This is a unique product category that we have developed starting in the 1980s. Some of the raw materials we quarry have unusually high feldspar contents and melt and quite low temperatures. We have both plastic and silty materials of this type. By blending these and combining some mineral fluxes to enhance them, slips and glazes can be made that have surprising application or firing properties. Examples of these are listed below, but remember that we can custom-make a product for your application also.

Ravenscrag Slip

This blend of natural materials combines with water to create a slurry that has outstanding suspension, covering, gelling and drying properties. We have a special website for this material at http://ravenscrag.com. It can be colored, matted, glossed with simple additions and it can be applied in multiple layers to leather hard, dry or bisque ware. The flexibility of this type of material is excellent in production departments where there is a need to have a resilient problem-free process. Click here for a data sheet.

Alberta Slip

This material was originally formulated to substitute for Albany Slip (it was a natural silty clay from Albany, New York, that was used for 200 years as a chocolate colored stoneware glaze). Since its inception Alberta Slip has taken on a life of its own, becoming the base for a wide range of special purpose and reactive glazes from low to high temperatures. It has its own website at http://albertaslip.com. Using a 20% frit addition this material can be fluxed to melt well at cone 6. One of the most unexpected benefits of Alberta Slip has proved to be its plasticity: Users mix calcine and raw material to achieve exactly the right compromise between suspension/dry hardness and tendency to crack or release during drying. Click here for a data sheet.

Feldspathic Sand (Textured Engobe)

This feldspathic kaolinized sand contains enough kaolin to impart plasticity sufficient to make an excellent suspension or for dust pressing (we can add plastics if needed). During firing, the feldspar particles are course and melt outward to glue the sand particles together. The sand content imparts texture and the iron content gives a warm fired color. The result is a coating material of outstanding aesthetic appeal and durability. The firing temperature can be adjusted to control the fired texture and integrity of the bond to the body (e.g. non-slip tile surfaces) and colorants added. To learn more about E-Sand click here.

Feldspathic Silt (3D)

Plainsman has large deposits of this material and it can act as a base for a wide range of products. It has low plasticity and light tan raw color, tan to light brown fired color. Typically companies must employ a much less consistent and much darker burning material to achieve the degree of vitrification and reliability that this material offers. To learn more about 3D click here.

Plainsman Clays Ltd., 702 Wood Street, Medicine Hat, Alberta T1A 1E9
Phone: 403-527-8535 FAX: 403-527-7508

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