Throwing dry

"Steve Mills" wrote in message
...

Rather than throwing *dry* I use thick slip as the throwing lubricant; a
couple of dabs as I start, and then as I throw an occasional *hand wash*
movement to re-distribute the slurry to where it's needed.

That sounds more like the technique I use. I center pretty wet, but use the
slip on the wheel - just gathering it up and redistributing it over the
clay. When the slip gets too thick, then I add a bit more water. As I open
out and start pulling, my hands are full of slip, so instead of just adding
water to the piece, I dip one hand in my water-bowl, rub it with the other
hand, and voila - I have more thin slip that I can distribute over the piece
to help my hands glide better.

This is especially important to me, as I am not quick at doing things, and I
spend quite some time getting the final shape I want (am reading up on this
now!). Thus, I need to add glide without adding too much water. I have a
wonderful clay bought here in Switzerland that withstands water very nicely,
even though it has tiny grog in it.

http://www.michel.ch/michel/katalog/...?Redirect=True
It is the one called Apollo

With regard to lifting work off the wheel; unless it's an awkward shape
I make a small undercut, wire off, then after wiping the 1st & 2nd
fingers of both hands on the edge of the slip pot to dry them a bit I
slip the 4 fingers into the undercut with the wheel still turning slowly
and lift and off it comes. It's a trick I got into when I was throwing
on a kick wheel and resented having to stop the wheel to lift stuff off.

Sounds good! But how on earth do you keep the piece from buckling??? I would
love to see a little video of this technique. Sounds intriguing!

Personally, I prefer to throw bigger pieces on a bat for now. That way, I
just slice it loose, but leave it on the bat until it is more leathery and I
can safely lift it without bending the walls.

For smaller things, I have a doo-hickey that I bought at my supplier:
http://www.michel.ch/michel/katalog/...?Redirect=True
scroll all the way down - it is called "topfheber aus aluminium" - it wraps
around under the base, and the handles are far enough out that I can lift
most things much more evenly, and get them safely put on a bat or something
for drying.

Personally, the idea of putting a ton of water on the wheel to slide the
piece off doesn't appeal to me, as I do some of the drying of my waste right
there in the wheel basin. If it is full of water, it takes ages to dry and
reclaim the clay.

I know I am no expert, but just wanted to air my techniques that I am using
at the moment. Some of them might be good, some of them personal preference
only, some maybe a bad idea for some reason, and then I am counting on you
"old-timers" to tell me why :-)

Marianne