The Best Way to Process Wild Clay

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The Best Way to Process Wild Clay

Рет қаралды 39,764

Күн бұрын

The videos I made last year about wet processing clay have generated a lot of interest and suggestions on how best to wet process clay. However, I don't like wet processing my clay, I much prefer dry processing clay. In this video I will show how to dry process clay and talk about why that method is superior to wet processing of wild clay.
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0:00 Dry processing is superior to wet processing of clay
0:49 How to grind up dry clay
2:04 Advantage 1: dry processing is low effort
2:25 Tempering dry clay
3:52 Advantage 2: dry processing is more efficient
4:28 Advantage 3: dry processing is undemanding
5:23 Measuring and mixing clay to temper ratios
5:56 Advantage 4: dry clay is storable
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Пікірлер: 226

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching. If you enjoyed this video and are interested in finding and processing wild clay, then check out my wild clay playlist here kzfaq.info/get/bejne/mcdiY62csKylk3k.html

@barrylongermaname398 2 жыл бұрын

Levigation is my new favorite word lol

@cynthiaskaggs6645 2 жыл бұрын

Here where I live in the Midwest USA, we have an excellent and deep layer of growing soil and unless you’re getting clay from a riverbank you have to dig at least 3-6ft down to reach the clay layer. However I found an easier way. I just look around for the nearest Fox den! They dig a small tunnel straight down to the clay layer and then dig a larger den out of the clay because the clay is less likely to collapse. This means that outside every Fox hole there’s a HUGE mound of loose clay already dug by little Fox claws!! A single Fox den can yield up to six 5gal buckets full! I’ve processed and used ‘foxhole’ clay for years and it’s great!

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Awesome, thanks for sharing. I imagine constructions sites might bring it up too.

@williamschleser6663 2 жыл бұрын

Dude. I just want to say you guys that give your secrets are really ok. I’m 65 years old and wanted a hobby. My grand daughter turned me on to clay I’m impressed.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Awesome, so glad that you have found my videos useful. Have fun!

@warrenharrison9490 9 ай бұрын

I found a large vein of light gray clay in a construction site I was working, grabbed a 5 gal bucket of it, it has some brown clay dirt that adheared to it while harvesting. Came from a site thats from bottom land in a valley not far from an existing river stream. It's a very fine and smooth slick material, no odor. Came to this page to figure out what to do with it.

@FIZZGIG-RARF Жыл бұрын

I think it's amazing that you are keeping up, and teaching us, ancient pottery techniques. Though I'm admittedly not that great at it, but I've loved using clay since I was, well, VERY little. I grew up and live in Oklahoma that is notorious for its red clay soil. I remember playing in my backyard digging up clay to sculpt with. My mom told me that I started doing it at TWO years old and making flowers with it!

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

Oklahoma has a lot of great clay. Thanks

@lancebaileypoetry1938 2 жыл бұрын

You made a believer out of me, who's new to pottery. I dug red iron clay from Northeast Texas, so it's likely close to Caddo tribe materials. I sifted it and got all the powder out. All the clay pebbles that wouldn't pass thru a flour sifter I separated and then ground with a rock against a piece of MDF, and then flour sifted that pile and used the finer particles. The consistency was perfect; made nice snake coils. Took a short time to make about 5 lbs. We'll see how it fires. Thanks for helping.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Awesome, glad I could help. I hope it works out for you.

@airstreamwanderings3683 2 жыл бұрын

Congrats on going over 25,000 subscribers. Woo Hoo!

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

🎉

@weedeater64 2 жыл бұрын

I know you are no fan of wet processing, but you might be interested in what I'm learning anyway. I've watched some of your wet processing vids and from other channels. I saw comments on one of yours about using a plaster bat. As well as seeing some side of the road pottery operations from India and elsewhere. Here's what I'm doing now to good effect. Get a piece or three of plywood. Make them as wide as you feel comfortable grabbing to carry/move around by as maybe 18" deep. Wet process, pour off water, let stand, pour... When about milkshake thick, maybe a little thinner, start dipping out with a cup or whatever. Pour onto plywood in the sun carefully. Come back in a little while with a trowel and smooth from wet areas to dry areas. Repeat as needed. Pour more on top, repeat., repeat, ... I hate using bags with a passion I've learned. This is a bit more work, but faster and way less messy/sloppy. I think I'm going to make a pan from plywood and some trim wood for a lip. Then just pour a thin layer, wait a bit and do another pour until my bucket is empty. Thanks for the vids. I'm working on my first ever project. A wood fired forge. Using local clay instead of buying a bunch of fire bricks at 5 bucks a pop. Fingers crossed. Next up will be a wok stove. Then who knows, but I'm having fun.

@IngeniousOutdoors 2 жыл бұрын

I will say wet method is an excellent method for getting clay out of the ground in places where clay is hard to find. I once had to process buckets and buckets of sand and water to get enough clay to work but dry is definitely better where you can collect clay by the handful. Also, Andy, you could take the hand crank off your corn grinder and hook up an electric corded drill and really work through your clay super fast with zero effort lol Also for the wet method, you COULD hand knead It and wear yourself out, or you could throw it Into an old dough mixer and toss in your dross and a bit of water and let it do the work for you too 😁👍

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

I actually have a friend who has his corn grinder hooked up to an electric motor, which works real good to automate the process. If your clay is not pure enough then you need to use the wet method to remove some of the impurities.

