Steve Slatin on sat 21 jan 06
Naomi --
Most of the MC6G glazes don't 'run' as such. Real running in
glazes is when a glaze is very fluid when it's fully melted and
the force of gravity pulls it down the side of the pot. This is
generally the result of insufficient stiffeners (generally alumina)
in the recipe.
Non-runny glazes can go on pretty thick. If a glaze is applied
pretty thickly, it'll generally be consistent in appearance.
Your description (inside of the bowl OK results, color thin
on the outside) is typical of thin application. The streaks you
see where the glaze is extra thick because of a drip is also
characteristic of a thin application (the glaze is thick enough
where the dip and the drip intersect; where there's only one,
it's too thin).
There are as many different ways to apply glaze as there
are potters. I don't know how you glaze pots, but remember,
when glazing, the bisque moisture level has lots to do with the
glaze absorbtion rate. If you glaze the inside and outside
without a lengthy drying period in between, whichever side
you glaze first will absorb more glaze and the other side
will be paler ... which is what you got.
Several possible solutions come to mind --
1. Before glazing, 'rinse' the pot quickly in clean water.
Wait for them to dry, leaving an equally moist clay body
inside and out, and then apply as you normally do, but
with longer dips, so that the glaze goes on as thick as
is usual, but on both sides. (This is also a good way
to get any dust particles off of the bisque.)
2. Brush the glazes on. I used to hate brushing, but
as I do it more, I discover it's a good solution to many
problems. I personally find 3-4 layers brushed on is
about equal to one 5 second dip. Some glazes are
best to do by drying between layers when brushing,
but some don't need it, and with some trial-and-error
you can get a very consistent level of glazes. Some
folks mix up brushable glaze differently from dippable
glaze; I do them the same (most MC6G recipes I
add about 2% bentonite and it's pretty good for
brushing or dipping).
3. Dip (or pour) the inside first, and let the pots
dry for a day before doing the outside (or do in
the other order, but in any event, let them dry
thoroughly).
4. The problem with the dripping on the outside --
examine carefully under a good light, either
sunlight or a bare bulb -- and the drip will be
very clear. With a fingertip, 'blend' the thickness
down to the level of the glaze where it has a
consistent thickness.
Also please remember that if the glaze is fairly
glossy, it will 'heal' over a scratch. If you don't
know if you have consistent application of glaze,
inside and out, use a pin tool to scratch the glaze
and check the thickness.
Last possibility -- adopt an aesthetic that admits
of drips as a positive thing. Try to get a good
pattern of drips wherever possible. Lemons,
lemonade, blah blah blah.
Best wishes -- Steve Slatin
Naomi wrote:
I'm pretty new at making glazes, but seem to have the biggest problem with
some recipes from Mastering Cone 6 Glazes. I dont' know if it's not thick
enough, or too thick, or what, but i ALWAYS get some degree of runs
appearing on the side... not running on to the shelf, not dunting, or
creeping, but... drips of what LOOKS like extra thick glaze interspersed
with really thin parts, such as around the rim, where i let the extra
glaze pour out. How can i get the glaze to smooth out? I have to pour it
out one side or another...
Also, i've noticed that the underside glaze of my flat bowls are way paler
then the inside of the bowls ( very nice to highlight the streaks!).
Again, only with the RR glazes. Can anyone shed some light on this??
Thanks in advance.
Naomi
Steve Slatin --
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Naomi on sat 21 jan 06
I'm pretty new at making glazes, but seem to have the biggest problem with
some recipes from Mastering Cone 6 Glazes. I dont' know if it's not thick
enough, or too thick, or what, but i ALWAYS get some degree of runs
appearing on the side... not running on to the shelf, not dunting, or
creeping, but... drips of what LOOKS like extra thick glaze interspersed
with really thin parts, such as around the rim, where i let the extra
glaze pour out. How can i get the glaze to smooth out? I have to pour it
out one side or another...
Also, i've noticed that the underside glaze of my flat bowls are way paler
then the inside of the bowls ( very nice to highlight the streaks!).
