How to Tap Center Pots on the Wheel

[@PhilipKaoChiang]

What you're doing with these videos is just so rare. Thoughtful, complete, and well produced. They are invaluable for all of us without formal training in pottery. So glad I stumbled upon your channel. You're answering so many little questions I've had for ages, and enabling my ability and enjoyment of pottery to reach new levels!!!

[@floriangadsby]

Thanks so much for a wonderful comment, that really means a lot! I'm glad to have you aboard!

[@joclynlager4.8]

I agree, great way explaining how important videos like these are to us novice potters.

[@John-jl4fu]

It’s a great tutorial. Now can you tell me why none of my pots are round? 😂 they start round I’m sure but by the time I’m trimming them they are oval so tap centring doesn’t work! 😭

[@alexforget]

Thanks Florian, you now have thousands of apprentices all over the world! We are looking forward to the next lesson.

[@emdeearts274]

Absolutely one of the best maker of videos on pottery. Useful footage with a great voice-over explanation of wat is happening. keep these coming!!!!!!!

[@floriangadsby]

Thank you, that really means such a lot-there's plenty more to come, with another video going live in about 2 hours or so!

[@shan-gn3ey]

I love that you go al the way to the bare basics which indeed I would say are more intuitive things that you do, but you think about it and explain it and that is wonderful. You are a great teacher and thank you for sharing!

[@AaronNicholsonAI]

Wow. Thanks a ton. So helpful. And your video production is gorgeous, which makes your stuff very watchable.

[@erinparker4564]

Just found your videos and am so thankful for them! I’m getting back into pottery after a 30 year break! You said something in this video that was especially helpful to help make this concept finally click for me. I would always look at the clay to try and determine when to tap, but watching the distance between the clay and the lines makes SO much more sense! Now I’m excited to try again with this new knowledge. Thank you for all your amazing videos!

[@kjmurray27]

This is a brilliant video! I can't believe I hadn't considered trying to tap centre something OTHER than a pot for practice! Seeing you put the sieve on the wheel gave me one of those 'duh!' moments and I feel a little silly now! Thank you for taking the time to make this, I'll be practicing over the weekend!

[@shravi-wd9jr]

Something that looks so easy!! You explain excellently how important it can be and how difficult it can be. This is super informative. ❤️❤️❤️!!!

[@floriangadsby]

I hope it helps! It's a tricky skill to learn but once you've acquired the skill it'll be with you forever. Thanks for watching!

[@MoeinPotter]

Exactly =))

[@danielajohnson177]

Phenomenal as always, so thorough and well explained. Thank you so much for all you do for the potters’ community.

[@rokosjea]

Your videos are so therapeutic! I am really excited to practice this. You are a wonderful teacher.

[@floriangadsby]

That's very kind of you to say, thank you so much!

[@angeladias1654]

I’m also a visual learner, and you bring that across so well! This was incredibly useful! Thank you so much!!!!!

[@nora-mp5op]

this is so helpful and encouraging, thank you florian! i'm excited to learn tap centering.

[@radiobrain94]

Great vibes in your videos I always get energy from them

[@BB-xe6rh]

Omg thank you so much. I'm taking a class and everything is finally clicking. I just get it now. Thank you Florian!

[@Lexi-kj1zk]

Your videos get better and better every time. I always look forward to watching them. Can’t wait to see what’s to come of you and your journey to success.

[@floriangadsby]

Thanks very much, that's so kind of you to say.

[@samuelharley_]

These videos are turning out so great! Such useful information in each of these.

[@floriangadsby]

Cheers man! So appreciate that.

[@correctrper2941]

I finally figured it out! I definitely couldn't do it with my eyes closed like I've seen some people, but I'm on the way. Thanks so much for the video! so helpful :)

[@jackiegarruto]

Can't wait to sit down and practice this!

[@lynnost1959]

This is so satisfying to watch!!!

[@floriangadsby]

Glad you think so! After watching all this footage back it does look a little like magic.

[@cariadwales1979]

Thank you Florian. a great technique. Your explanations are to the point and easy to follow. Fab video!

[@georgiaprickitt253]

I have tried to get this knack for years. Your demonstration was so clear, this afternoon I got on the wheel, and lo! I got it within minutes! The advice to tap always in the same place (I like 10:00) slowly at first and speeding up as the pot comes on center simply “clicked.” Thank you!

[@floriangadsby]

So pleased to hear so. It’s a fantastically useful technique. Thanks for watching!

[@vibhabudhraja]

Really useful... I always struggle to centre the pots. Thank you for sharing.

[@floriangadsby]

Thanks for watching Vibha! It can be tricky but it really just takes persistence. It'll click I promise!