@IngeniousOutdoors 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery aw yeah true. Forgot about impurities like sand or roots and stuff. I'd still be curious to know if a dough mixer could automate the hand mixing portion of the wet process 😁

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

@@IngeniousOutdoors it might, I should grab one at a thrift store and see how it works

@SupComRaiden2 2 жыл бұрын

Personally, I prefer to do a mixed method of processing clay. I like to collect it and then process it down to powder. But for mixing in temper I prefer to mix it wet mostly because even with the wind the dust is too much to handle.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Seems like making work for yourself but to each his own. Thanks for sharing your process.

@ColCurtis 2 жыл бұрын

How do you measure your quantity of temper?

@SupComRaiden2 2 жыл бұрын

@@ColCurtisMeasure it out like you would if it was dry, then add water and temper to the clay until it's where you want it.

@ChadKovac Жыл бұрын

A sleu of reasons. But seriously if anyone considered wet processing they need to watch your wet processing video. Your face at the end tells the story. 👍

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

LOL, true

@ghaniaghania5831 2 жыл бұрын

سلام بما اني لافهم اللغة سؤالي كم وضعت من الطين والرمل متابعة دائمة شكرا لك

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Save translation 5 أجزاء من الطين إلى جزء واحد من الرمل ولكن قد يتغير ذلك حسب جودة الطين الخاص بك

@llanitedave 2 жыл бұрын

Lot of good food for thought in here, Andy. My local clay absolutely needs to be levigated, so it has to start out wet. (I tried using it as is, but the fine silt and sand it contains is like ball bearings, and the stuff just doesn't hold together while working it.) I originally tried to let it dry to the point that it seemed the right plasticity, then I would add in my temper wet. I had to estimate the amount of shrinkage still remaining in order to figure out the temper volume. That definitely was a lot of trouble, and required almost pinpoint timing. Now I just let it dry completely, then mill it in an old cement mixer. I can pour in a batch and then walk away until it's ready. I also need to add in 1% smectite to give it enough plasticity, and that also has to be dry. Your other point about tempers of different sizes was one I'd never thought of before. I have dune sand and volcanic ash, the first medium-fine, the other like flour. I've been experimenting with each one individually, but I never thought of mixing them. Still struggling with drying cracks, do you think a size mixture would help?

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Good comment Dave. As you have discovered, any clay that has a large percentage of non-plastic material will need to be wet processed to remove that and make the clay more plastic. So dry processing is best used on clays that start out at least 70% pure clay. I have to wonder if some better clay is available to you, along the Colorado River or in some of those dry lake beds they have in that country. The size of temper could make a difference in your cracking, it is worth a try. But you also indicated that your clay is also lacking in plasticity, so perhaps you really need to find a better source of clay.

@llanitedave 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery I've got one nearby dry lake bed that I've made several attempts to work with. It's even worse, cracking below the bonding pinch while I'm adding coils. There's another more distant lake bed with a different surrounding geology I plan to try at some point. We're a long way off from the Colorado River, otherwise I'd sure be focusing on it. The clay I'm using is actually a joy to work with once it's formulated. It just needs to be really babied through the drying process. I've had a few successes, and I really love the color and texture of the fired clay. I just need to be more consistent in how I protect it during drying.

@coopart1 2 жыл бұрын

Drying cracks could come from your clay having a high shrink rate, like more that 13 percent. Have you tried wrapping in plastic for a slower and more even drying and shrinkage? EDIT.. oops I just saw your post , it seems you do wrap

@llanitedave 2 жыл бұрын

@@coopart1 Hi, Jeff. Our local clay shrinks about 10-11% when drying, so it's not too bad in that respect. Part of the problem is our extreme low humidity, typically less than 10% and often close to 5%. Things dry really, really fast. I first went with just covering the pot in cloth, but that wasn't nearly enough. Even after starting to use plastic, I would take a pot out for scraping and smoothing after a couple of days, and it would begin to crack in minutes while I was still working on it. Adding the small amount of smectite helps some, but the real trick is that I have to frequently hit it with spritzes of water spray while its exposed. It's not something that I can set on the shelf for a few days and fire at the end of the week. Also, I've discovered that tempers are different. I began using 20% very fine volcanic ash temper, and that doesn't seem to work well. 30% works better for me, but 20% sand from a local dune seems to be even better. I'm actually making progress, I have a pot drying now that looks like it's going to make it, and I think ultimately it will be worth it!

@coopart1 2 жыл бұрын

@@llanitedave cool deal ! It’s rewarding when you make troublesome clay workable , I live in very dry climate as well, one good thing is I can make test tiles of clay and paint in the morning and fire them that evening ! Cheers

@coopart1 2 жыл бұрын

All good points, I have done both but now prefer dry processing myself.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Jeff.

@stilltlrforlife 2 жыл бұрын

If you make a plaster bat out of plaster of paris, you can wet process and dry it for use on less than 1 hour, I've done it just about every way possible, I don't know why people are afraid to ppur the clay into a pillowcase or t shirt because of product loss, I never lose but less than 5 percent, however my favorite way is using a plaster bat to dry and wedge the clay, for me its the best way to get the clay as pure as possible. Like stated though, whatever works for you the best is the best way...there is no wrong way to do it as long as the end result is successful. Cheers!!

