Pottery Wheels 2

ceramicarts dail y y.o r g

tips, techniques and tools for getting the most out of your

pottery wheel | Second Edition |

from buying to trimming, tips for the pottery wheel This special report is brought to you with the support of Skutt Ceramic Products

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Tips, Techniques and Tools for Getting the Most Out of Your Pottery Wheel From Buying to Trimming, Tips Tips for the Pottery Potter y Wheel Throwing on the pottery wheel is exciting and un. Once you can center, then you’ll never get tired o the many things you can create with the wheel. Here we’ve gathered some tips and techniques that make some o the trickier aspects o throwing much easier. easier. I you want to throw sets on the wheel, here are some si mple gauges or the potter’s potter’s wheel you can buy or make. Or or duplicating profles, you can make wheel throwing templates. Another ingenious technique is to acet reshly thrown clay then continue throwing the clay and watch the pattern expand. Finally, Finally, you’ll enjoy the survey o trimming accessories or wheel-thrown pottery pottery —maybe there’s a tool that’s right or you.

Pottery Wheels: The What and Why Before You Buy by Bill Jones When you decide to buy a pottery wheel, you’ll be pleasantly surprised at all the options. We’ve We’ve gathered together some o the advice rom seasoned experts Jonathan Kaplan and Steven Branman to shed a little light on which pottery wheel may be best or you.

Gauges for Wheel Throwing by Bill Jones Sooner or later every potter wants to make multiples o a orm—a set o bowls, plates, mugs, whatever. Two basic measuring devices or throwing sets on the wheel are the Western Western pot gauge that measures pots rom the outside and the Eastern tombo that measures pots rom the inside.

The Basics of Pottery Throwing Ribs by Bill Jones The best throwing tools around are our fngers but there are just some things they can’t do, and so we have throwing ribs—an essential tool or every potter. Pottery tools like throwing ribs provide an efcient and eective way or potters to remove moisture, control contours, and smooth suraces. Here’s a look at these tools and where you can fnd them.

How to Make Custom Pottery Throwing Ribs by Robert Balaban There are times when you may need a special tool when throwing on the pottery pottery wheel. Robert Balaban solves this problem by making his own tools and here he details how you can do the same.

Throwing on the Pottery Wheel with Templates by William Schran While throwing gauges can help you make pots that are the same height and width, templates will help you get the same profle. This This technique technique involves using templates to repeatedly create an even, symmetrical orm. These These easy to make templates can be used to scrape the clay as it rotates on the wheel to create a smooth, uniorm surace.

Faceting on the Pottery Wheel by Hank Murrow Faceting something you’ve thrown on the potter’s wheel is a little tricky, but here’s a technique that’s even trickier. Once you’ve aceted a reshly thrown pot, you can continue throwing the pot rom the inside and create a whole new eect with your wheel-thrown work.

Trimming Accessories for the Pottery Wheel by Frank James Fisher Trimming the bases o pots on the pottery wheel is another opportunity to bring unity and beauty to your artwork. But dierent shapes and sizes o work create challenges, and i you throw a lot o large bowls and platters, pots with delicate necks, lids, etc., then you should evaluate these trimming accessories or the potter’s wheel.

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Pottery Wheels: The What and Why Before You Buy by Bill Jones

W

hen it comes to buying a wheel there’s no shortage o choices. Ranging in price rom a ew hundred dollars to nearly $2000, potters wheels are separated by degrees o capacity, construction, and accessories. While there’s there’s nothing wrong with purchasing the wheel whee l you used as a student, or happen to be using in a community studio, you may be missing out on an opportunity to nd the ideal wheel or your needs. I you’ve limited yoursel to one or two wheels, you may not know i a dierent brand or model would be even better, ter, or whether those models are still in production. To nd out which wheel is best or you, you must assess your needs and understand what wheels can oer.

I you plan on using the wheel a lot, such as in a production situation, then you’ll want to look at sturdier proessional models. Additionally, i you plan on centering large amounts o clay, then you’ll need to look at wheels with at least ½ hp (horsepower) motors. In addition to level o use and capacity, you may also want to consider how much space you have, whether you need a portable wheel, i you just need a “starter” wheel, and, o course, what you can aord.

