Sunday, May 4, 2008

Firing Results

We fired the soda kiln at the Watershed Center on May 2, and just unloaded it today. This was our second firng in this kiln, and we definitely improved on the first:


As usual, I find the bottoms of bowls almost more handsome than the rest.

One great addition this firing was the use of Bauer Orange Flashing Slip:

41.9 EPK
41.9 OM 4
5.7 Borax
10.5 Zircopax

Apply very thinly to bisque. Works on greenware, too. Do not apply over glaze.

This week:
Monday -- Beginner's Class, Portland Pottery
Tuesday -- Fiona getting spayed! Find sub for Intermediate class.
Wednesday -- Trim lids & finish casseroles
Thursday -- Car to Lewiston for new head gasket. Glaze cat urns.
Friday -- Glaze & load
Saturday -- Firing; photograph new pots.
Sunday -- Mother's Day in So Po; unload kiln.

1 comment:

Douglas Watts said...

What we learned in this firing is that using two 5 gallon buckets of clay and door mud and sealing the #$%^ out of the kiln door creates a massively intense reduction atmosphere -- there is no way except through the burner ports that oxygen can get in the kiln. This has the effect of making the 750 brown clay body very dark with iron spotting and lots of steely gray "carbon trapping" in areas that get blasted with sodium glass from applying the sodium carbonate mixture.