[@vibhabudhraja]

@@floriangadsby Yes I will definitely practice this technique daily 😊

[@vibhabudhraja]

@@floriangadsby Yes I will definitely practice this technique daily 😊

[@triciac1019]

Definitely something I will be learning soon. This is another great video Florian and very informative! Thank you!

[@feedingmysoul7195]

These instructional videos are great. So much precision in your technique:)

[@floriangadsby]

So pleased you like them, thanks for taking the time to watch!

[@RT22444]

So helpful. My wheel does not stop quickly, so the endless stop/start of centering takes even LONGER but tap centering has always failed for me. This guidance is exactly what I need I can’t wait to go home and try it again with this video on ❤

[@carolynpearce4829]

Thank you so much. I am going to practice until I “get” it. Your videos are the best. The jars I did pitted a little, so I need to refire them. They are cute though. I teach pottery to children at our local rec center. They are allowed one day on the wheel during the six sessions. I trim their bowls, so I end up trimming pretty wonky bowls. Very challenging to put a nice foot on their bowls. I just eyeball the foot. I tell the kids to say to anyone who comments on their bowls that they are “wheel thrown and altered.”

[@julietaillefer5230]

Keys words I have heard so often when learning to throw on the wheel “until it clicks” same was true for me when learning to center clay. Thank you for the tips I am presently trying to master your technique. Question does your wheel speed ever change according to pot size and structure?

[@floriangadsby]

Thanks for watching! And yes, absolutely, my wheel changes depending on what's on it, as does my tapping strength and what part of my hand I'm using. There are so many variables really, it just takes time to get used to them all.

[@sarahslade4391]

Thank you so much for making this video!!! It is so helpful!

[@floriangadsby]

I'm glad to hear so! Thanks for taking the time to watch, I really hope it helps.

[@joclynlager4.8]

Ive been following you on instagram for a while and I was happy to see you doing voice overs and lessons here on KZbin. Wonderful video. I hate centering to trim because it takes so long. I am thankful to learn this.

[@floriangadsby]

This is so wonderful to hear Joclyn. Thanks so much for watching and I'm so glad you've found the videos to be useful.

[@Neeadakeen]

I'm a beginner and I was trimming around 4 of my pots the other day- I swear centring took FAR longer than the actual trimming. Thank you so much for this. Next sesh, I'll just sit there till it clicks!

[@floriangadsby]

It’s a pain at the start, and very slow like you said. Learning to centre quickly is invaluable and does help speed up the making process so much - good luck chasing it!

[@KC-nh3mp]

You make it looks so easy!!! Wow

[@EmifyYourLife]

I have ALWAYS wanted to tap center! I've only done it a couple of times successfully. Thank you so much for this helpful video!

[@TheJmh19]

another great video. thanks Florian!

[@daniellerecoba]

Amazing content. I think the advice that helped me the most was stop trying to see when to hit and just let your brain learn the pace. Tap and observe if it's more centered and correct from there. Greetings from an amateur in Berlin.

[@petergregorypottery5476]

Memorising and wonderfully helpful! It is interesting how the most simple looking things in potting can be the hardest to learn... I remember trying to pull handles for the first time, and many wobbly lengths of clay ending up in the bucket of water, all good fun and endless patience needed. Thank you so much for posting such clear and useful information. All the very best to you :-)

[@Szegro]

The hardest part for me was focusing on hitting the object right when its closest to my hand, I always spent too long staring and analysing the rotation and getting frustrated when I hit it off the wheel.

[@floriangadsby]

It's definitely like that at the beginning. I know this sounds stupid, but I think to help let it click you've literally just got to bash it around until it works. Over analysing anything can be detrimental, I do it a lot too!

[@carol_english]

Your videos are all wonderful. As someone who has found endless ways to get it wrong, I am looking forward to trying again after watching your videos. What I wonder about is wheel speed though: you never talk about recommended wheel speeds for different parts of the throwing and trimming process. Is it possible that you might make a video that talks about wheel speed? Many thanks!!

[@internetmike]

This is really great, thank you for such great videos. Love your IG as well.

[@peterkenyonjr]

Great video. Super informative as a beginner potter. Cheers!

[@p43210]

10 minutes of ART

[@victoriamiskolczy6336]

Thank you very much for making and showing this video. It’s VERY helpful! I will now go and do as you suggest and just practice tap centering...

[@floriangadsby]

Thank you Victoria! Best of luck!

[@heyashakaye]

I was looking forward to this video! Great description, I am excited to get on the wheel and apply your recommendations. thanks!

[@floriangadsby]

Thank you so much Asha! best of luck centring.

[@jennawhitecloud5680]

Very clear and helpful thanks!