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

So what works for you. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

@stilltlrforlife 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery The wet process and levigation is my preferred method, then pouring the slip onto a plaster bat to dry the clay, although I have been doing the pouring into a cotton t-shirt and hanging it to dry only because I'm working on building up a new studio, once I build a table with a plaster top, then that will be my method. When I get set up I plan on posting videos on my methods as well. I'll keep you posted. I've only been doing pottery for a hanfull of summers, never once have I used store boight clay, I dont know why im so attracted to indigenous clays, but ever since I was a kid clay has fascinated me. Perhaps it's my Tsalagi heritage, I've always been into arts and building things as well. I love the potter community though, everyone is always so welcoming. I hope to make it out to AZ and attend a convention soon.

@rogerbuoy8418 2 жыл бұрын

I'd argue that low effort, undemanding and efficient are three ways of saying the same thing, but I get the picture. You save time and effort and it stores well. Thanks.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Low effort relates to labor saved. Undemanding relates to time saved. Efficient relates to materials produced from that labor and time.

@miw-u5287 2 жыл бұрын

I really enjoy watching your videos; I appreciate your thought process & the way you lay out the information. The way you teach is clear, quick, & very efficient!

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

I am glad to help, thanks for watching.

@TheQuietMidden Жыл бұрын

I couldn't agree more. Thanks, Andy. I'm so grateful for all these videos you've shared so generously.

@tambarb8235 Жыл бұрын

Wow! I really like that this is storable. I am wondering however, if dry method is easier for people who live in arid regions whereas maybe people who live in humid areas might like the wet method. In an arid region, the clay collected may be dry and crumbly already. Being new at this, I must figure out what works best with my clay & climate by trying all you recommend. I bet labor factors into what people like, too. The grinding looks like it takes big muscles. In an area where it is humid like GA, it may have to lay it out for awhile to dry out. I laid out clay on tarps from digging to plant trees, and those shovels of clay clumps never dried out through a drought of several weeks. But, maybe it needs to be broken up more first? But, thing is, waiting for that to happen, is a lot like just laying it out in a pillowcase to drain the water, or in a container to evaporate the water. After watching all your videos and the ones you've recommended on processing clay, but having no experience, except waiting for the clay to dry which never happened, makes me wonder if dry clay in a dry climate may as well stay dry while processing and storing, and moist clay, in a humid climate may as well stay moist. One thing is certain, the only way to find out is to get my hands dirty.

@wonderwond Жыл бұрын

we use to find broken pottery here in west virginia, it contained shells from the river ground up in it, you could see the white speckles

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

Yes, a lot of the eastern Native groups used shell temper. This works great as long as you keep your firing temperature below about 820 C, otherwise you get calcium pops.

@kencoxdesign 2 жыл бұрын

Trying to thoroughly dry *anything* in a humid mid-atlantic summer isn't always an option ;-) I see your points though. I've gotten better at wet refining my clay (kaolin-rich light gray Delaware stuff) but I've also gotten more cracking in the process. My clay has a lot of mica and silt in it straight out of the ground. If I leave the silt and stuff in, the clay is limp and structurally difficult to work with but seems to crack less. If I remove it and add back sand and grog to temper, I get more cracks. Trying to find the happy medium.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

You have to get to know your clay. Hey, good idea for a new video. Anyway thanks for that perspective. I have lived in damp climates before (Louisiana and Washington State) but never tried to dry clay in those places.

@winstonbower1236 2 жыл бұрын

Hey Ken I live in Maryland not far from Delaware and tips on finding good clay?

@petrapetrakoliou8979 2 жыл бұрын

I tried out the dry processing with some new clay I found and it does seem easier, great tips, thank you! I was hesitating till now because I didn't have a corn grinder, but actually I grind the clay by hand: in Sweden all clay you can find still has some humidity in it, so it's not hard to do so with rubber gloves or without, and you can pick out the stones more easily as you feel them. I don't grind it down to powder like this, but I guess I can kneed it several times and let it stay to homogenize. It is great to be able to stock clay dry indefinetely as you said. My other limiting factor was that I didn't find any clay as everything is covered by snow here for 6 months and when it melts you find out that most of the clay is buried under several meters of silt and sand due to the land uplift and the shifting deltas which follow the receding sea since the ice cover melted here some 10000 years ago... but I did find clay at a construction site fortunately where machines dig into the soil and it is everywhere in the valleys, but just deep down. Balint

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Awesome, glad too hear you are having success with wild clay. Construction sites are a great place to find clay, I heard from somebody recently who was getting clay from well drillers. You probably have glacial clay in Sweden, something we don't have in Arizona.

@petrapetrakoliou8979 2 жыл бұрын

Yes we do have glacial clay, although the one I got I presume is postglacial, but I can't be sure: it is upon unsorted gravely silt which is glacial and underneath sorted silt which is postglacial (glacial clay is often followed directly by postglacial clay and is found in the same places on the edges of river valleys so it is not easy to distinguish them). It has a lot of silt in it and at first I made the mistake to add 20% sand: it became very sandy; I made nevertheless a beaker of it with coarse decoration and rustication. I made another beaker with pure clay which went a lot better: it is a clay you can burnish for a long time-span at several times, probably because it's got naturally silt in it instead of the sand I used to add as temper. It does not seem to need more temper to add to it. I'm curious about how it fires but have to wait now for drying.

