carrie or peter jacobson on tue 1 jun 99
Hello, all: In working toward my goal of becoming a better potter, I have
been making my stuff thinner and thinner and lighter and lighter. And I
have been single-firing, which, until recently, has been working well for
me.
I have never much liked glazing, and glazing for single-firing is
particularly nasty, I find. But this weekend was the worst.
Twice, I poured glaze into a thin-walled, wide, shallow bowl -- one
porcelain and one stoneware -- and the bowl split. One split vertically
from the lip, one split horizontally about half-way down the wall. The
glaze did not linger in the bowls. A quick in, swish, and out. When I
looked down again, I saw the cracks.
So here are my questions:
-- Do these breaks indicate a problem in the making of the bowls? (They
looked fine to me.)
-- If I am going to insist on single-firing, do I need to paint the glaze
on, as opposed to dipping or pouring, as my work gets thin and light?
--Should I abandon the notion of single-firing thin-walled ware?
Thanks!
Carrie
Carrie Jacobson
Pawcatuck, CT
mailto:jacobson@brainiac.com
P. Cox on wed 2 jun 99
I also throw very thin walled vessel. I don't once-fire but even with
bisquing first, I find dipping and pouring no longer an option for me.
The thin walls just can not absorb the moisture from the glaze and, in
my case it takes hours for the glaze to dry enough to apply the next
layer. I would think that your pots are absorbing the moisture from the
glaze and being thin walled do not have enough dry clay to mantain its
structure. I brush on all my glazes instead using a 2in wide brush.
Hope this helps.
pcox
Linda Blossom on wed 2 jun 99
Carrie, When I single fire forms I have sprayed or brushed the glaze. I
don't think anyone who single fires and throws really throws very thin.
Richard Aerni's work, which is single fire, is not super thin, nor is it too
heavy. I get away with thin work because I use paperclay but I hand build
rather than throw the work. I don't think I would like paper fibers during
the trimming process. Pouring a glaze into a thin piece is problematic so
you will need to come to a decision about what means more to you.
Linda Blossom
2366 Slaterville Rd
Ithaca, NY 14850
607-539-7912
blossom@twcny.rr.com
-----Original Message-----
From: carrie or peter jacobson
To: CLAYART@LSV.UKY.EDU
Date: Tuesday, June 01, 1999 3:35 PM
Subject: single firing problem
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
Hello, all: In working toward my goal of becoming a better potter, I have
been making my stuff thinner and thinner and lighter and lighter. And I
have been single-firing, which, until recently, has been working well for
me.
I have never much liked glazing, and glazing for single-firing is
particularly nasty, I find. But this weekend was the worst.
Twice, I poured glaze into a thin-walled, wide, shallow bowl -- one
porcelain and one stoneware -- and the bowl split. One split vertically
from the lip, one split horizontally about half-way down the wall. The
glaze did not linger in the bowls. A quick in, swish, and out. When I
looked down again, I saw the cracks.
So here are my questions:
-- Do these breaks indicate a problem in the making of the bowls? (They
looked fine to me.)
-- If I am going to insist on single-firing, do I need to paint the glaze
on, as opposed to dipping or pouring, as my work gets thin and light?
--Should I abandon the notion of single-firing thin-walled ware?
Thanks!
Carrie
Carrie Jacobson
Pawcatuck, CT
mailto:jacobson@brainiac.com
nikom chimnok on wed 2 jun 99
Dear Carrie,
We do lots of single fired glazing, and find that spraying or
airbrushing is the most successful way of applying the glaze. Not all clays
are the same, but our clay, particularly when thin, will often crack when
dipped. Has too much opportunity to soak up water. When spraying we do
several thin coats, so that each coat dries, at least partially, before the
next. Never tried brushing.
Good luck,
Nikom
Dannon Rhudy on wed 2 jun 99
You can single fire thin-walled wares. It is easier to spray the glazes
on, though.
Second best is brushing - Lucie Rie, whose work was very thin indeed, brushed
all her glazes on bone-dry green ware, once-fired it.
Regards,
Dannon Rhudy
potter@koyote.com
At 03:31 PM 6/1/99 EDT, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>Hello, all: In working toward my goal of becoming a better potter, I have
>been making my stuff thinner and thinner and lighter and lighter. And I
>have been single-firing, which, until recently, has been working well for
>me.
>
>I have never much liked glazing, and glazing for single-firing is
>particularly nasty, I find. But this weekend was the worst.
>
>Twice, I poured glaze into a thin-walled, wide, shallow bowl -- one
>porcelain and one stoneware -- and the bowl split. One split vertically
>from the lip, one split horizontally about half-way down the wall. The
>glaze did not linger in the bowls. A quick in, swish, and out. When I
>looked down again, I saw the cracks.
>
>So here are my questions:
>
>-- Do these breaks indicate a problem in the making of the bowls? (They
>looked fine to me.)
>
>-- If I am going to insist on single-firing, do I need to paint the glaze
>on, as opposed to dipping or pouring, as my work gets thin and light?
>
>--Should I abandon the notion of single-firing thin-walled ware?
>
>Thanks!
>
>Carrie
>
>
>Carrie Jacobson
>Pawcatuck, CT
>mailto:jacobson@brainiac.com
>
Sharon R Pemberton on wed 2 jun 99
The thinner the pot the more propensity to have problems when you once fire.
