sieve screens

McMaster-Carr

is an industrial supplier that will sell to individuals and (last time I checked, anyway) has no minimum purchase requirement.

I got Type 304 Stainless Steel Woven Wire Cloth, 80x80 mesh,

0.0055" wire diameter, 12x12 inch sheet. Their part number is 85385T869, which you can enter into the search bar at the top left of their home page. It will bring up the entire catalog page of all meshes and dimensions, including this one which is $8.31. (They also have one with fatter wire that would obviously let less stuff through for the same 80 mesh.) You can get this product in sizes up to 48x48 inches ($103.01) and they have lots of other meshes as well. (I got 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100, but 80 is the only one I have ever used.)

I made a square wooden frame out of 2x2 lumber and attached the wire mesh with a staple gun. I painted the lumber first with some old interior latex semi-gloss house paint so it would resist water, and after stapling on the mesh I added a few more coats of paint to the mesh overlap area to seal everything.

So far it has worked just fine, but as it turns out I haven't used it that much... mostly for when I was processing hand-dug garden clay, to remove coarse sand from slip. (Bigger stuff was removed via window screen, earlier in the process.) I had considered using this for glaze, but instead I have settled on one of those cheap plastic-frame nylon mesh coffee filters. It's 110 mesh (hand-counted under microscope!) and the round frame is a good size to slip into a yogurt tub. Perfect for small batches of glaze (100 -200g).

Best regards,

Bob Masta DAQARTA v3.50 Data AcQuisition And Real-Time Analysis

Scope, Spectrum, Spectrogram, FREE Signal Generator Science with your sound card!

Because I am an habitual horder and never throw anything away I used the screen from the door of an old microwave oven for a sieve. The magnets from the dismatled magnetron in it are handy tool holders stuck to my wheel. !!

Marcia

those cheap plastic-frame

Can you give more information on exactly what this is and where one might be able to purchase it? I'm looking for something smaller and cheaper to use when I make slip in smaller quantities.

April G. San Antonio, TX

Thank you for going to that work for me. I had been to that site and gave up on trying to find the right cloth.

I plan on taking one of my 5 gallon plastic buckets, cutting off the bottom and then melting the plastic into the screen. Now I just need to figure out how to make a large hot plate. :)

Donna

P.S. Bob - you do know how to have fun! - "It's 110 mesh (hand-counted under microscope!) "

Donna: You don't need a hotplate. It's called a torch. Heat the plastic up that way, press the screen into it (wearing gloves or using a metal scraper/spatula) while the plastic is still "molten". OR get the plastic molten all the way around, and put the screen flat on a metal sheet, then invert the bucket and press down. That keeps it nice and smooooooth. Just don't make the bucket with too much of a wall. If you do, the temptation to over fill it will always be there, and the plastic can only hold so much. A wall no more than 4-6 inches should suffice.

Makes a spiffy sieve. Best, Wayne Seidl

Thanks Wayne. I just bought a torch to play with smoking some pots (put a pitfire type pot in a metal bowl with wood chips and torch the chips). I'm not sure how I will get even heating and keep the screen tight with this method - maybe I should do a training with screen and a bucket I don't care about. It may be that the hardest part is going to be forcing myself to cut up a bucket....

Donna

those cheap plastic-frame

This is something you find in the supermarket. The one I have is a dark brown plastic "basket" with white nylon mesh. It is

4.5 inches in diameter at the top, 3.5 at the bottom, and the basket is about 2.5 inches deep. It might be near the regular disposable coffee filters, but I think I have seen these in other odd places in stores... might have to ask somebody. I've had mine for several years now, but it was only a few dollars when I bought it and probably isn't more than $5 or so by now.

Best regards,

Bob Masta DAQARTA v3.50 Data AcQuisition And Real-Time Analysis

Scope, Spectrum, Spectrogram, FREE Signal Generator Science with your sound card!

this the type you are referring to?

Nope, mine is much squattier, with no handle. Perfectly round, like the upper 2.5 inches of a yogurt tub. (And since it isn't from Krups, probably a *lot* cheaper!) I'm not sure, but I wonder if the "gold tone" of Krups product refers to a metal mesh... mine is white nylon (or some similar synthetic.)

I'll take a look the next time I'm in the supermarket and get a brand name.

Best regards,

Bob Masta DAQARTA v3.50 Data AcQuisition And Real-Time Analysis

Scope, Spectrum, Spectrogram, FREE Signal Generator Science with your sound card!

This has become a matter of principle. I will find this filter....

else looks like this I have let my glaze settle too much I use a nylon paint filter bag on my five gallon glazes. It is really too much of a mess to deal with though and I just found this looking to show the bag (never could find a good example of the paint filter bag).

Hey, this looks like a good find! And the price is right as well, ($3.59, though the $6.98 shipping is a bit steep.) I'll check for this in my local hardware store and see what the mesh size is.

Best regards,

Bob Masta DAQARTA v3.50 Data AcQuisition And Real-Time Analysis

Scope, Spectrum, Spectrogram, FREE Signal Generator Science with your sound card!

I also got the screen from McMasterCarr. I used small metal buckets that I found at Walmart. Cut the bottoms out and glue in the screen with Gorilla Glue, which is water proof. I put a small ring of 1/4" plywood over top for added support. They are still going strong after 2 years. I have a 60, 80, and 100 mesh but usually just use the 60.