QotW: What are your favorite repurposed/modified tools?

[Pres]

Hi folks, recently I have noticed a lot of articles out there about making ceramic tools out of other tools. Some examples are a recently posted salad tongs made into throwing tools and a motorized milk frother for drinks used to mix glazes. Of course I have posted on my own about using a motorized putty gun repurposed as a hand held extruder, and my favorite throwing tools made from a bamboo kitchen utensil set. I would like to know if any one has come up with more adapted/repurposed pottery tools using existing tools.

QotW: What are your favorite repurposed/modified tools?

[Kelly in AK]

I get a lot of satisfaction from making my own tools. I have a lot of things that started as something else. The steel strip in wiper blades has a special place in my heart.

One thing I couldn’t improve on right out of the box was the brush that fits in a drill+sieve combo. I saw this in one of John Britt’s videos and it’s brilliant. The brush was easy to find online and very inexpensive. 

 I use this when I’m processing raw clay and have to sieve around  25 gallons of slip multiple times to get the sand and sticks out of it.

[Min]

Glazing pots today, couple pictures of things I use that make it easier for dipping and cleaning up plates or other flat(ish) pots.

First one is a tool for lifting plates out of a steamer, I use it for dipping flat things in glaze, doesn't leave any marks on the topside of the pots to clean up. 3 small contact points underneath, my glazes are fairly forgiving so I don't bother wiping them out. It's also good for when you only have a bit of glaze left in the bucket since you dip horizontally and not vertically. The one I have opens to about 12".

Other thing I use is a 5 gallon bucket with the bottom cut off with a jigsaw then squeezed into an oval for pots that are too wide for the buckets or bowls. I line it with 2 kitchen bin bags and tape the outside. First time you use it the air between the bucket walls and the bags will puff inwards so you need to make a tiny incision in the plastic bags near the top then the glaze will push the air out as you fill it up. I put it in a rectangular bin while using it just in case it springs a leak.

    

[oldlady]

min, that 3 point lift gadget looks perfect!   do you have a brand name or source for purchase?   and your squishy bucket idea is terrific, too.

[Min]

23 hours ago, oldlady said:

min, that 3 point lift gadget looks perfect!   do you have a brand name or source for purchase?   and your squishy bucket idea is terrific, too.

I bought the plate lifter from Aliexpress but they are on the river in South America too and I'm sure lots of other places too. Just google steamer plate lifter. If you have a lot of 4 sided pots or square tiles then maybe the second one in that link might work better?

If you make a squishy bucket what I did was to heat up the two areas of the bucket (that would become the end points) with the heat gun to get it to squishable, one end at a time then put a board across it and some weights on top to hold it squashed while it cooled down. This was after I cut the bottom off.

Edited October 20, 2022 by Min
grammar (again)

[kswan]

@Min I've seen a video of someone using one of those and never knew what it was! It's a great idea. 

I tried to do something similar to your squished bucket, but with a gardening tote. It's flexible and you can put cinder blocks or something on two sides to keep it in an oval shape. The only problem is that the bottom stays rounded, and also the one I got wasn't tall enough for my plates. Sigh. So now I'm using them for mixing up paper clay, then I can lift and pour it, making it like a funnel by holding the two handles together. 

I also got some (very cheap) woodworking tools that are curved to scrape out rounded or angled chunks of wood. (I don't know the term for that.) I use them to cut tight curves that my Exacto knife would not make. 

[oldlady]

thanks, min!   as always, you are so helpful to everyone.   will look it up.   thanks, again.

and you work on NEWSPAPER!   i live so far out that the washington post has to be special ordered.   that is OK, if i actually got it daily, i would read it all day long.

Edited October 24, 2022 by oldlady