Martin Howard on fri 4 jan 02
We can buy any amount of transfer paper for computers.
Even Epson do some. Don't have to go to specialist potting companies and buy
loads.
But how to print in ceramic stain on computer printers?
An idea I am trying is to use the old type of printer with a fabric ribbon.
A friend just gave me one that he was chucking out for landfill.
We can still buy the ribbons for this machine, an Epson EX800.
I have now soaked a ribbon with a mixture of water and black ceramic stain.
Next stage is to print off decals/transfers and put them on mugs.
A black and white picture of a person with the name should be quite useful!
MARTIN'S (Picture of face) MUG
I will let you know results. But don't throw out those old fabric ribbon
printers yet.
Martin Howard
Webbs Cottage Pottery
Woolpits Road, Great Saling
BRAINTREE, Essex CM7 5DZ
01371 850 423
martin@webbscottage.co.uk
http://www.webbscottage.co.uk
Updated 26/12/01
george koller on fri 4 jan 02
Martin,
At Northport, MI we are now using a micro nozzle with
some 10 different "salts". Learning much, much more to
learn.
It all seems very promising to me. The overall machine
is a computer controlled light industrial CNC. Basically
two motors control two axis and we use pneumatic cylinders
to control up/down for the rotary tool which we use for
cutting boundaries (optional).
The software seems to be the key to it all to me. But in all of
this I seem to be almost alone. The software I have written
can read 100s of thousands of graphic "details" and with
information provided by an artist (i.e. how many tiles across,
how many tiles high, size of tiles, chamfer widths, etc.) will
use the "target" image to build instructions for the machine to
follow(files), to build those images one 25 nanoliter spit at a
time onto an almost arbitrary number of tiles.
The new nozzle we are experimenting with seems to have a
"focus distance" of almost 4" when viscosity is very carefuly
controlled. Thss encouraging me to believe that work on 3d
pieces will eventually be successful using this technology.
Many things to report on someday.... with the cost of R&D
being what it is I have somewhat drifted away from sharing
our expensive progress "freely". Lately a Corporation,
a grand-daddy of colorant companies it seems, has "shown
interest" in what we are doing. One individual says there is a lot of
"back yard potters" interested in something that can "print" on
glazed tiles. This sure does not seem to fit the what I can
understand of what people are looking for, but then I'm not
sure I have ever met a "back yard potter". Is that a British
phenomena perhaps? Here in Wisconsin.....
Meanwhile I have recently learned that our grant has been
approved for work at Alfred U. for work involving this process.
Cheers & Happy New Years,
George Koller
Sturgeon Bay, WI - Door County
Martin Howard on sat 5 jan 02
You are not alone George.
Your system will be right for some.
It's too big for me.
Perhaps mine will be OK for those of us working at a very low level.
Martin Howard
Webbs Cottage Pottery
Woolpits Road, Great Saling
BRAINTREE, Essex CM7 5DZ
01371 850 423
martin@webbscottage.co.uk
http://www.webbscottage.co.uk
Updated 26/12/01
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