@mialonakritaki6887 2 жыл бұрын

Ohhh wowww dry process is much better but i have a question, what if we put too much sand to our pott what can happened?

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Clay with too much temper will lose plasticity and make weak crumbly pottery

@mohsenjomaa 2 жыл бұрын

Love your work sooo much, plz can you tell me how long take the firing and how much time keep putting wood?

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

My firings are fairly quick, less than an hour. I have a lot of firing videos you should check them out, here is a good one kzfaq.info/get/bejne/sNp8oZZz2L_Zemw.html

@mohsenjomaa 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery ohhh soo you mist put a lot of wood for that to keep the temperature very height

@mohsenjomaa 2 жыл бұрын

Or im wrong i do no you are my teacher 😂😂😂😂

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

@@mohsenjomaa Not really that much wood. Please watch one or two of those videos to see how I do it.

@mohsenjomaa 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery i respect your great work keep going god bless you wish to learn from you as much as possible ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

@spacecat86 2 жыл бұрын

got my first batch of wild clay.......doing both methods to process and I can already tell I like dry better

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Wonderful!

@barrylongermaname398 2 жыл бұрын

I tried it like it. Dry is great. Just took longer to dry out the lumps and crush down since my clay always starts out wet. But awesome video as usual.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Drying clay is pretty low effort though. Thanks!

@airstreamwanderings3683 2 жыл бұрын

Totally agree. Unfortunately my local clay is filled with rocks and sand, about 40%. Wet processing works but its a PITA. Then if you want to dry out the finished clay and grind it up for storage it often gums up the grinder. I never thought of grinding up the course sand, good idea.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Yes, it will only work if your source material is at least 70% clay, otherwise you need to purify it first which means WET.

@springbloom5940 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery Haha, my clay is about 70% sand. Its ball/bentonite, loaded with iron laden gravel and a superfine powdered sand. Im going to send you some and watch you struggle 😉

@corbindesjardins5474 Ай бұрын

You're a hero

@drakekoefoed1642 2 жыл бұрын

i paid less than 100 for my cement mixer, and it can eat yer corn grinder fer breakfast. (1) the cement mixer can grind up anything a corn grinder does. still wet here. i just pour a little of the sand over with the clay. being me, i never measure things. i cook bread and don't measure. i just know. (2) my clay gets no checking. it's settling in covered buckets. (3) my clay can sit in the bucket forever. i can keep a tiny bit of water pooled over it. i could just let it dry for that matter. (+++) silicosis of the lungs is baaaad news, but there must be dust to cause it. dust you are putting all over your shop. by the way, you clean up your shop every day, i imagine. how often do you think i sweep around the cement mixer? when it comes to this wood firing, you the man. i still have too much breaking. but dry clay? nah.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Don't knock it until you try it. All your negative mentioned above are based on assumptions.

@creepingslaytor6073 2 жыл бұрын

I make purely utilitarian pots for holding food I grow and preserve, and I can sorta cheat, I found a spot of good clay with very minimum roots in it, so I just break off wet chunks the size of a cup coaster and run my hands through it to find any big rocks, then I start my pile of slabs that have been picked through and then add temper which makes it super easy

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

That's pretty cool. So you are basically just using clay straight from the ground with a little added temper?

@creepingslaytor6073 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery exactly, I pull from a dry creek bed that fills every rain, so I'll wait for the day after the rain when it's the perfect texture for what I like, then I harvest enough for a few pieces and process it very minimally.

@petrapetrakoliou8979 2 жыл бұрын

Hi Andy! I realize that I was putting much more sand into the clay as you were, because I "wet process" (actually I buy the clay) using the same measure of 1/5 and when you dry process, the clay has a much smaller volume. Maybe I should put less sand than 1/5 and I could benefit from a higher plasticity of the material.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Less temper will increase plasticity. This clay uses less temper than most that I use. More commonly I use a 4 to 1 ratio for my clay to temper.

@quentingirard6358 5 ай бұрын

Hello Andy; as fifth point i will say less water. Great channel thanks.

@skipo84 11 ай бұрын

Love your videos, lots of good information. So with wet processing you know the temper is removed and you add 20% sand right?. Now with dry processing temper isn't removed so how do you know how much sand you need to add? It would seem like you wouldn't need as much sand in dry processing. I defer to your wisdom :)

@AncientPottery 11 ай бұрын

You are correct. But even if you use wet processing the 20% is just a starting place, you will need to do some experiments and find out what works for your clay. Maybe this video will help kzfaq.info/get/bejne/opqBna6KtZnKd58.html

@katepillsbury 2 жыл бұрын

I just came across your channel, and it’s fascinating! I can’t wait to dig in more. I am curious though-are you not worried about silicosis when doing this indoors and without a respirator?

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

I didn't do any of this indoors. I think I said in the video but maybe I didn't, that my studio is on my back porch and is well ventilated.

@_Pyroon_ Жыл бұрын

I really like the storage aspect of dry processing. The main thing I'm wondering is do you just grind in the small amounts of bio material like dry grass or bits of pine needles?

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

Yes it all becomes temper

@_Pyroon_ Жыл бұрын

Dry processing: generally easier overall and generally produces a more local unique clay Wet processing: results in a more refined/filtered clay that is likely more consistent between batches (due to filtration)

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

Perhaps, but I have not noticed inconsistency in my dry processed clay between batches.

