Carole Fox on wed 7 sep 05
I have a Venco de-airing pugmill. I am surprised by how difficult it is to
pull down on the bar to feed clay into the hopper. I am putting in a mix of
leatherhard trimmings and soft clay and really soft clay. I am not
overloading the hopper. I can really feel it in my upper back after a
morning of pugging. If I have any clay in there that is not soft, it
becomes hard to push through. Isn't the pugmill supposed to soften the
harder stuff by mixing it with the soft?
Ready for more questions?...
Should I be worrying that the paint inside the hopper is starting to peel
off into the clay?
How do you keep from getting the pugmill area a total mess? Your hands
become full of clay when you scoop up the clay to load the hopper and then
you have to pull down on the lever with clayey ( that IS a word, right?)
hands.
Is it okay to let the machines idle while you are cutting off the old pug or
grabbing more clay or whatever?
How long can you pug for without turning off the machine for a rest?
Is it unusual for the studio to smell like hot oil after pugging?
What can you do with the mixed clay that you get when you switch over to a
new clay? (Besides cone packs out the wazoo!)
That's all...for now! (...she says with a sheepish smile).
Carole Fox
Silver Fox Pottery
Elkton, MD
silverfoxpottery@comcast.net
Gordon Ward on wed 7 sep 05
Carole,
We have an early 1980s 4" Venco. Early on we took out the grate in
the hopper. It is meant to keep hands out, but it took too much
pressure to put clay through. The first handle actually bent and I
head to replace it with a sturdier one. Your machine will probably
work a bit better if you spray your trimmings with water and let them
sit in plastic for a few days to let them get closer to the right
consistency. It is difficult to force soft clay through the machine if
the clay inside is stiff, but it will eventually go. It is relatively
simple to soften clay by dipping hand sized bits of clay in water
before dropping it into the hopper. As far a the mess, it is part of
the activity. We never had a peeling paint problem, so not sure. I
guess I would try to remove any loose paint. When pugging, we
generally leave the vacuum pump running, but you need to stop the mill
while cutting up clay or you will loose the seal on the vacuum chamber.
The hopper area needs clay in it to keep that seal. Purge clay is a
problem if you can't make pots with it. How about some simple
planters? We always ran one clay in ours. If we ever changed bodies,
we completely cleaned the machine. Oil smell is unusual. Make sure
the oil levels are correct. Make sure your shredding screens on the
vacuum chamber are not clogged. It is possible that your leather hard
trimmings are restricting flow at this point, causing excessive strain
on both you and the machine.
Good Luck,
Gordon
On Sep 7, 2005, at 10:08 AM, Carole Fox wrote:
> I have a Venco de-airing pugmill. I am surprised by how difficult it
> is to
> pull down on the bar to feed clay into the hopper. I am putting in a
> mix of
> leatherhard trimmings and soft clay and really soft clay. I am not
> overloading the hopper. I can really feel it in my upper back after a
> morning of pugging. If I have any clay in there that is not soft, it
> becomes hard to push through. Isn't the pugmill supposed to soften the
> harder stuff by mixing it with the soft?
>
> Ready for more questions?...
>
> Should I be worrying that the paint inside the hopper is starting to
> peel
> off into the clay?
>
> How do you keep from getting the pugmill area a total mess? Your hands
> become full of clay when you scoop up the clay to load the hopper and
> then
> you have to pull down on the lever with clayey ( that IS a word,
> right?)
> hands.
>
> Is it okay to let the machines idle while you are cutting off the old
> pug or
> grabbing more clay or whatever?
>
> How long can you pug for without turning off the machine for a rest?
>
> Is it unusual for the studio to smell like hot oil after pugging?
>
> What can you do with the mixed clay that you get when you switch over
> to a
> new clay? (Besides cone packs out the wazoo!)
>
> That's all...for now! (...she says with a sheepish smile).
> Carole Fox
> Silver Fox Pottery
> Elkton, MD
> silverfoxpottery@comcast.net
>
> _______________________________________________________________________
> _______
> 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.
>
Jennifer Boyer on wed 7 sep 05
Hi Carol,
Some thoughts:
On Sep 7, 2005, at 1:08 PM, Carole Fox wrote:
> I have a Venco de-airing pugmill. I am surprised by how difficult it
> is to
> pull down on the bar to feed clay into the hopper. I am putting in a
> mix of
> leatherhard trimmings and soft clay and really soft clay. I am not
> overloading the hopper. I can really feel it in my upper back after a
> morning of pugging. If I have any clay in there that is not soft, it
> becomes hard to push through. Isn't the pugmill supposed to soften the
> harder stuff by mixing it with the soft?
Sounds like you need to pull out the screens and clean them. They get
full of crud and the clay gets harder to push through. Email me
privately if you want a lesson.
>
> Ready for more questions?...
