Based on some sage advice from whalemusic360, I've decided to start a P&M thread regarding the
40K inspired beer mugs I've been making and selling in this thread
http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/331158.page . I'll basically start with a section of photos dedicated to the process of making a mug, then it will turn into a show case for all of the completed mugs I've made. I'll add more photos of new mugs as I receive new orders and make new mugs for friends. With luck, and continued orders from you guys, this blog will keep going for a good long while (I don't want to get a real job)
For those of you who have bought mugs, are thinking about it, or have no intentions of ever buying one, but can still appreciate the craft that goes into creating something, I hope you'll find this interesting.
Tonight, I'll start by introducing you to the studio I built in my back yard, and some of the materials and equipment I use.
If you have a mug that I made, this is where it happened...look like an extremely small studio? Well that's because it is, haha. It's only an 8x8 foot building. That's the largest size building my neighborhoods home owners association would let me put up...though my back yard isn't too much larger than that, so it's kind of irrelevant, haha.
Here it is from the inside...man, I wish it was like Doctor Who's Tardis and was waaay bigger from the inside
The tools of the trade...nothing fancy here...you can buy this stuff at a craft store for $10. Though, what I do would be impossible without it, so I'm not complaining about the price...that comes later
My potters wheel can center 20 lbs of clay and spins at variable speeds from 0-240 RPMs. It's the cheapest quality wheel that I could find, so it's lacking a bit of power. That being said...I don't throw more than 20lbs at a time, so it's not an issue for me. The wheel cost $350
My kiln. It might be small, but this baby can reach 2,500 degrees fahrenheit, though for the most part, I only fire it to 2,250, if I go much hotter than that with the clay and glazes I use, it tends to cause problems. It's electric, runs on 120 voltage and only draws 20
amps. In order for me to buy a kiln that I could run on 120v that wouldn't cost me $2,500, I had to sacrifice size. I can only fire 3 mugs at a time, and it cost me roughly $6 to fire the kiln...so just think, if I had a melta gun, each mug would be $2 cheaper
Oh, and if you want a kiln about like this one, you're looking at about $850.
This is a 50 lbs. box of the clay that I use. The "112 Brown" on the side of the box, is the code for the particular clay formula that I use. 112 Brown is a stoneware clay, meaning it's a clay body that has a good bit of strength and durability. If you've got ceramic dinner plates that aren't porcelain, this is pretty much what they are made of.
The "C/4-6" directly beside that, stands for "cone 4-6" which is the heat saturation the clay is strongest at. It's a bit complex, but basically the clay is finished cooking anywhere between cones 4 and 6...you progressively heat the kiln over a period of 5-7 hours from 200 to 2,250 degrees. Clay runs about $30 a box and I get about 15 mugs out of every box.
The next update will happen sometime this week and you'll get to see some in action pictures of lumps of clay starting to look "mug like", haha.
Great work!
