ceramic arts dail y.

org

pottery throwing tools

| Second Edition |

a guide to making
and using pottery tools
for wheel throwing
This special report is brought to you with the support of Cornell Studio Supply

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Pottery Throwing Tools
A Guide to Making and Using Pottery Tools
for Wheel Throwing
When it comes to throwing pottery on the wheel, having the right tools at the right time makes all the difference in the
world. Whether youre adding profiles, refining curves or just trimming and cutting your work from the wheel, pottery
throwing tools make the difference. Here are a few pottery tools that you may already have, but if you dont, take a look
at the possibilities.

How to Use the Pottery Tool Kit

By Jeff Zamek
The first pottery tools you need to buy are all contained in the infamous Pottery Tool Kit. Were not sure who
came up with the idea for the PTK, but its a part of the ceramic studio culture. Jeff Zamek takes a look at the
contents and how to use these indispensable basic throwing tools.

Throwing Bats
By Bill Jones
Getting your pottery off the wheel without messing it up requires a throwing bat. Pottery throwing bats come in
all sizes and can be made from a variety of materials. Since they can represent quite an investment, youll want
to take a look at some of the things youll need to consider before you buy.

How to Select and Use Throwing Ribs

By Bill Jones
Even though our fingers are pretty good throwing tools, there are times when a throwing rib just does a better
job. These tools are not complicated and offer a lot of versatility for the beginning potter to the seasoned expert.

Exotic Wooden Pottery Tools

By Frank James Fisher
While many types of pottery throwing ribs are available, making your own from exotic woods can add a real touch
of class. The density and natural oils present in woods like cocobolo make it ideal for constant exposure to water
and clay. Mike Kuhn shows you how to make pottery throwing ribs in this step-by-step project.

Pottery Throwing Profile Tools

By Frank James Fisher
Adding a decorative design to your thrown pot while its still on the wheel is simple to do. What makes it even
easier is that you can get all kinds of wooden profile tools for free or next to nothing at your local home center.

All About Throwing Gauges

By Bill Jones
When you want to make a set of dishes, a little help may be needed. For centuries, potters have used pottery
throwing gauges to make pots the same height and diameter. Heres a look at couple of different types used in
Eastern and Western potteries of all sizes.

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 How to Use the
Pottery Tool Kit
by Jeff Zamek

C Photo courtesy of Amaco/Brent

lay is very responsive to the touch of
a human hand or a tool held by the
potter. A unique characteristic when
working with clay is almost any type
of tool can aid in the formation of functional
pottery or sculpture. The history of pottery and
the design of the tools used to make pots are
closely linked. Todays pottery tools are very
similar in form and function to the ones found
in ancient archaeological sites.
Its not unusual for beginning and advanced pot-
ters to use the same tools. Fortunately, the basic
low-cost mass-produced tools can be purchased
in a kit. Most pottery tools dont wear out, they
simply get lost. In fact, its common for one set of
tools to last years. A simple cleaning after use en-
sures the tools will serve when needed. When you
do have to replace them, individual tools are sold
at ceramic supply stores, through online ceramic
supply sites, and at many art supply stores.
Keep in mind that an individual tool may be
designed for several different uses and that you
might even find several new ways to use it.
The eight-piece pottery tool kit typically comes in
a clear vinyl bag, and contains a synthetic sponge,
wood rib, metal rib, needle tool, wood modeling
tool, large loop trimming tool (originally this was a
pear corer), ribbon tool, and cut-off wire. Prices
for the kit vary among suppliers, and are typically
less than buying the tools individually. Whether
handbuilding or throwing, all the tools in the kit
serve more than one purpose. The tools are listed
in the order that they appear (from left to right) in
the image above.
ll Wood rib: The wood rib has a curved and flat
surface used to smooth, shape, and compress
moist clay, particularly when throwing. Made
from smooth finished hardwood.
ll Metal rib: A flexible steel scraper used for shap-
ing, compressing or smoothing forms, and re-
moving excess water from pots.
ll Needle tool: The needle tool is used to cut off ex-
cess clay on forms or to even the rim. The needle
is also good for cutting slabs, poking holes, and
scoring areas to be joined together, among its
many other uses.

