Ring Jug Demo 2

This is part 2 of the Ring jug Demo:

This is a centering technique for trimming that I learned from my former professor Virginia Scotchie--I thought it was really cool, but you may already know it. All that you do is get the bat somewhat wet--not too wet, but just good and damp.

Next you take your pot and wiggle it on the bat until it makes a seal. It is really important for the piece to be leather hard--if it is too dry, it wont stick. I also do this for lids--it works so much better than using coils to hold it in place. Coils also get in the way, especially for ring jugs. It only takes a minute or two for the pot to attach--you don't have too long to get it centered before it attaches pretty well.

I have always used a needle tool to center my pots while trimming, but center however works for you. I just mark a line as it is spinning and move away from the line until the line goes all the way around telling me it is centered.

I like to use a wide trimming tool to trim ring pots--the smaller ones tend to be harder to get an even curve.
The last step in trimming is to smooth out the trimming marks. I then throw a neck and either roll or pull a handle. You may have to wait a little while for the pot to release, but then you attach the neck and handle, and voila--a ring jug!