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hand wedging is important - "s" cracks, glaze defects, etc

updated sat 31 may 97

 

Talbott on mon 26 may 97

Even though we use a Venco 4" Deairing Pugmill, Celia still does a brief
amount of hand wedging and it eliminates a lot of problems such as "S"
cracks and glaze defects.. such as pitting. Prior to throwing a small
bowl or tumbler for a mug she will wedge 15-20 seconds or so and form the
clay into a spiral or cone shape before throwing the clay on the wheel
head... Does the pugmill do its job? Yes, it does and it saves a
tremendous amount of labor in preparing the clay prior to use.. The pugged
logs are easily cut to lengths with various wire jigs which have been made
up... This saves a tremendous amount of time on measuring... And obviously
the amount of wedging time is cut down by a factor of 4 or 5... So my
recommendation is even and slow drying... which involves covering and
uncovering the work with plastic bags depending on temp and humidity, and
turning the pieces so the bottoms can dry evenly... Bottoms that are TOO
THICK is a sure way to develop "S" cracks as well.... ...Marshall

1ST ANNUAL CLAYARTERS' GALLERY - NAPLES, MAINE (Summer 1997)
http://fmc.utm.edu/~dmcbeth/cag/naples.htm

Celia & Marshall Talbott, Pottery By Celia, Route 114, P O Box 4116,
Naples, Maine 04055-4116,(207)693-6100 voice and fax,(call first)
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