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A flexible metal rib can be used for shaping, smoothing, and The wood modeling tool works well to remove excess clay
removing excess water while throwing. prior to cutting the pot from the wheel or bat.

ll Loop tool: Meant to be grasped by the hand, the large

trimming tools wide blade is used to remove con-
trolled amounts of clay while trimming or sculpting.
ll Ribbon tool: The cutting heads on this tool are made
from thin flat ribbon-like steel. The sharp cutting edges
are used for both trimming and sculpting.
ll Wood modeling tool: Used for trimming excess clay
prior to cutting the pot from the wheel, and also for
slicing, smoothing, contouring, and decorating.
ll Cut-off wire: The cut-off wire is used to slice sections
of clay from larger blocks, as well as for cutting pots
from the bat or wheelhead.
ll Sponge: In throwing, the sponge holds water to moisten
surfaces during forming and also to remove excess water.
Superior to cellulose sponges, which break down with use,
synthetic sponges are durable and last a long time.
Jeff Zamek is a ceramic consultant living in Southampton, Massachu-
setts. For more information, visit his website at www.fixpots.com.

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 Throwing Bats
I
f youve ever damaged a freshly thrown piece
moving it from the wheel, you know the value of a
bat. This handy accessory not only helps preserve
your creative efforts, but allows you to move large
or delicate pieces from your wheel to free it up for the
next piece, and they also make it possible to return a
piece to exact center to work on later. Because bats
play such a critical role in ceramics, and so many pot-
ters have different needs, its no wonder there are a lot
to choose from.
Bat Basics
Most wheel manufacturers pre-drill wheelheads with
bat-pin holes that hold 3/8-inch (or 10-mm) bat pins
on 10-inch centers. Just about every bat maker pro-
duces bats that fit this standard so your options are
wide open. Bat pins are not necessary because you
can stick bats on the wheel head with clay or slip, but
bat pins allow you to quickly add and remove bats
with ease.
Throwing bats can be made from most any rigid
material but wood, wood composites, plastics, and
Photo courtesy Amaco/Brent
Bat adapters are a way to use
smaller throwing bats. The Adapt-
a-Bat made by Amaco fits on a
standard wheel head and has pins to
accommodate 8- and 10-inch square
or round bats.
See www.amaco.com.
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by Bill Jones
plaster are the most common. Except for plastic, these
materials are all porous so your pots will release from
them easily as they absorb water from the clay. If the
material is not porous (e.g., plastic) youll need to wire
off your work before it sets up too much or it will crack
as it shrinks. Heres a rundown of materials youll en-
counter as you search for bats:
ll Duron (aka Masonite or tempered hardboard) is
a resin impregnated hardboard thats water resistant
and smooth on both sides.
ll Medex is a fiber board material made with a form-
aldehyde-free adhesive thats waterproof yet porous.
ll Plastics of several different types are used for bats.
These bats are nonporous and waterproof, so they
require wiring off pots.
ll Plywood is a durable bat material but must be ex-
terior- or marine-grade to avoid delaminating. The
more plys the better.
ll Plaster is one of the traditional materials for bats and
is one of the best as far as porosity. Hydro-Stone,
a USG product containing cement and crystalline
silica, is similar to plaster but 8 to 10 times stronger.
Photo courtesy Bailey Pottery Supply
Photo courtesy The Ceramic Shop
Bailey Baltic Birch bats feature 13 Hydro-Bats are made from Hydro-
laminated layers of marine-grade Stone. Hard rubber grommets on 10-
hardwood. This wood is absorbent, inch centers cast into the underside
wont delaminate, and remains di- of each bat fit over /8-inch pins. Like
mensionally stable with regular use. all porous bats, pots dont need to
Available from 12- to 29-inches in be wired off, they release as the bat
diameter. absorbs water.
See www.baileypottery.com. See www.theceramicshop.com.
4