@credenza1 2 ай бұрын

Very useful information. Do you have any thoughts about whether clay is improved by storing wet? I see many references to the way wet storage lets the clay ferment (for want of a better word) and become more malleable.

@bryanjordan8876 11 ай бұрын

I don't know why but these videos make me want to go process my own clay, and I've never even done pottery in my life. lol

@AncientPottery 11 ай бұрын

It's never too late to start

@bryanjordan8876 11 ай бұрын

@@AncientPottery You're right, man. As soon as I get settled in to my new place I'm gonna try it out. never hurts to try.

@moranmike36 Жыл бұрын

Great info thanks

@Javaman92 2 жыл бұрын

Well that was fun! Okay, as I mentioned I gathered some dirt last winter and I levacated it. However ya spell that, and I put the bucket of, what I THOUGHT was the clay in my entry room and left the other bucket of sand and silt on the porch. I just found out I had the wrong bucket inside. BUT alas, the more processed clay is much better but it won't keep a shape. I roll it into a cigar shape and it just breaks The other bucket has very fine dust in it, I am guessing sand. I wonder if I can use that for temper? Anyway, I am correct in thinking that I need to process this clay more and go find me some better dry clay to play with. It should be able to be shaped into a cigar shape and bend around my finger, right? The weather is finally nice, the garden is in, it's finally time to get into making some pottery! 😁

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Yes, it should show plasticity by being bendable and moldable. If after you levigated it, it still resists, find a better clay source.

@Javaman92 2 жыл бұрын

You had sold me on dry processing in an earlier video. But you definitely make a strong case for it here. I guess the thought that always nags at me is, how do I know my clay, is actually clay? What I have now I dug up during a thaw last winter when I was all excited about doing this. I've let it dry so I can dry process it. But, sure it has shrunk, it felt plastic when I was digging it last winter. But there's still that nagging thought, what if this isn't clay? I guess clay is dirt. It's not organic material, it's not sand, so what ever is left is clay enough? lol I probably just have to go for it and see what happens and learn from experience. I have this bad habit of wanting to have it ALL figured out.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

If you wet a little bit and squeeze it in your hand you will know if it is clay. Wet a small amount and try bending a coil around your finger.

@robertjackson1407 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you 😊

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Welcome!

@lynncombel1106 2 жыл бұрын

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!!!

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

You are so welcome

@CosmicZAK Жыл бұрын

You could wet process first to make a pure clay. Dry it completely. Then dry process it for storage. A few extra steps, though still less work?

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

if your clay was relatively impure at first then, yes that would be a good way to do it.

@WoodPigeonOutdoors Жыл бұрын

Hey... Jay from Canada... Ok so i saw earlier in the summer I found a we have a nice clay pit with a creek and noticed in the créek all the tumbled clay pieces... Right away I thought of trying my hand at pottery then left it at that... It sat in my mind most of the summer while I passed the creek going on other outdoor adventures. With winter quickly approaching and prepping for the cold months ahead cutting firewood i was thinking can i make primitive pottery from home so i looked up some videos... Found your channel and thought lets give it a try... I first gathered some sand from one of the sandy beaches near by and sived that out. Then i went to the creek and harvested some clay i figured pick out the rock looking pieces due to that they are sticking in clumps already as apoose to the sandy stuff that dosent stick...now do i just let it dry then break it up or do i break it up and let it dry??? How dry should ot be ect???

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

You could just let it sit out and dry. But with cool and damp weather that could take quite a while. I don't have much experience processing clay in a cool place in the fall

@airplayn Жыл бұрын

I've been experimenting with paper clay with 10-30% paper. The fibers makes the clay act much better when attaching handles etc. The problem is the paper will get moldy in wet clay if not used immediately. Your dry clay sounds the perfect match for using paper clay. You motivated me to get a corn grinder and just as luck would have it, the same one you're using was on sale at Walmart for on $20! Of course I'm not going to use that Native American clay given to me by that Hopi potter for paper clay. Although I've noticed in some of the Acoma pottery I've collected when one broke it almost had a texture of clay mixed with paper. The Jimez seems better quality clay with much more strength.

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

I have never seen a corn grinder sold in Walmart so that was a great find.

@mihaiilie8808 2 жыл бұрын

I dry large boulders of clay and after they are fully dry ,when i add water they completely disolve in 10 minutes. Dry the clay first .

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

That's great, not all clays slake down so easily.

@stewartwoerle6351 Жыл бұрын

That’s all good Andy, but what if the material we collect has a lower percentage of clay to dirt/soil/silt. I’d love to be able to dry process, but everything I’ve found in my area has too low a clay content and to get workable clay, I need to wet process. Happy days if you live in a place that has good workable clay bodies.

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

Sure, not everybody has the luxury of the dry process method, I said it was the best method not the only method. Those that need to purify their clay should try using paint strainer bags to remove all larger particles.

@theshoreys4741 11 ай бұрын

You mention sand and sharp edges. Would glass work then? And how about metal flakes?

@AncientPottery 11 ай бұрын

Not sure about metal flakes but glass could work if ground fine I think. I might tear up your hands though

@mehranbarahouei2346 2 ай бұрын

Would you please tell me how to process tons of clay in a day for hollow bricks making ,for example? ❤

@AncientPottery 2 ай бұрын

I only process small batches, I would not have much to share about processing tons of clay.

