Vid #13: The Polymer Clay Pasta Machine is a tool that even beginners should purchase almost right away.
However, if you like to add inclusions of spices, flower petals, or any type of fiber into your polymer clay, remember that these materials can be abrasive. You may want to think twice before putting them through your pasta machine and possibly scratching the rollers. Once a roller is scratched, it will leave marks on any new clay you put through that machine in the future. Not so good.
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The full version of the “Pasta Machine” preview video shown above, is included in my Polymer Clay Bead Making Fundamentals Course [SEE Video #8 of 39]. The pasta machine is not just for making pasta anymore. It is now also used around the world for conditioning polymer clay and making beautiful beads. In this video I discuss various maintenance tips including how to clean the pasta machine rollers and blades using rubbing alcohol. I also compare different machine brands such as Amaco, Atlas and Makin Ultimate.
Do you love your pasta machine as much as I love mine? What do you like most (or least) about the brand that you own.
Although my Amaco machine has been good to me, one complaint I have is that the handle often slips out when it shouldn’t.
Cindy’s last blog post..Polymer Clay Lentil Beads – Making Them Can Be Very Addictive!
Cindy:
I couldn’t get my clay/pasta machinc back together. It has spring/wire clips that hold the scrapers in place and I just could’t fit them all back together. I bought an Amaco and noticed that it also has the clip thingies but they looked a little different. I called Amaco and they said not(!!) to take the machine apart. That the only reason it gets clay in the scrapers is if you crank backwards. They recommend using waxed paper around your clay whenever it is put into the machine. I don’t think I have ever cranked mine backwards, and while I haven’t tried the waxed paper I can imagine that it would get tedious real fast. I have looked everywhere I can think of on the internet and haven’t seen any mention of the spring clips that hold the scrapers. Could/ would you comment on this? Thanks.
This question came to me by email today:
"What pasta machine do you recommend? I am a beginner at cane work and my amaco does not work well – slips gears while cranking. Thanks so much!! Jen"
ANSWER:
Jen – I have been using an Amaco Pasta Machine and it still works well for me. I’m thinking your gears probably got stripped, perhaps trying to force hard clay into it. Especially if it’s only put into one side of the rollers.
A lot of clayers use the Atlas 150 but it is much more expensive than the Amaco. You could also consider the Ultimate clay Machine by Makins Clay, I have been hearing good things about it.
Michaels Arts and Crafts Stores carry the Ultimate Makins line and it would be a great deal with one of their 50% off coupons!
Hope that helps.
Cindy’s last post..USA Clay Cane Designs Absent From Fimo Nail Art Trends in Google
Very nice site! I saw your comment about the handle slipping out of the pasta machine. I found some super strong magnets and placed them around the handle area on the machine. I find the handle doesn’t fall out as often. What bugs me is the black streaks that appear sometimes on the clay after running it through the rollers. I know the machine is clean so i’m convinced it’s some sort of “chemical reaction”. I think it’s the rollers reacting with the clay. It’s an Amaco purchased at Michaels. I tend to mix different brands of clay together and sometimes add powders, glitter etc to the clay. This could be the problem. I can’t figure it out!
@Carol:
Hi Carol,
I have the same problem with black marks on my clay from my CLEAN paster machine. If you find out what is causing it please let me know.
Thanks, Sue
@Sue Nash: I’m having the same problem with my Amaco machine (7 settings). I’ve taken it apart a couple of times and cleaned it, but I still get black marks immediately after taking it apart for cleaning. When I run a baby wipe or a paper towel soaked in alcohol along the rollers, I find that the black stuff seems to come from the edges… makes me think it’s oil in the works, especially because it seems to be worse if the PM sits for awhile without being used. Also because I haven’t used a dark-colored clay for some time.
Somebody in another blog on this site suggested keeping a piece of white clay to run through the pasta machine to clean out the black marks before running the new clay through. This seems to help somewhat. I keep that piece of white clay in a ziplock bag next to my PM so I can re-use it.
@Linda K.:
Hi Linda,
I just sent this note to Cindy – I haven’t yet sorted out how this messaging works. Think I might have it right this time, I hope so.
Thank you for taking the time to answer. From what I read on the internet a lot of people have this problem of dirty streaks from their machines, and the clay is not cheap.
This morning, in desperation, I took my old machine to pieces and cleaned it. I left the covers off, and the scrapers, so now I just have the rollers and the two rods which hold it together. I must say working out how to put it together again was a challenge!
