Susan Otter on sun 7 jan 01
I can't believe I did it, but I threw a large porcelain bowl. It's over 5
1/2" tall, and over 10" in diameter across the box. It's even, and
well-shaped, and not out of round.
I must have been possessed (Grin).
I haven't ever dried such a large piece of porcelain. I'm assuming that
because it shrinks so much, it would be more prone to cracks. I think I
compressed the bottom adequately...
Any drying tips? Right now it's on the plastic bat I threw it on, covered
with dry-cleaning plastic.
Gayle Bair on mon 8 jan 01
Susan,
I, like Michael, never baby bowls and follow a
similar routine. I use masonite bats.
I finish using a metal rib inside and out
leaving the piece compressed, smooth and
slip free.
If it's a delicate piece I leave it
on the bat after running a wire under it.
If it's a substantial pot I transfer it to
a piece of drywall and let it sit overnight
uncovered. Now don't get your knickers in a twist,
I'm in the Seattle area although I confess
I did it in Colorado too.
Next morning I turn the piece over and if it's firm enough
I trim, then burnish the bottom with a metal rib or my fingers.
I have never had any cracking problems with bowls.
Now on the other hand I do need to baby my porcelain teapots.
I have had problems with attaching handles
and not taking enough care drying them once attached.
Gayle Bair-on a gray day on Bainbridge Island WA but it's
4:30 pm and still light out! Yea!!
Michael wrote>
Susan:
I just ran a bunch of porcelain and I dried it out in the room in still air
(avoid drafts!) until the rims were just stiff enough to not mar, then
turned them over onto smooth carry boards covered with a single sheet of
tissue paper and burnished the bottoms to smooth out the tears from the
wire. Then continue drying in a still location to avoid warping. My pieces
are sometimes as large as 12" in diameter and still dry fine with my
porcelain. I never baby it but you may need to with yours. You may want to
test a few pieces this way to find the right speed to dry them.
Regards,
Michael Wendt, wendtpot@lewiston.com
Susan Otter Wrote:
Any drying tips? Right now it's on the plastic bat I threw it on, covered
with dry-cleaning plastic.
Susan Otter on mon 8 jan 01
In a message dated 1/8/01 11:17:12 PM, wendtpot@LEWISTON.COM writes:
<< Susan:
I just ran a bunch of porcelain and I dried it out in the room in still air
(avoid drafts!) until the rims were just stiff enough to not mar, then
turned them over onto smooth carry boards covered with a single sheet of
tissue paper and burnished the bottoms to smooth out the tears from the
wire. Then continue drying in a still location to avoid warping. My pieces
are sometimes as large as 12" in diameter and still dry fine with my
porcelain. I never baby it but you may need to with yours. You may want to
test a few pieces this way to find the right speed to dry them. >>
Thank you, Michael! Then I may have the perfect place for it ... I have a
bookshelf in the corner of my living room I've cleared off. It's well away
from heating vents, and this bowl is on a low shelf. I thought I'd leave it
unwrapped a couple of hours each day...
It really is beautiful. I can't believe I did it!!
vince pitelka on mon 8 jan 01
> I feel drycleaning plastic is too porous and leads to faster drying than I
> want. I would use a heavier plastic after the piece has setup to slow down
> the drying as much as possible. You will want to cut it off the bat at
some
> point, it might pop off depending on how much water was in the base. Have
> patience.
Cullen -
I am curious about this. I would not consider dry-cleaning plastic to be
porous at all. Despite its light weight, it is a relatively impermeable
layer, and the light weight is a great advantage in that it is less likely
to damage the work. I have a lot of heavier plastic, and my work does not
dry any slower under the heavier stuff.
Best wishes -
- Vince
Vince Pitelka
Home - vpitelka@dekalb.net
615/597-5376
Work - wpitelka@tntech.edu
615/597-6801 ext. 111, fax 615/597-6803
Appalachian Center for Crafts
Tennessee Technological University
1560 Craft Center Drive, Smithville TN 37166
http://www.craftcenter.tntech.edu/
Cindy Strnad on mon 8 jan 01
Hi, Susan.
I haven't gotten around to trying much porcelain work, but I can tell you
one thing. As soon as it is hard enough, take it off that plastic bat. The
bases of pots tend to dry more slowly anyhow, and leaving them on plastic
bats just makes the problem worse. At the least, place it on newspaper, or,
better, a piece of drywall (sheetrock) or plaster. Let it dry with the
plastic on. If your studio is particularly dry, tuck the plastic in under
the edges of whatever you set the pot on and make sure there aren't any
holes in it.
