Thread: With all the talk about scuttles....

I just wanted to show you what I consider to be a great scuttle. I would like to get some feedback from you guys that normally use one of these in your daily routine. This is a wonderful piece that a friend of mine made for me as a present using a few guidelines from me. She is a wonderful potter!!!! and I am grateful for her generosity. As you can see in these pictures, the top part of the scuttle is about 6" wide and about 2" deep, while the complete contraption is about 3" deep. I think that having a large bowl is essential for making good lather and this one does exactly that, when you use products that produce a lot of lather, this may be an advantage. The scuttle accommodates a 23mm silvertip brush and I have used it also with a larger brush I have. The fit with the soap guzzler is not as good as with the 23mm brush. I think that the geometry is great for lathering as this scuttle can be filled up to the rim. Also, the clay is somewhat rough, which helps the process and it is blue, my favorite color. The fit of the 2 bowls is pretty good and because the piece is very heavy, there is no play while you are lathering. The walls are pretty thick too. I must say that since I am a face latherer at heart and do not normally use a scuttle, I cannot comment much about its heat retention. However, I have noticed that it dries the lather a bit. Let me know what you think.

Al raz.

that looks very nice.. and i really like the colour..

you def have a good friend! that looks like a very nice well working design.
if it dries up a little you can always add some more water

How much water can it hold between the bowls? Maxing the amount of water is key, as it provides a greater amount of heat. As a side note, I don't think I personally will ever be happy with the heat retention in a scuttle that is large enough to lather in, unless the water capacity is massive. Too much heat loss through the large surface areas.

That one looks nice. Craftmanship!

Excellent question. The other night after I posted we had a discussion about this. I used a quick and dirty procedure and estimated that the amount of water is around 10 to 12 oz when the scuttle is assembled, I spilled some of the water and ended up with about 10 oz left, plus the spillage. I guess it would really depend on what is your priority, forming warm lather or keeping your brush warm. With the winter "gone", I may have to wait to fully test the heat retention. However, since my lather became a bit dry, and I was only using water from the heater, I would say that if you use boiling water to load the scuttle, you should not have a problem keeping the lather warm. I would just simply allow some time to reach thermal equilibrium and let "the laws", especially the zeroth work for me ;-). From what I have read, a change of a few degrees in temperature make a big difference in the feel of the lather, no need to scold yourself I think.

Al raz.

Originally Posted by holli4pirating

How much water can it hold between the bowls? Maxing the amount of water is key, as it provides a greater amount of heat. As a side note, I don't think I personally will ever be happy with the heat retention in a scuttle that is large enough to lather in, unless the water capacity is massive. Too much heat loss through the large surface areas.