Turning Plaster on the wheel

Many, if not most, ceramic and glass tableware shapes are round, so naturally much of my work involves turned plaster models.


I've developed a unique arrangement for turning shapes in plaster, using two different machines: On the lathe, hard plaster is turned on a horizontal axis, as in wood turning. On the plaster wheel, (or "whirler", as they say in British books) plaster is turned on a vertical axis, as in a potter's wheel. The latter is the traditional tool of modelers in pottery factories.

This plaster wheel was uniquely constructed to my design, with parts from a potters wheel. A threaded spindle accepts the same faceplates and chucks as the lathe. This creates a very flexible system and allows fixtures and workpieces to be moved between machines.  A track, with a chainfall on a trolley, runs across the shop ceiling, directly above the center lines of both machines, for handling large pieces.

    

Another feature of the plaster wheel is a large, adjustable. shop-built frame, which supports a long, counterweighted "jigger" arm. 

A wheel-turning project begins with a cross-section drawing, from which a flat profile template is made. The template is precisely located on the jigger arm and secured. With the arm raised out of the way, a plaster cylinder is poured on the wheel head. When the plaster is just stiff enough to stand up, the template is brought down on the spinning plaster to form a rotational shape. In a few minutes, the plaster has set hard and can be further tooled with cutting, scraping and finishing tools.

 template turning on the plaster wheel, 1990     traditional hand turning on the plaster wheel, 1990   

    

To turn, say, a dinner plate, I first turn a core. This is the inside of the plate, face-down. Then I pour plaster on the core and, with a second template, turn the back profile of the plate. This produces a hollow piece, just like an actual dinner plate. 



Turning plaster on the plaster wheel, using a template on the        


For example, all these models were made this way ("Crown" dinnerware, Laura Handler for Crate & Barrel): 


Click the images below to enlarge


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