What is the best wire for putting inside sculptures?

[Barbsbus 4 fun]

I am thinking about making some fun yard art figures kind of like Gumby characters and since they will be kind  of lanky I would need to have some kind of a support inside their bodies.    Any suggestions?

[neilestrick]

The support would only be of help during the making of the piece, but it must be fairly thin to prevent cracking around it as the clay dries, so it will only provide a little bit of support. During the firing it won't help at all because the wire will soften up. Can you tell us more about the forms you plan to make- size, type of clay, etc?

[Barbsbus 4 fun]

I will try to post a picture of a gumby and I plan to make my characters about a foot tall and their bodies between 3/4" and 1" thick.  My guys will maybe have oval heads and molded on clothing.  I think I will make tube like arms.  I have some cone 6 clay.

[neilestrick]

I don't think that wire is going to be much help. If I were to make those, I would build the arms separately, and join them at leather hard. Will they need to stand up in the kiln? That will be the difficult part. Flare the feet out a lot for stability.

[Barbsbus 4 fun]

I have watched several you tube tutorials and a couple showed putting aluminum foil and wire for armatures.  Does the aluminum wire and foil melt when it is in the kiln and does it mess with the ceramic clay?  I plan on making my characters in different poses, like knelling, reaching , clinging on to garden hand tools (that will be added after they are baked)  I figure I will have to take into consideration the clay will shrink.  Maybe I am overthinking having to use armatures and just pose the characters after they are leather hard.  This is all new to me and I keep coming up with crazy ideas   

[neilestrick]

You can use lightly crumpled newspaper, as it will compress as the clay dries. Anything like that inside the piece should be removed before firing, ideally. Smoke from paper will overload your venting system pretty easily. I've never seen aluminum foil used, so I don't know what it would do in the firing if you left it inside the piece. It melts at a pretty low temp, though. I think if you're smart about your construction techniques you won't need an armature.

[liambesaw]

I tried heavy gauge (10 gauge) nichrome in a piece and it just broke in the glaze firing, although it appeared to make it fine through bisque.  Smaller nichrome wire was fine (20 gauge), but it offered no support.

[Barbsbus 4 fun]

I just ordered an Evenheat kiln that should be delivered in May or June so I guess I will make up some without the armature and just learn as I go along. Thanks for everyone's in put.  The old kiln I bought at a yard sale was a bad mistake.  It tripped off the braker and I figured instead of trying to hire someone to fix it I would b e better off with a smaller new one and I will be able to load it myself and actually have a manual and good directions.  There sure is so much to learn but I am still having fun learning.

[liambesaw]

If you can fire them on their back you won't need any sort of armature.  I'd use a grogged clay to help combat slumping in the kiln

[Barbsbus 4 fun]

Where is a good source for the grogged  clay?

[Denice]

Do you have a window by your kiln?  You can leave the newspaper in the clay,  I would put a fan in a open window that would pull the smoke out.  Are these Gumby tools for personal use or do you plan to sell them.   The daycare my son was in years ago got a letter from Disney suggesting they  paint over the Disney characters they had painted on the walls or get sued.  Denice

[Barbsbus 4 fun]

I am just making my characters for my yard and familys' and they will not be replicas of the gumby company.  I am just using the body look and shaping the heads differently and will be dressing them.  I do not plan on selling them but my children and their children all played with gumby toys and loved them and now the great grands have some too.  I hope I am not breaking any copy right laws.

[Bill Kielb]

16 hours ago, Barbsbus 4 fun said:

am just making my characters for my yard and familys

I have seen folks add sturdy loops to their outside sculptures large enough to put rebar stakes through them to semi permanently anchor them in the yard. If you add a loop down low and 2/3 up the sculpture on each side - when  the rebar gets inserted through and  driven into the ground it supports the structure.

[Barbsbus 4 fun]

That sounds like a good idea.  I was thinking about making holes up through the feet and legs so after they are fired I can insert metal rods to anchor them in the ground but maybe your idea would be better with the loops on the exterior  of the bodies.  Thanks.

[oldlady]

since you are new to this, i wonder if you are aware that sculpture should not be solid.   very thick clay is likely to crack because it is so difficult to dry all the way through.  try getting some books from the library to add to your internet info.   older  ones that show how to make hollow pieces that look thick but are not.  some of the older textbooks show how to build pieces that have their own "armature" built into the structure.   i remember one that was a child kneeling.  the interior looked a little like an old wooden beverage crate with dividers running from front to back and side to side.  

you can also make something solid and cut it in half to hollow it out.   use a wire to slice through and scoop the center clay out until you have only a half inch exterior.   that is still going to be hard to dry totally before firing, not baking.

[Babs]

Ifyour old kuln tripped the breaker, may be that kiln ok but too much draw on your system so check out what your new kiln needs..

[Barbsbus 4 fun]

9 hours ago, oldlady said:

since you are new to this, i wonder if you are aware that sculpture should not be solid.   very thick clay is likely to crack because it is so difficult to dry all the way through.  try getting some books from the library to add to your internet info.   older  ones that show how to make hollow pieces that look thick but are not.  some of the older textbooks show how to build pieces that have their own "armature" built into the structure.   i remember one that was a child kneeling.  the interior looked a little like an old wooden beverage crate with dividers running from front to back and side to side.  

you can also make something solid and cut it in half to hollow it out.   use a wire to slice through and scoop the center clay out until you have only a half inch exterior.   that is still going to be hard to dry totally before firing, not baking.

I think I will try slab building the legs and body and maybe filling the insides with newspaper for support as they dry in various positions.  I plan of being sure I have small holes to release trapped air.  Will 1/4" walls be OK for figures that are 10" to 12" tall?

[oldlady]

i think it would be OK.   not a sculptor but have watched and read about various kinds of sculpture.   i do remember an article showing a filling of bits of vermiculite inside a panty hose leg to allow pressure during construction.  when finished, the stocking was torn and the vermiculite poured out.   i do not think actual vermiculite is safe to use, has asbestos or something.  but the idea is a good one.  

gumby is tapered so i wonder if you could fold slabs around a cardboard box as an armature.   not thick,  brown stuff, more like a cereal box.   wrap it in newspaper and leave it loose.  the final wrap should be one sheet so you can slide out the inner box without trouble with sticking.

[Barbsbus 4 fun]

Neat idea!!!  I will give the cardboard  suggestion a try.  I am wondering if you leave paper inside pots if when they are fired the smoke will mess with the other pots in the kiln that don't have paper inside.

[Callie Beller Diesel]

If you can rig a way to get rid of as much of it before firing as you can, that would be best. Otherwise, you need to make sure there is LOTS of time and ventilation while the cardboard burns out. 

[oldlady]

callie, i suggested a cereal box wrapped in paper and the last sheet is loose, not taped on or anything.  that allows the box to be pulled out of the piece BEFORE firing.   did this many times with salt boxes that became birdhouses for a kids class.

[Chilly]

On 4/26/2021 at 12:53 AM, Babs said:

Ifyour old kuln tripped the breaker, may be that kiln ok but too much draw on your system so check out what your new kiln needs..

@Barbsbus 4 fun As Babs says please make sure your new kiln is properly wired in.

[Barbsbus 4 fun]

9 hours ago, Chilly said:

@Barbsbus 4 fun As Babs says please make sure your new kiln is properly wired in.

OK, thanks

 

[oldlady]

not every electrician is familiar with installing kiln wiring.   ask for references for kiln installations and call those references.   besides getting a good or bad report, you can meet other potters in the area.   make sure the electrician has installed a large kiln, not just a test kiln.