Assess the Wheels

Assess Your Your Needs

The two most important things to consider when purchasing a wheel are how oten you’ll use it and how much clay you realistically expect to throw at one time.

Steven Branman, in his book The Potter’s Proessional Handbook, describes the eatures you need to consider when looking at wheels. l

Power: A wheel’s power in practical terms is a unction o hp and torque. What you really want to know is whether you can apply the necessary orce to the largest amount o clay you will work with and not have the wheel slow down or stop.

Horsepower, Motors, and Electronic Controllers •Therearemanytypesof motorsavailableforpotter’swheelsandtheyareeither

quickerandthiswearsoutthecommutator.Thelargerthemotor,thegreaterthe

setupforstandardhouseholdalte setupforstandardhouseholdalternatingcurre rnatingcurrent(AC)orasdirec nt(AC)orasdirectcurrent(DC). tcurrent(DC).

numberofwindingsandthebettertheinsulationbetweenthem.Larger-sized

WhileACmodelsarerelativelyinexpensive,themotorspeedisdifculttocontrol

brushesalsoruncooler,whichallowsforincreasedheatdissipationandcooler

becausetheyhaveno becausetheyhavenopermanentmagn permanentmagnets. ets.Althoughitisn’tpossibletosuccessfully Althoughitisn’tpossibletosuccessfully

operatingmotorsandhencelongermotorlife operatingmotorsandhencelongermotorlife.Further .Further,high-qualitycont ,high-qualitycontinuousinuous-

varythespeedofanACmotorelectronically,amechanicalspeedcontrol,suchas

ratedmotorshaveabuilt-incoolingfanontheendoftheshafttofurtherextend

aring-coneorcone-and-disk,canbeusedtovarytheconstantspeed(1725rpm)

thelifeofthemotor.

ofthistypeofmotor.

•Electronic speed controls usedirectcurrent(DC)motors,andamotorcontroller

•The horsepoweronDCelectricmotorscanberatedas“peak”or“continuous

changesthehouseholdACtoDC.Onpotterswheels,theytypicallyoperateat90

duty.”Lessexpensivepeak-ratedmotorsprovidehorsepoweronlyforshortinter-

volts.Whencoupledwithafootpedalusingalinearpotentiometer,thecontroller

vals–notaproblemfortheoccasionalthrower.Continuous-dutymotors,onthe

allowsarangeofspeedswithpropertorque.

otherhand,whiletypicallymoreexpensiv otherhand,whiletypicallymoreexpensive,canrun e,canrunfullyloaded24hoursaday fullyloaded24hoursaday withoutoverheating.T withoutoverheating.Temperatur emperatureisthebiggestcauseofserviceproblemsand eisthebiggestcauseofserviceproblemsand motorfailure.Excessiverunningtemperatureseverelydegradesanelectricmotor.

Motor controllers aresolid-stateelectronicdevicesprotectedbyafuseorsmall

pushbuttonre-settablecircuitbreaker.

Becauseinsulatedwireisusedtocreatetheelectricalmagneticeldsthatcause

Therearetwotypesofelectronicmotorspeedcontrollers—SCR(siliconcontrolled

theshafttospin,moreh theshafttospin,moreheatbuildsupin eatbuildsupinthesewinding thesewindingsatslowspeed satslowspeeds,an s,andthe dthe insulationweakensovertime.Oncetheinsulationdegrades,windingfaultsoccur

rectication)andPWM(pulsewavemodulation).Whiletherearesubtledifferencesbetweenthesetypes,theyperformthesamefunctionsandareruggedly

andthemotoriscompromised.Further,asmotorsoverheat,thebrusheswear

constructedtoprovidemanyye constructedtoprovidemanyyearsoftrouble arsoftrouble-freeserv -freeservice. ice.


Speed: Speed is related to power but is really a dierent perormance issue. Your style o working dictates the speed or RPMs (revolutions per minute) o the wheel head you require. l Control Sensitivity: Your sensitivity to extremely slow speeds and the degree o gradual increase as you apply it will dictate any concerns you have in this area. l

l

Smoothness and Vibration: Again, personal style and expectations will make this more or less o an issue.

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Weight: I you use 30 or more pounds o clay, the weight and stability o the wheel could be an issue. You don’t want the wheel crawling along the foor as you apply pressure to the clay. clay.

l

Wheel Head Diameter: Although you can use bats o almost any size, the diameter o the wheel head may be a concern. The smallest head is 12 inches, with heads going as large as 16 inches.