Photo courtesy Great Lakes Clay
The Versa-Bat System from Great Lakes Clay consists of a
master bat with a 6-inch square opening on one side and an
8-inch opening on the other that hold square /8-inch thick
Medex bats. The master bat fits most wheelheads
with standard bat pins. See www.greatclay.com.
Care and Use
Bats will last almost indefinitely if well maintained. For
best results, sponge a little water onto dry, porous bats
before use, but dont let them become water logged.
Scrape off clay before it dries to avoid creating a lot of
dust, and store bats on edge to avoid trapping moisture.
Assessing Your Needs
The number, sizes, and types of bats youll need depends
on what type of work youre doing. For public studios,
long-lasting, inexpensive plastic bats are probably best
because they can stand up to abuse. If you produce a lot
of small items, check out the bat systems shown here with
interchangeable 6-inch bats. Another thing to consider is
storage. If you get only 12-inch bats, they take up a lot
of room when throwing mugs or small items so thats
where 6-inch square bats would come in handy. Most ev-
ery manufacturer makes a wide range of sizes so you can
adjust your supply to the range of work you make. You
should also remember that you do not need bat pins for
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Photo courtesy Rocky Mountain WoodMasters
WonderBats are made by Rocky Mountain Wood Masters from
a high-density fiber material. The bats are slightly porous so
work does not need to be wired off. Available in a variety of
sizes, these bats feature a proprietary rubber grommet system
that helps hold the bats in place.
See www.rockymtnwoodmasters.com.
bats or a drilled wheel head. If you dont, consider hav-
ing it done because being able to move work to and from
the wheel to the same centered position will make it pos-
sible for you to try more techniques. If you cant make
a decision about which bats youd like to try, purchase
one bat of each material, which can usually be done from
a single supplier. The company bigceramicstore.com of-
fers a Bat Pack containing a selection of Speedball,
Northstar, and Amaco bats of various sizes and materi-
als. Whatever you do, make sure you have enough bats
to carry you through a production cycle or a creative
spurtyou wont regret it.
Most ceramic supply stores carry a variety of bats and
even the products shown here are available from many
distributors. Before ordering, verify the make of your
wheel and the pin size and location.
Thanks to Rocky Mountain WoodMasters, Bailey Pottery Sup-
ply, Amaco/brent, The Ceramics Shop, and Great Lakes Clay for
providing images.
5
 How to Select and Use
Throwing Ribs
by Bill Jones
E
ven though our fingers serve as our prima-
ry throwing tools, there are times when a
throwing rib does a better job. Ribs are a
potters best friend when it comes to defin-
ing profiles, wringing out water or adding decorative
touches. In the beginning, actual animal ribs were
used for this purposeand hence the namebut now
contemporary ribs are commonly made from wood,
metal, and plastic.
Uses
There are many functions that ribs perform, which
is one of the reasons theyre so important. The most
common uses for ribs are for manipulating profiles
and removing throwing marks while compressing the
clay and removing excess water. When throwing por-
celain, its often best to use a rib on one side of a pot
and a sponge on the other, or even to throw with two
ribs. The rib provides support, especially when mak-
ing large voluminous forms.
Because of the variety of shapes available, you can
