ACS product archive Collected

[Metalman]

There is a new book on the way. It is called Art Clay Silver and Gold  [R&T# 62-399]
In the mean time, Project 15 in Art Clay Book 1, pgs 34-35 is a mirror finish project so that may help.  
Also check work tips, look at the Work tip for 5/5/03 Finishing Metal Clay  on this page:  
 http://www.rings-things.com/cgi-bin....tart=10

[Metalfairy]

I have been told there is a new wonderful, fully instructive book out  on Art Clay Silver.  Are you going to be carrying it? Is there an advantage to the book over the video?  Does it show how to get a really fine polished look on a fired piece, like the mirror finish?

[Metalfairy]

I have bought the book, the order number is 62-399.  It is so wonderful and so full of information.  The projects, the author (Jackie) and her staff did, have started me to develop so many new projects of my own.  I can hear my ACS instructor in my ear as I read through it.  Thank you so much, I can hardly wait to see what is to follow.

[Metalman]

Now you can get the NEW line of Art Clay products, Art Clay 650 through the R&T catalog. You can find the  product order #'s through the website. Hardcopy will be included in the September supplement.
Ring and Things now carries Art Clay Silver 650 in clay, paste and syringe forms as well as the new 650 overlay paste.  
All of these new products fire at 1200 F and work great with glass, ceramics and sterling silver findings. Their workability is just like the original Art Clay Silver products except that they fire at the lower temperature.
Questions?  Pop then into our forum on Art Clay Silver and let Kurt Madison [aka ‘Metalman’], Art Clay’s newest Master Instructor help you out.

[ardenb]

I have made several pieces out of 650 and torch fired them. A problem I have had is that although the pieces are only 2/32" thick, and consist of 1/4" componets (4 put togehter with paste)they are long, and they come apart. I have tried to use the oil paste and even after 24 hours of drying and then firing they continue to break. Any suggestions?

[Metalman]

This is one of those that is tough without seeing the actual pieces.
1] Did they get fired sufficiently?  Your pieces need to reach that middle cherry glow consistenly over their entire area for a minute and 30 seconds or more from the time the work comes up to temp. The factors here are long enough time and high enough temperature.
2] Are the components joined sufficiently?  When you have unfired pieces you are joining, you may want to roughen the surface abit, then moisten it then join the two with moderately thick paste or some syringe material. You can refine the joint after it dries if the lines got filled in but you want a solid joint area.  Many times I purposely design to have mechanical connections to help with the joining of the pieces The factors here are enough material to form the necessary strength
3]It may be that there is not enough surface to surface contact between your pieces. This would cause some problems. You may need to build up a larger/stronger connection area. factr: connection area
Much as we would like it to be this way, Paste Clay & Oil Paste and the joining of metal clay pieces is not like soldering in the jewelry trade.  When soldering, you can join some very fine connections without much surface area because of the nature of the milled metals and the hard solder.
Also - these are new materials - We are all involved in the growing experiment that is metal clays - some of it is all about experiments and pushing the curve of 'What can I do today?'
Please let me know if this helps and your further questions.

[Metalman]

Look for Art Clay Silver 650/1200 Slow Dry 20 grams soon on the R&T website. This new product combines the versatility of our low-fire clay and the elasticity of our slow dry clay. It has four times more working time, and will fire at the lower temperatures.  Excellant for those of us working in low humidity parts of the country.

[Metalman]

Art Clay 650 Slow Dry is now readily available. R&T cat #87-007-20.
I have merged our old Slow Dry discussions here.

[lisaW]

7/11/06
Just trying to keep the forum tight. These are misc. product threads and notes from the last few years


Hi all, I am very new to this site. I have been working with pmc for over a year. I have never used the brand Art Clay before, but I always like to try new things and compare products. I noticed and was interested in this Art Clay Slow Dry formula. I would like more details on the uses and advantages of this product -- does slow dry means it stays moist for a long time or does it mean it just takes a long time to get leather hard?

[Metalman]

Welcome lisaw,
Silver ghost has got all the details  - so there we are.
The Slow Dry is also great for making rings because of the added work time. I like the dehydrator method of drying because it dries a piece or two while I make more. This encourages me to be at the bench more and ups my production.      ---Let us know when we can help

[silverghost]

lisaW,
Art Clay Slow Dry dries slower giving the artist more time to work on intricate projects. It is very suitable for braiding and weaving. Thus the drying time takes longer but I bet you will be satisfied with the result.

[Drying condition]
Hair dryer: At least 45 minutes with 1200w hair dryer at distance of less than 3 inches.
Food Dehydrator: At least 30 minutes at 210-250F
Oven: At least 20 minutes at 330F
Cooking plate: At least 20 minutes at 300-330F
Electric Kiln: At least 20 minutes at 300F.

*Warning: If you choose to use an oven or cooking plate you must NOT allow the temperature to exceed 480F. Once that temperature is reached, the binder begins to burn away and the piece will change shape and may break when handled.

[Metalman]

Both of the approaches you described should work fine.  
Using Paper type as an applique works great. Be careful not to get the papertype too wet. YOu can torch fire this method readily.
   Folding and ornamenting is fine but unless you have a masterful touch with your torch, you will need to kiln fire folded paper forms
   The paper type is a slightly different formulation then the other ACS products. Much less water and very little binder.
You do not want to mix your scraps in your recycled paste pot, so the only "don't mix" consideration is in recycling scrap.
Also remember that these are still new materials and many of the finer points and experiments need to be done so we can answer all the questions.  So report in on your tests, experiments and triumphs.  Ask us questions if you have a failure.
 :'>

[Metalman]

The paper type is a slightly different formula from the other products.  Regardless, if you have  an ongoing recycled paste pot going, the little bits should be okay in there.  Mix them in well so its smooth.  If they are large enough to reshape abit, continue to use them for applique

[Allways]

I used the paper clay  with paper bunch last night it was great until it was time to clean and hang.The holes I had made where a bit smaller and the silver was so easily broken any ideas on what to do with the little pieces now:(

[denise]

I am very new to art clay & have only made a few pieces while experimenting.

I would like to play with the paper type but read that you cannot combine it with other art clay types - Does that just mean that you can't "mash" them together?

What I wanted to do is use a punch to cut out shapes from the paper type & attach them to art clay 650 with paste - Is this something that would not work? Or, how about folding the paper type & decorating it with the syringe type?

Is the paper type strictly for use all by itself? What other uses have you all used it for?

Any hints, tricks or tips will be greatly appreciated!

thank you ,
denise