Hello I have some pmc that has completely dried and hardened . do i
just wrap it up in plastic wrap (cling wrap) with some water will
it be ok . thank you very much for your help.PHILif
Hello I have some pmc that has completely dried and hardened . do i just wrap it up in plastic wrap (cling wrap) with some water will it be ok . thank you very much for your help.PHILif
Distilled water would be best but tap water should work. You may
also want to knead the clay once in a while until you get it the the
right consistency. So far I’ve done it several times and the pmc is
similar to when I got it. Just go easy on the water.
Jon
Chop it up small (use a cheese grater) ad a sew drops of water and
re-wrap it. Leave for a few hours.
Tony Konrath
Key West Florida 33040
Is it completely hard, like a rock? You could carve it with
Dockyard carving tools, and even pierce it with your saw. You could
cut it into smaller pieces, then run it through a pepper grinder and
use those pebbles in other designs. You could make slip out of it.
It is difficult to rehydrate PMC that has gotten this dry. But if
you want to try, cut it into small, evenly sized pieces, place in
the center of a piece of Seran Wrap, squeeze a couple of drops of
PMC Extender from PMC Tool and Supply on it, maybe three drops, wrap
up tightly, set aside. Wait til that absorbs, add more. Go very
slowly. It’s very easy to add too much water and have a substance
that is runny and impossible to work with.
I would really suggest doing one of the alternatives above, such as
slip, you could set up a thin slip and a thick slip and have plenty
for ages…
Elaine Luther
Chicago area, Illinois, USA
Metalsmith, Certified PMC Instructor
Studio 925; established 1992
@E_Luther
Hello Phil, Your PMC can be rehydrated. All of mine had become
like little pebbles in plastic wrap, so here’s what I did. I removed
the plastic wrap and folded it into an open pocket. Then I wet the
sponge-like material that comes in the plastic box, placed PMC in the
plastic wrap pocket on the wet sponge, and closed the box again. It
was like a little terrarium. In a few days, the PMC was somewhat
soft, so I added a few more drops of water and closed it up again.
It took about a week to become soft enough to break up. Once you can
break up the PMC it is easy to knead in water, a drop or two at a
time (being sure to knead it INSIDE the plastic wrap), until you
reach the consistency you want.
Hope this explanation is understandable,
Judy in Kansas
I have some pmc that has completely dried and hardened
It is recommended that you grind up the PMC (coffee grinder?) and
then add only a couple of drops of water . . . they say that
glycerine in the water makes for better texture when the PMC rehydrates.
Then wrap it up.
Paraphrasing Tim’s book: If it is rock hard - makes a thunk when you
hit it on the table, chop up the PMC very finely - not dust but
small granules- run it through a pepper mill or if you have one a
spare coffee mill a few times. Then put it in a plastic container
lined with saranwrap, and just cover with distilled water. Let sit
for a couple of hours. Mix, check to see if need more water. If so
add and wait: if not, wrap up and knead till smoothe. It will be OK
but will be muddy. I find it easiest to let it go the become slip.
IF you can let it sit over night its better.
You need to turn the hardened PMC into a fine powder then add water
to it. I use a razor to scrape and finely mince the PMC. Then I add a
little water and mix with a toothpick. Then wrap the PMC back up for
a few days. You might need to play around with it a bit, either
adding more water or letting some water evaporate but you will be
able to use the pmc again. Good luck.
I have worked with PMC for 3 years now . I have recycled the PMC on
consistent basis. I pulverize ,add water,let it sit for a day or
two. Pour the slip onto a plastic sheet.Then I use my palette knife
to make the slip consistent in texture, no bumps. Doesn’t take long.
I then go to the hair dryer and form a thin skin on the PMC by waving
it back and forth in an even pattern over the surface.Stay away from
the edges of the slip , they dry out! After the skin has formed I use
the palette knife to remix the batch and once again use the hair
drier to create a new skin. I do this several times until the
consistency is similar to the PMC and most of the water has
evaporated off!!!.Scrap the PMC into a pile ,oil my hands lightly .
I place the PMC in my hands and kneed it ,roll it around,until I am
satisfied with the texture. It’s never exactly like the original form
but pretty close. I find it is not as elastic as when it first comes
out of the foil wrapper. Hope this helps , Helen