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offcntrI don't often see anything in the Ceramics Monthly suggestions column that's useful. They're either too esoteric or too basic, things I'm never gonna need or things I've long since figured out on my own. This one, though, was perfect.
I'd struggled for years with the best way of glazing big cookie jars and canisters. They're too heavy and awkward for dipping tongs, and if I poured the inside, there was no good way to dip the outside that didn't end up with glaze overlaps that show up as a different color in firing. But some clever potter found an answer.
This is a dent puller. A thing auto body shops use to fix small dents in your fender or side panel. It's a little suction cup that gloms onto your car hard enough to pop out the damage. And it's perfect for suspending a jar or canister for a vertical dip into the glaze bucket.
There are some caveats. You have to pour glaze into the inside first, pour it out, and wipe the rim. You have to keep it perfectly vertical going in to dip the outside, so as not to plop out the air pressure inside the jar. And you need a perfectly smooth surface to latch onto, which means paraffin wax dip, not liquid wax resist. But within those parameters, it works a charm. I moisten the suction cup with a little water before engaging, tug to test the seal before committing to the glaze, and support the jar with my hand on the inside, against the dry inner glaze surface as soon as it's out of the bucket again, in case the suction fails.
I'd struggled for years with the best way of glazing big cookie jars and canisters. They're too heavy and awkward for dipping tongs, and if I poured the inside, there was no good way to dip the outside that didn't end up with glaze overlaps that show up as a different color in firing. But some clever potter found an answer.
This is a dent puller. A thing auto body shops use to fix small dents in your fender or side panel. It's a little suction cup that gloms onto your car hard enough to pop out the damage. And it's perfect for suspending a jar or canister for a vertical dip into the glaze bucket.
There are some caveats. You have to pour glaze into the inside first, pour it out, and wipe the rim. You have to keep it perfectly vertical going in to dip the outside, so as not to plop out the air pressure inside the jar. And you need a perfectly smooth surface to latch onto, which means paraffin wax dip, not liquid wax resist. But within those parameters, it works a charm. I moisten the suction cup with a little water before engaging, tug to test the seal before committing to the glaze, and support the jar with my hand on the inside, against the dry inner glaze surface as soon as it's out of the bucket again, in case the suction fails.