Sharon Tauritz on sat 7 dec 02
Hi all,
Currently I'm in the process of outfitting my very first ceramic studio (in
a room over the garage). I desperately need some slab roller buying advice!
It is my hope that I can avoid the cost of a separate work table by
utilizing the table part of the slab roller. However, most of the slab
rollers pictured in ceramic catalogs show the roller in the middle of the
table instead of at one of the ends. An exception is the Bailey DRD/II Slab
Roller which I am considering purchasing.
I am wondering the following: can the slab rollers be mounted at any
position on their table or do they have a fixed position? Is there perhaps
a good reason for the rollers to be mounted in the middle of their table?
Do any of you happen to have a Bailey DRD/II and wish to comment on it?
Thanks, Sharon
stauritz@fidmail.com
James Bledsoe on sat 7 dec 02
Sharon
Those pictures are static
a slab roller is a carriage that transverses the length of the table
and they come with several sheets of masonite which go in the bed to adjust
the slab thickness
they need a home when not in use
slab rollers are cold steel industrial objects that make poor work benches
I don't know how much slab work you intend to do
and that is definitely a factor in the decision to get one.
However I would consider some big beautiful plaster or cement top benches
3 or 4 feet wide and as long as I could make them.
A very easy slab can be made by slapping the clay on to the bench repeatedly
true this type of slab tapers at the edge. But a couple of sticks the
thickness of the desired slab under a rolling pin will even out the final
part.
In other words say you need a ½ x 4x4 inch tile
slap the clay down so that is spreads out to about 3/4 an inch
cut out a rough 5x5 square
then use two ½ thick sticks as rolling gages
your slab will now be~ 6x6 and ½ thick trim it and move on.
jim
>
> Currently I'm in the process of outfitting my very first ceramic studio
(in
> a room over the garage). I desperately need some slab roller buying
advice!
> It is my hope that I can avoid the cost of a separate work table by
> utilizing the table part of the slab roller. However, most of the slab
> rollers pictured in ceramic catalogs show the roller in the middle of the
> table instead of at one of the ends. An exception is the Bailey DRD/II
Slab
> Roller which I am considering purchasing.
>
> I am wondering the following: can the slab rollers be mounted at any
> position on their table or do they have a fixed position? Is there perhaps
> a good reason for the rollers to be mounted in the middle of their table?
> Do any of you happen to have a Bailey DRD/II and wish to comment on it?
Marcia Selsor on sat 7 dec 02
I have owned two other slab rollers in my life: an old old Bailey and a
home made one built by a retired mechanic. I also used a North Star and
a large Brent at the Univ. where I taught.
The position of the rollers really depends on how the slab roller is
designed to work.
Ex: a brent has a huge roller move (with a very unforgiving cable system
that is a pain in the ass to fix if someone has abused the machine)
The early Bailey was adjusted using increments of boards to determine
the thickness. The roller being stationary at one end of the table. I
built a cart the same height as the table and wheel the slab around for
more passes if needed or to vary the direction of the compression.
The North Star slab roller in the school was put to the test by
enthusiastic sculpture students trying to squish foundry wax. I heard
this horrid noise of the plastic sprockets breaking their teeth. Schools
have horrendous situations for equipment.
I am a big Bailey equipment fan. I think their stuff is well designed. I
just purchased the Bailey DRD II . I wanted it because of the dual
rollers because of my large raku slabs 24+ inches. I used one at the
Archie Bray Foundation this summer as a resident and that determined my
need to replace my existing situations.
It is a breeze to put together.. even alone. the dual roller assembly
was a little heavy but not impossible to put into place by myself. I put
the table together first and laid the assembly into position. I am very
happy with it. (except the directions call for putting 12 sheet metal
screws into the bed and frame. In another place in the directions they
are called wood screws.In either case they were not included in the
hardware. I couldn't find 5/8" sheet metal screws at 2 hardwares stores
and settled on 1/2". Longer screws would penetrate the formica surface
of the bed. They have a big warning about DON'T USE anything longer than
5/8" screws. Then why the hell weren't they included!!?)IMHO
But, I love my new slab roller.
Marcia Selsor in Montana
Sharon Tauritz wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> Currently I'm in the process of outfitting my very first ceramic studio (in
> a room over the garage). I desperately need some slab roller buying advice!
> It is my hope that I can avoid the cost of a separate work table by
> utilizing the table part of the slab roller. However, most of the slab
> rollers pictured in ceramic catalogs show the roller in the middle of the
> table instead of at one of the ends. An exception is the Bailey DRD/II Slab
> Roller which I am considering purchasing.
