ronfire Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 I have not done any work yet with dipping my work into the glaze and am about to start. My question is what to use as a wax resist for the bottom of my mugs ect. I heard someplace that any wax product will work. Might be a dumb question but how else will we learn. Can a paste floor wax or similar be used, or a liquid wax that can be purchased in the grocery store work. My problem is the pottery supply place I use is 3 hr drive away so local substitutes are a favourite with me. I tried to search the forum but could not find any information. Thanks for your help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Min Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 Old junkers electric frying pan and wax. Old candles or canning wax, better yet is soy wax because it smells far less while burning off, if you can get it in Merritt. (about 225F on the frying pan, be super careful not to let it smoke and ignite, use lots of ventilation or use it outside) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pleasant Pottery Posted September 12, 2015 Report Share Posted September 12, 2015 Our studio has a tray with a piece of carpeting on it. We just twist the footring on the carpet and it takes off about 1/16 up the edge of the foot. Any carpet or upholstery that has a fuzzy surface works great. Not so dangerous. We recycle the glaze that accumulates in the tray and from cleaning the mat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flowerdry Posted September 13, 2015 Report Share Posted September 13, 2015 There's plenty about wax resist on the forum. Just be sure you are not in one of the threads when you search, because then it only searches that thread. I had the same problem for a long time. I was so glad when someone set me straight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alabama Posted September 13, 2015 Report Share Posted September 13, 2015 I trim 99.9% of my vessels in a way that there is no reason to wax resist the bottoms. As you can see on the cup avatar, I also carve and stain so I don't have to glaze the entire piece. I'll pour and pour out glaze to the interior, then dip the neck and handle. If the cup or bowl requires a full dip, I determine that at the time I'm trimming. Most of my stuff that will be glazed to the foot will have two to four concentric incised lines just above the base... to the average person, the lines appear as "detail", but they are actually obstructions to slow down any glaze runs. With the trimmed foot there isn't any reasons to own or use tongs to dip, because the foot can be gripped. Where the glaze dips around my finger tips,...there are no touch ups... Almost every glaze touch up looks worst than before. Sometimes, I'll incise, stain, and use a thin transparent glaze over the top, and the stained image will show thru. I saw the video, it turned out really nice.. A friend of mine in NC, did a video for HGTV... I told her husband that it turned out well, and he asked any idea how long the filming took for the 5 minutes? I said no idea. Ans: 9 hours of camera time. She makes 34 inch platters. My advice is to wax only when you have to, try different methods, set them out for a side by side comparison, then sell them all and start over. :-) See ya, Alabama Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joseph Fireborn Posted September 13, 2015 Report Share Posted September 13, 2015 If your wanting to brush on wax resist I tried a bunch of the recommendations from this forum, and Forbes wax resist from Highwater clay has been my go to now. I put the put upside down on my wheel, and brush on wax resist, takes about 10-20 seconds per pot depending on the detail you want resisted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ronfire Posted September 14, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2015 I tried the carpet trick today and worked great. This sounds like a better idea for me as my kiln is not vented yet Thanks for all the advise, sure appreciate the help from the forum members. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldlady Posted September 14, 2015 Report Share Posted September 14, 2015 the advice about using a wet piece of carpet works for most glazes but might not clean off all of a strong cobalt blue glaze. if the very bottom of a pot is given a very quick dip in shallow clean water before glazing, the carpet works better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seancisse Posted September 14, 2015 Report Share Posted September 14, 2015 I've used "shellac" that you can find in some warehouse builder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted September 14, 2015 Report Share Posted September 14, 2015 My favorite wax is the stuff sold by Ceramic Supply, Standard and Ceramic Supply Chicago. What makes it the best is that it rinses out of brushes with just water and doesn't gum up the bristles. It's the only wax I've ever used that doesn't ruin brushes. IMO, it's worth buying a couple of pints even if you pay for shipping, as it lasts a long time. Plus you can (should) thin it with water so it goes even further. Even with all my students, we only go through a gallon a year or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pugaboo Posted September 14, 2015 Report Share Posted September 14, 2015 I dislike waxing so only do it when I have to like on box rims so they don't stick. Instead I use a piece of carpet glued to a scrap of plywood, like several other have mentioned. When I glaze I use a spray bottle to wet the carpet then simply twist the bottoms on the carpet and the glaze comes off really nicely. I prefer the Berber style carpet pieces as its firm enough with a strong pattern to pull off the glaze but not so deep to cause "fuzz" marks to remain. One thing I do is I DON'T use a brush to apply my glaze 99% of the time. I have found those triangle make up brushes give me better control. I even cut one in half to give me the width I need for box rims. For round waxing I have an assortment of little round pounce type sponges and it's basically dip in shallow wax place on item twist slightly and remove and I have a nice round waxed area left behind. I also thin my wax, the wax too thick out of the jar and tends to be globby, thin it and it spread beautifully in an easily controlled manner. Another thing I do since my wax is clear is I add a drop of food coloring to it when precision application is important. The food coloring burns away in the kiln. T Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joy pots Posted September 14, 2015 Report Share Posted September 14, 2015 I use ceramic supplied wax resist with food colour added. I use kitchen sponges, the kind that dry hard, I cut it into small pieces. They are easy to swirl around the bottom of mugs. When I'm done I rinse them out in warm soapy water & they are ready for the next job. Simple & fast they work easily around the rim for lids. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted September 15, 2015 Report Share Posted September 15, 2015 Just as a heads up, the OP is in another country with a very unfavourable exchange rate at the moment, and on the other end of the continent from both Highwater supply and Chicago ceramic supply. Freight routes need to be considered at this time of year. Mountain passes through the Rockies will begin to freeze in a couple of weeks, and wax resist is ruined when it freezes. Once you get your kiln vented, if you wish to try wax resist I know Ceramics Canada in Calgary stocks 2 kinds out of Plainsman, and they'll special order the Amoco brand if you ask. That's if you don't like what Greenbarn carries, which is where I assume you shop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted September 15, 2015 Report Share Posted September 15, 2015 I use ceramic supplied wax resist with food colour added. I use kitchen sponges, the kind that dry hard, I cut it into small pieces. They are easy to swirl around the bottom of mugs. When I'm done I rinse them out in warm soapy water & they are ready for the next job. Simple & fast they work easily around the rim for lids. I wax with sponge as well so much faster than a brush.No clean up as well like a brush. I keep my wax in a salsa container with the cut sponges in the wax -they never dry out. Good to hear someone has learned this sponge waxing tip. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
earthfan Posted September 15, 2015 Report Share Posted September 15, 2015 Better than sponge or brush is the hair dye dispenser bottle, the kind with a lid. Water based wax resist, stained with food colouring, can be stored in it. Have the piece centred on the wheel or banding wheel. Shake up the bottle and tap its bottom a couple of times so that you don't get a big glob of wax coming out when you start to wax trail. With the wheel turning, flow a thin line of wax on the highest point of the foot ring. The tip of a brush can be used to spread the wax a little. So only the very tip of the brush gets wax on it and it is easy to clean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted September 15, 2015 Report Share Posted September 15, 2015 Taking a pot back to the wheel is way to slow for my production. Pots unload onto table next to kiln and they all get waxed-35 cubic feet of them-wheather its hot dip(flat bottom pots) or footed with a sponge -its very FAST-I am not taking work back into studio to wax it on a wheel. That works for small amounts of work-but I do not fit that discription.. Wax for me is about faster effectent ways to keep glaze off. The hair bottle sound sfine just does not fit what I'm doing. Mark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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