mnnaj Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 Hi. We've destroyed most of the peeps in the community studio. I'd like to try throwing some. We fire to ^6. Can I use our ^6 clay, or should I get a bag of ^10? A bag of clay is cheaper than purchasing a dozen cast peeps. Thanks Nancy J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick White Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 If it were me, I would use the strongest cone 10 clay I can find - which would be Soldate 60. But that's just my opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 Clay that you use for pottery might not be the best thing for the job. Consider that one end of the plug will be inside the kiln, and the other end will be in the surrounding air that’s colder by several hundred degrees at least. There are recipes out there for kiln repair refractories that might be a better idea. They usually involve fire clay and things like vermiculite. Even carving some out of soft brick could be a reasonable solution, if you have any to hand. There are some good suggestions in this old thread that’s been archived. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 1 hour ago, mnnaj said: or should I get a bag of ^10? A bag of clay is cheaper than purchasing a dozen cast peeps. Thanks My best success for making custom sight plugs for gas kilns where the plugs are not available for purchase or are very custom has been with the use of high temp refractory castable cement. Mizzou plus is good for 3000f. Regular claybodies will eventually fail after repeated firings. I would buy the ready mades first, cast replacements second. Various Dixie cups end up as a source for nice forms and the cement really does not shrink significantly, nor does is melt and vitrify. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CactusPots Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 I used Peter King clay. Not the easiest to throw, but they have held up well so far (maybe 60 cone 10 firings). You could maybe just use Soldate 30 or add a bunch of grog to a basic cone 10 white or light colored clay. I think if I was to do it again, I'd extrude the spy holes square and fit a square tapered soft brick plug. Making a mold form for castable would be tricky. I don't think it would be durable unless it was pretty thick. I used castable cement for my exhaust damper box. At least one piece cracked, but is still functionable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Min Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 Kiln bricks to carve out plugs make really good plugs but it's dusty if you use power tools, I've found whittling them by hand isn't as dusty but still needs to be done outside (wearing a respirator). Other option would be to use peep "flaps" instead, 2 of my kilns use these. On the Euclids kiln they are made from an open groggy clay, on the ConeArt they are stainless steel. Would need to add 2 self-tapping screws for each. One screw to attach and pivot the other screw to hold it in the open position. Advantage to using flaps instead of plugs is they don't get dropped or lost. Disadvantage is they do get hot so can't touch them with bare hands but easy to flip them over with a scrap of brick or a post (or wear gloves). edit: let me know if you want pictures and I'll take some closeups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CactusPots Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 2 minutes ago, Min said: Kiln bricks to carve out plugs make really good plugs but it's dusty if you use power tools, I've found whittling them by hand isn't as dusty but still needs to be done outside (wearing a respirator). Other option would be to use peep "flaps" instead, 2 of my kilns use these. On the Euclids kiln they are made from an open groggy clay, on the ConeArt they are stainless steel. Would need to add 2 self-tapping screws for each. One screw to attach and pivot the other screw to hold it in the open position. Advantage to using flaps instead of plugs is they don't get dropped or lost. Disadvantage is they do get hot so can't touch them with bare hands but easy to flip them over with a scrap of brick or a post (or wear gloves). edit: let me know if you want pictures and I'll take some closeups. Shop vac takes care of the dust. Or a big ass fan outside. I did build "flaps" initially when I built the kiln. It was a tin box, maybe 6" x 6" filled with ceramic fiber, The bottom one is still in service, but the top one burned out a while ago. Hence the plug. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Min Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 2 minutes ago, CactusPots said: It was a tin box Hence the stainless. Yeah, I would expect tin to degrade in such a corrosive environment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 Regular clay is not a good choice. It gets hot to the touch, and it much more likely to fail since it's not made to handle the difference in heat from one end to the other. Soft brick would be my choice, as it's easy to shape and the end you touch won't get very hot like other materials. If you really want to make it out of clay, then mix in a bunch of organic material that will burn out when fired- fine sawdust, flour, etc, to create an open body, and only fire it to bisque temps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 Peep flap on an old Evenheat: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 The ones that say come with a skutt are slip cast and hollow. I took a mold from that and cast my own. As you know the mold process shrinks the form so you need to dip the orginal peep in slip to build up layers to make it larger so the cast ones are the right size. You could also throw that original before taking a mold from it and do thge math on shrinkage. Little more work but its done right. Once you have the mold any good cone 10 porcelain slip or cone 6 slip will do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liambesaw Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 The ones that came with my kiln are solid mullite. They work real nice. None of that hollow, breaks if you look at it sideways crap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 Just now, liambesaw said: The ones that came with my kiln are solid mullite. They work real nice. None of that hollow, breaks if you look at it sideways crap. I have the same kind, but I cannot for the life of me remember the brand. Definitely recommend this kind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liambesaw Posted January 9, 2021 Report Share Posted January 9, 2021 4 minutes ago, Callie Beller Diesel said: I have the same kind, but I cannot for the life of me remember the brand. Definitely recommend this kind. Not sure, mine is a crucible kiln so the best I can do is give a link:https://seattlepotterysupply.com/products/solid-peep-hole-plug?_pos=1&_sid=0b74bbf67&_ss=r&variant=34244661674123 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mnnaj Posted January 10, 2021 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2021 Thank you everyone who has responded. I know that the college I learned at had a mold that we would use to make peeps - in two sizes. I was thinking of throwing them because the community ed program doesn't have room for making plaster molds or storing casting slip. Thank you Min and Neil for the idea about the flaps. I share space with 3 other instructors so putting screws in the side of the kiln is something I will need to clear with the others. Mark C. It's good to know that I can use the ^6 I have - at least for the first trials. Nancy J Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babs Posted January 10, 2021 Report Share Posted January 10, 2021 14 hours ago, neilestrick said: Peep flap on an old Evenheat: I had a top of kiln vent flap like that on a very very old kiln. I once put a piece of ceramic fibre blanket on top to try to get top of kiln hotter, and ,yes, the flap melted and ran into my kiln and top shelf platter...silly in many ways . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted January 10, 2021 Report Share Posted January 10, 2021 1 hour ago, Babs said: yes, the flap melted and ran into my kiln and top shelf platter...silly in many ways . Some folks with flaps fill the port mostly with fiber, keeps their flaps looking new and if you don’t use the ports, they are just another leak in the kiln. If you have a downdraft, likely don’t use the ports anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted January 10, 2021 Report Share Posted January 10, 2021 5 hours ago, Bill Kielb said: If you have a downdraft, likely don’t use the ports anyway. I agree. For a downdraft vent the flaps may not seal tight enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted January 10, 2021 Report Share Posted January 10, 2021 25 minutes ago, neilestrick said: or a downdraft vent the flaps may not seal tight enough. Usually the lid gap is plenty leaky enough for a downdraft but I agree can’t hurt to seal them for this reason as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sorcery Posted January 12, 2021 Report Share Posted January 12, 2021 2 parts marshmallow 85 parts yellow sugar! Sorry. 2.3 Marshmallow. 97.7 Sugar! Sorce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CactusPots Posted January 13, 2021 Report Share Posted January 13, 2021 On 1/9/2021 at 8:23 AM, CactusPots said: Shop vac takes care of the dust. Or a big ass fan outside. I did build "flaps" initially when I built the kiln. It was a tin box, maybe 6" x 6" filled with ceramic fiber, The bottom one is still in service, but the top one burned out a while ago. Hence the plug. Once again, I make a comment thinking gas kiln and everyone else is talking electric kiln. How anachronistic I am. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callie Beller Diesel Posted January 13, 2021 Report Share Posted January 13, 2021 4 hours ago, CactusPots said: Once again, I make a comment thinking gas kiln and everyone else is talking electric kiln. How anachronistic I am. Gas kilns tend to be outfitted with sensible peep plugs that are made out of one form of insulating brick or other. Electrics mostly come with slipcast ones that are breakable and stupid. Or maybe not stupid from the point of view of whoever manufactures them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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