Curtis Adkins on tue 21 aug 12
Hello Everybody,
I am trying to throw standing up and am having major problems. First and
foremost, centering is nearly impossible. I can't seem to get my wheel
anywhere near level. Secondly, at belly button height, I can't seem to get
much pressure on my ball of clay. I'm 5'7" and I cannot throw sitting
anymore due to a bad back and a touch of sciatica. Any and all advice would
greatly appreciated.
Oh, I am using a Shimpo VL Whisper on top of cinder blocks...I was only
slightly off plumb on the ground, (garage floor) but now it is much worse.
Thanks in advance,
*Sincerely,
Curtis Adkins
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=3Dhome#!/profile.php?id=3D576401640
http://www.zazzle.com/monk64
http://twitter.com/Monk1964
http://d-monk-1982.blogspot.com/
*
Taylor Hendrix on tue 21 aug 12
Curtis,
You do not need a level wheel to throw pots. Close enough is good enough. I
think you are just suffering from a learning curve. I too had problems at
first centering clay, but I just needed to gain a feel for the new body
position. Glick wrote a great article about his back problems and
subsequent stand-up throwing. He even has sketches of his support board for
his back. I do not use any support at this time but have learned to lean
into my clay (not huge amounts of it) and use the splash pan for more
throwing support. Finding the throwing height that causes no back pain
while throwing is very important. I learned the hard way that any error in
the height causes (for me) serious back pain and spasms.
As to centering, if I can get it, I use sooooooft clay which allows me to
center with less force. I have adapted my centering to take advantage of
opposing hands (especially with small amounts of clay) when I can and
leaning into the clay ball, one foot in front of the other, elbow into
body, when necessary. If you have good arm strength, you might even try
leaning back from the clay to center.
I too use a VL Whisper, but have my wheel up on a wooden platform I built
just for it. I plan on adding a built crib around the wheel head for
catching trimmings etc and allowing me to lean my forearms at the wheel for
more support. Good luck with your switch.
Taylor, in Rockport TX
wirerabbit1 on Skype (-0600 UTC)
http://wirerabbit.blogspot.com
http://wirerabbitpots.blogspot.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wirerabbit/
https://youtube.com/thewirerabbit
On Tue, Aug 21, 2012 at 9:58 AM, Curtis Adkins wrote=
:
> Hello Everybody,
>
> I am trying to throw standing up and am having major problems. First and
> foremost, centering is nearly impossible. I can't seem to get my wheel
> anywhere near level. Secondly, at belly button height, I can't seem to ge=
t
> much pressure on my ball of clay. I'm 5'7" and I cannot throw sitting
> anymore due to a bad back and a touch of sciatica. Any and all advice wou=
ld
> greatly appreciated.
>
> Oh, I am using a Shimpo VL Whisper on top of cinder blocks...I was only
> slightly off plumb on the ground, (garage floor) but now it is much worse=
.
> Thanks in advance,
>
> *Sincerely,
> Curtis Adkins
>
> http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=3Dhome#!/profile.php?id=3D576401640
> http://www.zazzle.com/monk64
> http://twitter.com/Monk1964
> http://d-monk-1982.blogspot.com/
> *
>
David McBeth on tue 21 aug 12
I am 6' 2"+ and find the cylinder vertical position perfect for throwing
standing up at the shimpo vl whisper, if you have the blocks vertical, you
might try them horizontal. also when throwing standing up, shift your
right foot back and lean your left hip into the wheel. that gives you
more strength and stability.
On Aug 21, 2012 11:01 AM, "Curtis Adkins" wrote:
> Hello Everybody,
>
> I am trying to throw standing up and am having major problems. First and
> foremost, centering is nearly impossible. I can't seem to get my wheel
> anywhere near level. Secondly, at belly button height, I can't seem to ge=
t
> much pressure on my ball of clay. I'm 5'7" and I cannot throw sitting
> anymore due to a bad back and a touch of sciatica. Any and all advice wou=
ld
> greatly appreciated.
>
> Oh, I am using a Shimpo VL Whisper on top of cinder blocks...I was only
> slightly off plumb on the ground, (garage floor) but now it is much worse=
.
> Thanks in advance,
>
> *Sincerely,
> Curtis Adkins
>
> http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=3Dhome#!/profile.php?id=3D576401640
> http://www.zazzle.com/monk64
> http://twitter.com/Monk1964
> http://d-monk-1982.blogspot.com/
> *
>
Steve Mills on tue 21 aug 12
I find the concept of throwing standing up to relieve back pain very intere=
s=3D
ting, as the exact reverse is how I deal with it.=3D20
The majority of wheels available in the UK when I was in production had bui=
l=3D
t-in seats, so my first solution to relieve pain (I have a Lumbar disc prob=
l=3D
em) was to install a Bum (aka Arse) Stop on the seat. My reasoning was that=
w=3D
hen you are leaning into the clay (using applied body weight as opposed to =
m=3D
uscle) to centre, your backside is doing its best to head in the opposite d=
i=3D
rection, leading to muscular schizophrenia (for want of a better word) and =
p=3D
ain as you try to balance the two forces in play.=3D20
This was very effective, but not the complete answer. That appeared when =
I=3D
was demo-ing on another potters' wheel where the wheelhead was further fro=
m=3D
the seat then in my then current wheel. I'd clamped a Bum Stop onto the se=
a=3D
t, but found I was throwing straight or "hollow" backed as opposed to my no=
r=3D
mal humped posture.=3D20
I started the demo with back pain and finished it pain free!