@laurabutler6253 2 жыл бұрын

Hi, I'm using red clay, very clean but processing it anyway, and fine almost white quartz sand as my temper. Is quartz ok to use and what ratio?? Learning a lot from your videos!!!

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Yes, quartz sand is a very common temper in this area. The ratio depends on the clay, but 20% temper is a good place to start.

@wonderwond Жыл бұрын

when grinding it up , what about small twigs and plant matter?

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

As long as there isn't too much debris, just grind it up with the rest and it will become temper.

@lesterjennings4044 2 жыл бұрын

It rains here almost every day wet works for me it has to makes it a challenge to fire

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Wet climates are the hardest to make pottery in. I have heard that is why the native people of the Pacific Northwest did not make pottery.

@lesterjennings4044 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery I have had some success a few failures but it is nice to learn and share so the knowledge is not lost

@alessandrotamai7146 8 ай бұрын

wet ADN dry method? I add temper to very wet clay while still in the pillow case (still eyeballing the mix ratio) but it's a quick and easy process and adding temper helps to dry up the clay faster. OR When the clay it's almost almost ready I remove it from the pillow case, roll it in a thin layer (about 1/4" thk.) on a unpainted plywood panel and let it dry. once bone dry (24 hours are usually more than enough in a sunny and/or windy spot), I can grind it as per dry method and then add temper. Make sense to you?

@OUTFXD 2 жыл бұрын

I'm a bit confused. For dry processing you just mill the clay? I would have to dry it a bit, the clay is pretty moist here. But I wouldnt need to separate it from the dirt? Just need a little bit of clarification.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

A lot of wild clay is naturally pure enough to use as is, sorted by nature into an acceptable level of purity. Dry processing will only work for those clays that are relatively pure to start with.

@amf5637 2 жыл бұрын

Are you worried about silicosis at all? I'm new to clay generally and have not done anything with wild clay, but all that dust worries me.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

If it starts getting dusty I stop and leave. My studio is a back porch that is well ventilated. I mix the clay in the back yard. It’s not dusty, I don’t allow it to get dusty. People think it is but I wish I could invite them all over to see that the process is totally un-dusty.

@jonkholunsingsons8063 2 жыл бұрын

Sir what is the purpose and reason of adding little amount of sand with the clay in making ceramic work.kindly explain.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

It’s called temper and it helps the clay dry more evenly and protects against thermal shock in the firing. I made a video about temper here kzfaq.info/get/bejne/q8CKl699qLWceas.html

@edwardmurray2284 2 жыл бұрын

Hi Andy. I just discovered your channel, and its wonderful. On another note, is there a way to message you privately about a piece of advice?

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks but I am apprehensive about "advice". I am on Facebook and Instagram which both have messaging. There is a contact form on my website.

@EctoPlasmPoison 2 жыл бұрын

Great video! I'm wondering, what happens to the process of improving your clay through 'aging' if it is stored dry? Should the quality of the dry-processed clay be so ideal that aging/levigating is only necessary for not-so-great clays? Thanks!

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

No, if your clay needs aging to be usable, then dry processing won't improve that, you will still need to hydrate your clay and wait the allotted time. I find this varies quite a bit between clays, while some benefit from aging, many do not improve significantly after a few hours. But many wild clays that can be stinky can be used with minimum stink by mixing and using quickly. The longer those clays sit around wet the nastier they get.

@llanitedave 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery Ha! That was the case for my dry lakebed clay. I hydrated and wedged up one batch that ended up sitting in the bag for a couple of months while I got interrupted by other things. When I took it out I could barely see the clay for all the mold. And no, that did NOT improve the working qualities any! I ended up throwing it out.

@Maryjoowanna 2 жыл бұрын

I have a question. Do you know if it's possible to throw with wild clay??

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Yes, many people do it. If you are on Facebook check out "The Wild Clay Club" group.

@iceoffire20 2 жыл бұрын

I'm not near any sand what else could I use to temper my clay?

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Ground up, fired pottery (grog), volcanic ash, diatomaceous earth. See this video for more info about temper and possible materials to use kzfaq.info/get/bejne/q8CKl699qLWceas.html

@shaggynaylor4391 6 ай бұрын

How do I know if my dirt/clay doesn’t have too much temper once ground up?

@darrenrenton3842 Жыл бұрын

Hi Andy, couldn't you just wet process it then let it totally dry out, crush and add temper then store ? It just would seem less work than adding temper when wet. and as you pointed out it stores better dry.

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

Yes you could, that is more work than the way I do it though

@RFMongoose Жыл бұрын

Just a question from someone who doesn't know, can you let your wet process just dry out and grind it up?

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

Sure, but that will make for a lot of work.

@RFMongoose Жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery I see I see.

@suwlehim_takaz 2 жыл бұрын

there is one advantage of the wet method: I myself control the quantity, composition and quality of temper

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

That's for sure. But if you know your clay, then you know how much it needs.

@leahchristine_yt 2 жыл бұрын

In wet processing you pour off a large portion of non-clay material. How do you get usable clay from dry processing? Wouldn’t there be non plastic dirt, particles, etc? Are you just more selective of the dirt you are collecting?