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Miscellaneous Features: Splash pan, integrated seat, attached worktable, adjustable height, choice o rotation (reversing switch), construction materials and nishes, are all options you need to be aware o and assess as to their importance.

Back Problems? For potters prone to back problems, standing at the wheel to throw may be the answer. Most wheels can be purchased with optional leg extenders. Durable, stable, and easily adjustable leg extensions allow you to throw

standing up, perhaps, the best thing many potters can do or their health.

Recommendations I there is a pottery supplier nearby with a selection o equipment, they‘re your best bet or answering your questions and trying out wheels. I there’s not a nearby supplier, visit local potters, schools, and studios to see the equipment they have. Ask questions about the operation, maintenance, and repair records o the e quipment that interests you. Ask to try the wheel and be sure to bring your own clay! Why? It’s both courteous to the studio and sensible to test the wheel under as close to realistic conditions as possible. The Internet makes it possible to shop around and nd bargins on some wheels. Your local supplier not only service the wheels they sell, but they may also match an online price or order a particular model i they don’t have it in stock. Remember also that i you purchase a wheel that requires shipping, make sure you nail down all the costs or getting the wheel to its nal destination. A new potter’s wheel that ts your needs is a long-term investment you’ll certainly enjoy or many years to come.

This article was excerpted rom Steven Branman’s The Potter’s Proessional Handbook and rom Jonathan Kaplan’s “As the Wheel Turns” reprinted rom Pottery Making Illustrated. Speed: Speed is related to power but is really a dierent perormance issue. Your style o working dictates the speed or RPMs (revolutions per minute) o the wheel head you require.

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Gauges for Wheel Throwing by Bill Jones

M

ore than likely you’ll get to the point where you’d like to throw multiples o an object. Getting work to look the same when making more than one o an item takes a bit o practice because it’s not as easy as it looks! To To help assure you’ll get some sort o consistency on your next set o mugs or bowls, you need a throwing gauge—a way o keeping track o the measurements rom the rst piece to the last. There are several options or throwing gauges based on designs rom both eastern and western cultures, as well as ad hoc solutions that use items around your studio.

The Western Pot Gauge Production potters in Europe and America have used throwing gauges or centuries. These usually consist o an adjustable arm on a metal or wooden stand. The arm is adjustable in and out as well as up and down or both diameter and height measurements. An example o the Western pot gauge is the Fulwood Measure, which eatures a hinged pointer that olds back, away rom the pot as soon as the clay touches it.

The Fulwood Measure rom Kissimmee River Pottery (www.kissimmeeriverpottery.com ) is an example o a Western pot gauge. When the rim meets the hinged pointer, it olds out o the way.

Japanese Japanes e Gauge (Tombo) (Tombo) The Japanese developed a throwing gauge or making duplicates that measures the inside dimensions o a orm, unlike the western gauges mentioned above, which measure the outside dimensions. The tombo (which means dragonfy in Japanese) works well or throwing matching cups, mugs and bowls. Shaped like a lowercase t, it consists o a thin vertical piece o wood or bamboo that has a small hole or holes bored through it to accept a stick or dowel. The tombo is held by the top o the vertical stick. The length o the horizontal stick represents the diameter and the vertical length below this stick measures the depth o a vessel. The disadvantage o tombos is that they’re not readily adjustable. On the other hand, they are relatively inexpensive (and even easy to make), so potters usually have several tombos in their collection. Another advantage is that tombos can be used or throwing o the hump.

The tombo measures the inside depth and width o a orm. Two sources o tombos are Bamboo Tools (www.bambootools.com (www.bambootools.com ) and and Chris Henley (inset) at http://hominid.net/toolpage2.htm.. http://hominid.net/toolpage2.htm


The Basics of Pottery Throwing Throwing Ribs by Bill Jones

E

ven though our ngers serve as our primary throwing tools, there are times when a throwing rib does a better job. Ribs are a potter’s best riend when it comes to dening proles, wringing out water or adding decorative touches. In the beginning, actual animal ribs were used or this purpose—and hence the name—but now contemporary ribs are commonly made rom wood, metal, and plastic.

