Shop Talk I Tool Times
Tools for Glaze Mixing and Application (continued from previous page)
model ES and leave them together as
a unit, always available for those uses.
For small amounts of glaze, slip,
or slurry, a plunge-blender (stickblender/immersion-blender) works
best. Don’t waste money on the
expensive ones because abrasive
ceramic materials will kill them just
as quickly as the cheaper ones. We get
the best longevity and service from
the $35 Cuisinart CBS-75 Smart Stick.
CLAYTIMES·COM n 20TH ANNIVERSARY • AUTUMN / WINTER 2015
For a low-budget solution, a large
wire whisk works well and can be
homemade from 1/8" wire. Many
people report good results with a
common toilet brush, but these only
work well with glazes that are easily
brought back into suspension. Glazes
settle according to particle weight,
and if you leave any residue on the
bottom, what you have mixed into
suspension is not the true glaze.
38
Brown Dipping Tongs
Kemper Dipping Tongs
Tools for Glaze Application
I’m planning an upcoming column
on brushes, and thus will forego
them here. Among the most common
glazing tools, the standard redhandled Kemper dipping tongs
(pictured above) work fine for small
items. Baileypottery.com item #C-128115 is a Chinese spring-loaded set of
dipping tongs that looks interesting,
but I have not used them. Sturdier
dipping tongs adapted from ChannelLock pliers cost about $25 and are
adjustable to accommodate different
wall thicknesses. The precise, sturdy
hinge mechanism feels far more
secure when dipping larger objects.
You can find them at aardvarkclay.
com as the Brown glaze tongs, or at
vangilderpottery.com as the Channellock glaze tongs. Japanesepotterytools.
com has some very interesting steel
dipping tongs in the “glazing” section,
but all their prices are listed in yen.
A common dilemma in clay studios
everywhere is how to glaze large
bowls and plates. Many people spray
them, but even very large plates and
platters can be dipped effectively in
the right container. With all plates
and platters, if you dip straight in and
back out vertically, you get a much
thicker accumulation of glaze at one
edge. Instead, pour the glaze into a
low, wide vessel, and for plates and
serving bowls up to 14" diameter a
plastic or metal oil-drain pan from an
auto parts store works well.
A wide, round-bottom container will
allow very large bowls and platters
to be glazed with a relatively small
amount of glaze, and the best options
are large mixing bowls and woks. On
amazon you can find 30-quart mixing
bowls 23" in diameter for around $30.
If you’re serious about glazing
really large platters and bowls, go to
webrestaurantstore.com and order
the Town 34730 30" Hand-Hammered
Wok for $60. Thirty-five years ago I
acquired a 36"-diameter wok, and
my students and I have been using
it for glazing large bowls and platters
ever since. Grasp the bowl or plate
from opposite sides with your fingers
against the rim, dip one edge in, tilt
and swirl the bowl or plate around
in the puddle of glaze to cover all
surfaces inside and out, and follow
through and remove it continuing in
the same direction so the first edge
to hit the glaze is the first to emerge.
Touch up the finger marks with a
brush. With a little practice, you can
evenly coat bowls or platters of almost
any size in three or four gallons of
glaze in a giant wok or mixing bowl.
Spraying is the standard method for
glazing larger or awkward forms that
cannot be dipped, and this must be
done either outdoors or in a proper