Cindy Strnad
Earthen Vessels Pottery
RR 1, Box 51
Custer, SD 57730
USA
earthenv@gwtc.net
http://www.earthenvesselssd.com
Jim Cullen on mon 8 jan 01
Susan,
Congratulations.
I feel drycleaning plastic is too porous and leads to faster drying than I
want. I would use a heavier plastic after the piece has setup to slow down
the drying as much as possible. You will want to cut it off the bat at some
point, it might pop off depending on how much water was in the base. Have
patience.
KEEP CENTERED
Cullen
Naperville, Illinois
mail to: jcullen845@ameritech.net
----- Original Message -----
From: "Susan Otter"
To:
Sent: Sunday, January 07, 2001 10:34 PM
Subject: Drying large porcelain pieces
> I can't believe I did it, but I threw a large porcelain bowl. It's over 5
> 1/2" tall, and over 10" in diameter across the box. It's even, and
> well-shaped, and not out of round.
>
> I must have been possessed (Grin).
>
> I haven't ever dried such a large piece of porcelain. I'm assuming that
> because it shrinks so much, it would be more prone to cracks. I think I
> compressed the bottom adequately...
>
> Any drying tips? Right now it's on the plastic bat I threw it on, covered
> with dry-cleaning plastic.
>
>
____________________________________________________________________________
__
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.
michael wendt on mon 8 jan 01
Susan:
I just ran a bunch of porcelain and I dried it out in the room in still air
(avoid drafts!) until the rims were just stiff enough to not mar, then
turned them over onto smooth carry boards covered with a single sheet of
tissue paper and burnished the bottoms to smooth out the tears from the
wire. Then continue drying in a still location to avoid warping. My pieces
are sometimes as large as 12" in diameter and still dry fine with my
porcelain. I never baby it but you may need to with yours. You may want to
test a few pieces this way to find the right speed to dry them.
Regards,
Michael Wendt, wendtpot@lewiston.com
Susan Otter Wrote:
Any drying tips? Right now it's on the plastic bat I threw it on, covered
with dry-cleaning plastic.
tomsawyer on tue 9 jan 01
Vince & Cullen,
Thought I would weigh in here. I work mainly in stoneware but drying under
plastic should be drying. I run an air conditioner or heat in my studio and
find that if I place a piece inside of a garbage sack it dries slower if I
double wrap than if I single wrap. I try to always double wrap what I do if
I'm not going to get back to the piece within a reasonable time. I never
worked with drycleaning plastic so I can't say that a single wrap might not
work as well. I agree with Vince that the heavier plastic sometimes damages
a piece.
Tom Sawyer
tsawyer@cfl.rr.com
Jim Cullen on tue 9 jan 01
I guess it's always possible that my drycleaner plastic is thinner than
yours (nahnah!). I also like the body of a heavier plastic because it goes
where I want it to go and like thinner plastic is more clingy. I'm not
talking about construction grade plastic. More like 1 ply. I also don't like
the paper or plastic type bags that grocery stores use. It too is too
porous. Since I don't get to work in my studio everyday I really try to slow
down the drying process.
These are the things that make each of our worlds go round.
KEEP CENTERED
Cullen
Naperville, Illinois
mail to: jcullen845@ameritech.net
----- Original Message -----
From: "vince pitelka"
To:
Sent: Monday, January 08, 2001 8:44 PM
Subject: Re: Drying large porcelain pieces
> > I feel drycleaning plastic is too porous and leads to faster drying than
I
> > want. I would use a heavier plastic after the piece has setup to slow
down
> > the drying as much as possible. You will want to cut it off the bat at
> some
> > point, it might pop off depending on how much water was in the base.
Have
> > patience.
>
> Cullen -
> I am curious about this. I would not consider dry-cleaning plastic to be
> porous at all. Despite its light weight, it is a relatively impermeable
> layer, and the light weight is a great advantage in that it is less likely
> to damage the work. I have a lot of heavier plastic, and my work does not
> dry any slower under the heavier stuff.
> Best wishes -
> - Vince
>
> Vince Pitelka
> Home - vpitelka@dekalb.net
> 615/597-5376
> Work - wpitelka@tntech.edu
> 615/597-6801 ext. 111, fax 615/597-6803
> Appalachian Center for Crafts
> Tennessee Technological University
> 1560 Craft Center Drive, Smithville TN 37166
> http://www.craftcenter.tntech.edu/
>
>
____________________________________________________________________________
__
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.
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