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I'm still new at this and learning as I go, so bare with me. I just applied kiln wash to a slumping mold (I use a wonderful blue-colored wash so I can see if I've missed any areas), and there seems to be one spot where the wash just won't take. Any suggestions?

Hi Stella,

Did you thoughly clean the mold before you applied the kilnwash? Sometimes there is oil or something on the metal surface and we need to get it off before applying kilnwash. What you might try doing since you have applied the kilnwash already is to take a hairdryer or a heatgun and heat just that place then apply the kilnwash. Another way is to put the entire mold in the kiln and heat the mold then apply the kilnwash.

Good luck.

Patty
http://www.pattygray.com

I have molds like that. My kiln shelf even does that.

Just work at getting a uniform coat over every place that you can see and smoothing it flat. The "bare spots" will be covered even though it doesn't look like it.

Andy

Thanks for the suggestions....I sure appreciate it. And Patty...thanks to you I can now cut perfect circles! Awesome website!

If it is a ceramic mold, it is called a Hard Spot.

When slip is poured into the mold to make the piece, the spot where it first hits the inside of the mold dries faster than the rest of the piece. It makes the spot more dense and therefore less absorbent.

In ceramics, the way we deal with it is to lightly pat the glaze/or wash over the area, not brushing it. Then let it dry completely. The next layer usually sticks better to the first, if it is totally dry.

c

Hi Andrew,

You can try sandblasting or sanding your kilnshelf then apply the kilnwash. I've had a few areas on a kiln shelf where the Superspray has gotten onto the shelf and basically it acts like there is glass on the shelf so the kilnwash won't stick or just barely sticks. Doing the sanding or sandblasting has taken care of the problem.

Thanks Stella for the comments.

Good luck,

Patty
http://www.pattygray.com

Thanks Cheryl. It is a ceramic mold. I will use your suggestion.

Stella--

I own a paint your own pottery studio (2000 degrees)
I use the ceramics for my molds after I drill holes in them
I wipe them with warm water (not soaking wet) and dry them with a blow dryer, lightly sand them, wipe them again and dry. The kiln wash is applied with a regular foam brush and dryed with the dryer. I use my hand to smooth any uneven stuff.

At the studio we don't allow chips, pizza...or any greasy foods as that repels any glaze or paints....

So remember....no chips while working in your studio *)

Me Kim

Hit the hard spot with light sandpaper. Then wash should stick. Use the pat-on method if it still doesn't want to stick on the spot. Real common with poured molds.

Thanks again for all your help guys. I'm pretty confident I was able to get the spot covered enough. I'll be firing up that baby this weekend and will let you know how it goes.

Stella