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FYI or frequently asked questions about Silver Clay
Gold
 Lisa ...
Hi there. Could you please explain to me what
the difference is between Accent Gold for Silver and Aura 22?
Thanks!
Accent gold is a product that was developed by
a Scientist (Ron Diegle) here in Albuquerque NM, It is 24k or pure gold
premixed in a bottle (1 gram). The Aura22 is 22k, so a less gold color,
it was developed by Mitsubishi in Japan. It is also a 1 gram bottle with
a little vial of thinner to be used if needed. The aura22 may brush on a
little smoother. Application, drying and firing is very important with
these products and effects how happy the end user is, they are not
idiot-proofed. I think the accent gold shows up better and has a nicer
color.
Shipping overseas....
International
We love shipping anywhere in the world via US
Postal service Global Express, place your order in the cart and ignore the
shipping it computes. Use 12345 as the zip code. you can check postal rates
at
www.usps.com.
we will contact you by e-mail for your approval of the shipping amount.
We will verify your credit card by the billing address you give us to
protect you against stolen cards. We only ship using DHL, UPS, or US post
office Global express as these are all trackable.
Our other web site
www.nmclay.com
has even more products and allows you to preview your USPS Global Express
shipping charges.
Thanks for your interest.
Can PMC and/or Silver Art Clay be made into a slip and
brushed onto bisque and still retain it's
beauty? thanks.....Maria
Yes! On low fired porous bisque, thin the slips
a little so the brushstrokes don’t show and paint on 2-3 coats. You can
then adhere other hand made silver-clay items to the slip. Fire to the
temp recommended for the clay you are using but SLOWLY, use a rate of
450F max.
On porcelain or over a glaze you must use Art
Clay Silver's Overlay Paste.
Eleanor asks...stove top firing really work?
Yes i have used it many times and it is featured in art
clay classes.
Are the pieces strong? Yes bring them to
red heat for ten to 20 min.
Can a kiln used for other purposes, like glass, be used with PMC?
of course!
Is there any adverse effect on the kiln?
no.
Is any special cleaning required? not at
all.
Does PMC have to come up to temperature or can it be put in a hot kiln?
it can but it must be very dry. what is the hurry?
Thanks so much for your help. I love this stuff and will buy
lots.
More on firing...
Hi All,
Is it possible to effectively fire pmc 650 on a burner from a gas BBQ
grill outdoors maybe at night? I have an old grill that is past
repairing but the side burner is like new. Hate to waste it. Thanks,
Diane ...
Yes grills work great, wherever there is a flame you
can fire pmc3. See the
guide for full
instructions
Why two brands?
Hello, I'm from Germany and I took a lesson
in Art Clay Silver. Now I found your internet site and I'm a little bit
confused. What's the difference between PMC and Silver Art Clay.
Nelly
Like Coke and Pepsi, two
different brands. Both companies Aieda and Mitsubishi have Japanese
patents on silver-clay. Most clay types are similar but, Art clay sells
a slow dry version and PMC has it's original that shrinks a lot.
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From: Christine:
Can the Sentry express 3.00 digital controller be installed on
any kiln? Can I buy this and put it on my 240volt kiln
for ceramics?
I do fused glass and art clay.
Thanks Christine
You can buy a
digital controller for your kiln, however they are expensive, follow the
link below to see the skutt controller for a 48 amp 240v kiln. A smaller
kiln would use a less expensive controller.
Click here for more info
Dried up Silver-clay
I have PMC (Fine Silver Clay)
that has never been used but is about 5 or 6 years old and of course
dry. How can I use this now? I know it can be refired so there must
be a way. Appreciate your help. Thanks, Meryl
Here is Tim McCreight's answer from the PMC Guild website.
A: PMC is made of particles of precious metal, an organic binder,
and water. The precious metal and the binder stay the same, but it's
possible for the water to evaporate over time, even though the PMC
has never been opened. If, when you open the box, the PMC is stiff
and hard to form, it simply needs more water.
I've successfully re-hydrated PMC that had dried out rock-hard. It's
easy to do: open the box and hold the lump of PMC under running
water for a few seconds so its surface gets totally wet. Rewrap it
in cellophane and set it aside overnight, periodically kneading the
lump through the cellophane. The goal is to get the moisture into
the PMC. This takes time because it is a very dense material. Unwrap
and test the PMC: you should be able to flatten it into a disk
without cracks appearing at the edges. If it's still too stiff, wet
and rewrap it again and let it sit longer. Two treatments are
usually enough, but you may continue until the PMC returns to its
original, soft, workable consistency.
Also you can grind
the clay up in a spice grinder or pepper grinder into a fine powder,
then slowly add water drop by drop allowing time for the moisture to
absorb.
Trish Asked
Can you use both PMC and Art
Clay on the same piece?
Yes you can, just
make sure that you fire to the highest temp required by the type of
clay you are using. So if you use PMC original with Art Clay650 slip
you have to fire to 1650F and hold for two hours.
Pat says.....Subject: Just
starting...just got a programmable kiln Why didn't you
order the kiln from us? was it price? free shipping?