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

I am definitely collecting only clay, so there is a limited amount of non-clay material. The thing is I remove the impurities when wet processing but then I add impurities back into the clay in the form of temper. With this method I allow the naturally occurring impurities to act as temper.

@deemushroomguy 2 жыл бұрын

Ah, you must be new here. Welcome 🤗 I have been following the channel for a long time now and can say that Andy has generously included his methods of selecting/collecting clay from different areas in some of his earlier videos.

@drakekoefoed1642 2 жыл бұрын

I dump a lot of organic matter out of the cement mixer and screen lots more out. i'm using stuff from a friend who does oilfield work, i can have a few tons any time i want it, but it might have a piece of concrete or some such in it. Andy is meticulously picking up stuff from the claybank and he would throw away a leaf right there. and he makes a righteous olla.

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

@@drakekoefoed1642 The source definitely makes a huge difference on what process you choose.

@piajohansenkoch7690 2 жыл бұрын

Hi Andy we are brand new in this field but want to ask about wood ash glaze where and when to put it on. can we let the clay dry, put the wood ash glaze on and let it dry completely and then burn it on the fire? sorry for our English we have used google translate and it does not sound quite right (translated from Danish)

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

I never glaze, and do not know the first thing about wood ash glaze. I am pretty sure you will need much higher temperatures than I can get with the way I fire to turn wood ash into a glaze. If you want to see how I fire check out this video kzfaq.info/get/bejne/sNp8oZZz2L_Zemw.html

@piajohansenkoch7690 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery can you seal the clay bowl whitout glaze ? full seal we want to have soup whitout dripping on our clothes

@diamondkelp3993 2 жыл бұрын

But if u are dry processing clay , how do u remove things like leaves , grass roots, worms , soil critters etc ? , ( total newbie , I havent made anything yet. )

@diamondkelp3993 2 жыл бұрын

Ok , ive watched another of ur vids, got it sorted now 👍

@cjgaming5544 2 жыл бұрын

Can fired brick powder used as temper? If yes than how fine the particals should be ? Thanks for you help

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

I’ve never tried it but if you have access to brick powder that should work fine. The particles could be course like sand or fine, do some experiments to find out what you like best.

@cjgaming5544 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery one more question: how to age clay

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

@@cjgaming5544 wrap it up in a plastic bag but you don’t really have to “age” it

@cjgaming5544 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery dose it have to be wet clay?

@Noniinthebush 2 жыл бұрын

Hi Andy, where I’m getting my clay from, there are a lot of larger stones and smaller stone mixed in with it. I don’t have a corn grinder unfortunately, so I will have to grind mine on a stone but what do I do about all the rocks, I don’t think I could grind those with a stone? I’m trying to work out how to get the clay and not the stones. Cheers Noni

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

If you can, pick the stones out manually as you are processing it. If there are too may for that then you will need to go to wet processing and pass it through a screen.

@Noniinthebush 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery Thank you Andy :)

@andreschiriff4354 2 жыл бұрын

I am learning about clay and pottery because I want to start doing some stuff with it and I have a question that maybe stupid but here it is... Can I use cement as the temper?

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

NO! Please do not use cement. If you want to buy temper at the hardware store try sand or diatomaceous earth.

@andreschiriff4354 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you for the quick reply the reason why I thought about using cement is because I want to make a small pizza oven with clay. But you're the expert so I thank you for your advice.

@Kamperi2013 2 жыл бұрын

Sir did you experiment with mixing clay and lime, what did you get with that at all?! Tnx!

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

Lime? No! Lime is calcium which you should avoid like the plague in pottery, I don't need to do experiments to know that. I have had a few bad experiences with calcium in the past though.

@Kamperi2013 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery ok i understand you! however, I heard some time ago that some people put lime when making bricks, to supposedly prevent cracking when drying in the sun, and I'm just interested in how the clay will behave, so for the test I mixed a small amount of liquid clay with 20% lime, for three or four days the result for me to be convinced of your statement 😁 ... thank you again for your answer! 😉

@Kamperi2013 2 жыл бұрын

i just watched you video about Caliche in clay, now i fully understand that lime is not good for pottery 😁

@maxiusvanheflin7805 10 ай бұрын

So after your done dry processing the clay you just add water and use a pillow case?

@Cooky00123 Жыл бұрын

So, this process allows organic material in the final mix and you really don’t know how much temper, since some was in the rocks in the original mix?

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

Don't get too stuck on minutia. The process of mixing clay need not be rocket science.

@ryanlewis7633 9 ай бұрын

If you can’t find good sand near you- golf course bunkers. Fine white powder sand.

@carinapotts2806 2 жыл бұрын

What about when the clay you collect has a lot of rocks sand and organic debris

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

If your clay has a lot of impurities in it then the dry method won't work. The clay for the dry method needs to be at least 70% pure clay.

@carinapotts2806 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you

@maggiefranks6849 Жыл бұрын

What about aging wet clay with bio agents like apple cider vinegar? That reacts to bentonite but also creates microbial interactions that can add to plasticity?

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

I did mention these sorts of things briefly in this video. And I said that they make very little difference. Such things can make a good clay a little better but cannot make a bad clay good.

