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Once Fired Paperclay?


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Hi Paperclay guru's,

 

Have any of you had experience once firing your work, probably ^6 oxidation. Are there problems with the glaze on thin bone dry pieces distorting the work? I will be spraying or brushing the glazes. Will the clay absorb as much glaze as when it is bisqued first. Is there any size limitation with once firing? What about pieces blowing up? Is there more or less danger.

 

Thanks for you help!

 

acg

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I dont have to much info to offer but I hate to see posts with multiple views and no replies. So here we go. Hmm well Im still dabbling with paperclay. Although paperclay still has an amount of porosity to it due to the fibers space after burn out. I dont know if it would be the best choice for a fountain. Pieces only blow up because of the moisture left in clay if fired without drying properly. You would want to make sure it dries COMPLETELY! Some say that paperclay has the advantage of not exploding if someone leaves an air pocket etc because the fibers burn out early leaving space for moisture to escape as it turns to gas. I actually fired something the other day and forgot to put holes in alot of the pieces (multiple egg shapes) too my surprise none were lost. I cant say that my statement is hard evidence and I would never purposely make that mistake again.

 

Im not sure when it comes to your worry of "once firing." Many people fire glazed greenware. Size limitation? I would think if you have a kiln big enough for the piece there shouldnt be a problem.

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A friend recently attended a Steven Hill workshop ..... he once-fires at Cone 6 oxidation. She said it was amazing.....he poured the glaze inside the piece and sprays the outside. Beautiful work. Here's a link of some workshop photos I found on the internet. Maybe you could find more regarding his work.

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Hi Paperclay guru's,

 

Have any of you had experience once firing your work, probably ^6 oxidation. Are there problems with the glaze on thin bone dry pieces distorting the work? I will be spraying or brushing the glazes. Will the clay absorb as much glaze as when it is bisqued first. Is there any size limitation with once firing? What about pieces blowing up? Is there more or less danger.

 

Thanks for you help!

 

acg

 

HI acg,

 

You can do a one fire with paper clay. I've taken my Aardvark Papel Cone 5 porcelain to a cone 5 fire without going thru bisque. There is no issue with a one fire. I tend to work without glazes so I did not use any with that test.

 

All the literature on paper clay (my primary info is from Graham Hay and Rosette Gault) indicates that you can glaze a raw paper clay piece. You paper clay piece should be bone dry and as such it will absorb the glaze very quickly. Just be sure not to over glaze it in one sitting. If you need to apply another coat of glaze, let the first layer dry completely. Thin bone dry paperclay will absorb water very quickly and become leather hard again, so several thin coats of glaze is better than one thick application.

 

Hope this helps,

Anthony

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I haven't once fired paper clay to cone six , but have been working with paper clay since 1993. The most important thing I can think of is to make sure the glaze has completely dried after you apply it. Sometimes my paper clay takes a while to dry. I also recommend setting large pieces on coils to allow moisture to escape in the kiln. trapped moisture sitting on a shelf can blow up.

The coils which I extrude thru a steel grid of 1/4 inch holes are preferable to firing on grog because they allow more air under the piece and help steam escape.

Marcia

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