Before and After — Unpacking my Gas Fired Pottery Kiln

The before and after view of reduction firing in my Rohde KG-340 gas kiln. The pots shrink about 12% from freshly thrown to finally fired as moisture leaves the vessel. The biggest change occurs during the firing, hence the sudden change in this instance. A few things learnt from this firing: don’t carve stamps with extremely fine ends, otherwise they lean over too much. Don’t place pots so they span the gap between two shelves, as it seems to aid warping. Keep thinner walled vessels away from the burners and instead hide them in amongst other pots, to again help with warping. Order more fragments of kiln shelf, so that wider pieces can be fired propped up on shelves, in order to use more space. Place iron clad pots in partly oxidising spots for interesting effects. Don’t worry about glaze fingerprints on props, they’ll disappear. Use smaller waddings for medium jars, not so much is needed. (The before and after view of my gas kiln. Laden with crackle glazes wares, a few refires, some iron clad