Bonnie Staffel on tue 5 dec 00
Dear Lois,
I believe that all cracks start in the drying process. If you wax the RIMS
of your platters, both top and bottom as soon as they are finished, this
will keep the rims from drying before the centers. You should also get the
platter onto an absorbable material as soon as it becomes leather hard so
the bottom will continue to dry. When you place your platter in the kiln,
do not put one side closer to the heat source than the rest. Put it in the
center and then have smaller items around it. This will equalize the heat
attack on your platter. The wads are also a good thing as it lets the heat
get to the underside at the same rate as the upper. I use bisqued shards
for this purpose as I believe that you are adding a wet material in the wads
which adds moisture. I can stack a number of platters on top of each other
following these rules with shards placed in the same pattern as the ones
below. The bisqued shards are at least 1/4" thick and I make sure that they
are placed under the foot ring, not closer to the center.
Hope this suggestion will solve your problem.
Bonnie Staffel of Charlevoix
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