>
> I am wondering the following: can the slab rollers be mounted at any
> position on their table or do they have a fixed position? Is there perhaps
> a good reason for the rollers to be mounted in the middle of their table?
> Do any of you happen to have a Bailey DRD/II and wish to comment on it?
>
> Thanks, Sharon
> stauritz@fidmail.com
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
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> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at melpots@pclink.com.
>
--
Tuscany in 2003
http://home.attbi.com/~m.selsor/Tuscany2003.html
Diane Winters on sun 8 dec 02
Sharon Tauritz wrote:
> Currently I'm in the process of outfitting my very first ceramic studio
(in
> a room over the garage). I desperately need some slab roller buying
advice!
> It is my hope that I can avoid the cost of a separate work table by
> utilizing the table part of the slab roller. However, most of the slab
> rollers pictured in ceramic catalogs show the roller in the middle of the
> table instead of at one of the ends. An exception is the Bailey DRD/II
Slab
> Roller which I am considering purchasing.
>
The Brent slab roller has a heavy roller carriage that travels along the
table. A large heavy duty Brent is the model owned as communal equipment at
the co-op where I have my studio. Changing slab thickness depends on
removing or reinserting what for me are quite large and relatively unwieldy
sheets of masonite (3 ft. x 5 ft).
But on both the large NorthStar I've used and the Bailey DRD (the model I
personally own and use in my workspace), a pair of rollers - upper and
lower - stay in place. The slab, between layers of canvas, is fed from one
end of the table through the fixed rollers to the other end. I opted for
the long table version of the DRD. I think the DRD II automatically comes
with a longish table.
A small crank controlling the height of the upper roller provides quick,
easy infinitely variable slab thickness.
The table surface on my 10 year old Bailey DRD is melamine coated thick
particle board, still in great condition. For *very* heavy slamming or
pounding of clay it's definitely not as sturdy and solid as my big work
table made of 2x4s, but is otherwise quite suitable and useful as a work
table. In fact, except for the above mentioned very heavy slamming and
pounding, it's where I actually do most of my work.
As a tile maker I have a lot of slabs to roll (all the clay I use in my
press molds gets slab rolled first) and would not give up my Bailey for
anything.
ps. If you decide on the Bailey, pay a little bit more to get the optional
wheel handle instead of the 4-spoke kind.
Diane Winters
in Oakland/Berkeley, CA
Snail Scott on sun 8 dec 02
At 08:21 PM 12/7/02 -0700, you wrote:
>> I am wondering the following: can the slab rollers be mounted at any
>> position on their table or do they have a fixed position? Is there perhaps
>> a good reason for the rollers to be mounted in the middle of their table?
Generally, the end-mounted rollers move down the
length of the table and the slab itself stays
stationary. Middle-mounted rollers are fixed in
position, and move the slab from one end of the
table to the other. So, the position of the
rollers is dictated by their manner of function.
I would guess that the moving-roller style would
be easy to clamp a piece of plywood across when
not in use, to make a workbench. The fixed-roller
styles already have a flat top, but the continuous
surface area would be smaller due to the presence
of the rollers in the middle.
-Snail
Cindi Anderson on sun 8 dec 02
I'm not sure I agree with you at all (about any slab roller), but I can
assert with confidence that Northstar slabrollers make great work benches.
It is a great height and mine is constantly being used as a workbench when i
am not rolling slabs.
Cindi
----- Original Message -----
> slab rollers are cold steel industrial objects that make poor work benches
Cindi Anderson on sun 8 dec 02
Every time this question comes up, people start throwing out brands. "X is
better than y" and often it is not a fair comparison.
It is not very useful to compare "brands" of slabrollers without comparing
models. Each brand (Bailey, Brent, Northstar) makes wimpier slab rollers
and beefier slab rollers. In Marcia's school situation for example, they
should have had a Northstar Super Slab Roller, and maybe they tried to get
away with the less expensive version. In addition, it is important to state
WHEN you had an experience with a piece of equipment because designs change
over time. Also, Northstar has a lifetime warranty which would put them out
of business if the equipment broke often. I am only defending Northstar
because it is the one where most often their lowest end models are compared
to other vendors high end models. (I believe that early on they may not
have had the high end line, and maybe that is where confusion comes from?)
Anyway, comparing an $800 model of one brand to a $2000 model of another
brand is not that useful in my opinion.
In terms of which slab roller is the best, a lot depends on your
application. Someone making huge 1" thick slabs for architectural work
needs a different type of slab roller than someone rolling smaller thinner
slabs. For them the weight of the extruded clay that is being pushed out is
critical, so they probably need either a Bailey DB model (where the clay
rides between two pieces of board) or a Brent where the clay is stationary
and the roller runs over the clay.
Cindi Anderson
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