find a rib to suit any profile you wish to make. Using a
rib for the inside profile of a bowl can assure a continu-
ous line from the bottom through to the rim. And using
the same profile repeatedly helps in making multiples
for sets. Specialized ribs with notched profiles can also
be used on the exteriors of pots to add a decorative
touch or even shape and refine the foot and rim.
When throwing large forms, too much water in the
clay is a problem once you have the preliminary shape
completed. How many times have you tried to get that
final shape only to have the form collapse? To prevent
this, remove all the slurry water using a sharp-edged
metal rib to wring the excess water out. This increases
your chances of success and prevents distorting or col-
lapsing the form. It also provides a way to get sweeping
curves on bowls and platters.
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Suppliers
Bamboo Tools
www.bambootools.com
Bamboo tools have been used in Asia for centuries.
Durable, flexible, and lightweight, bamboo can be
shaped with a sharp knife and will hold an edge that
stands up to heavy use. Bamboo Tools offers a vari-
ety of curved, straight, and profile ribs.
Chinese Clay Art USA
www.chineseclayart.com
Chinese Clay Art produces a set of five wooden ribs
with different profiles and a set of three different siz-
es of rubber ribs. For the budget conscious or those
looking to provide supplies in a classroom setting,
these provide a perfect solution.
Kemper Tools
www.kempertools.com
Kemper makes eight wooden rib profiles that include
the basic shapes required for opening, shaping, curv-
ing, smoothing, and trimming. Their flexible metal
ribs are made for scraping, and a collection of rigid
metal ribs can also be used as squeegees to remove
excess water from pottery shapes.
MKM Pottery Tools
www.mkmpotterytools.com
MKM makes a variety of ribs out of wood, steel, and
coconut. In both the wood and steel series, there
are 22 different profiles of varying sizes, each with a
specific purpose or combination of uses. Their coco-
nut shell ribs vary in size, shape, and thickness but
are durable and comfortable to hold.
Mudtools
www.mudtools.com
Developed by Michael Sherrill, Mudtools are made
from a silicone plastic material in six shapes and in
four different hardnesses from very soft to very firm.
The softest ribs can be used on rims like a chamois
and the firmest are nearly as rigid as wood. Mudtools
also produces six stainless steel ribs in an assortment
of profiles.
6
 Tips
Getting the most out of using a rib is simple. While you
can generally get by without using a rib for small bowls,
medium to larger bowls really benefit from this tool. The
best way to use the rib is to have the wheel rotating at
medium to low speed (the bigger the piece, the lower the
speed), work the rib up from the bottom of the bowl,
curving the clay outward a little with each pass from the
bottom to the top. With your right hand, always follow
the position of the rib with gentle sponge or finger pres-
sure on the outside of the bowl, supporting the clay. Con-
tinue with successive passes until the bowl takes the shape
you want.
Remember, when using a rib to shape a form, always
hold it at an angle to the surface so it slides smoothly over
the clay rather than scraping or cutting into it. After trim-
ming, you can use ribs to eliminate trim tool marks, but
youll need to be careful to hold the rib at an angle to pre-
vent chattering and grog trails.
Metal ribs, while suitable for throwing, are commonly
used in handbuilding for their ability to scrape clay and
compress seams.

