Walker Pugmill

I have a really old pugmill, which is really like a clay mixer, it's called a Walker-Jamar. It is a single-auger machine driven by a low-speed AC motor (3/4HP). Made here in the USA, Duluth to be exact. I love this thing. It doesn't de-air or anything spectactular, but it lets me toss in some goodies like bentonite (plasticizer) and grog, to make the clay my own. Currently, I buy clay by the box from a local supplier; which is a lot easier than making it myself regarding cleanliness of the studio and the fact that I ran some numbers the other day even considering 30% of the clay I buy by the pound, it turns out to be a 4 cent "savings" of mixing it myself and that's if I don't pay myself for the labor that goes into it. I did not calculate the cost for purchasing the materials (air-floated things like Redart) separately; my calculations were based on purchasing already mixed, dry clay, where I just add water, and throw it into the hopper. I use the Walker to recycle the clay scraps that don't turn into a pot immediately, with the hope that this clay will make a pot.

Here's a picture of the rubber gear coupling that I extracted between the motor and the auger shaft. Hope to have the new part by the end of the week. It's nice to have Grainger's nearby.