Uses

There are many unctions that ribs perorm, which is one o the reasons they’re so important. The most common uses or ribs are or manipulating proles and removing throwing marks while compressing the clay and removing excess water. When throwing porcelain, it’s it’s oten best to use a rib on one side o a pot and a sponge on the other, or even to throw with two ribs. The rib provides support, especially when making large voluminous orms. Because o the variety o shapes available, you can nd a rib to suit any prole you wish to make. Using a rib or the inside prole o a bowl can assure a continuous line rom the bottom through to the rim. And using the same prole repeatedly helps in making multiples or sets. Specialized ribs with notched proles can also be used on the exteriors o pots to add a decorative touch or even shape and rene the oot and rim. When throwing large orms, too much water in the clay is a problem once you have the preliminary shape completed. How many times have you tried to get that nal shape only to have the orm collapse? To prevent this, remove all the slurry water using a sharp-edged metal rib to ‘wring’ the excess water out. This increases your chances o success and prevents distorting or collapsing the orm. It also provides a way to get sweeping curves on bowls and platters.

Tips

Getting the most out o using a rib is simple. While you can generally get by without using a rib or small bowls, medium to larger bowls really benet rom this tool. The best way to use the rib is to have the wheel rotating at medium to low speed (the big-

Suppliers Bamboo Tools www.bambootools.com Bamboo tools have been used in Asia or centuries. Durable, exible, and lightweight, bamboo can be shaped with a sharp knie and will hold an edge that stands up to heavy use. Bamboo Tools oers a variety o curved, straight and profle ribs.

Chinese Clay Art USA www.chineseclayart.com Chinese Clay Art produces a set o fve wooden ribs with dierent profles and a set o three dierent die rent sizes o rubber ribs. For the budget conscious or those looking to provide supplies in a classroom setting, these provide a perect solution.

Kemper Tools www.kempertools.com Kemper makes eight wooden rib profles that include the basic shapes required or opening, shaping, curving, smoothing, and trimming. Their exible metal ribs are made or scraping, and a collection o rigid metal ribs can also be used as squeegees to remove excess water rom pottery shapes.

MKM Pottery Tools www.mkmpotterytools.com MKM makes a variety o ribs out o wood, steel, and coconut. In both the wood and steel series, there are 22 dierent profles o varying sizes, each with a specifc purpose or combination o uses. Their coconut shell ribs vary in size, shape, and thickness but are durable and comortable to hold.

Mudtools www.mudtools.com Developed by Michael Sherrill, Mudtools are made rom a silicone plastic material in six shapes and in our dierent hardnesses rom very sot to very frm. The sotest ribs can be used even on rims like a chamois and the frmest are nearly as frm as wood. Mudtools also produces six stainless steel ribs in an assortment o profles.


ger the piece, the lower the speed), work the rib up rom the bottom bot tom o the bowl, bowl, curving the clay outward a little with each pass rom the bottom to the top. With your right hand, always ollow the position o the rib with gentle sponge or nger pressure on the outside o the bowl, supporting the clay. Continue with successive passes until the bowl takes the shape you want. Remember, when using a rib to shape a orm, always hold it at an angle to the surace so it slides smoothly over the clay rather than scraping or cutting into it. Ater trimming, you can use ribs to eliminate trim tool marks, but you’ll need to be careul to hold the rib at an angle to prevent chattering and grog trails. Metal ribs, while suitable or throwing, are commonly used in handbuilding or their ability to scrape clay, compress seams, and make sharp lines and cuts.

1 Use two rubber ribs to help in the fnal thinning, or prior to collaring the neck.

Getting Specifc

Ater the rst ew weeks in pottery, you’ll want to look at having more ribs on hand than what came in the basic pottery tool kit you started with. I cost is a actor, you can nd reasonably priced wood, rubber, and metal ribs that can serve your needs. As you advance, you’ll nd that specialty ribs or bowl interiors (rom small to large and wide to steep), or making large or fanged plates and platters, dening corners, creating decorative proles, and those designed to remove slip or trimming tool marks will make your work easier and expand your repertoire o orms. A mixture o rigid and fexible ribs as well an assortment o metal, wood, and plastic ribs can also accommodate most any situation in both throwing and handbuilding. Luckily, even the most expensive ribs are aordable and will last a lietime (or until lost or borrowed).