Getting Specific
After the first few weeks in pottery, youll want to look
at having more ribs on hand than what came in the basic
pottery tool kit you started with. If cost is a factor, you
can find reasonably priced wood, rubber, and metal ribs
that can serve your needs.
As you advance, youll find that specialty ribs for bowl
interiors (from small to large and wide to steep), for mak-
ing large or flanged plates and platters, defining corners,
creating decorative profiles, and those designed to remove
slip or trimming tool marks will make your work easier
and expand your repertoire of forms.
A mixture of rigid and flexible ribs as well an assortment
of metal, wood, and plastic ribs can also accommodate
most any situation in both throwing and handbuilding.
Luckily, even the most expensive ribs are affordable and
will last a lifetime (or until lost or borrowed).

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 Exotic Wooden
Pottery Tools
by Frank James Fisher
Selection of custom wood tools made from cocobolo.
W
hen artist Mike Kuhn began fashioning
custom wood tools to improve his ce-
ramic forms, little did he suspect where
his explorations would lead him. An
experienced woodworker for more than 30 years, he
is adept in the woodshop with the various equipment
used to sculpt and smooth wood into shapes. But it
was Kuhns knowledge of the virtues and limitations
of specific woods that gave him the initiative to cre-
ate his own versions of wooden throwing tools. Now
he produces dozens of distinct styles of wood tools
in exotic hardwoods for a rapidly expanding list of
dedicated potters.
Kuhns approach to wooden throwing tools started
by evaluating the wood species most often used in
tool production. Most wooden pottery tools are made
from common hardwoods. Unfortunately, grogged
clay is extremely abrasive to the wood surface. Most
wooden tools are not designed for long term use. They
are a consumable tool; when the tool wears down,
you replace it, explains Kuhn.
Kuhn knew of several tropical hardwoods with an
extremely dense cell structure that would be nearly
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Photos by Mike Kuhn
impervious to wear. With some research and testing,
he selected cocobolo (Dalbergia retusa), a Central
American tropical rosewood. He selected it because
of the beauty of the grain, the density of the wood,
the natural oils that make it resistant to water, as well
as its availability. The wood is highly valued and has
been heavily exploited in the wild. Kuhn uses only
wood acquired through commercial tree plantations.
Cocobolo is a beautiful wood. Its hard as iron and
it will sink rather than float in water, stated Kuhn.
Since cocobolo is part of the rosewood family, many
other rosewood species also work well, including Be-
lizean rosewood, Bolivian rosewood, and Madagascar
rosewood. For a local hardwood, walnut, especially
claro walnut, is a good choice, though it does not
have the natural oils and can become waterlogged.
Selecting the perfect hardwood did not provide a com-
plete solution. The choice created two new challenges.
First, fabricating wood tools from a dense hardwood re-
quires specialized equipment to cut and shape the wood.
The standard wood working tools are not engineered
for cutting extremely dense hardwoods. Saws, grinders,
and sandpaper and other abrasives need to be upgraded
8
The upgraded blade on Kuhns band saw cuts a blank
from a planed cocobolo wood plank.
to handle them. Diamond-hard blades and grinding
wheels are required.
The second challenge involved the oily sawdust.
There are health concerns when working with exotic
hardwoods. You want to avoid breathing sawdust
from any wood. But with cocobolo, there is even more
of a concern. If inhaled or exposed to skin, the oils
found in the cocobolo wood can cause allergic reac-
tions. I wear a dust mask. I also keep my skin covered,
including wearing gloves, stated Kuhn, The dust is a
serious health risk. You need to take precautions and
give it the proper respect. Cocobolo is only a health
risk during fabrication processes. The finished tool will
not cause allergic reactions.
What makes cocobolo wear resistant? The wood
grain is extremely tight and dense and permeated with
natural oils. The oily surface repels water, so the wood
grain does not soften or swell. The result is a water-
proof finish that is strong enough to resist the gritty
abrasive wear of grog. No additional finish needs to
be applied. Although the oils do remain in the wood
forever, sometimes after long, hard use, the thin layer
of the outer surface can appear to dry out a bit. To
bring back the original luster, lightly sand with a fine
grit sandpaper to remove the dry surface, then buff it
back to a shine.
Kuhn begins the tool making process with a coco-