[@floriangadsby]

Thank you 😊

[@ewhite7469]

This is enormously helpful thank you

[@floriangadsby]

So glad to hear so, thanks for taking then time to watch.

[@utleysos8203]

Amazing as always, thank you for providing this informative content! I can’t wait to get back into the studio and master tap-centering :)

[@floriangadsby]

Thank you! :)

[@annewatkis5824]

Great video. Thank you. When the pot is centred, how do you keep it centred whilst trimming? Thank you.

[@patriciafurr4771]

Headed to studio now to practice this (again). This was so helpful!

[@jaimwah]

Loved this one a great help cheers

[@sonyam8]

Thank you for these videos! They are so beautiful to watch and your instructions are so logical and clear. I sometimes get an “S” shaped crack at the bottom of my pots after firing; do you perhaps have any advice on how to prevent this?

[@alilahofmeyr4350]

Compress the base as you make the pot. The 'S' crack is formed by a difference in spacing of clay particles in the base compared to the walls of the pot. So when the water dries out and the pot shrinks the particles shrink away from themselves leaving a crack. If you make sure that you compress the base of the pot through the making process especially when you're throwing and if you add any water at any point to the inside of the pot make sure you compress again afterwards, it's not enough to just compress when you make the base of the pot at the opening up stage. Also, if you ever see a book called The Potters Dictionary of Materials and Techniques by Frank and Janet Hamer (second hand, it's crazy expensive new- well it is here in South Africa) Get it, it's so useful! It'll teach you all about cracks and so much more!

[@sonyam8]

@@alilahofmeyr4350 thanks! I do usually compress the base; but perhaps not enough? From SA as well! Whereabouts are you from?

[@Brighton939]

Excellent ....thank you!!

[@cindyrodger4867]

Very helpful thanks!

[@alexandralaske9415]

explains very well, I know what I'm going to practice this lockdown

[@annagaleb]

Please do take this as a compliment: I feel like watching a Wes Anderson movie! Lovely

[@floriangadsby]

Haha, I love that compliment! Thank you!

[@RADAR174]

miracle, thank you

[@SuzanaIcoane]

Thanks, u are great !

[@mattmcgrath9061]

So helpful

[@范姜-d1q]

Thank you!!

[@redredearth]

Thank you for sharing. Which wheel do you use ? I’m still learning and planning to buy a wheel for myself.

[@floriangadsby]

Thanks! I'm using a Rohde HMT 500 at the moment, wonderful wheel and very comfortable!

[@alexjohnson4567]

doing this blind is almost a good way to practice, by feeling the tempo of the piece rotating on the wheel then striking it softly in the same spot at the right time interval.... Tricky stuff to master haha

[@robertine.atelier]

Very usefull, thank you

[@CharlieBlue888]

Super helpful

[@RJ_Sand]

Your videos are fabulous, thank you! What are you painting on the bottom? Wax resist or? Thanks!

[@ClownWhisper]

This is always been a source of frustration for me I've never gotten good at this especially with leather hard pots they seem to stick and not want to slide at all no matter what I do. So I basically hold my finger and when the pockets close to my finger I stop the wheel and push it to the opposite side a little bit it's not a good message it's the best I can do however. What do you do if you get a pot that perhaps shrimp unevenly so the base of the pot is not concentric to the rim of the pot I imagine you leave the rim out of Center and keep the base in Center?

[@fred_gwatkin]

Thanks for this vid - I'm nearly there, I think. Just a question about timing - are you going mostly by sight or touch or a combination of the two? If possible, can you say how much of either you are using? I feel I am going mostly by sight for the first few taps and then by touch for the last part but I have by no means mastered it to the extent you have.

[@floriangadsby]

It’s mostly feel as I can tap centre with my eyes closed. Sight just helps with visual timing, but all the work is done by touch.

[@fred_gwatkin]

@@floriangadsby Good to know, thanks again.

[@carriesantiago]

@floriangadsby I'm struggling because my pieces aren't quite round. I can eyeball the rough center, but the 'round ' at the rim and the 'round' at the base are not quite concentric. I guess I should only be tapping 'on top'??

[@northwestpacific]

Wonderful

[@ShaminMike]

I’ll definitely be practicing this once my wheel gets here lol

[@jennawhitecloud5680]

Hi Florian, I still haven’t got my tapping down yet but I’ve noticed that as a relative beginner my foot or bottom and my rim are often not aligned to the same center. So when tapping to center do you center the rim and then trim the walls and foot to align to the rim, or center the foot and align the walls and the rim to the foot? Someday I’ll get more even but for now this is my quandary. Thank you

[@neildeelangton3235]

Thank you, very informative, but can you tell me what speed the wheel needs to be.