2 Finish the opening and the exterior surace o the orm with a rubber rib.


How to Make Custom Pottery Throwing Ribs by Robert Balaban

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’ve always looked or ways to improve the quality o my art by ashioning customized hand tools to acilitate the shaping my vessels. In these eorts, I’ve developed a simple system o constructing hardwood ribs or a variety o throwing purposes. This permits creativity to extend rom the clay to the tools. Many studio visitors and students have enjoyed using or creating these tools and oten leave the shop with a couple o customized ribs that make a lasting impression on their crat. Custom hardwood ribs are easy to create, and can be constructed in under one hour using skills that any potter can master. master.

Choosing the Best Wood

I’ve experimented with several types o wood, rom the most exotic (mpingo, purple heart, bocote, and cocobolo), to mahogany and cherry, coming my way rom a woodworker’s scrap pile or rom my own backyard. Maple, osage orange, black locust, and even mountain laurel also work well. Red or white oak and poplar are hard to use because they swell when wet and typically have large growth rings that make a consistent edge dicult to achieve. Usually any dense hardwood with resistance to water damage is appropriate. The best, cheapest, and locally available wood (not rom the ragile rain orest) is American black cherry. The 5 / 16 16 -inch thick stock is a good starting material. Slightly thicker or thinner material can be used depending on taste or task. I you buy wood, a couple o dollars o 5 / 16 16 -inch wood can generate 10 to 20 ribs.

Generating & Transerring Designs

Creating dierent ribs or novel shapes or tasks can be done using paper, pencil, and a French curve or other guide or

1 Trim and attach the paper using double-sided tape. Cut out the rib leaving the tracing in place.

pattern to help generate that perect curve or angle. You can also use computer drawing programs, draw ree hand or simply copy more amiliar rib designs and modiy them to your needs or hands. I use a versatile French curve-style rib or working on the inside o vases and other orms. The rst step in making this type o rib is to trace the template onto paper and secure it to the piece o wood.

Making the Rib

The next step is to cut the wood, using a hand coping saw, scroll saw or band saw ( fgure 1) and leaving the traced line on the rib to permit ne tuning later. Caution: When working with power tools, read and ollow all manuacturer saety materials beore use. Dust rom some woods can be toxic or contain allergens, thereore always work in a clean ventilated area with a respirator or dust mask or the cutting and sanding stages. With the completed rough cut shape, the next steps are to nish the outline, taper the edge that will guide the clay, and generate a true sharp edge to create a smooth nish on the clay. The best tool to quickly accomplish all o these tasks is an oscillating spindle sander. It’s a rotating cylinder o sandpaper that moves up and down with interchangeable spindles o dierent diameters that can be used to rene the various curves o your rib (fgure 2). Alternatively, dierent size dowels with sandpaper wrapped around them also work, they’re just slower. Next, true the shape o the rib blank by sanding the rough edges using an 80-grit sandpaper. I you make a rib with an arc that’s smaller than the smallest spindle available, or have a square or triangle in the rib, these will need to be hand led. For the French curve rib, make a groove using a 5 / 8-inch spindle to t your index nger at the small end (see

2 Fine tune the fnger groove at the small end and customize the overall shape using a spindle sander.


3

4

Sandpaper used alone, on a sanding block, or wrapped around a dowel or tight curves also works well.

5 Drill 5/8-inch fnger holes where your fngers naturally grasp.

Taper the edge o the rib by angling the piece as it is brought to the sander and move with long strokes.

6 Smooth each hole then tilt the rib to mimic the marks made by your fngers.

gure 2) and to allow or leverage on the clay when pushing the larger belly end to the inside o a pot. This customizes the rib to your throwing style as well as your specic grip. Now create a tapered edge to guide the clay using the largest diameter spindle or a sanding block. This is done by approaching the spindle at an angle with the rib blank and then sanding it down to a 45° angle. Taper all outside edges o the French curve to accommodate all your throwing needs. The small circle on the end o the rib is also a very useul part, taper all edges here as well. Finish the taper on the larger structures, then make more severe tapers around any sharp eatures to help guide the clay through tight areas. Then round the all o the remaining edges or a better eel (fgures 3 and 4). To customize the rib even urther, add nger holes to improve grip and leverage. Hold the rib as you would while throwing and mark the area around your ngers. (Clamp the rib fat to a backing board to drill the nger holes). The back up board ensures that the drill bit will not split out the back side o the rib (fgure 5). Mark an outline o your nger’s grasp with a pencil then taper the hole or a customized t. Return to the spindle sander and insert the ½-inch sanding spindle into the hole. Sand the inside o the hole and then angle the rib while it is on the spindle to generate an