bolo block roughly cut to the final tool shape (figure
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Kuhn refines the tools edge with the grinding disk. Wear
gloves as the dust can cause allergic reactions.
1). Then the wood is slowly ground using Kuhns ex-
perienced eye to guide his movements on the grinder.
There are no jigs or cutting templates. Each piece is
hand formed through a series of grinding wheelseach
with successively finer abrasive grit (figure 2). Once the
wood tool has achieved its finished form, Kuhn begins
the final stage on a rouge polishing wheel. Rouge buff-
ing gives the natural oils an intense polishing, resulting
in a finish similar to hand-polished furniture.
Kuhn believes his knowledge of ceramics gives him
a special insight into tool design. Because I use these
tools daily, I know how I want a tool to perform,
reflected Kuhn.
Kuhn has explored the form and shape of the stan-
dard wooden throwing rib. Additional gripping holes
along the flat surfaces provide a secure indent to hold
the tool against the pressure of spinning clay. Because
cocobolo resists wear, Kuhn can create pointed tips
that wont grind away or break. Cocobolo wood has
opened a wide range of possibilities for me to explore.
It has brought a new approach to my own art and I
hope a positive experience to others, said Kuhn.
Mike Kuhn can be contacted by email at:
barefootpottery101@yahoo.com or through
www.barefootpotterytools.com.
Frank James Fisher is an artist, author, and educator living in
Milford, Michigan. He can be reached through his website:
www.frankjamesfisher.com.
9
 Pottery Throwing
Profile Tools
by Frank James Fisher
Grooved deep bowl, 10 in. (25 cm) in diameter, stoneware,
fired to cone 10 in reduction.
I
recently discovered several remnant pieces of wood
molding from a past home remodeling project in
my garage. I was especially intrigued by the con-
cave and convex curves and ridges on the profile. It
sparked my curiosity. What if a clay bowl were grooved
along the rim with this profile? I sliced off a small cross-
section of molding with my miter saw and thirty minutes
later I sat at the wheel reveling in the groovy designs left
by my new toy.
Anyone who has wandered the aisles of a home im-
provement center knows the range of molding styles
and profiles is quite extensive. The store in my neigh-
borhood allows customers to pre-cut their molding
purchase at the store, so theres a cart in the molding/
trim aisle that has a saw and a basket to collect the
scraps. After asking, I was allowed to keep any small
scraps from their scrap bin. My collection of molding
tools quickly grew to a half dozen interesting profiles
(figure 1). After a little experimenting, the different
profiles brought a nice design feature into my work.
The complex groove pattern complements the soft spi-
ral I like to create in the basin of bowls and platters.
Ready-made Advantages
Several tool manufacturers produce a wonderful array
of wood and metal profile tools for use with clay. But
there are three interesting sculpting advantages that a
scrap of molding can provide. First, the varied sizes of
the ridges and the concave and convex curves of the
profile can be very extreme. The molding is not made
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to carve perfect grooves into the clay. In fact, some
of the nooks and crannies on the molding may not be
mirrored successfully in clay since some details might
be too deep to be captured. This can result in void
areas in the band of grooves; however I dont mind
these, as I like the variation and space that results.
Sometimes the slurry creates interesting ridges in these
void areas, which adds design interest.
Second, the molding profiles are sometimes dramatic,
with large bulbous curves. When the clay rim is pressed
along the surface, the full rim is shaped to match these
major curves. The grooves are not just cut into the
clay surface, but the shape of the clay rim follows the
curve of the profile. The resulting rim can then be gen-
tly modified or exaggerated further depending on the
desired effects.
The last advantage relates to clay thickness. Because
the clay conforms to the molding profile, it does not
need to be extra thick to accommodate deep recessed
carving. When using a piece of molding, there will be
thick and thin spots, but extra clay is not needed in
the rim to compensate for the grooves. I throw a rim
with an average thickness and let the clay follow the
profiles shape.
Creating Grooves
Begin by centering, opening, and pulling the clay into
a standard bowl form, either tall or wide and open.
To create grooves in the rim of the bowl, begin by
wetting the rim surface, (inside and outside), with a
10
 1 2
A selection of molding profiles suit- Press the molding into the rim while
able for use as ribs. supporting the outside.

