Monthly Tech-Tip | No tracking! No ads! |
This is a cone 6 GLFL test to compare melt-flow between a matte recipe, found online at a respected website, and a glaze we use often. Yes, it is matte. But why? Because it is not melted! Matte glazes used on functional surfaces need to melt well, they should flow like a glossy glaze. Even though this recipe has 40% nepheline syenite, lots of dolomite and calcium carbonate it is not melting. Yes, these are powerful fluxes, but at cone 10, not cone 6! To melt a cone 6 glaze boron, zinc or lithia are needed. Boron is the most common and best general-purpose melter for potters (it comes mainly in frits, Gerstley borate). The concept of a limit recipe applies here, the idea of eye-balling a recipe and quickly assessing if it is ridiculous or not.
Articles |
A Textbook Cone 6 Matte Glaze With Problems
Glazes must be completely melted to be functional, hard and strong. Many are not. This compares two glazes to make the difference clear. |
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Glossary |
Matte Glaze
Random material mixes that melt well overwhelmingly want to be glossy, creating a matte glaze that is also functional is not an easy task. |
Glossary |
Limit Recipe
This term refers to sanity-checking ceramic glaze recipes by noting whether materials present or their relative percentages fall outside typical norms for functional ware. |
Glossary |
Glaze Recipes
Stop! Think! Do not get addicted to the trafficking in online glaze recipes. Learn to make your own or adjust/adapt/fix what you find online. |
Oxides | B2O3 - Boric Oxide |
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