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****tip of the week/kickwheels*****

updated fri 17 jun 05

 

Earl Brunner on sat 11 jun 05


I have a friend who teaches high school ceramics. As a teaching wheel, he
favors kickwheels. I really think in a lot of ways they are better for
beginners. Some of my beginners really have lead feet on the power wheels.
There is something about the rythmn.



Earl Brunner
Las Vegas, NV
-----Original Message-----
From: Clayart [mailto:CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG] On Behalf Of Frank Colson
Sent: Saturday, June 11, 2005 10:52 AM
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Subject: ****Tip of the Week/Kickwheels*****
A good part of this was
the power wheel, but mostly because I didn't have a "splash pan" in my way.
I had learned my lesson well, and when I open my own exclusive wheel
throwing school, not one of more than a dozen kickwheels had a splash
pan. This is only one of a whole bunch of reasons I favored a kickwheel.

Next week I will discuss the other reasons we taught on a kickwheel before
moving on to a power wheel.

Taylor from Rockport on sun 12 jun 05


Hey Earl, Frank and others:

I learned the very basics on teacher's Brent then when I was lucky enough
to find an inexpensive Lockerbie kick wheel, I jumped at the chance. My
own built wheel sits momentumless at the moment, but I have made all my
posts on that Lockerbie and I don't think I will change. For the smaller
items I even kick it up for centering, but I must admit I put the motor to
it when I need to center larger amounts of clay.

My kickwheel is a kick in the pants.

Taylor, in Rockport TX

On Sun, 12 Jun 2005 13:24:06 -0400, Frank Colson wrote:

>Earl- Right on! A whole other aspect of using a kickwheel, is that one
>learns how to throw with the entire body, not just the upper torso!
>I will get into this next week in some detail.
>
>Frank Colson
...

Mike Gordon on sun 12 jun 05


Earl, I agree The rhythm is much better and the height of the wheel is
a lot easier on the back than bending over an electric, especially with
beginners that need so much help. Mike Gordon
On Jun 11, 2005, at 9:39 PM, Earl Brunner wrote:

> I have a friend who teaches high school ceramics. As a teaching
> wheel, he
> favors kickwheels.
>
>
> Earl Brunner
> Las Vegas, NV
> _______________________________________________________________________
> _______
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
> melpots@pclink.com.
>

Frank Colson on sun 12 jun 05


Hank- Welcome to the kickwheel club. Did you notice how those wheelheads
were always made of laminated hardwood about 6" thick? It was really nice
to see that beautiful wood grain show up after wiping off the wheelhead at
the end of a throwing session
Frank-
----- Original Message -----
From: "Hank Murrow"
To:
Sent: Sunday, June 12, 2005 9:21 AM
Subject: Re: ****Tip of the Week/Kickwheels*****


> On Jun 11, 2005, at 9:39 PM, Earl Brunner wrote:
>
> > I have a friend who teaches high school ceramics. As a teaching
> > wheel, he
> > favors kickwheels. I really think in a lot of ways they are better for
> > beginners. Some of my beginners really have lead feet on the power
> > wheels.
> > There is something about the rythmn.
>
> I learned on the old German style that Wildenhain and her disciples
> used. Then I built my own. The momentum wheels teach you to be
> economical in your movements in relation to the clay to conserve your
> own energy. That sort of wheel was a good teacher!
>
> Cheers, Hank
> www.murrow.biz/hank
>
>
____________________________________________________________________________
__
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.

Hank Murrow on sun 12 jun 05


On Jun 11, 2005, at 9:39 PM, Earl Brunner wrote:

> I have a friend who teaches high school ceramics. As a teaching
> wheel, he
> favors kickwheels. I really think in a lot of ways they are better for
> beginners. Some of my beginners really have lead feet on the power
> wheels.
> There is something about the rythmn.

I learned on the old German style that Wildenhain and her disciples
used. Then I built my own. The momentum wheels teach you to be
economical in your movements in relation to the clay to conserve your
own energy. That sort of wheel was a good teacher!

Cheers, Hank
www.murrow.biz/hank

Frank Colson on sun 12 jun 05


Earl- Right on! A whole other aspect of using a kickwheel, is that one
learns how to throw with the entire body, not just the upper torso!
I will get into this next week in some detail.

