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Plainsman Clays | M370
M370 Mid Fire Clay
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$0
Suggested retail price. In-store prices and availability may vary by location.
Mid fired, White burning, Fine grained, Highly plastic, Throwing clay body
Specifications
Type
Mid-fire white stoneware · semi-vitreous · available in dry form and as a casting recipe
Texture
Fine grained and highly plastic – takes movement and alteration on wheel-thrown pieces
Usage
Throwing · decorating · casting, using the casting recipe
Temperature
Cone 5 · 6 · 7 – like all of our medium temperature clay bodies, M370 is designed to fire at cone 6 (1222 °C / 2232 °F). Fire to cone 7 and you may get warping on thin-walled pieces.
Colour
Light off-white – an ideal canvas for decorating
Shrinkage
Dry 5.5–6.9% · fired 5.8–7.3% at cone 5, 6.0–7.4% at cone 6, 6.3–7.4% at cone 7
Absorption
Cone 5 1.1–2.4% · cone 6 0.1–2.0% · cone 7 0.0–2.0%
Every figure is a measured range from the Plainsman lab, not a single nominal number. Cone equivalents are Orton self-supporting cones at 108 °F/hr.
Description
M370 is white because of what goes into it – more kaolins and fewer ball clays than our other bodies. That is what gives you the lighter off-white ground to decorate on, and it is why the powder makes a good base for slips and engobes.
M370 is mature at cone 6, but it is not fully vitreous – it remains partially vitrified, with absorption still measuring slightly above 0%. It has excellent plasticity, which allows for adding movement and alterations without complaints once a piece is thrown.
M370 is also available in dry form and as a casting recipe. The casting recipe contains no added bentonite, which allows for better drying within plaster moulds.
Working properties
- Excellent plasticity – a pleasure to throw, and forgiving of added movement and alterations on wheel-thrown pieces.
- This is a fine-grained, highly plastic body, and it needs careful handling during drying to prevent cracks.
Fired colour & cone behaviour
- A lighter off-white that makes an ideal canvas for decorating – white enough that the powder works as a base for slips and engobes.
- Colour development is stable through cones 5, 6 and 7, but we still recommend cone 6: that is where the body reaches perfect maturity. At cone 7 you risk warping.
Glazes & glaze fit
- M370 has a high free quartz content, so it may cause crazing with some glazes. Test yours before you commit a kiln load.
- We sell a Cone 6 Low Expansion Glossy Glaze that fits M370, developed for this body to address exactly that.
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