That was a revelation!
I throw these days on my VL with a separate home built "non-return" seat se=
t=3D
far enough away to keep my back straight/hollow.=3D20
I now throw seated and entirely pain free!!
Different strokes.............?
Steve M
Steve Mills
Bath
UK
www.mudslinger.me.uk
Sent from my iPod
On 21 Aug 2012, at 18:21, Taylor Hendrix wrote:
> Curtis,
>=3D20
> You do not need a level wheel to throw pots. Close enough is good enough.=
I=3D
> think you are just suffering from a learning curve. I too had problems at
> first centering clay, but I just needed to gain a feel for the new body
> position. Glick wrote a great article about his back problems and
> subsequent stand-up throwing. He even has sketches of his support board f=
o=3D
r
> his back. I do not use any support at this time but have learned to lean
> into my clay (not huge amounts of it) and use the splash pan for more
> throwing support. Finding the throwing height that causes no back pain
> while throwing is very important. I learned the hard way that any error i=
n=3D
> the height causes (for me) serious back pain and spasms.
>=3D20
> As to centering, if I can get it, I use sooooooft clay which allows me to
> center with less force. I have adapted my centering to take advantage of
> opposing hands (especially with small amounts of clay) when I can and
> leaning into the clay ball, one foot in front of the other, elbow into
> body, when necessary. If you have good arm strength, you might even try
> leaning back from the clay to center.
>=3D20
> I too use a VL Whisper, but have my wheel up on a wooden platform I built
> just for it. I plan on adding a built crib around the wheel head for
> catching trimmings etc and allowing me to lean my forearms at the wheel f=
o=3D
r
> more support. Good luck with your switch.
>=3D20
>=3D20
> Taylor, in Rockport TX
> wirerabbit1 on Skype (-0600 UTC)
> http://wirerabbit.blogspot.com
> http://wirerabbitpots.blogspot.com
> http://www.flickr.com/photos/wirerabbit/
> https://youtube.com/thewirerabbit
>=3D20
>=3D20
> On Tue, Aug 21, 2012 at 9:58 AM, Curtis Adkins wro=
t=3D
e:
>=3D20
>> Hello Everybody,
>>=3D20
>> I am trying to throw standing up and am having major problems. First and
>> foremost, centering is nearly impossible. I can't seem to get my wheel
>> anywhere near level. Secondly, at belly button height, I can't seem to g=
e=3D
t
>> much pressure on my ball of clay. I'm 5'7" and I cannot throw sitting
>> anymore due to a bad back and a touch of sciatica. Any and all advice wo=
u=3D
ld
>> greatly appreciated.
>>=3D20
>> Oh, I am using a Shimpo VL Whisper on top of cinder blocks...I was only
>> slightly off plumb on the ground, (garage floor) but now it is much wors=
e=3D
.
>> Thanks in advance,
>>=3D20
>> *Sincerely,
>> Curtis Adkins
>>=3D20
>> http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=3D3Dhome#!/profile.php?id=3D3D57640=
1640
>> http://www.zazzle.com/monk64
>> http://twitter.com/Monk1964
>> http://d-monk-1982.blogspot.com/
>> *
>>=3D20
Snail Scott on wed 22 aug 12
H, Curtis-
My experience is limited to watching students with
such issues, but a few thoughts:
Try 'pulling' the clay toward you to center. It's less
leverage than pushing in a seated posture, but
when standing you can lean your gut against a rigid
pan or board and pull pretty well. Join your two hands
together and pull toward yourself. This gets the heavy
centering out of the way, and the fine-tuning can
proceed in your usual way.
Some folks attach a board to a pivot at the back corner
of the wheel, and pull the board toward or away from
themselves. The board extends beyond the wheelhead,
so you get a fair amount of leverage with minimal
effort. Again, it needs finishing up with hands, but it gets
the major-muscle centering out of the way. I haven't
done this myself, but it may be an option for you.
If you don't find that 'pulling' to center is viable, find a way
to brace your back so that when you push to center, you
aren't relying solely on your muscles to resist the clay.
Back the wheel close to a wall, or build a backstop.
Also, make your clay balls as round as possible before
putting them on the wheel, then take care to place them
as close to center as possible to begin with. Bash any
sticking-out bits inward with your fist or a paddle to get
it as close as possible to centered, before beginning the
centering process. It's possible to get very close!
I find that leveling the wheel is not essential at all. A
sloping wheel is something that needs a bit of
compensating for, but I once propped one leg of a
school wheel up on a brick just to demonstrate. The
students thought it was funny and most of the ones who
tried it did OK after just a little practice. You just have to
pull 'up' a little to one side. So, I don't think it's levelness
that's the problem; might be something else. Is the
wheelhead true, relative to the shaft? That's more critical,
and harder to work around.
-Snail
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