Frank Colson
----- Original Message -----
From: "Earl Brunner"
To:
Sent: Sunday, June 12, 2005 12:39 AM
Subject: Re: ****Tip of the Week/Kickwheels*****


> I have a friend who teaches high school ceramics. As a teaching wheel, he
> favors kickwheels. I really think in a lot of ways they are better for
> beginners. Some of my beginners really have lead feet on the power
wheels.
> There is something about the rythmn.
>
>
>
> Earl Brunner
> Las Vegas, NV
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Clayart [mailto:CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG] On Behalf Of Frank Colson
> Sent: Saturday, June 11, 2005 10:52 AM
> To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
> Subject: ****Tip of the Week/Kickwheels*****
> A good part of this was
> the power wheel, but mostly because I didn't have a "splash pan" in my
way.
> I had learned my lesson well, and when I open my own exclusive wheel
> throwing school, not one of more than a dozen kickwheels had a splash
> pan. This is only one of a whole bunch of reasons I favored a kickwheel.
>
> Next week I will discuss the other reasons we taught on a kickwheel before
> moving on to a power wheel.
>
>
____________________________________________________________________________
__
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.

Hank Murrow on mon 13 jun 05


On Jun 12, 2005, at 4:29 PM, Frank Colson wrote:

> Hank- Welcome to the kickwheel club. Did you notice how those
> wheelheads
> were always made of laminated hardwood about 6" thick? It was
> really nice
> to see that beautiful wood grain show up after wiping off the
> wheelhead at
> the end of a throwing session

Yes, ours were laminated Oak, about 6" thick. When I made my electric
wheel, I cast several bronze wheelheads, weighing around 60#s each. My
'groaner' wheel has one and it prevents the wheel from jumping quickly
as so many of the commercial wheels do now. It gets a nice patina after
a while.

Cheers, Hank
www.murrow.biz/hank

Malcolm Schosha on mon 13 jun 05


--- In clayart@yahoogroups.com, Mike Gordon wrote:
> Earl, I agree The rhythm is much better and the height of the wheel
is
> a lot easier on the back than bending over an electric, especially
with
> beginners that need so much help. Mike Gordon
>
............

Why not just adjust the height of the wheel? I always had my Shimpo
raised on cement blocks. I made further adjustments in height, for
different size pots, by having a series chucks of different heights
with a marble bat fixed to the top. (Plastic would be just as good as
marble.) I put on the wheel head the chuck best suited to the hight
of the pots I was throwing.

Adjusting the wheel head hight saves a lot of strain on the back.

Malcolm Schosha

Eleanora Eden on wed 15 jun 05


I work on a kickwheel that was made for me by a friend in college,
copying the style that was in the UC studio, angle-iron frame, wood
bench and table. (I bought a slab of redwood for the bench and table
and my friend happily used that for a coffee table for his apartment
and made my wheels with marine ply.)

When my hips and back started having problems we added a modified
grinding wheel motor with a very simple Rube Goldberg device that
allows me to turn it on and off with a foot-operated lever.

So I have my kickwheel with all that control (especially at low
speeds the power wheels really are not responsive enough for me) and
at high speed I click it into electric.

Best of both worlds.

Eleanora

Frank Colson on thu 16 jun 05


Eleanora- Best testimonial for the kickwheel I've seen yet! Watch for my
notations this weekend on this subject about how
my kickwheel and I became totally Zen!

Frank -
----- Original Message -----
From: "Eleanora Eden"
To:
Sent: Wednesday, June 15, 2005 12:25 PM
Subject: Re: ****Tip of the Week/Kickwheels*****


> I work on a kickwheel that was made for me by a friend in college,
> copying the style that was in the UC studio, angle-iron frame, wood
> bench and table. (I bought a slab of redwood for the bench and table
> and my friend happily used that for a coffee table for his apartment
> and made my wheels with marine ply.)
>
> When my hips and back started having problems we added a modified
> grinding wheel motor with a very simple Rube Goldberg device that
> allows me to turn it on and off with a foot-operated lever.
>
> So I have my kickwheel with all that control (especially at low
> speeds the power wheels really are not responsive enough for me) and
> at high speed I click it into electric.
>
> Best of both worlds.
>
> Eleanora
>
>
____________________________________________________________________________
__
> Send postings to clayart@lsv.ceramics.org
>
> You may look at the archives for the list or change your subscription
> settings from http://www.ceramics.org/clayart/
>
> Moderator of the list is Mel Jacobson who may be reached at
melpots@pclink.com.