Tuesday, April 20, 2010

Slip Casting on the Road


I found myself doing some traveling last week and was trying to figure out how to work at the same time. Because as we all know, you can't do much with clay while driving. But then I had a wonderful idea. Since I'm casting it seemed to me that it was a perfect fit. With slip casting you spend a lot of time waiting, whether its for the piece to cast, dry or the mold to dry. While on one of my ventures I decided to bring 2 buckets, one of casting slip and one for reclaim. I also brought a mold. I found the timing to be perfect. I could pull off the road to a rest stop or just the side. There I would pour the casting slip into my mold. While I waited for that to set up I would use the restroom and since the casting slip I use has a fast cast Kaolin, by the time I got back out it was time to pour out the excess slip(about 3-5 minutes). I would then let it drain while i ate something and got a drink( about 4-5 minutes). Then I would set the mold back in the van with the buckets and be on my way.
Around the time the next rest stop would come up, I would then open up the mold and place the piece in a damp box. The rest stop after that would be enough time for the mold to dry enough for another cast. I mean all in all it made my trip about an extra 20 minutes, but I also created some work and got to post on my blog for someone to read hopefully.

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