I once fire when I am doing "horse hair" pots.Try spraying, use a spray
booth, thin coats of glaze onto ware.
Pax.
Pug
cyberscape on wed 2 jun 99
Carrie,
Try spraying the glazes into plates and bowls and on exteriors. Also,
make sure that the pots are bone dry before you apply glazes.
Harvey Sadow
Craig Martell on thu 3 jun 99
Hello Carrie:
There is a thing that a lot of single fire glazers talk about, and that
thing is making pots too thin. For raw glazing, you don't have to have a
perfectly even cross section BUT the pots can't be too thin. Try to give a
bit more wall thickness and work to balance the weight of the form instead
of making them really light and thin.
Another thing you can do is mist the outside of the bowls immediately after
glazing to even the expansion due to moisture being sucked up by the pots.
If they are very thin and you glaze one side without applying moisture to
the opposite side you get an uneven swelling which causes cracks. When I
liner glaze raw ware for the salt kiln, I do the inside glaze and set the
pot down right away and spray the outside lightly with water from a mister.
Thicker forms won't need this kind of treatment though.
If you could find some way to enjoy the glazing process a bit more, you may
have better luck with things. The sometimes frustrating thing about making
pots is that it's a process that involves several disciplines, especially if
you work alone. If there is part of the process one doesn't like then
perhaps that is hurried and critical stuff is neglected. You can always
bisque fire if raw glazing rattles your nerves and really, if you find it
"nasty", why do it? I guess I'm fortunate in that I enjoy just about all
the stuff I do except marketing which is sometimes way beyond nasty.
hope you get things worked out, Craig Martell in Oregon
Nikki Simmons on fri 4 jun 99
I was considering trying to single fire my pieces in order to:
-save time
-save electricity
-maybe even save money...
But the solutions to this thread on 'glazing single fire pieces' have
focused mainly on spraying the ware. I am assuming spraying would save me
time if I was willing to fork out the bucks for a sprayer and booth.
Blowing glaze through a straw is not something I really want to try. hmmmm
I would like to hear some more opinions on this.
Also I would like to hear how everyone handles the foot area. I understand
that waxing the foot of bone dry clay (at least the clay I am using) causes
problems in the firing (blowouts I think). Other people using my clay body
dip and some spray their single fired ware. In either situation, the potter
wipes the glaze off the foot.
The problem I see with wiping is: yet another bucket of glaze slop and the
tedium of wiping a nice clean line. And the constant worry of 'did I get
all the glaze'? (I do not coat my kiln shelves.)
Curious to hear some discussion,
Nikki Simmons
Russellville, Missouri
Ray Aldridge on sat 5 jun 99
At 09:25 AM 6/4/99 EDT, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>I was considering trying to single fire my pieces in order to:
>-save time
>-save electricity
>
>The problem I see with wiping is: yet another bucket of glaze slop and the
>tedium of wiping a nice clean line.
If your glazes are relatively stiff, as they usually are with once-fired
glazes, because of the clay content, then it works well to finish the foot
of the pot with a distinct bevel. Then a flat sponge can be wiped around
the edge and you have a clean line.
Ray
Corinne P. Null on tue 8 jun 99
Nikki,
I've only recently started single firing, but like you I like the time,
electricity, and money savings. I took a workshop with Stephen Hill, the
popular guru of single fire, and he recommended the white liquid wax resist
from Axners. I have been using it with no problems. When I had used it
previously on bisqued ware, I'd have to wait a day for it to dry completely,
but on greenware the moisture gets sucked up immediately so you can go right
ahead and glaze. It's easy to wipe off any glaze drops, and if by chance
you get the resist where you don't want it you can just scrape it off the
greenware, unlike hot wax on the bisque. Never had any blowout problems
with it. Funny... I used to hate hot wax - drip where you don't want it,
toxic fumes, danger of fire, etc. Conversly, I love brushing on the resist.
I am NOT a brush person in any way. Can't even do slip designs, but putting
on that resist it is quietly meditative, and unthreatening.
Hope this helps,
Corinne
-----Original Message-----
From: Ceramic Arts Discussion List [mailto:CLAYART@LSV.UKY.EDU]On Behalf
Of Nikki Simmons
Sent: Friday, June 04, 1999 9:26 AM
To: CLAYART@LSV.UKY.EDU
Subject: Re: single firing problem
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
I was considering trying to single fire my pieces in order to:
-save time
-save electricity
-maybe even save money...
But the solutions to this thread on 'glazing single fire pieces' have
focused mainly on spraying the ware. I am assuming spraying would save me
time if I was willing to fork out the bucks for a sprayer and booth.
Blowing glaze through a straw is not something I really want to try. hmmmm
I would like to hear some more opinions on this.
Also I would like to hear how everyone handles the foot area. I understand
that waxing the foot of bone dry clay (at least the clay I am using) causes
problems in the firing (blowouts I think). Other people using my clay body
dip and some spray their single fired ware. In either situation, the potter
wipes the glaze off the foot.
The problem I see with wiping is: yet another bucket of glaze slop and the
tedium of wiping a nice clean line. And the constant worry of 'did I get
all the glaze'? (I do not coat my kiln shelves.)
Curious to hear some discussion,
Nikki Simmons
Russellville, Missouri
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