View Larger Image An old glue bottle can make a great all-in-one slip and score tool.

June 9, 2008

A New Squeeze: Old Glue Bottles Make Great Clay Studio Tools

by Paveen Chunhaswasdikul | Read Comments (0)

I love when people come up with nifty new uses for things that might otherwise be throw-away items. Today we bring you a tip for just such a handmade gadget for slipping and scoring. Paveen Chunhaswasdikul of Gadsden, Alabama, repurposed an empty glue bottle to come up with this all-in-one tool to use when adjoining two pieces of clay. I’m sure there are many other squeezeable bottles in most households so be creative if you don’t have any old glue bottles hanging around. -Jennifer Harnetty, editor.

With a little squeeze, this tool automatically supplies water to the clay you are scoring to make attachments. To make it, you will need an empty glue bottle and a piece of coat hanger or heavy wire that is 1 inch longer than the height of the bottle and slightly larger in diameter than the hole in the cap. Sharpen one end of the wire with a file or grinder and insert it through the hole in the cap. You will need to cut off the stopper inside the cap first. Bend the blunt end of the wire at a 90° angle so it rests against the bottom of the bottle (this will provide stability when scoring). Fill the bottle with water and squeeze. Drops of water will run down to the tip of the wire wetting the clay that you are scoring. If water does not squeeze out, just move the wire left and right to make the hole bigger and try again.

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This tip was excerpted from the May 2008 issue of Ceramics Monthly. The new June/July/August 2008 issue, featuring a focus on the potter’s life, just hit the newsstands!  Be sure to check it out!