The press consists of three parts: A frame, a two-part mold inside the frame, and a plunger to press the clay into the mold.
How to use the ball press
Take a lump of clay of a suitable size and press it into the mold. Place the plunger approximately in the center of the mold, and rotate it while pressing downward so that the clay is evenly wedged around the mold. Excess clay is cut off with a potter’s knife along the top edge of the mold.
If the walls of your sphere are not perfectly even, you can add a little clay where the wall is thinnest and press with the plunger again.
To remove the sphere from the mold, press the mold out of the frame with a finger through the hole on the bottom of the frame. Then, gently separate the two parts of the mold and remove the clay sphere.
Make another sphere and join the two balls together with some slip, and carefully smooth with a finger or a rib.
Tips & tricks
If you’re having trouble with the clay sticking to the mold, brush the mold and plunger with a bit of cornstarch, and it will become much easier to separate the parts.
Note: The two-part mold creates a seam line on the hemisphere. The method of making the mold results in very fine small lines on the sphere in the mold, which are almost invisible to the naked eye. Both can easily be smoothed with a finger or a smooth rib.