I cleaned the rollers with alcohol [rose spirit I use in cake decorating] and although they seemed to be clean, the spirit took a lot of black off. I have since run white Cernit through a number of times and it comes through clean. I hope it stays this way.
I am not sure whether to put the scrapers back on, as they do seem to collect clay inside them. Without them it just means I have to unstick the clay from the roller as it starts to come through, but if the clay stays clean this is a small price to pay.
If I think I can take it to pieces and put it together again!!! I might do the same with my new machine, then I will have one for black and one for light colours.
I must say clay is a lot harder to work with than icing, but at least it will last, and I won’t have any trouble with it dissolving in the humidity in summer.
Sue
@Sue Nash, Carol and Linda K.: The black streaking is a common issue that seems to be caused by a reaction between the clay and chrome finish on the rollers. Wiping the rollers with rubbing alcohol will help clean them. I also find that a wipe with some baby oil or mineral oil will help as well.
Ultimately I would like to see a pasta machine that is made specifically for polymer clay that is priced at a reasonable cost for consumers. There is a machine available that is supposed to be a ‘dream’ but the cost is over $200 for just the machine and over $600 with a motor. (And believe it or not, you still have to buy the clamp separately! At that price, a handsome assistant should come with it, to help you feed your clay into it! LOL)
I keep bugging Polyform and Amaco to make one for us. If they don’t, I am going to have to figure out how to get that done myself!
Sorry for the rant. Anyone who has been around here for awhile will know this isn’t the first time this need for a better pasta machine has been discussed. Click the link by my name to read more.
@Cindy Lietz from Pasta Machine Rant: AHA! A reaction between the chrome and the clay makes sense. I constantly clean my rollers with alcohol and sometimes with baby wipes. I’ve never tried using baby oil, but I’ll try that next. Thanks!
@Linda K.:
I have just been playing around with my machine again this morning! The clay was coming clean now after taking the scrapers and top guards off, so I cleaned the scrapers well with rose spirit, gave them a quick look at a Vaseline jar, then put them back on – more dirty lines, but only on the top of the clay, so I removed the front scraper only and put my new toy back together once more – CLEAN CLAY!
I now only have to release the clay if it sticks to the front roller as it comes through. I can’t work out why the front scraper was causing trouble, it could only be the metal on the edge of the scraper.
@Sue Nash: Yup, it’s the metal on the edge that causes my problems. I’m not sure I want to deal with a PM without one of the scrapers, but that is a possiblity if I can’t control the streaks.
@Carol:
Hi Carol,
It’s Sue again. After reading all about cleaning the pasta machine – mine is NEW! I bought it because I was having dirty marks using an old machine a friend gave me, even though I had cleaned it well, but the new machine has made no difference.
I am new to polymer clay, and this makes me want to give up.
I hope I can get some help from someone.
Sue
Carol, That’s an interesting tip about the magnets. Thanks for sharing.
Now about the streaking issue, I have the exact same pasta machine as you and have used several different kinds of clay without any problems… so I am pretty sure it’s not a chemical reaction issue.
Have you taken the machine apart to clean it or just cleaned the rollers from the top? Lots of clay can get trapped behind the scrapers as well as where the rollers meet the edges of the pasta machine? Cleaning these areas can only be accomplished if take the machine apart.
It can be tricky to take a pasta machine apart so I just filmed a video on how to do that. It will be in the Polymer Clay Tutor Members Library very soon!
If you want to find out more about becoming a member, you can click the link by my name.
Happy Holidays!
I have two pasta machines. One for dark colors and one for light or white only. I have to clean them each and every time because clay gets stuck on them [See pic below]. I do not know if the rollers themselves are in need of something or if there are tips I am unaware of. I appreciate your time Cindy. I want to be able to clay like you but it takes so long with sticky rollers and cleaning the machines all the time. Do you have to clean yours all the time or does your clay not stick? It does not matter what kind of clay I use either. In the pic below, it is Kato clay. Thanks again.
PS: I have joined your beadvideos members library and absolutely love it! Thanks for your time Cindy. You rock!
Sherry, thanks for sending in the photo, that makes a tremendous difference in helping me to understand and see the type of problem you are experiencing.
The way the clay is sticking to the roller like that, looks like a huge pain. No wonder you are frustrated!
