Beer mug size

[Sylvie]

I was wondering what size should I throw a beer mug that would be 20 oz with about 1/2" to 1" space at the top. (I would think 21-22 oz to the top) I know using 2# of clay would be the amount of clay, but how tall and how wide should I make the cylinder before shaping it.

Thank you

[Bill Kielb]

one way -
Pick a height or width you like put it in a volume calculator https://www.omnicalculator.com/math/cylinder-volume. Make sure the calculator is set to inches high, inches diameter, fluid ounces. Determine the shrinkage of your clay, let’s say 12% as an example. Then throw your mug by multiplying the design height and diameter to be 112% (1.12) so your mug ends up shrinking to the expected design amount.

Comfortable and aesthetic diameters for mugs are approximately 3-1/2” -4” with 4” closer to a stein type vessel. A vessel that is thrown at 3-7/8” diameter and 5.5 inches tall  likely fires and holds 26 oz and finishes about 5 inches tall and 3-/3/4”  diameter after firing.. All that’s left is pick a nice handle and personalize! If I remember correctly, the mug below is about 4” in diameter and a touch over 5” tall and holds two full cans of beer (or soda) leaving room for a nice trimmed foot - maybe 1/4” or less.

 

Edited January 14, 2023 by Bill Kielb

[Sylvie]

Thank you, that really help me figuring out the size I need to make.

[Callie Beller Diesel]

Just because my son was working on statistics math* earlier:

Adding 12% clay shrinkage to your estimated final size isn’t the same is a piece shrinking 12%. It doesn’t usually matter a lot when you’re making relatively small items like this, but the slight difference can be a nuisance if you were, say, trying to throw a 20 oz mug that fits a silicone travel lid.

12% of 10 cm (for easy math purposes) is 1.2 cm. So if a 10 cm cylinder shrinks 12%, it’s now 8.8 cm tall. But if you start with an 8.8 cm cylinder and add 12% to that, 12% of 8.8 is 1.056 and you wind up with 9.856cm. It’s not a lot, and likely won’t mess with volume measurements at this scale, but it’s enough to mess with lid fit. The difference gets more significant with larger shrinkage percentages and larger dimensions.

If you want to end up with a 10 cm cylinder and your clay shrinks 12%, then 10 cm is 88% of whatever the starting point is. So you divide 10 cm by .88 to get 11.36 (rounded) cm. 

 

*Yes, I used pottery shrinkage as a real life example for why he needed to learn this. 

[Mark C.]

I would use 1.5 #s of clay or just a bit less.In porcelain . My 24-26 oz mugs are 1.5#s of clay

[Bill Kielb]

@Sylvie @min and @mark have great points each! The one way to do this is something we teach at the wheel that can be done in your head. The exact solution as min mentioned is your starting dimension divided by (1- percentage shrinkage). so if you want some future dimension to shrink to a certain exact known size definitely divide by 0.88 - in this case for 12% shrinkage to equal your intended fired dimension.

@Mark makes a great point in that everyone throws differently and 1.5 #’s gets him there. So depending on how you throw and your design requirements you may use more clay.

Just a mention on precision - we used to have folks throw a tall bail wire locking canister just for fun. (bail wire lock and gasket free for the project). This project would make everyone really think and experiment with how to get all the stuff to fit precisely while also challenging their ability to throw taller.

In the end, clay often does not shrink exactly some specific even number percentage so potters learn by experience where to increase their size or allowance a bit or create a practical way to throw with some extra room for proper fit of all things. In the photo below, the lid fit, wire fit diameter as well as spacing of the wire from the top made folks think a bit. Most after practicing found this was pretty easy with an attempt or two under their belt. It definitely made them realize with some practice this was something one could learn to do with a bit of practice.

 

 

[Mark C.]

What kind of clay ,and how much throwing you have done ,will all factor into how much clay is needed to get a certain size. Its not a one size fits all deal

I wrote in a CM article a few years back throwing clay amounts if I recall for porcelain in our studio

here they are for porcelain  in a production studio setting

weights =oz

3/4# =8-10oz mug

1# 12-14oz mug

1 1/4# 16-18oz mug 

1 1/2 # 24-26oz mug

2#-34-38 oz mug

Now as I said throwing clays (some clays throw better than others) and skill level with vary the outcomes

We make 7 kinds/sizes of mugs and none are called beer mugs just different sizes for all uses.

I do make what I call a soup mug and also a motion mug/trucker mug . They are not on the list above. The soup mugs are low and wide and the motion are inverted V shpae with smaller opening so thay do not splash out and come with a rubber botton no skid so you can leave them on the roof your car and drive a few blocks and still stop and get your morning coffee if you remember it soon enough

My customers sometimes get the soup mug idea but not aways and the trucker mugs are a long ago item that no one seems to make anymore and sell well in galleries.

 

 

Edited January 17, 2023 by Mark C.