The fnished rib with customized curves and fnger holes.

oblong tapered hole that matches the angle o your ngers (fgure 6). Finally, sand the rib by hand using 200 then 400 grit sandpaper—only a couple o minutes with each grit is necessary. A good trick is to then wet the wood and dry it. This causes any wood grain that might rise with water to do so and then you can sand this o or a very smooth and resilient surace.

Finishing Work

The nish you use can vary. Using bare, untreated ribs is ne i they are made with a strongly water resistant wood like teak. Alternately, dierent oils and several dierent waterproo varnishes can be used to seal the surace. I have ound that the oil-based Minwax Clear Shield nish or marine varnish is very strong and the clay slips nicely along this surace. Follow the oil manuacturer’s directions on application and appropriate drying times. Finishes will still wear o and need to be reapplied. Using these techniques, you can make a rib, try it out on the wheel the same day, make adjustments, nish/dry it overnight, and have it ready or the next day. Robert Balaban is a unctional potter and teaches classes in his studio. He not only creates ribs rom dead trees ound in the woods, but he also specializes in creating sae glazes rom the natural products in his gold producing backyard in Maryland.


Throwing Throwing on the Pottery Pottery Wheel with Templates Templates by William Schran

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his technique involves using templates to repeatedly create an even, symmetrical orm. In the coil-building exercise, you position the template next to the pot as coils are added, making certain the pot conorms to the prole o the template. The template is then used as a rib to scrape the surace as it’s rotated, creating a smooth, uniorm surace.

Making a Template Any number o objects can be employed to design templates that have a variety o shapes. French and ships curves, ound in drating or mechanical drawing sets, are excellent tools or creating proles or wheel-thrown vessels. A variety o calipers can be taken apart to create any number curved orms. Lids o various sizes can be combined to create a mixture o curves. This process can also be used to produce templates with more complicated and compound proles with relative ease. To incorporate this technique into wheel-throwing, I began testing various materials that might serve the unction o a template. Sheet plastic, a durable material that can easily be cut and shaped, turned out to be the best material. Searching through scraps available at local glass supply and repair shops, I ound pieces o ¼ in. and 3 / 16 16 in. sheets that could be readily shaped into the desired proles by

Some o the shapes used to create design templates.

Assortment o bottle orms made with templates.


Templates used to throw cups.

cutting them with a power saw and handsaw. The edges can then be smoothed with ne sandpaper.

Creating the Form To use a template, as in the wheel-throwing project or the set o cups, prepare several balls o clay weighing between ¾–1 lb. each. Throw a basic wide cylinder. Check the interior diameter, height and width o this basic orm with calipers. Tip: Make a template or the basic cylinder orm as well as the nished piece. The rst template, showing the right width and shape o the ideal starting cylinder, can help you get the right basic shape. Once you have your cylinder ready, lubricate the interior o the pot, but do not lubricate the outside. Avoiding excess water results in a stronger orm that can better withstand manipulation and alteration when using the template. Position the bottom o the template so that it’s just touching the bottom o the pot and rests on the wheel head. The template should contact the wheel but should not be pressed against it. Hold the template at approximately a 45° angle, abutting the rotating clay, such that the clay moves away rom the edge o the template. The template should not be held at a 90° angle to the pot as this may lead to inadvertently shiting the template into the movement o the clay. The ngers o the interior hand slowly move up, pushing the clay out to the curve o the template. As the pot widens, the hand must move up along the interior o the orm more slowly so that it remains symmetrical. Ater reaching the top, the prole o the pot and template should be compared. I the pot does not match the template, move the ngers o the interior hand down rom the top to the bottom, pushing out where necessary, to conorm to the prole o the template. This is oten necessary or shapes with wider diameters. Rene the rim with a sponge or chamois and the cup is complete.

Template shapes used to throw bottle orms.