[@floriangadsby]

Well, I'd say a nice middle speed. Not too fast and not too slow otherwise you'll be there forever. It's one of those things that you'll be able to do with a faster spin once you've got it nailed in. Once you're comfortable with it you might find yourself naturally spinning faster but at the beginning just a nice medium pace should be fine.

[@neildeelangton3235]

@@floriangadsby thank you for taking the time for such a comprehensive response. I'll give it another go with something less fragile this time!

[@Jacobkryn]

2:39 not Florian almost loosing the bowl

[@grackla1384]

Had my 3rd pottery class and it was the first time we tried trimming! I had no idea how hard it was to do this. I asked my teacher how to tap center and he refused to teach it as it was “too advanced” but using the tool just seems to take so long and not very accurate

[@shank406]

What should i be looking for to indicate that it's definitely centered "enough"? I find that even when the wobble is at a minimum, when I start shaving the clay for say, a base, it ends up being off center to a point of being painfully obvious off the wheel.

[@floriangadsby]

If the pots are wobbling at a minimum it might be that your pots have been thrown with an inherent wobble, in which case it's almost impossible to perfectly centre it. Imagine trying to drive a car with wonky wheels, its motion will always be jarring, whereas with perfect round wheels it'll be smooth. If that isn't your problem it sounds like you're applying uneven pressure with your trimming tools as you work, either way, both are factors overcome with practice.

[@shank406]

@@floriangadsby I'm merely a beginner, so it's likely the former. But regardless, how do I know that it's centered enough to start doing work on it? Especially with the more irregularities it inevitably has due to my inexperience.

[@RisticXMMII]

Hi Florian, loving all of your videos! I am curious though about the wood you use when kneading. I'm guessing it is sanded down to perfection haha, but is there a particular reason why one would use wood instead of, say an innately smooth surface like granite? Getting into pottery and I was wondering :)

[@floriangadsby]

Hey! Thanks for watching. 😊 Generally you want a surface that is somewhat absorbent. It can help take a bit of the moisture out of the clay and it tends to stick less. For the se reason people use plaster batts sometimes to wedge on. With granite or something similar you’d just smearing the clay around and it might actually make your life more difficult. Slate works! But again, because it’s absorbent.

[@RisticXMMII]

@@floriangadsby Gotcha, thanks so much! :) side note: loving how informative and therapeutic these videos are ~ keep up the good work!

[@BrandiChase]

Thank you

[@claudiaw1045]

Thank you, Florian! Is your wheel at higher speed for this?

[@floriangadsby]

I'd say that it's at about a medium speed. Not too slow, not too fast. I guess this might differ from potter to potter.

[@chloehall557]

How does it not fly off the wheel while it’s spinning? I really need practice to centre my pieces, but often do it by eye - and it’s not always accurately centre.

[@philodendronfam4262]

How do you tap when the clay still has moisture? Mine tends to be leather hard when i trim but most of the examples you show are bone dry 👀 thank you in advance

[@floriangadsby]

There’s some examples in this video of me tapping leather hard pieces. I’ll use the pads of my fingers though generally, so the taps pressure is spread out a little more but the essential motion is the same. Thanks for watching!

[@philodendronfam4262]

@@floriangadsby thank you for you reply! I will try out your suggestion!!

[@somethingorother5782]

TAPPY TAP-TAP!

[@sandeeprajagopal4680]

Thanks

[@tessageisler4906]

i love ceramics and i want to do it for the rest of my life

[@TheCelluloseKid]

And thank you.

[@RangerJeni]

I get black shiny marks on the rims from the wheel sometimes :-(

[@floriangadsby]

That’s aluminium from the wheel head. It shouldn’t come off when tap centring… is the wheel new?

[@RangerJeni]

This is why you're a legend. Yes, just a few months old.

[@SetGozo]

they are bisqued not greenware, saw one

[@ericac5040]

Is it just as easy when it's leather hard?

[@floriangadsby]

It's easier! As the pot has more weight to it and doesn't move around so much. It's also a tiny bit sticky, which helps it stick in place.

[@ericac5040]

@@floriangadsby Thanks heaps! Still working on this--plan to sit working with it for a couple of hours as suggested!

[@beekeeper8474]

Just a little tappy tappy tap ave

[@TheCelluloseKid]

What he said.

[@chouchounguyen1664]

I tried doing this for the first time and my bowl flew off the wheel and broke 😂

[@gbdc-]

i can see that hes trying really hard to mess it up

[@AysCeramic]

Keşke anlayabilsem dediklerini😥

[@eikemaas5089]

I just watched a guy tap 30 different things into center, but he never explained when to tap. You just hit it whenever you feel like it? You're trying to aim for the point most off-centered?

[@bullishtingles1384]

why not just use the brush to brush on the wax without using the wheel at all. Wouldn't that save even more time?