3 4
Smooth, round, and tilt the rim edge A cross-section shows the depth of
with a chamois. the ridges made by the molding.

damp sponge. Select a piece of wood molding that aesthetically fits the
rim and determine which will be the top or bottom of the profile. Wet the
wood molding profile and position it against the rim as the wheel slowly
spins. Place your other hand under the rim on the outside surface (figure
2). This hand will support the clay as the wood molding is pressed down.
Your fingers can also press the clay into the void areas of the molding. It is
not critical that the entire rim come in contact with the full surface of the
profile. The major ridges and high points will leave a groove. The result
is a clay rim with a roughly uniform thickness. As the molding is pressed
against the clay, the rim may also be tilted out and down or stretched
outward to slightly open-up the bowl. If the ridges are too sharp or there
are globs of slurry to clean away, use a sponge and smooth out the surface
as the wheel rotates.
Clean and round the rim edge with a chamois. Create a shallow recessed
slot with the chamois between your fingertips. Gently pinch and compress
the clay on the rim edge. The edge of the rim is bent further downward in
the same motion (figure 3). A cross-section shows the angle of the rim as
well as the depth of the grooves made in the rim by the profile tool (figure
4). The angle created compensates for the upward curl of the rim as the clay
dries and shrinks. The thrown bowl is wired free from the bat and trimmed
as desired.

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 All About Throwing Gauges
by Bill Jones
The Fulwood Measure from Kissimmee River Pottery
(www.kissimmeeriverpottery.com) is an example of a
Western pot gauge. When the rim meets the hinged pointer,
it folds out of the way.
M
ore than likely youll get to the point where
youd like to throw multiples of an object.
Getting work to look the same when mak-
ing more than one of an item takes a bit of
practice because its not as easy as it looks! To help as-
sure youll get some sort of consistency on your next set
of mugs or bowls, you need a throwing gaugea way of
keeping track of the measurements from the first piece to
the last. There are several options for throwing gauges
based on designs from both eastern and western cul-
tures, as well as ad hoc solutions that use items around
your studio.
The Western Pot Gauge
Production potters in Europe and America have used
throwing gauges for centuries. These usually consist of
an adjustable arm on a metal or wooden stand. The arm
adjusts in and out as well as up and down for both diam-
eter and height measurements. An example of the West-
ern pot gauge is the Fulwood Measure (figure 1), which
features a hinged pointer that breaks away when the clay
touches it. Another variation, though not as fully adjust-
able, can be made from a wood block base drilled at in-
tervals with holes that dowels can slip through. Several
dowels can be used at the same time for more complex
forms (figure 2).
The Japanese Gauge
The Japanese developed a throwing gauge for making
duplicates that measures the inside dimensions of a form,
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The tombo measures the inside depth and width of
a form. Two sources of tombos are Bamboo Tools
(www.bambootools.com) and Chris Henley (inset) at
http://hominid.net/toolpage2.htm.
unlike the Western gauges mentioned above, which mea-
sure the outside dimensions. The tombo (which means
dragonfly in Japanese) works well for throwing matching
cups, mugs, and bowls. Shaped like a lowercase t, it
consists of a thin vertical piece of wood or bamboo that
has a small hole or holes bored through it to accept a
stick or dowel. The tombo is held by the top of the ver-
tical stick. The length of the horizontal stick represents
the diameter and the vertical length below this stick mea-
sures the depth of a vessel. The disadvantage of tombos
is that theyre not readily adjustable. On the other hand,
they are relatively inexpensive (and even easy to make),
so potters usually have several tombos in their collection.
Another advantage is that tombos can be used for throw-
ing off the hump.
Improvised
If youre just throwing a set or two, you can get by with
an improvised tool. When height is not a factor, calipers,
a ruler or a marked dowel work well enough to get plates
and platters to the same diameter. If height is a factor,
as when youre making cups, mugs, and bowls, youll
need to take an additional measurement and keep track.
You can improvise a basic throwing gauge that works for
both height and width or throw a piece that you want to
duplicate, then set a lump of clay thats taller than your
piece on the wheel worktable and stick a dowel sideways
through the clay, so it is perpendicular to your wheel-
head at just the right height. Position the dowel so it just
touches the rim of the piece you threw.
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