Large or Complex Forms Templates are also useul in creating larger pots, particularly bottle shapes. The prole template provides a method to quickly create multiples o the same orm, but also the opportunity to explore changes to certain areas, such as the neck and rim. The process o working with larger orms ollows the same steps as you would or cups, except the neck and rim are made without the template, ater the basic shape has been dened. To get started, make another cylindrical shaped pot, leaving the top portions o the wall, including the rim, thicker than the rest o the pot. Position the template and push the clay out to conorm to the shape, moving ngers on the interior up and down as necessary. Ater creating the desired curve, pull up the upper portion o the wall to thin it out and narrow it in using a collaring movement. Note: It is very important to continue moving your hands up while c ollaring in to maintain a curve or arch in the shape o the wall. A wall that becomes too horizontal or fat during the collaring and thinning process may be pulled down by gravity and collapse. In order to collar in the pot, use the middle ngers and thumbs to constrict the neck. As you create the neck, pressing down on the rim with the rst nger o the right hand helps to maintain a level top. Use a fexible rib ater each collaring process to rene the shape and maintain the desired curve. Using the rib also removes excess water and compresses the clay. Ater narrowing the diameter o the pot, the wall has been thickened and can now be pulled up thinner. As the top becomes too narrow to insert a sponge to remove lubricating water rom the interior, switch to using slurry to lubricate the clay instead. This allows your ngers and tools to continue shaping the clay without building up excess torque that might twist or tear the clay wall. Using slurry on the exterior, instead o water, provides a stronger clay wall.


1 Template held against basic cylindrical orm.

3 Hold template template at an angle against against surace surace during orming.

5 The interior hand slowly moves up, pushing the clay against the template.

2 Pushing clay out to the template.

4 Larger orms also begin begin with a basic cylinder orm.

6 The interior hand moves rom the top to the bottom, making certain the pot conorms to the template.


Faceting on the Potter’s Wheel by Hank Murrow

Bowl, 4½ inches in diameter. The fnished piece has a lively quality, which is a result o the dynamic process o opening the bowl ater aceting.

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aceting a pot—slicing clay rom the orm using a ettling knie, wire tool, or sometimes a Surorm tool—is usually done at the leather-hard stage. Several years ago I saw Joe Bennion acet bowls while they were still wet—just ater the initial orm was created—then continue to throw to create a stretched acet. Through experimentation, I created my own version o this process, as well as a wire tool with interchangeable wires to achieve dierent surace eects. Here’s the method I use.

1

Process To make a aceted bowl, begin with 2½ pounds o clay and open the orm like a bowl, ribbing the bottom so you don’t have to trim too much clay later ( fgure 1). The bowl is kept to a cylindrical shape, keeping the wall thickness to about a ½ inch or a little more. I rib the inside as well to eliminate nger marks ( fgure 2), and then give the rim a beveled prole with my chamois or rib ( fgure 3).

2


3

4

5

6

7 Hank developed this aceting tool (called Hank’s WireTool) with interchangeable wires, which yield dierent patterns in wet clay.

The rst cut with the wire tool trims away about a third o the wall and is cut parallel to the wall prole (fgure 4). Turn the wheel 180˚ and make the second cut, then 90˚ or the third cut and another 180˚ or the ourth. Cut the acets between the rst our cuts ( fgure 5) and smooth the edges with a wet nger. Use a dull wooden rib and dry ngers to open the bowl, stretching the wire cuts and dropping the rim

(fgure 6). It takes about three passes to develop a ull bowl shape. When the bowl has hal-dried, turn it over and place on a sheet o oam rubber to protect the rim. When ready to trim, place the bowl on a damp clay chuck and use a small piece o plastic as a bearing surace or the nger while trimming the outside ( fgure ). Follow by trimming the inside and nishing the oot 7 ). with the chamois.


Trimming Accessories Accessories for the Pottery Wheel by Frank James Fisher

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rimming the bases o pots is another opportunity to bring unity and beauty to your artwork. But dierent shapes and sizes o work create challenges, and apparently I wasn’t the only potter who longed or an easier process. proces s. Innovations have shown up in the studio, such as the Gin Grip®, the no-skid Grabber Pad® and the latest arrival, the Trimming Disc. I you throw a lot o large bowls and platters, pots with delicate necks, lids, etc., then you should evaluate the trimming accessories described here—a select group o products, each with a range o applications.

