Julie_R Posted January 5 Report Share Posted January 5 Hi. I'm curious to find out what kind of work surface people prefer when rolling slabs and hand building and why? Canvas covered board? Fibre cement sheet? Ply wood? etc Personally I like to work on fibre cement sheet because I'm impatient and don't like to wait while the clay sets up. Drawback to that is I gotta work fast in the summer! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidh4976 Posted January 5 Report Share Posted January 5 I use fabric backed vinyl for hand building, wedging, and rolling. Vinyl side down. It's available at fabric stores and lasts a good while. I've tried hardibacker cement board, birch plywood, canvas, and plaster. I will use cement board if I need to wedge clay that needs some drying. I use drywall with taped edges for ware board. Julie_R, Rae Reich and Hulk 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hulk Posted January 5 Report Share Posted January 5 I'm also using tile backer board for wedging surface - one each for red, buff/brown/black and red clays. It's easy to clean, lightweight, the clay doesn't stick (much). Plaster slabs and bats are handy for drying - clay to be worked, wares to be trimmed, and freshly trimmed wares as well. For ware board, wafer board scraps with the one smooth side, wafer board with shelf paper on one side, and particle board with shelf paper on one side. Julie_R and Rae Reich 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly in AK Posted January 5 Report Share Posted January 5 I use cement board for multiple things: wedging, ware boards, and working on. As a work surface I have to get it wet or my clay dries out too fast. Rae Reich and Julie_R 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rae Reich Posted January 5 Report Share Posted January 5 For my slab roller I use Sunbrella fabric, separate ones for each clay color. It has minimal texture and is very durable and flexible but doesn’t stretch out. Absorbs very little moisture. I like the reverse fabric side of vinyl idea - no absorption but probably doesn’t stick to the clay so much because of the weave. Julie_R 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denice Posted January 6 Report Share Posted January 6 I use the heavy canvas fabric that you can purchase with the slab roller, I have one for light clay and the other for dark. I also like the idea of the fabric backed vinyl, I will have to dig through my husband's scrap box and see what he has. We have been on a buy only what you really need binge for a couple of years. We also have been donating truck loads of stuff to the DAV, I don't think he would give away upholstery scraps for his cars. His mother died during COVID and we ended up with most of her treasures in our basement. We have enough for one more truck load and I will be able to walk through my sewing room. Denice Julie_R, Babs and Rae Reich 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeU Posted January 6 Report Share Posted January 6 I use the printers blankets (free/low cost/different sizes from printers) that Old Lady turned us to, as well as (depending on project/purpose) slab mats. I use drywall for ware boards. I use a canvas covered large cement paver for some things. like cut & slam wedging. Rae Reich, Roberta12 and Julie_R 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie_R Posted January 6 Author Report Share Posted January 6 Yes @davidh4976. At one of the workshops I attended last year, the instructor used upside down vinyl on the surfaces at the community hall. then when the session was over she just rolled it up & hey presto, tables were left clean. I tried it for a while in the studio but i was a bit over zealous with the fettling knife & had to replace it. Rae Reich 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie_R Posted January 6 Author Report Share Posted January 6 4 hours ago, LeeU said: I use the printers blankets (free/low cost/different sizes from printers) that Old Lady turned us to, as well as (depending on project/purpose) slab mats. I use drywall for ware boards. I use a canvas covered large cement paver for some things. like cut & slam wedging. So @LeeU, tell me more about this printers blanket you mention? Do you use it as a work surface or with a slab roller? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie_R Posted January 6 Author Report Share Posted January 6 15 hours ago, Hulk said: For ware board, wafer board scraps with the one smooth side, wafer board with shelf paper on one side, and particle board with shelf paper on one side. So @Hulk, do you staple/glue/tape the paper to the board? Does it last very long? My husband is a builder & uses building wrap on the outside of frames & trusses. Its blue on one side & silver on the other. Would this work do you think or would it need to be absorbent? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rae Reich Posted January 6 Report Share Posted January 6 ps, I didn’t pay for the Sunbrella fabric, I went to an awning shop and asked for scraps. Left them a pot as a thank you Julie_R 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pres Posted January 6 Report Share Posted January 6 My wedging table is covered with heavy canvas purchased years ago for that purpose. However I now have a plywood top that fits over the canvas that I wedge on. . . less dust, just as easy to wedge on once you get used to it. best, Pres Julie_R and Rae Reich 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hulk Posted January 6 Report Share Posted January 6 "...do you staple/glue/tape the paper to the board? Does it last very long?" I'm folding the shelf paper over the edges and stapling to hold the edges down. The shelf paper has a removable backing that reveals a sticky side; the side that shows is shiny. I needed ware board - smooth, for freshly trimmed feet! I'm not doing any work on the shelf paper surface, just setting down and picking up pots; they don't show any wear yet, but it hasn't been terribly long either. Julie_R 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denice Posted January 6 Report Share Posted January 6 3 hours ago, Rae Reich said: ps, I didn’t pay for the Sunbrella fabric, I went to an awning shop and asked for scraps. Left them a pot as a thank you I am glad you clarified where you got your Sunbrella fabric. When I was a decorator I would use some Sunbrella fabric, it was the same weight as regular fabric but had a waterproof treatment on it. If this is awning fabric it is much more durable and heavier than retail Sunbrella. Denice Rae Reich 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted January 6 Report Share Posted January 6 (edited) Sunbrella is what I have on my boats covers ,also on my Tee Top. Its extra heavy and waterproof (I spray it every few years) to keep it that way. In terms of work surface for clay slabs it depends on what they are used for-if its going say into a baking dish plaster form I rough cut them on the slab roller paper (slab Matt) with a plastic tool (so its gental on slab matt) if say I am cutting the details of a wall fish I drop the semi dried slab on a paper covered plywood piece to cut with a sharp clay cutter as I do not care about the paper or wood to cut on I wedge clay on a 4 inch thick plaster table that is built into shop since 1973 but never cut on it. That table weighs to much to move and its part of the built in stuff in shop. Edited January 8 by Mark C. Rae Reich 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie_R Posted January 7 Author Report Share Posted January 7 17 hours ago, Rae Reich said: ps, I didn’t pay for the Sunbrella fabric, I went to an awning shop and asked for scraps. Left them a pot as a thank you Barter system @Rae Reich? Great idea. I love it! Rae Reich 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rae Reich Posted January 7 Report Share Posted January 7 Regarding the printers’ blankets that @LeeU and @oldlady swear by, I’ve never seen one, but from what @oldlady described you need to find a printer who still uses a printing press. They replace the blankets often and discard the used ones. @LeeU, can you confirm? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Min Posted January 7 Report Share Posted January 7 Printers blanket, top side is the cream colour and has a very fine texture, much less than the canvas usually used for slab rollers. Bottom side is blue rubber material. Another advantage of using these is they don't bunch up like can happen with canvas sometimes when starting to put it through the rollers. Hulk and Rae Reich 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldlady Posted January 10 Report Share Posted January 10 (edited) thank you, madeleine, your picture of the printer's blanket is just what i have wanted to do for years. posting pictures is so complicated now, that i have not even tried. windows 7 was easy. i am now up to windows 11 and i do not even want to try. rae, if you just call any large printer and ask them if they use printer's blankets they will tell you. some smaller blankets are used by smaller companies so ask if they do city size newspapers. all the blankets i have used came from big city newspaper printers and were the size of an open newspaper. i am sure that los angeles has at least one big newspaper. ask them the name of their printer. i cut them so they will fit on my 24 inch bailey slab roller so i usually get a top and a bottom out of one 48inch wide blanket. the printer uses the blue side and sometimes it is not totally clean. ask what they use to remove the ink. i think i remember fingernail polish remover working. hulk, can you identify the shelf "paper" you use? around here people call the brand called "Conctact" which is actually plastic, not paper, "shelf paper". i am sure mentioning a brand name here is not forbidden. Edited January 10 by oldlady add Min and Rae Reich 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hulk Posted January 10 Report Share Posted January 10 We have/had several rolls of Con-Tact brand shelf/drawer liner left over from fourteen or more years ago. Lady is correct, the film is plastic-like; it can be wiped with a damp sponge. The other brand, I'll have to go look... Rae Reich 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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