Daniel L. Russ on wed 27 mar 96
Has anyone seen or used the new Shimpo Master Series potters wheel?
They look like a work of art. There's a picture of one on the inside
cover of the current Ceramics Monthly. I have ordered a few (for my
upcoming sale) but would like to know what others think about these exciting
new 1/2 and 1 h.p. potters wheels.
Daniel Russ
Nevada Dan's Pottery Supplies
russ@scs.unr.edu
Nevada - Home of the extraterrestrial highway
Powning Designs Ltd, Sussex on thu 28 mar 96
Saw one last weekend and it was excellent in every respect but one. The
splash pan is huge and forces you to sit with legs like your riding a
Percheron workhorse. This makes for an uncomfortable distance to the wheel.
With a better designed splash pan it would be the cats ass.
Peter Powning
(working my way through my 5th wheel in 25 years, next one might be a Shimpo
Master Series)
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>Has anyone seen or used the new Shimpo Master Series potters wheel?
>They look like a work of art. There's a picture of one on the inside
>cover of the current Ceramics Monthly. I have ordered a few (for my
>upcoming sale) but would like to know what others think about these exciting
>new 1/2 and 1 h.p. potters wheels.
>
>Daniel Russ
>Nevada Dan's Pottery Supplies
>russ@scs.unr.edu
>
>Nevada - Home of the extraterrestrial highway
>
>
Vince Pitelka on fri 29 mar 96
O.K., this is going to be my chance to bitch to all of you about Shimpos. Let
me preface this by saying that I LOVE the mechanics of the old Shimpos. As I
mentioned in a post several months ago, the wheel I have used for the last 20
years or so is a home-built one loosely based on the early Shimpos. I bought
the rubber ring and cone from Shimpo and designed the rest to fit my 6'5"
frame. Regular Shimpos are designed for tiny people. Mine has worked
perfectly for 20 years, with only one replacement of the rubber ring. This
wheel was based on the excellent early design with the motor sliding
horizontally. At the Craft Center we have 20 or so RK-2s, with the motor
swinging on a pivot. This is the worst design Shimpo ever came up with, and we
have to live with it, as the wheels are otherwise indestructible. How can such
a reputable company go from such a superior early design, to a cut-rate
mechanical cop-out like the RK-2? I understand the more recent
mechanical-drive wheels are much better than the RK-2, but I have not had a
chance to try them.
Now, to the Master Series wheels. I had a chance to sit and play with one of
these wheels in the Shimpo booth at NCECA. For the first time in Shimpo
history, these wheels are DC electronic-speed-control units like all the other
brands on the market, but these wheels are incredibly quiet, smooth, and
powerful. On the big model I grabbed one edge of the wheelhead and stepped
slightly on the pedal, and the wheel proceeded to drag itself across the floor
without the slightest hesitation. I then grabbed the wheelhead by both sides
and stepped on the pedal, and it was a toss-up between the entire wheel
assembly rotating on the floor, or else dragging me around it. The wheel
wasn't straining in the least. It reassures you with a feeling of extreme
quality in design and construction.
BUT, when it comes to splash-pan designs, Shimpo has ALWAYS had their head up
their ___, and if anything, these new wheels are a step backwards in this area.
How is it that a company which consistently (aside from the RK-2) makes such
ingenious and well-constructed machines can be SO FAR off base on any kind of
reasonable splash-pan design??? IS ANYONE OUT THERE FROM SHIMPO??
I tried to talk to the Shimpo representative at the NCECA booth about this, and
she simply said "You don't HAVE to use the splash-pan." I said "I WANT a
splash pan, but I want one that is not in the way and is easy to clean. Shimpo
has NEVER come up with one that meets this criteria." She was unnecessarily
defensive, because I acknowledged what a fine machine they make otherwise. In
the recent mechanical drive wheels they made a small step in the right
direction with a rather awkward two-piece splash-pan, but in the Master Series
wheels they are back to a one-piece pan that cannot be removed without taking
off the wheelhead. Are they suffering from some kind of design dislexia??
How much more obvious can an obvious disadvantage be?? Also, as someone
already pointed out, the splash pan is HUGE, and forces you to sit with your
legs at maximum straddle - very awkward and uncomfortable.
One BIG improvement in the Master Series wheels is a large optional
formica-topped work table. It shows that SOMEONE at Shimpo is thinking about
something beyond the mechanics. There. I ended on a positive note.
Vince Pitelka - wkp0067@tntech.edu
Appalachian Center for Crafts - Tennessee Technological University
Smithville, TN
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