Trimming Disc For many years, potters placed a jar lid on the bottom o their pots while trimming. This trick made it possible to hold work down with a nger or two, eliminating the need or clay wads to secure the work to the wheelhead. Robert Piepenburg has improved on this technique with his Trimming Disc, a device that works like a small lazy Susan. The small ball bearings in the disk provide a smooth no-riction spin as your ngers press down on the tool, securing the pot without using clay wads. This tool is useul or large or small platters and bowls, as well as steadying tall orms. One advantage o the Trimming Disc is its versatility. It works eciently ec iently as a stand-alone trimming method and also as a useul accessory with the Grabber Pad and the Gin Grip.

The engineered grips on the bottom part o the Trimming Disc secure it to the pot, while the top part spins easily.

The Trimming Disc, shown above in use, works like a miniature lazy Susan, the top part rotating while the bottom part stays put.

Gifn Grip The Gin Grip, developed by Brian Gin in the 1980s, is essentially a trimming chuck. The Gin Grip attaches directly to wheel heads o varying diameters, and includes three sturdy brackets that grip the wheel head with a tight riction t. The Gin Grip centers and holds leather-hard clay in a three-pronged Bowl secured in a Gifn Grip. vice with three constricting hands mounted on rods o varying length. The main attribute o this tool is the way it automatically centers your work. Place the inverted pot near the center, turn A bottle suspended, secured and ready the upper platen to trim in a Gifn Grip. and the three grips or arms pull the pot into the exact center. Give the platen a quick tug and the pot is secured. There are a variety


to come with concentric grooves in the pad’s surace to help you nd true center easier, but you can add these circles with a Sharpie permanent black marker.

Oversized Trimming Bat

To trim jar lids, I secure the jar with the Gifn Grip and position the Trimming Disc on the center o the inverted lid.

o xtures included to secure plates, bowls and even tall vases to the platen. With a Gin Grip, a narrow-necked bottle can be suspended upside down or trimming the base, something that can otherwise only be done with a clay chuck. When trimming jar lids, I use the Trimming Disc in combination with the Gin Grip (see above).

Grabber Pad The Grabber Pad is one o those simple, but great ideas as it eliminates the need to secure your pot to the wheel head with clay wads. It is made o a nonskid material that’s adhered to a bat that ts on a wheel whee l head equipped with standard bat pins. You secure it to your wheel head using the pins as you would secure any other bat. The Grabber Pad’s non-skid material has a tacky, thin oam eel to it. It’s ideal or low-prole orms such as bowls and platters. Once the pot is centered, it’s not going to slide. The tacky surace overcomes the pull o centriugal orce, though I still like to keep a hand on the bottom o the pot. Since I use my hand as a steadying point or my trim tool to work against, Piepenburg’s Trimming Disc also works well with the Grabber Pad. One aspect o the Grabber Pad that I like is that I control the nal centering o my pot. I I have a bowl with an o-center base, I can center the bowl by eye rather than by the outer diameter o the rim. It gives me fexibility to experiment with asymmetrical rims. The Grabber Pad used

When trimming with a Grabber Pad, invert the piece and center using the rings as a guide.

Sometimes you just want to throw big, but trimming large platters and bowls with wide diameters requires special equipment. To solve this problem, purchase a 24-inch diameter laminatecovered particle board disk rom a lumber yard, cabinet shop or home center (call rst to check availability). Cut two 12inch square pieces o ¾-inch thick plywood and screw them to the bottom center o the disk. (Note: I have a Use the Trimming Disc in combinaShimpo wheel and I tion with the Grabber Pad to easily needed two square trim oot rings on pots. pieces to clear the splash pan. Measure the depth o your splash pan beore adding spacers.) Ater nding exact center, drill two matching holes 10 inches on center to accept bat pins. Ater assembling the parts, brush on two coats o exterior primer, ollowed by several coats o Oversized platter astened with marine paint, which wads o clay to a handmade overis ormulated to resist sized bat. water and the damage it can infict on wood.

Final Thoughts I have ound this group o trimming accessories to be capable o handling every clay vessel I have created. I’m sure there may be orms in my uture that will challenge this system, but the fexibility this combination o tools provides should meet that challenge.

Assemble your oversized bat ollowing this diagram.


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smooth valu v alue e

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