Cat Audette on tue 7 nov 00
Hi all.
Im teaching an Intro to Wheel class in Baltimore and wanted to spice things
up a bit. I offered to do a pit firing a few weeks from now and then
realized I hadn't done one since college. Oops.
I do remember that its a simple process and good for beginner students.
Can anyone give me some basic pointers on what temp. clay to use,
burnishing, bisquing (or not) and to what cone, firing materials, oxides
(someone told me to sprinkle Miracle Grow in the can???), anything else that
may be useful.
Im appreciative!
If its not a problem, could you send responces directly to me @ the address
below.
Thanks!
--
Cat Audette
cataudette@earthlink.net
"Clay is the way"
Robin E. McGregor on tue 7 nov 00
Hi Cat,
When you get all your responses, perhaps you'd like to do the community a
favor and put all the tips into one email and post it?
Looking forward to it...
Robin McGregor
Manchester, NH
Martin Howard on tue 7 nov 00
At the pit firing at Shotley for the EAPA (East Anglian Potters Association)
Summer Camp, had dug the hole during the previous year. This year we just
needed to open it up again and clear all growth around it, so as to reduce
the risk of fire spreading to the farmer's field next door.
In the bottom was screwed up paper and lots of wood, small them larger.
Leave space to fire the paper at the end.
Then the pots went in, sprinkled with glaze powder and lots of copper
wiring, odd fruit, banana skins etc. No dung was added, to my knowledge:-)
The whole was covered, over the middle part, with corrugated iron and fired.
The lie of the pit was along the prevalent wind direction.
Have a team on hand with a powerful water hose as the fire from the end
furthest from the direction of the wind gets pretty powerful.
Of course, you could add a pyrometer, just to add the modern touch.
Hope I haven't missed out anything, but others will add it if I have.
Martin Howard
Webb's Cottage Pottery
Woolpits Road, Great Saling
BRAINTREE, Essex CM7 5DZ
England
martin@webbscottage.co.uk
Rick Brady on tue 7 nov 00
I burnish either directly with a stone on smaller pots or use terra sig and burnish with a plastic bag on "larger" pots. Don't forget to wrap some pots with copper wire (24ga) or wrap a pot with some fine #0000 steel wool. Pull the steel wool apart and tie it on with some copper wire. Also, you might try using a copper Chor-Boy scrubbing pad. Take it apart and then pull it like a sock over a pot or tie it on with some copper wire. When it works it can give stunning results. I mostly use a white cone 10 stoneware clay, but you can use just about anything. I have had good results with B-Mix and porcelain as well. I usually bisque to cone 09. In addition to Miracle Grow, I use copper carb and rock salt in the pit over a bed of sawdust.
Good Luck!! Let me know if you have any other questions. I do a LOT of pit firing and each firing can produce very unique results.
Rick Brady
Pleasanton, CA
-----Original Message-----
From: Cat Audette [mailto:cataudette@EARTHLINK.NET]
Sent: Monday, November 06, 2000 9:26 PM
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Subject: Smoke/Pit/Dung firings
Hi all.
Im teaching an Intro to Wheel class in Baltimore and wanted to spice things
up a bit. I offered to do a pit firing a few weeks from now and then
realized I hadn't done one since college. Oops.
I do remember that its a simple process and good for beginner students.
Can anyone give me some basic pointers on what temp. clay to use,
burnishing, bisquing (or not) and to what cone, firing materials, oxides
(someone told me to sprinkle Miracle Grow in the can???), anything else that
may be useful.
Im appreciative!
If its not a problem, could you send responces directly to me @ the address
below.
Thanks!
--
Cat Audette
cataudette@earthlink.net
"Clay is the way"
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