Can Art Clay and PMC be mixed.
Yes always fire to the higher temp required by the clays.
..I understand
the art clay gold sheet is thicker and more easily cut?
Yes it is larger and thicker.
Can all of the forms of Art Clay be fired at
1650? Will they be stronger, as in PMC?
Yes after (or during ) firing art clay and PMC are .999 silver
so they have the same properties.
What do you do if after you have fired
something at 1650 and want to add a stone or a
dichroic cabochon with PMC3.
The PMC3 slip will adhere to fired PMC.
Will it
adhere on its own with slip or do you have to use something
else.
Art Clay Oil Paste will work even better, or you could paint Art
Clay's overlay paste on the cab and then slip that to an
existing piece. The overlay paste will adhere to glass.
Do you add
this right after the firing or do you polish it first and
then add the cabochon?
I would not polish as it will make the silver less likely to
adhere.Firing
Lynne asks
Please let me know whether the
Art Clay or
PMC Starter Kits
Include the torch. It
doesn’t mention it, however does state
Everything you need to get started making, firing .....
No to the torch, you can use a
gas stove or a BBQ with a side burner. We cannot ship torch fuel
through UPS so you would have to go buy it anyway. You can go to
home depot and get an inexpensive propane torch for plumbing
$14.00 including fuel. I think this is the easiest way. Of
course you can get smaller butane torches for cooking creme
brûlée but they tend to cost more. Firing is not difficult.
Rubina asks .....Can PMC
original be fired with a torch instead of a kiln?
>Maybe you could but you would have to do it for two hours!
Q. How do you
fire Art Clay Silver in a cone sitter kiln?
Low fire clay fires to 1200 F which
corresponds to cone 019-020, the highest recommended firing
temperature of all silver is 1650F or cone 010-011. Ceramic
kilns fire much slower than jewelry kilns so the actual hold
time is not too important.
For PMC3 or ArtClay 650 fast fire
to cone 017 no hold time needed. (Fire on High until the
cone turns off). let cool as long as you can wait.
For regular art clay or PMC+ use
cone 014. 011 is the hottest possible cone for the most
durable item. (Actually if your rate is 585F in the last 200
degrees then cone 020 works out to 1201F if you want to get
technical) but we need a no hold time temp to fire to. Don’t
try to fire PMC original if you have no way to hold for 2
hours.
Place the silver-clay on a kiln
washed shelf right under the cone setter. That way the
cone is measuring the temp right at the silver-clay. All of
these suggestions relate to computerized kilns too if you
cant figure out the ramp and hold programming. Don’t worry
about the cost of firing a large kiln it is about $1.00 per
hour.
Place the Silver-Clay near
the cone sitter or thermocouple, on a shelf, use Alumina
Hydrate to support the piece if it seems like it needs it.
I just read
one of your answers to a kiln firing question and I just need to
make sure that I have it correct. If I'm firing PMC Original at
cone 014 (I have an automatic kiln) do I need to enter a hold
time for that or just keep it at zero?
Thanks!! Kristie
PMC Original needs to be
fired to 1650F and held for two hours. If you have a digital
kiln you don’t use the cone fire mode. Program your kiln to
ramp up at 1000 F per hour to 1650 and hold for 2.00 hours.
Deborah H
asks Can PMC/Art Clay be
applied and formed over a lead weight- or other less precious
heavy metal, and then fired?
The only one i have heard of is using fine silver as a backing,
most other metals tarnish in the kiln. The other problem is that
dissimilar metals don't like to be bonded and are likely to
corrode. Stainless steel may work, you try it and let me know.
Of course the lead or tin would melt before the silver was
fired.
Can other metal components be
incorporated into designs using the silver clay as a plate?
Fine silver and 24 K gold will
work for sure, sterling sort of works, I bet stainless will
work, you cant fire anything with copper in it.
Sandy
Asks... I want to work with the metal clays to go around my
fusion glass
pieces and..
My question is will glass melt into the metal?
It will if you fire over the sagging temp of the glass.
& do I make the metal piece 1st and then
glue on the glass, or the other way around?
You could but we don't like glue, better to make a mechanical
connection.
( Can the glass be finished (fused) and
then go back in the kiln with the metal? )
That is the most common way. fuse the glass at 1425F and then
fire the PMC3 to 1200F and the glass will not be effected.
Ivanna asks
I would like to know if I can
embed the Sacagawea coin's in PMC gold or silver ???
No, only real
precious metals can be fired, the dollar is not made of anything
valuable. Make a bezel 10% larger and then mount the coin after
firing and polishing.
We keep getting bubbles in our piece when we
torch fire the piece - what are we doing wrong or how can we avoid
this effect? Help! Thanks. C
Y our
clay is not dry. Try these recommendations.
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Drying Time |
Hair dryer (1200w) |
At least 10-15 minute 10cm/4 inches from the piece. |
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Cooking plate |
At least 7-10 minutes at 150~180/300-330o F |
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Electric kiln |
At least 7-10 minutes at 150/300o F |
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Natural dry |
At least 24 hours at room temperature. |
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