Again, only with the RR glazes. Can anyone shed some light on this??
Thanks in advance.
Naomi
Lee Love on sun 22 jan 06
On 2006/01/22 11:06:01, naovan@hotmail.com wrote:
>How can i get the glaze to smooth out? I have to pour it
> out one side or another...
On small things, I always dip them. Lift them out
upside down, rolling the bowl or plate so that the running glaze thins
out over the pot surface. You then get the thick part at the top of
one side, and flip with the thin side facing down. Touch the rim with
a drip of glaze from your finger, or get more out of the bucket, after
you set the pot down.
A good use of a sharp japanese kana type strap metal
tool, is to scrap any drips or the bumps where your fingers held the
piece to glaze.
If you glaze the outside first and then the inside, you can
wax resist the spot on the outside rim where the glaze will be poured
from. This will keep any "pouring drips" from happening on the outside
of the pot.
--
Lee Love
in Mashiko, Japan http://mashiko.org
http://seisokuro.blogspot.com/ My Photo Logs
http://ikiru.blogspot.com/ Zen and Craft
"The way we are, we are members of each other. All of us. Everything.
The difference ain't in who is a member and who is not, but in who knows
it and who don't."
--Burley Coulter (Wendell Berry)
Ron Roy on sun 22 jan 06
Hi Naomi,
What glazes are doing this - I have not heard of this before. It sounds
like you are getting the glaze on very thick where the drips are.
Are you firing with cones?
When getting the glaze out of pots you should be turning the pots as you
pour out - only fill the pot half way - then roll to get an even coat on
the inside.
How do you judge the thickness of the glaze in the bucket?
With the bowls - do you glaze the inside first? is the outside then to wet
to get a proper coat?
Tell us all about it - RR
>I'm pretty new at making glazes, but seem to have the biggest problem with
>some recipes from Mastering Cone 6 Glazes. I dont' know if it's not thick
>enough, or too thick, or what, but i ALWAYS get some degree of runs
>appearing on the side... not running on to the shelf, not dunting, or
>creeping, but... drips of what LOOKS like extra thick glaze interspersed
>with really thin parts, such as around the rim, where i let the extra
>glaze pour out. How can i get the glaze to smooth out? I have to pour it
>out one side or another...
>
>Also, i've noticed that the underside glaze of my flat bowls are way paler
>then the inside of the bowls ( very nice to highlight the streaks!).
>Again, only with the RR glazes. Can anyone shed some light on this??
>Thanks in advance.
>Naomi
Ron Roy
RR#4
15084 Little Lake Road
Brighton, Ontario
Canada
K0K 1H0
Phone: 613-475-9544
Fax: 613-475-3513
Keith Arbogast on mon 23 jan 06
Hi Ron,
My wife and I are having the same problem. Naomi's description is
identical to our results. We are using what we call 'H & R Majolica'
from your book. We add 1% bentonite to combat the powderyness of the
nepheline syenite, 1% CMC to harden the surface and 11% Mason stain
6406 (buttercup). (The surface is still powdery, so we will try 2% in
the next batch. If there's something more we can do we would be glad to
know. The powderyness makes handling the ware, and painting on top of
the glaze difficult.) My wife judges the thickness of the glaze slop
by seeing how it rolls off her fingernail, and by sloshing her hand
around in the bucket to test how it feels. We are using the glaze on a
white firing clay, Amaco M38, which we bisque to cone 06. When we have
bisqued to cone 04, we find it is harder to get the ware to absorb
enough glaze. We dip dry pots into a bucket of glaze sideways, and
roll them around their axis, so the inside and outside are glazed
simultaneously. We fire with cones, but pay more strict attention to
them on glaze firing than bisque. We put a higher bar cone in the kiln
sitter than the cone we are firing to.
I would like to add that we are grateful for all the research you,
John Hesselberth, and others have done on cone 6 glazes. It has been a
tremendous help to us.
With best wishes,
Keith Arbogast
Bloomington, IN
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