Episode 95 – What should we know about cristobalite and quartz inversion?

Cristobalite and quartz inversion are the great boogie men of ceramics, often being used to explain cracking clay, glaze fit issues, and general ceramic mayhem. In this episode the gang sort fact from fiction and explain the changes that silica goes through during firing. They also start the episode talking about Matt’s amazing new computer keyboard, which has beautiful celadon-glazed porcelain keys. Do you have questions or need advice on glazes?

Do you have questions or need advice on glazes? Drop us a line at ForFluxSakePodcast@gmail.com and you could be featured on an upcoming show.

Today’s episode is brought to you by Cornell Studio Supply and the Rosenfield Collection of Ceramic Art.

Glazing problems? Kiln meltdown?

Send your questions to forfluxsakepodcast@gmail.com – you might hear the answer on the show!

Want to learn more?

Check our our blog articles and all of our videos on our YouTube channel!

Share this Episode

Cristobalite and quartz inversion are the great boogie men of ceramics, often being used as an explanation for cracking clay, glaze fit issues, and general ceramic mayhem. In this episode the gang sort fact from fiction and explain the changes that silica goes through during firing. They also start the episode talking about Matt’s amazing new computer keyboard, which has beautiful celadon-glazed porcelain keys. Do you have questions or need advice on glazes?

Explore our courses!

Not sure where to start? Get help finding your learning path.

Start Learning

Recent Podcast Episodes

Have you wondered what makes a glaze food safe? Today we are happy to welcome Gabriel Kline and Bill Collins to the show to talk about the topic, and their new book Amazing Glaze: Food Safe Recipes. They discuss the definition of food safety, how to test glazes, and what they learned after testing dozens of popular cone 6 and cone 10 recipes.
Do you fire your kiln fast or slow? And does it really matter? Today the gang answer a few listener questions about the relationship between temperature, glaze melt, and vitrification. They also discuss a class of clays out of the UK that vitrify at low fire temperatures.
Commercial casting slips are great for their convenience, but what do you do when your recipe hard-pans in the bucket? Today the gang talk about why hard-panning happens and how you can fix it. They also discuss making temp checks, the best bisque temp for commercial glazes, and the controversy around the sale of fake ceramic pigments.