it is on lighter coloured things. 
 

I have an older version of this kiln from 1990 and the panel on the outside of the kiln says it's cone 6.  I actually emailed olympic and they said that they changed it to cone 4 since it was more reliable.  Makes sense!