Service manual

Silver & Gold Clay
With silver clay, it is possible to shape intricate, free-form
silver jewelry in minutes—even as a beginner. (The clay is
also available in gold; for simplicity we will refer to both met
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als as “silver clay.”) At the time of printing, the silver clay
brands available were Art Clay Silver and Precious Metal
Clay.
Silver clay looks and feels like modeling clay. It is formed
with simple tools such as a tooth pick, small knife, and razor
blade. Its surface is pliable and accepts impressions from
objects such as leaves, coins, and coarse fabrics. After the sil
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ver clay is formed, it is fired in a kiln. The recommended
temperature and hold time are included with the silver clay.
Forming and firing silver clay is simple. There is nothing
mysterious about making silver clay jewelry. The clay is
made of micron-size silver (or gold) particles held in an or
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ganic binder. During firing, the binder burns away. The sil
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ver particles then fuse together forming real silver. Since the
binder disappears, there is a certain amount of shrinkage
during firing. Shrinkage varies depending on the type of sil
-
ver clay you use.
Drying Time
Small, thin silver clay pieces can be placed into the kiln
while still moist, and fired. Thicker pieces need time to dry.
Otherwise they may warp during firing.
To be on the safe side, give the silver clay plenty of time to
dry. As you gain experience, you will know just how much
drying time each type of piece needs. You can speed drying
with a hair dryer.
Loading the Kiln
Silver clay pieces that have a flat side can be placed inside
the kiln directly onto a shelf. Use a soft ceramic fiber shelf. It
cushions the clay silver.
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Silver clay pieces can be close together, but they must not
touch.
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Place the soft ceramic fiber shelf directly onto the firing
chamber bottom.
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Do not coat the ceramic
fiber shelf with kiln
wash or glass separator.
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You can also place the
silver clay on a piece of
ceramic fiber batting.
Alumina Hydrate
Rounded, hollow, or
other delicate shapes may
need support to prevent
collapsing. You can lay
these pieces onto a mound
of alumina hydrate.
If the piece needs only shallow support of ¼” depth or
less, pour the alumina hydrate onto a ceramic fireclay shelf.
Support the fireclay shelf on3-½”posts to aid heat flow un
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der the shelf.
If the silver clay shape needs deeper support, pour the
alumina hydrate into an unglazed ceramic bisque bowl.
These are available at ceramic supply stores.
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Place the ceramic bowl directly onto the kiln bottom.
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NEVER use a glazed bowl to hold the alumina hydrate. If
the glaze runs, it will embed into the firebrick bottom.
Caution: Avoid breathing alumina hydrate dust.
Alumina hydrate can destroy the heating element on
contact. If it spills onto the firing chamber, remove
with a vacuum cleaner.
Venting the Kiln
Silver clay by itself needs no venting. Load the kiln, lower
the lid, and leave it closed until the clay silver is ready to re
-
move.
The kiln needs venting if
you fire ceramics with the
clay silver, or if you make
hollow objects that contain
a core of organic materials.
In those cases, vent the lid
during the first hour of fir-
ing by placing a ½” post un-
der the kiln top.
Paper maché and paper clay are good core materials. Do
not use wax or styrofoam as a core. They emit harmful
fumes.
Rate, Temperature
and Hold
Each brand of silver clay fires to a specific temperature
and hold time. This information is available from your silver
clay supplier.
Note: Hold time is the lenth of time that the recom
-
mended temperature is maintained in the kiln. Do
not fire longer than the recommended hold, or the
silver will begin to overfire.
Besides selecting a temperature and hold time on your
kiln’s digital controller, you will also need a firing rate. (See
the separate digital controller instruction booklet.) Select a
Full Power rate if you are firing silver clay alone. If you fire
glass or ceramics with the silver clay, select a rate best suited
for the glass or ceramics.
Note: Do not place silver clay into a kiln that is al
-
ready hot unless the clay is completely dry. The kiln
should be no hotter than 500°F/260°C when insert
-
ing the silver clay.
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Place the clay silver on a ceramic fi
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ber shelf, which has a soft surface.