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wedge/tables

updated tue 11 apr 00

 

mel jacobson on mon 10 apr 00

several things to keep clear in your mind when building
counters, tables, work benches in a studio...FLAT, flat, flat.

i have never liked plaster of any kind in my studio, chips always
get in the clay, same with concrete.

so, i use masonite over 1x6 deck material. FLAT.

and, as many clear wood surfaces as i can make.
about 20 years ago i found a head stone that had
a chip in it at a stone yard. paid about 5 bucks for it.
sits in the middle of my wedging table. i do believe
that it is clear sandstone (used often years ago in Minnesota.)

i do not varnish anything. just wash it, keep it clean.

vince uses a great deal of heavy canvas, but i have never
liked the dust that comes from it. but, saying that, for a
one potter studio, that is clean, canvas is wonderful.
just hated being in a studio with 30 kids pounding clay on
canvas.

one thing that i did in the high school studio was tons of
oiled sawdust on the floor. i would empty a 50 gallon drum
full each week from the wood shop collector. give it a light
fluff of oil and mineral spirits and throw it on the floor. those
190 set of feet would just walk it around, absorb a great deal
of dust. janitor would just sweep it up each night...first thing
each morning, new batch of sawdust. doctor say's i have very
normal lungs for a 65 year old man....that sawdust may have saved me
a great deal of grief later. i still saw dust my studio floor, just
a hand full now and then. sweep it up carefully, and a garden
hose spray of water about 5 times a year. i have a sloped floor
in my studio, with a floor drain that goes outside.

i am sure you all know what i mean when i say flat. pots that
sit on curved surfaces memorize that curve when fired. even on
batts. (esp. plastibatts) so, i make sure that big bowls, platters etc
have a great flat surface to sit on overnight, or until that rim is firm.

bob fritz, my pal in wisconsin, uses 2 inch firm foam as ware boards.
it is that construction foam used in roofs etc. bright yellow, or pink.
it is light, strong as hell, and can be cut to shapes or sizes very easily.
of course you have to live with all that pink in your studio. (gag)
i have one piece on a table, and it works slick. flat as can be.

mel/mn





minnetonka, minnesota, u.s.a
http://www.pclink.com/melpots (website)