Mason is unusually information-open for the ceramic stain market. Their public reference guide gives compositions by listing oxides such as Co, Cr, Fe, Mn, Ni, Sb, Ti, Zn, Zr, etc., and then marks which oxides are involved in many stain families. It also gives practical compatibility notes, especially about zinc, calcium, firing limits and body-stain use. Their product pages often identify the crystal system/pigment class. For example, Mason 6630 Black is described as a chrome-iron-nickel black spinel formed by high-temperature calcination of chromium, iron and nickel oxides into a spinel matrix. Mason 6274 is described as a nickel silicate green olivine pigment formed from nickel oxide and silica. It is certainly helpful to know if your stain is, for example, a cobalt aluminate spinel, chrome-tin pink, zircon-vanadium blue, nickel silicate/olivine green, rutile yellow, etc. Mason’s technical table also lists CICP/color-index numbers, CAS numbers, chemical names, specific gravity, oil absorption, mesh residue and pH for some pigment lines. Of course, they don't publish oxide percentages, mineralizers, firing schedule, milling procedure, soluble salts, frit additions, trace impurities or batch tolerances. This being said, they are not completely alone; some others also publish such information.
Shown here are mugs I glaze using the G2934Y recipe with added Mason stains.
| URLs |
https://www.masoncolor.com
Mason Color Works Inc website |
| Glossary |
Ceramic Stain
Ceramic stains are engineered crystalline pigment powders. They are used as an alternative to employing metal oxide and have many advantages. |
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