beginner question: debugging wiring pot off bat

[DH123]

hello there,

I have just started wheel throwing in the last couple months (I took a set of lessons from a local studio and now have a wheel at home.  I was planning to go back to the studio for more lessons after I've been more comfortable with the basics).  Lately after wiring pots off the bat, I leave them overnight to dry before removing them for trimming.   When I do so, I'm noticing that part of the wired off portion adheres to the pot which makes trimming an interesting time (see picture below).

parts of this can be peeled off, but it feels suboptimal.  I've wound up using a larger tool to scrape off as much as I can while its on the wheel to try to get a level layer but its been rather hit or miss.  As far as I can tell, there are no kinks in the wire when I cut it off the bat.  

my process:  When I am done, I take the bat and place it on a table or bench in my garage overnight out in the open (no plastic cover or wrap).  It's there for less than 24 hours.  Trimming usually is not a problem or so it seems.  That partial layer feels 

type of bat: I have been trying out bat inserts (wooden circular ones)

type of clay:  Venus white clay from clay-planet.com (cone 5/6) http://shop.clay-planet.com/venus-white-clay---cone-5-6.aspx

are there obvious things that I am doing wrong?  

thank you!

[Min]

If you run the wire under the pot more than once this can happen, just one pass of the wire is enough. 

Welcome to the forum!

[Mark C.]

There are some other tricks

Use a fatter wire(one that is larger in diameter)

To make Quick work of what you have on your bottom in photo use a 4 or 5  or 6 inch putty knife-they also clean up bats fast as well as the wheel head

These are sold at hardware stores

[GEP]

You can also try using a twisted cutoff wire, or a wiggle wire. These will put tiny pockets of air between your pot and the clay that’s left on the batt. 

[oldlady]

have you been taught to finish the original throwing session by running  a pointed stick around the bottom to take off most of that excess  clay before wiring it off?

[JohnnyK]

I would try pulling the wire taut and pressing it to the bat as you pull it through the clay. In the photo it looks like you have a space between the wire and the bat which gives you that layer of clay which pulls off the bat when you remove the piece. The fact that this sliver of clay separates from the bat tells me you might just leave it uncut until the piece dries enough to pop it off the bat using a wide putty knife as Mark suggests.

JohnnyK

[DH123]

thank you all for the suggestions!

now that you mention wires, I am using a different one compared to the one I used at the studio.  I will compare the thickness of the wires to see.  I thought it was fairly taut, but will pay more attention when I am doing so.

regarding the putty knife:  are you all suggesting just put the knife under the clay (without wiring) to pry it off the bat if it does not just pop off?   or using the blade of the putty knife to scrape the partial layer (or a clean layer underneath?)

 

[shawnhar]

I had this when leaving pots on the bat to dry. No matter how close I get the wire to the bat, there is still a thin strip of clay left on the bat, if you leave the whole thing on the bat long enough, that thin strip releases from the bat and sticks to the bottom of the pot. This stopped happening after I started taking the pots of the bat after and hour or 2. Sometimes they don't want to release and I run the wire again and they pop right off.

[neilestrick]

It's more likely to happen if you're using a very thin wire. We have problems in my studio with some of the Dirty Girl wires doing things like that. An easy fix is to simply recut it after it has set for a few hours.

[Mark C.]

 

 (using the blade of the putty knife to scrape the partial layer (or a clean layer underneath?)

yes this- not the other.

[Babs]

I use a along straight blade which I hold across the pot, two hands job. This is the first action when trimming. This blade levels the base of pot, takes off such crud and then start my trimming.. occurs as stated above...too long on the bat and thin wire..

I use a guitar string or a home made twisted fishing line..method of making posted previously.

[Bill Kielb]

Just a quick suggestion because bats and pots are a little bit annoying In the beginning for many reasons. We have taken to having our students remove the excess clay from the bottom of the pot as practical, then undercutting their pot with a fine needle, maybe a quarter of an inch in.

Now we usually advocate drying everything off as dry as practical and neatly wire the pot off using the undercut as a guide. We also promote removing the pot and placing it on a ware board or another bat with an ordinary cfold towel underneath.

the towel allows the bottom to dry, keeps the pot from sticking and deforming as it drys, and have proved most economical and simple comparatively speaking.

Most of our students throw on the wheel head and remove their pot to a ware board or bat. Learning to rib your pot dry and removing it is a good skill to aquire and in the end is fairly easy. Undercutting with a fine needle almost always results in a clean easy straight cut for the newbie.