@maggiefranks6849 Жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery yes, ty. I want to make the best clay

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

@@maggiefranks6849 sorry Maggie I was confused. The video I was referring to was this one. The Worst Wild Clay Ever (and what to do about it) kzfaq.info/get/bejne/jMqbndGlybWYd2Q.html

@maggiefranks6849 Жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery np and ppreciate your advice I am an artist exploring primitive skills Sticks, weaving and clay Also in AZ and I recognize the pit from your other video

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

@@maggiefranks6849 awesome

@jyotsnadash 2 жыл бұрын

My non glazed clay cooking pot got broken into two halves from the middle. Is there anyway i can join it to cook? Please help

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

I don't know of any way to fix it so you can use it. I mean you can glue it but then the glue may contaminate your food and the heating might even cause it to come apart. Maybe this is an opportunity to make yourself a new pot. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/hcifrcRpuMzFin0.html

@TrailBlazer5280 Жыл бұрын

Seems like anything wet is automatically less convenient. Dry is already preserved, no mess etc

@lesterjennings4044 2 жыл бұрын

When you add vinegar to clay is that to remove lime

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

No, it would take a ton of vinegar to dissolve all the lime in a clay body. Usually it is to adjust the pH of the clay

@lesterjennings4044 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery thank you

@alexispijo8082 2 жыл бұрын

make a video tutorial at making a puki because i probably can't have emails because of my age

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

You are never too old for emails. My mom has emails.

@rolettepijo9776 2 жыл бұрын

I'm 13 (2nd account from parents)

@dominicrowell6454 2 жыл бұрын

My question is do you add 20% temper for the dry processing? The thing I'm stuck on is if the wet has no impurities and the dry does why do they both get 20% to both wouldn't the dry have too much?

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

20% temper isn’t a hard rule, it is merely a starting place. Every clay is different and needs to be treated as such, some may need 30% or more, some may need none at all. This is true for clay that is wet or dry processed.

@nancythomas9719 Жыл бұрын

I have been ask to make some rocks out of a dear friends son remains. Can you tell me if I can mix some in to the clay?

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

Sorry I have zero experience with human remains in clay.

@joeasher2876 Жыл бұрын

Simple question, when wet processing why don't you add and mix the temper to the clay while it is much wetter and looser, rather than have to knead it in when it is hard to add?

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

This video is not about wet processing. If you add the temper to the clay while it is liquid the temper will settle to the bottom and will require kneading. If you add the temper to the clay while too dry it will sit on top and require kneading. I suppose there is a perfect level of dryness where you could mix the temper and it would stay in place but it would be very hard to add the temper at the exactly right moment. So I will stick with dry processing which is easier and better as this video makes clear.

@joeasher2876 Жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery Sorry, I had a few of your videos open at the same time and posted to the wrong one. Thanks for the reply, that makes sense. I appreciate that dry is probably the better method in the vast majority of cases but to a complete layman with neither a deadline for drying out or a robust grinder, wet seemed like an accessible (if imperfect) option. I'm just giving it a go with stuff I have to hand.

@joeasher2876 Жыл бұрын

If sand would sink, and charcoal presumably floats then I wonder if there is a temper that is roughly the same density as clay that would be neutrally bouyant. I know you mentioned crushed old pottery (shards) in another video. Without the benefit of experience that sounds like it might work.

@ekonomikhobidersmateryali1803 21 күн бұрын

Hi. Why did you put sand in the clay

@user-on4kc3bz6q 5 ай бұрын

Hello Andy How can I tell if the firing worked...the piece is solid with some black discoloration, but is it ceramic?

@AncientPottery 5 ай бұрын

Flick it with your finger, does it ring? The ultimate test is to put water in it and see if it stays together or falls apart.

@user-on4kc3bz6q 5 ай бұрын

@@AncientPottery It fell apart when I added water. Not fired long enough or bad clay? Can I patch it and fire again?

@AncientPottery 5 ай бұрын

@@user-on4kc3bz6q better to start over and get hotter next time.

@Who_diss811 2 жыл бұрын

How do you know your clay is pure enough to just dry process?

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

have you watched this one yet? kzfaq.info/get/bejne/mcdiY62csKylk3k.html

@Who_diss811 2 жыл бұрын

@@AncientPottery I did but its been a while and now that I feel more comfortable finding clay the refresher was helpful.

@ThatGummyFrog Жыл бұрын

Do you bake the clay?

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

Yes of course.

@maxiusvanheflin7805 10 ай бұрын

I’m looking to build a small house in the woods

@derrickboatman1560 2 жыл бұрын

I submit that you try wet processing automated with dry processing afterwards for structural integrity. Focus on the hard one make it easy.

@sydneyrupert8091 Жыл бұрын

How do u separate wood / debris from clay ?

@AncientPottery Жыл бұрын

With this method any organic material gets ground up and goes into the clay as temper.

@shaggynaylor4391 2 жыл бұрын

New to wild clay and have a few questions. Where do you get dry clay? is it the same dirt you would use to render wet clay? if so, how do you know what percentage is actually clay? Finally, isn't it possible to have too much temper? i.e. your dirt is already 20% sand before you grind it then you add another 20%, also what about silt content? I understand how in wet processed clay all these things are separated, how does that work with dry processed clay/dirt? Thanks!

@AncientPottery 2 жыл бұрын

With dry processing the impurities become temper, it is a more natural process that uses the whole buffalo. You should check out this video kzfaq.info/get/bejne/mcdiY62csKylk3k.html