Happy Handles

The handles on my mugs were not making me happy. I was having to roll them out by hand so they had that, well, hand made look.
So, I decided to step up to the plate.
Introducing the Industrial Klay Extruder Gun:



And yes, I correctly spelled clay:



The IKEG(no really, that's how it is listed in the catalog) is basically a glorified caulking gun. I thought about getting a caulking gun and some PVC tubes and doing it homebrew, but there is noting like professional grade tools.
Ahem.
Okay, I'm joking. This thing is great!
Basically, you load in some clay, pick out a shape(I only got the round dies right now), squeeze and VOILA!



You get a long round thing of clay. String? coil? rope? A long thin thing.
Anyways, you can shape the thing into shapes like the springy thing I made on the bottom.
Now we're talking handles!
When you extrude the clay, it should be on the soft side. I had to brace up the mug handle until it set up a bit:



Once the clay sets up, you can clean up the join area. I also wanted to add some small details:



So I took these little balls of clay and added them to where the handles attach to the mug. I then flattened them and poked them a bit to give the handle an industrial look:



I think small details make or break a piece. Interesting what four little balls of clay can do.
The extruder gives me more options on handle designs. Bigger wall mounted type extruders can do larger coils and even hollow shapes. For now, though the IKEG is all I need.
Here's the finished mug:



I'll try to remember to post up pics after I've glazed and fired it. I've got a bunch of mugs yet to do and while the mugs may look plain, at least the handles can be different.
I was hesitant to get the IKEG, but now I'm glad I have it.
Happy handles.
Let's see what I can use it for next.