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Slipping and Scoring


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While at a workshop a few weeks ago, the subject of slipping and scoring came up. Apparently there is a whole school of thought that says this is an unnecessary waste of time. This was complete news to me. I just tested some mugs this week that I did not slip and score. I was able to pull the handles from the pot and they did seem to have a nice bond. I haven't fired the pieces yet because they are still drying. So far, all looks good. I am still a bit skeptical but very hopeful at the same time.

 

Love to hear your thoughts on this.

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If I am attaching handles or parts where the only attachment to my main surface is a small area, I will always scratch and slip. The clay in this case is typically leather hard. However if I am making a coil pot for example and my clay is wetter so, I just blend the coils together. Same with slab forms. T

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I believe scoring and slip to be a matter of timing. By timing I mean joining pieces when they are in stiffer stages. If I am joining a fresh handle to a leather hard pot, scoring and slip are definitely needed. If joining tow pieces of wet clay together, just pinch pressure and smoothing are needed. If in doubt, score and slip.

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While at a workshop a few weeks ago, the subject of slipping and scoring came up. Apparently there is a whole school of thought that says this is an unnecessary waste of time. This was complete news to me. I just tested some mugs this week that I did not slip and score. I was able to pull the handles from the pot and they did seem to have a nice bond. I haven't fired the pieces yet because they are still drying. So far, all looks good. I am still a bit skeptical but very hopeful at the same time.

 

Love to hear your thoughts on this.

 

 

I think it depends on the clay. Some clays have a more open surface than others making it easier to attach parts. But I don't have a problem with taking an extra couple of seconds to dab a bit of water ("magic water", actually) on the pot and scratch the surface a bit with a tool. Even if a handle will stay on without that precious 3 or 4 seconds of extra work, it has a stronger, surer bond with the surface scratched and wet. Your pots should be worth that.

 

Jim

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It really depends on the state, of both pieces of clay. If both pieces of clay are workable, you could probably get away with just using a quick dab of water to bond the pieces. If both, or even one of, the pieces have dried, then I'd recommend scoring and using slip, or the pieces might crack/ separate.

 

I know there are plenty of ceramicists, who rarely score and slip. But I personally do, for everything except for very wet clay, or very small pieces that are difficult to score.

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I haven't scored for decades...................yikes that sounds sad.

 

 

BUT I do do a quick swipe of the surfaces to be attached with a wet sponge or brush (not too wet), then apply slip. You do have to do something to the surface first, I've done many tests, and just applying slip or just water can cause failure. If you’re using magic water its a different story.

 

I work a lot with multi sectional slabwork and scoring every surface would be time consuming, also doing it the way I described allows me more working time before the joints set up.

 

As others have pointed out there are so many variables in what someone may be attaching, do some tests before committing to something.

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This thing is going sideways again! Anything that requires a handle gets scored. Why would you risk your handles falling off? There are other ways that you can live on the edge-not when it comes to pottery.

O.K. Sometimes I move the stir stick from one glaze to another without rinsing it first.

TJR.

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This thing is going sideways again! Anything that requires a handle gets scored. Why would you risk your handles falling off? There are other ways that you can live on the edge-not when it comes to pottery.

O.K. Sometimes I move the stir stick from one glaze to another without rinsing it first.

TJR.

 

 

Canucks!!!

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This thing is going sideways again! Anything that requires a handle gets scored. Why would you risk your handles falling off? There are other ways that you can live on the edge-not when it comes to pottery.

O.K. Sometimes I move the stir stick from one glaze to another without rinsing it first.

TJR.

 

Canucks!!!

 

O.K. Made me laugh! Things can get pretty wild up here.

TJR.

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I agree with what everyone has said. If you find you can make something that doesn't need slip and scoring, don't slip and score. Otherwise, if in doubt, do it! A whole lot does depend on the clay and the state of dryness it is in.

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I teach my students to score, add water (plain ol' water, not magic), and score again. Instant slip, strong attachment. No need to keep containers of slip around the studio. I do know people who don't score, but they use deflocculated slip for joining.

 

 

For years one of the first graded assignments for my Ceramics classes was 15 pts for a box, garbage bag and lidded margarine container. Box for pot and material storage, garbage bag to store the work in progress and slow drying, margarine container for the slip which I usually added vinegar to. After research revealed "magic water" the margarine container was not so important, but I still required it for the water. I like the double scoring idea, and often do it myself.

 

In the end, as long as you work hard to get the area roughed, some extra moisture, and some pressure and smoothing joins should be good. To not take care on a joint is just looking for disaster. I think this goes double for any time one piece is much dryer than another as in adding handles onto cheese or leather hard forms.

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