Working Potter on wed 16 jan 02
has anyone here used a Bluebird tile extruder? Have you experience with the
deairing system?
any idea how well the system functions to make tile?
how does one control clay feed and tile delivery simultaneously?
would this be the system of choice for a big project where a large quantity
of high quality were needed?
any thoughts on dimensions and tile thicknesses?
Paul Lewing on thu 17 jan 02
I've never used one of these things myself, but I have two friends who have
them, and I can answer some of your questions.
on 1/16/02 6:58 PM, Working Potter at MorningMistDew@AOL.COM wrote:
> any idea how well the system functions to make tile?
Very, very well. One of the people I know has used his to supply unglazed
bisque tile to local clay suppliers for years.
> how does one control clay feed and tile delivery simultaneously?
Here's a trick one of my friends used to make the tile delivery much easier.
He noticed that the tile, when it was extruded horizontally onto a ware
board, tended to stick to the board and buckle. So he mounted a paper towel
dispenser just below the mouth of the extruder. As the extruded tile is
coming out onto a new board, he tucks the end of a roll of waxed paper under
the tile. The extruding strip slides easily down the board on the waxed
paper, feeding itself easily from the roll. When he changes boards, he just
slices clay and paper together, tucks the new end under the next pug, and
goes on.
> would this be the system of choice for a big project where a large quantity
> of high quality were needed?
Yes.
> any thoughts on dimensions and tile thicknesses?
This would depend on a lot of factors like clay body, softness of the clay,
what kind of tile you're making, etc. But my friend, using an expansion
box, can extrude up to 16" wide. He's even made something like
tongue-and-groove slabs, which he joins together side-be-side to produce
one-piece table tops.
Good luck,
Paul Lewing, Seattle
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