F H Parker on sat 22 may 99
Hello:
I'm sure someone here can advise me on a project I would like to do: I am
not a potter, and know virtually nothing about pottery other than
appreciating it. Although not a professional. I am an "avocational
sculptor" who works in welded steel, so I have some knowledge of
metalworking and the skills needed to join metals.
My neighbor's 10-year old daughter recently took an art course in which she
was exposed to a potter's wheel. She fell in love with it, and wants to do
more but for many reasons the opportunity just hasn't happened. If it's not
impossible, I'd like to build her a simple kick wheel that she can use at
home. I know it could just be a passing flash, but on the other hand she
could be a "real" artist just waiting for the opportunity to blossom. I
also know she has to find a way to fire her work, but I'm counting on that
being easier to find in our area than the wheel.
My problem is, because I'm not a potter myself I don't know how to design a
wheel that really works. I know it's simple -- flywheel, shaft and work
surface all tied together and supported, with a seat. It's the "...all tied
together and supported, with a seat" that confuses me. If anybody knows of
available plans for a wheel (satisfactory for a 10-year old with room to
grow) and recommendations for the proper type bearings to use I would very
much appreciate hearing about it. So far I have been unsuccessful searching
the internet (except for finding Clayart).
Thanks for the advice.
Fred Parker
fred@vcsatlanta.com
Merrill Rush on sat 22 may 99
Good for you,Dad !!!! It is never too early to encourage our children to
discover their many talents and develop them.
I have an old copy of a book by Charles Counts called POTTERY WORKSHOP and it
contains some pretty basic plans for a wheel (description and diagrams).It is
just 4 or 5 pages and I would be happy to copy/enlarge and send to you if you
are interested.
Just e-mail me your mailing address(oops----forgot to use the lingo)I meant
to say
e-mail me your snail mail address and I'll get it right to you.
Good luck and tell your daughter that you are both very lucky to have one
another.
Merrill
Ray Aldridge on mon 24 may 99
At 09:15 AM 5/22/99 EDT, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>
>My problem is, because I'm not a potter myself I don't know how to design a
>wheel that really works. I know it's simple -- flywheel, shaft and work
>surface all tied together and supported, with a seat. It's the "...all tied
>together and supported, with a seat" that confuses me. If anybody knows of
>available plans for a wheel (satisfactory for a 10-year old with room to
>grow) and recommendations for the proper type bearings to use I would very
>much appreciate hearing about it.
You might look at a book called _Building Pottery Equipment_ by Harvey,
Kolb, and Kolb. Published by Watson-Guptill 1975, ISBN 0-8230-0540-2.
It's probably out of print, but I'd guess that you can easily get it
through interlibrary loan. It has a welded frame wheel plan, which ought
to give you the basic info.
Ray
Phyllis E. Tilton on mon 24 may 99
Fred: There is a kit by Brent tht has the wheel head and the shaft. There are
very specific plans for a kick wheel. One of my sons built one for me back in
the early 80's and I have loved it. The fly wheel has bricks for weight, the
seat is adjustable for height--by putting the 2x4 into different slots. I
padded the seat with some scrap pieces of carpet. My son did an excellent job
of balancing the fly wheel- give it a kick and it goes for a long time/
I now have an electric wheel but keep the giffen grip on the kick wheel. The
plans require some skill but are not too complicated. The wheel is not real
portable, altho I did remarry and move. My son took the wheel apart, it was
moved and was in parts for about a year until we finished remodeling and had
room for a studio for me.
Good luck!
Phyllis Tilton
Daisypet@aol.com
Jane Mulrooney on wed 26 may 99
This is a great wheel. I'm lucky to be an apprentice to a student (20 years
ago) of Charles Counts. I have one of these wheels at my home and also use
one at Penns Creek Pottery, where I work. Go for it!
-----Original Message-----
From: Merrill Rush
To: CLAYART@LSV.UKY.EDU
Date: Sunday, May 23, 1999 10:44 AM
Subject: Re: Home-built Potter's Wheel
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>Good for you,Dad !!!! It is never too early to encourage our children to
>discover their many talents and develop them.
>I have an old copy of a book by Charles Counts called POTTERY WORKSHOP and
it
>contains some pretty basic plans for a wheel (description and diagrams).It
is
>just 4 or 5 pages and I would be happy to copy/enlarge and send to you if
you
>are interested.
>Just e-mail me your mailing address(oops----forgot to use the lingo)I meant
>to say
>e-mail me your snail mail address and I'll get it right to you.
>Good luck and tell your daughter that you are both very lucky to have one
>another.
>Merrill
>
Ray Aldridge on wed 26 may 99
At 09:50 AM 5/24/99 EDT, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>Fred: There is a kit by Brent tht has the wheel head and the shaft. There are
>very specific plans for a kick wheel. One of my sons built one for me back in
>the early 80's and I have loved it. The fly wheel has bricks for weight, the
>seat is adjustable for height--by putting the 2x4 into different slots. I
>padded the seat with some scrap pieces of carpet. My son did an excellent job
>of balancing the fly wheel- give it a kick and it goes for a long time/
>
I'll second this rec for a cheap but functional wheel. I built one of
these in the early 70s and although it's been through a change of wood
parts, it's still perfectly usable. I've always admired the cleverness of
this design, since most of the wood parts come from a single sheet of
plywood-- this includes the two discs between which the brick weights are
sandwiched, and the major structure of the wheel. Add a couple 2X4s and a
short 2X6 for the seat, some hardware and a few bricks and you're in business.
Ray
F H Parker on fri 28 may 99
Hi Merrill:
Thanks for your very generous offer. A copy of the plans would be very
helpful. I especially need to see how others have handled the details, like
bearings, dimensions, etc.
My "snail mail address" (gotta stay with the lingo) is:
Fred Parker
PO Box 28042
Atlanta, GA 30358
I would be glad to reimburse you for costs.
Again, many thanks. I'm eager to move ahead with this.
Fred
PS
By the way, the little girl is my neighbor, not my daughter. But come to
think of it, maybe I'll build 2 wheels. My grown-up daughter would probably
relish the opportunity to get into clay.
Good for you,Dad !!!! It is never too early to encourage our children to
discover their many talents and develop them.
I have an old copy of a book by Charles Counts called POTTERY WORKSHOP and
it
contains some pretty basic plans for a wheel (description and diagrams).It
is
just 4 or 5 pages and I would be happy to copy/enlarge and send to you if
you
are interested.
Just e-mail me your mailing address
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