Linda M on fri 5 mar 04
Is a Dremel tool the best tool to use to clean up a glazed pottery piece
that has pieces of kiln wash stuck to it from the stilts? I've used one but
it wears out the composite on the piece really fast. What is the best
material to use? Something similar to what is one a grinding wheel?
Snail Scott on sat 6 mar 04
At 04:41 PM 3/5/04 -0500, you wrote:
>Is a Dremel tool the best tool to use to clean up a glazed pottery piece
>that has pieces of kiln wash stuck to it from the stilts? I've used one
>but it wears out the composite on the piece really fast...
First, I want to point out that 'Dremel tool'
refers merely to the handpiece/motor unit. You
can put a wide range of bits on it, and that can
make all the difference. I would use the carbide
(grey 'stone') bits if you use a Dremel-style
tool. For small drips, this is probably a pretty
good option. Dremels are fairly wussy tools, made
for the hobby market, but since most of the better
tools are quite a bit pricier, it's not a bad
choice for occasional light-duty grinding. For
larger messes, I'd use an inexpensive angle grinder
with a masonry grinding disc on it.
-Snail
Cindi Anderson on sat 6 mar 04
Hi
What do you mean by "it wears out the composite on the piece?" I find the
Dremel tool is absolutely the best for this, but I get the silicon carbide
bits. I have a sculptural glaze that I liked fired on the high side to run,
and there are always large glaze drops at the bottom with kiln wash
attached. I just Dremel'ed about 20 of them and only went through one $3
tool head. But since you said "on the piece" I think maybe I am missing
something.
By the way, if Vince is reading this... a couple years ago using your advice
I had my husband get me a grinder with the flapper wheel. (You told me the
exact Grainger part number so I'm pretty sure it is the right one.) I tried
using it and while it seems like it is going to be great, it is giving a
gray color to the pieces. Is this something that happens when the flaps are
new and wears off after a while? I was also unimpressed by my "grinder" on
the other side, we replaced the one that came with the grinder with a more
expensive one (silicon carbide I think.) It just seemed like the Dremel
took off so much more and more quickly. Does this fit your experience?
Cindi
.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Linda M"
To:
Sent: Friday, March 05, 2004 1:41 PM
Subject: Tool to clean up kiln wash from pottery
> Is a Dremel tool the best tool to use to clean up a glazed pottery piece
> that has pieces of kiln wash stuck to it from the stilts? I've used one
but
> it wears out the composite on the piece really fast. What is the best
> material to use? Something similar to what is one a grinding wheel?
>
>
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Lois Ruben Aronow on sun 7 mar 04
> At 04:41 PM 3/5/04 -0500, you wrote:
> >Is a Dremel tool the best tool to use to clean up a glazed pottery
> >piece that has pieces of kiln wash stuck to it from the stilts? I've
> >used one but it wears out the composite on the piece really fast...
>
>
I use my beloved Dremel for cleaning up burrs and stray bits of glaze, and
also to clean my kiln furniture. If there is a tiny piece of kiln wash
stuck to the glaze, I will use the Dremel to grind it off, then I will
reglaze the spot and refire, if the situation allows.
To clean bits of kiln wash from an footring, I will use sandpaper, 220 grid
aluminum oxide. Makes the footring really smooth. I also use what is
called a "stilt stone", which will clean stilt marks off of ware. Smoothes
out my porcelain footrings really nicely.
william schran on sun 7 mar 04
Snail wrote:> I would use the carbide
(grey 'stone') bits if you use a Dremel-style
tool. For small drips, this is probably a pretty
good option. <
The grey colored bits are alumina oxide, the green ones are silicon
carbide and will cut through the glaze drips much better.
I've found a kiln wash mix of 50/50 alumina hydrate and EPK are
working well for me. Those big glaze drips from student work come
away fairly clean just using a putty knife. Tougher drips demand a
hammer/chisel combination. When using the hammer/chisel I stand the
kiln shelf on end and strike with the chisel at a severe angle,
almost a glancing blow. Have never broken a shelf this way, even when
I've had to dig out a crater.
Of course, eye protection is a first priority!
Bill
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