>
> Should I be worrying that the paint inside the hopper is starting to
> peel
> off into the clay?
Haven't had that happen
>
> How do you keep from getting the pugmill area a total mess? Your hands
> become full of clay when you scoop up the clay to load the hopper and
> then
> you have to pull down on the lever with clayey ( that IS a word,
> right?)
> hands.
Try using some sort of large spoon to get the slop into the hopper. I
also keep an old knee sock on the hopper arm
>
> Is it okay to let the machines idle while you are cutting off the old
> pug or
> grabbing more clay or whatever?
yup
>
> How long can you pug for without turning off the machine for a rest?
I turn it off if I'm going to leave it for more than 10 minutes.
>
> Is it unusual for the studio to smell like hot oil after pugging?
I smell oil since it kind of spits out of the vacuum pump, but it's not
a strong smell.
>
> What can you do with the mixed clay that you get when you switch over
> to a
> new clay? (Besides cone packs out the wazoo!)
>
> That's all...for now! (...she says with a sheepish smile).
> Carole Fox
> Silver Fox Pottery
> Elkton, MD
> silverfoxpottery@comcast.net
>
> _______________________________________________________________________
> _______
> 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.
>
>
************************
Jennifer Boyer
Thistle Hill Pottery
Montpelier, VT
http://thistlehillpottery.com
Carole Fox on fri 9 sep 05
Hi Gordon-
Thank you for all these tips and advice. I am relieved to know that there is
not a problem with my machine. I will try to make sure that I do not overtax
it and bend the handle. If I continue to have problems, I will check the
screen as you advised.
I really appreciate your help.
Carole Fox
Silver Fox Pottery
Elkton, MD
silverfoxpottery@comcast.net
----- Original Message -----
From: "Gordon Ward"
To:
Sent: Wednesday, September 07, 2005 5:33 PM
Subject: Re: a bunch of pugmill questions
> Carole,
>
> We have an early 1980s 4" Venco. Early on we took out the grate in
> the hopper. It is meant to keep hands out, but it took too much
> pressure to put clay through. The first handle actually bent and I
> head to replace it with a sturdier one. Your machine will probably
> work a bit better if you spray your trimmings with water and let them
> sit in plastic for a few days to let them get closer to the right
> consistency. It is difficult to force soft clay through the machine if
> the clay inside is stiff, but it will eventually go. It is relatively
> simple to soften clay by dipping hand sized bits of clay in water
> before dropping it into the hopper. As far a the mess, it is part of
> the activity. We never had a peeling paint problem, so not sure. I
> guess I would try to remove any loose paint. When pugging, we
> generally leave the vacuum pump running, but you need to stop the mill
> while cutting up clay or you will loose the seal on the vacuum chamber.
> The hopper area needs clay in it to keep that seal. Purge clay is a
> problem if you can't make pots with it. How about some simple
> planters? We always ran one clay in ours. If we ever changed bodies,
> we completely cleaned the machine. Oil smell is unusual. Make sure
> the oil levels are correct. Make sure your shredding screens on the
> vacuum chamber are not clogged. It is possible that your leather hard
> trimmings are restricting flow at this point, causing excessive strain
> on both you and the machine.
>
> Good Luck,
>
> Gordon
>
>
> On Sep 7, 2005, at 10:08 AM, Carole Fox wrote:
>
>> I have a Venco de-airing pugmill. I am surprised by how difficult it
>> is to
>> pull down on the bar to feed clay into the hopper. I am putting in a
>> mix of
>> leatherhard trimmings and soft clay and really soft clay. I am not
>> overloading the hopper. I can really feel it in my upper back after a
>> morning of pugging. If I have any clay in there that is not soft, it
>> becomes hard to push through. Isn't the pugmill supposed to soften the
>> harder stuff by mixing it with the soft?
>>
>> Ready for more questions?...
>>
>> Should I be worrying that the paint inside the hopper is starting to
>> peel
>> off into the clay?
>>
>> How do you keep from getting the pugmill area a total mess? Your hands
>> become full of clay when you scoop up the clay to load the hopper and
>> then
>> you have to pull down on the lever with clayey ( that IS a word,
>> right?)
>> hands.
>>
>> Is it okay to let the machines idle while you are cutting off the old
>> pug or
>> grabbing more clay or whatever?
>>
>> How long can you pug for without turning off the machine for a rest?
>>
>> Is it unusual for the studio to smell like hot oil after pugging?
>>
>> What can you do with the mixed clay that you get when you switch over
>> to a
>> new clay? (Besides cone packs out the wazoo!)
>>
>> That's all...for now! (...she says with a sheepish smile).
>> Carole Fox
>> Silver Fox Pottery
>> Elkton, MD
>> silverfoxpottery@comcast.net
>>
>> _______________________________________________________________________
>> _______
>> 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.
>>
>
> ______________________________________________________________________________
> 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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