Kate McCoy on mon 13 oct 08
Recipe
Take:
1 learner potter (less than 2 years) = lots of pots in the scrap bucket
1 learner potter = many different types of clay to try (smooth, groggy,
sandy, porcelain etc)
1 small studio = not enough room for different clay body scraps in
separate buckets
different clay bodies in same bucket = a very mixed up clay
This clay includes some porcelain porcelain p-clay that Hubby made.
A lot of scraps = a lot of reclaiming and wedging
a lot of wedging = one nice de-airing pugger (gift from hubby)
All of the above = one really fabulous throwing clay!
After sitting in a bag for a couple of months, it's really hard, like
iron, until you slap it around a bit and wake it up. I think that must
be inherited from the Grolleg. Once awake, it throws very thin, and also
very dry.
I'm wondering if the small addition (an accident, originally) of the
p-clay has contributed to it's ability to be thrown fairly dry without
undue stress (on the thrower), and being able to be thrown very thin. I
have done tests in the oven - it seems to hold up ok, so too in the
microwave and dishwasher. Takes every glaze I've used, and seems to be a
very nice, all around clay (except I don't like the wet colour very much).
Has anyone tried anything like this - am I asking for trouble, am I
missing anything obvious! (Oh, they are all cone 6 ish)
Kathy
gary navarre on thu 16 oct 08
Hay Kate,
I just noticed this and I've an idea. I read an article of a Southern backwoods potter who made his cones by mixing increasing persentages of wood ash for flux with some clay body and when the one with the smallest amount of ash began to bend he was reaching body vitrification. Since you are only in the ^6 range a lower melting flux besides ash would probably work better. Place these handmade cones near the regular packs for comparison during firing. I'm thinking I might have to do this myself because I lost track of some leftover ^04-^06 clay from a workshop I did when I was a kid and think it got mixed in with my high fire batch. That could become a problem if I get it hotter than ^11 so I think I'll load those pieces in the tail where it should be cooler.
Gary Navarre
Navarre Pottery
Navarre Enterprises
Norway, Michigan, USA
http://www.youtube.com/GindaUP
http://public.fotki.com/GindaUP/
--- On Mon, 10/13/08, Kate McCoy wrote:
> From: Kate McCoy
> Subject: Unusual clay body
> To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
> Date: Monday, October 13, 2008, 2:13 PM
> Recipe
>
> Take:
> 1 learner potter (less than 2 years) = lots of pots in the
> scrap bucket
> 1 learner potter = many different types of clay to try
> (smooth, groggy,
> sandy, porcelain etc)
> 1 small studio = not enough room for different clay body
> scraps in
> separate buckets
> different clay bodies in same bucket = a very mixed up clay
>
> This clay includes some porcelain porcelain p-clay that
> Hubby made.
>
> A lot of scraps = a lot of reclaiming and wedging
> a lot of wedging = one nice de-airing pugger (gift from
> hubby)
>
> All of the above = one really fabulous throwing clay!
>
> After sitting in a bag for a couple of months, it's
> really hard, like
> iron, until you slap it around a bit and wake it up. I
> think that must
> be inherited from the Grolleg. Once awake, it throws very
> thin, and also
> very dry.
>
> I'm wondering if the small addition (an accident,
> originally) of the
> p-clay has contributed to it's ability to be thrown
> fairly dry without
> undue stress (on the thrower), and being able to be thrown
> very thin. I
> have done tests in the oven - it seems to hold up ok, so
> too in the
> microwave and dishwasher. Takes every glaze I've used,
> and seems to be a
> very nice, all around clay (except I don't like the wet
> colour very much).
>
> Has anyone tried anything like this - am I asking for
> trouble, am I
> missing anything obvious! (Oh, they are all cone 6 ish)
>
> Kathy
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