VanJDuda Posted February 4, 2015 Report Share Posted February 4, 2015 Hello all! I believe I've already post about this one project I've done, but now I have a whole new question about it. While I was sculpting these hands, I slipped some aluminum alloy armature wire inside the fingers and never took it out. I was hoping to fire and glaze them, but I'm worried that it will explode because of the armature. Should I bother to fire it (someone wants to buy them) or should I just spray paint it and call it a day? Clay: White Stone Mountain Clay (water), 8" long, widest part is 1 1/2" I was told by the man that sold me the wire I could fire the armature, but I'm having doubts. The fingers did crack a little where the wire may be, but the product's website said "The wire will not corrode or stain, and has a melting point of 1220 degrees F/660 degrees C." Thank you so much!! Savannah Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
High Bridge Pottery Posted February 4, 2015 Report Share Posted February 4, 2015 A bisque is over those temps for it to melt. Would it melt everywhere and break the sculpture or come out in a controlled way or is is sealed into the sculpture. Hard to know what would happen. Is it completely solid? Nice looking hands you have there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VanJDuda Posted February 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2015 A bisque is over those temps for it to melt. Would it melt everywhere and break the sculpture or come out in a controlled way or is is sealed into the sculpture. Hard to know what would happen. Is it completely solid? Nice looking hands you have there. Thank you!! Yes, it's completely solid - I need it to stay in one piece so it's useless to try to fire at a temp. lower than the melting point? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted February 4, 2015 Report Share Posted February 4, 2015 If you don't fire it, it will be much too fragile to sell. The odds of it breaking are much too high. Unfired clay has zero durability, even if you paint it. If you fire the piece, it could be a total disaster, as that aluminum will melt. I think that by the time it gets up to bisque temps the wire will be gassing out and will blow the piece apart, much like steam explosions. I could be wrong, though, and there's no way to know for sure without doing it. It's worthless if you don't fire it, so you might as well give it a try. I would put the hands inside another form or under a bowl or something so as to keep it from getting all over the kiln if it does explode, and to contain the melted metal if it oozes out somehow. You stand the risk of ruining a kiln shelf. If it's not your kiln, get approval form the owner. The hands look to be a bit thick, so you're going to want to fire really slowly or else you'll blow them up. You could fire as low as 1500F and still get some level of durability. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
High Bridge Pottery Posted February 4, 2015 Report Share Posted February 4, 2015 I have never fired aluminium wire in a kiln so I don't really know what will happen to it. Worst case, it cracks and you get aluminium wire everywhere. As it is solid clay you are going to have a tough time firing it without it cracking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VanJDuda Posted February 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2015 If you don't fire it, it will be much too fragile to sell. The odds of it breaking are much too high. Unfired clay has zero durability, even if you paint it. If you fire the piece, it could be a total disaster, as that aluminum will melt. I think that by the time it gets up to bisque temps the wire will be gassing out and will blow the piece apart, much like steam explosions. I could be wrong, though, and there's no way to know for sure without doing it. It's worthless if you don't fire it, so you might as well give it a try. I would put the hands inside another form or under a bowl or something so as to keep it from getting all over the kiln if it does explode, and to contain the melted metal if it oozes out somehow. You stand the risk of ruining a kiln shelf. If it's not your kiln, get approval form the owner. The hands look to be a bit thick, so you're going to want to fire really slowly or else you'll blow them up. You could fire as low as 1500F and still get some level of durability. True.. I don't want to sell anything that's going to fall apart. Is 1500F the lowest I can go? And it'll be my kiln, so no one else's stuff is going to get ruined. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VanJDuda Posted February 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 4, 2015 Would a sawdust firing suffice and keep it strong enough? I know that's around 1350, but it's the lowest I can think of Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted February 4, 2015 Report Share Posted February 4, 2015 It would never survive a sawdust firing. You've got to fire it long and slow since it is solid. Most folks who sawdust fire bisque first. It greatly increases the chance of surviving the sawdust firing, which tends to heat the pots quickly and unevenly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benzine Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 What about removing the armature? Slowly remoisten the clay, to about leatherhard. Cut the sculpture in half, remove the armature, and score and slip back together. You could hallow the piece a bit more, to solve the drying issue. Not sure if this solution will work, in this case, just a thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Coyle Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 if the wire is all connected together and is sticking out so that it is exposed to the atmosphere, you might be able to just melt it out and let it oxidixe without blowing anything apart. Put a good layer of kiln wash on your shelves and bring it slowly up to around 1300F. This is above the melting point but below the boiling point. So all that should be happening is oxidation to the oxide , which is inert. hold it ther for a couple of hours. Thin sheets or wires of aluminum oxidize quickly. That should melt/oxidize out the aluminum and give the clay enough strength to re- fire it after the aluminum has oxidized out. It's worth a try.... any other way you will probably lose the sculpter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tristan TDH Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 Instead of risking the kiln, and everyone else's ( and your other ) work by firing these, you should probably put these on a shelf and do them again. On the up side, if you've done it once, it is something that you can do again. Additionally it will likely be better the second or third time you do it anyway. I often see people spend so much time trying to "save" work that is problematic, sometimes spending more time trying to save a piece than it would take to do it over. This sounds like it may be one of those situations. As an artist you cant be timid about chucking out work that isn't making the cut, as long as you learn from it, its not a waste, its just a step to the work that does make the cut, that is something to be proud of. Don't waste time, just learn from it and do it again. Practice makes perfect.... or closer to perfect anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Denice Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 I would try making them again without a armature, cut it into sections and hollow it out and put it back together. Don't let it get to dry before you do this, fine detailed work can be done last. Denice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jolieo Posted February 5, 2015 Report Share Posted February 5, 2015 Hi Make a mold. Then you could make them hollow if you wanted to. Beautiful hands. Two part plaster mold, then you could pour one half , the other and join. Could do a latex but I am more unsure of the method. Jolie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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