I am curious… when you say you clean your pasta machine, are you just wiping down the rollers, or are you taking the whole thing apart and cleaning the scrapers inside?
I’m wondering, if there is a whole bunch of old clay stuck behind the scrapers that are forcing the blades out and therefore not properly scraping the rollers when you pass the clay through.
Your rollers don’t appear pitted or damaged in any way and since it is happening to all brands of clay, that is my suspicion.
Taking apart a pasta machine (and more importantly, putting it back together) has to be done a certain way. I have created a video on exactly how to do this, which is in the back issues of the polymer clay tutor library [See "Cleaning-Pasta-Machine" Link by my name above].
If it isn’t old clay in the scrapers, I’m not really sure what it is, but maybe someone else here does. Don’t worry, we’ll get to the bottom of this! :-)
I am actually taking the whole thing apart. I have only wiped it down with dry paper towel. My husband said it could rust if it stays wet for long periods of time so I have only used dry cloths. I do see all the clay at the bottom of the rollers and take it out before switching colors. Also, I keep it covered if I am not using it for long periods of time. It always seems to get a gray line of something, almost like metal dust, on the clay if it does not get used enough. Weird?
Just FYI: One of my pasta machines is the same as yours and the other was a find at a rummage for $3.00. It is an Ampia made in Italy. Works awesome but rollers are not as wide as the Amaco. It has three rollers, two are for cutting pasta. If you have one of these, “have fun taking it apart and putting it back together.” It has so many springs and parts inside. Unless you know where they go, you are in trouble by taking the first screw out! Thanks for your help Cindy. I will try taking the top parts off and see how it goes.
Sherry that sounds very frustrating! I am not sure what is happening with your machine. I have been trying to do some research on what it could be but have not found anything yet.
The biggest problem with the machines is that they are made for flour dough and not clay. There could be some compatibility issue here. but I’m not sure.
I will continue to keep an eye out for a fix for this problem. In the meantime, I hope someone here has an answer for you, since currently I am stumped! Sorry about that. :-(
Hi Cindy, I know you have suggestions on purchasing a new pasta machine-cannot find it. I would be looking for machine in North Van or Vancouver. Thanks, Joan
Hi Joan – there’s pasta machine purchasing tips on this page. By using keywords like “pasta machine” and “conditioning” in the search box at the top of every page at this blog, you will also find lots of other related articles that may be helpful for you.
I love your website! I look forward to Friday videos.
I looked all over the sight and could not find the answer to my problem, so I am asking.
My pasta machine is leaving grey marks on my clay. I have cleaned it and that helps for a time. This is not an old machine I’ve used it for about a month. I did buy it second hand. Is this normal?
Thank you for your time, Kim
Hi Kim – glad to hear you are enjoying the site and the Friday videos.
The link by my name will take you to a conversation I had with someone else at another post. Have a look at that and feel free to post any follow questions you have here at the blog.
I am embarrassed to say I fixed my problem by turning the machine over and cleaning the gunk off the bottom!!!! I had been cleaning it from the top and running the baby wipes through it. There was still some build up that was not coming off by just cleaning machine that way. My white is now staying white!
.
Yay!!!! Thanks for reporting back here. It helps to show everyone that where there is a will, there is a way :-)
Oh Beverle that sounds like such a pain for you! I have never heard of springs inside of the pasta machine like that, it must be a new model. I agree that using wax paper would be a huge problem. Not to mention the wrinkles and stuff you would get every time you ran clay through it.
That is just not true about the clay getting behind the scrapers only when going backwards! Tons of clay gets behind mine and I never go backwards!
Why can’t these guys design a pasta machine with easily removed blades at a reasonable price? It is not exactly rocket science. Polymer Clay Express made one but since they are such a small company, they can’t manufacture in any kind of volume and the price is pretty high IMO. Especially for a beginner just trying the medium out.
And another thing that bugs me, is these things are originally designed for food. What kind of food machine can’t be taken apart to clean? It’s bizarre! Any way, sorry for the rant.
I don’t know what to say as far as what to do. Hopefully someone else has some ideas that can help. Can you tell us the make and model so we can warn people not to take it apart? That would at least help others from having the same problem.
Sorry I can’t help you more. :-(
I haven’t seen this problem come up with clay and was wondering if anyone knows how to handle it. How do you keep all the clay pieces from falling on the floor at your pasta machine? I have been doing a lot of claying learning how to do quilt pieces and I have a mess on my floor. Grant you its in the basement, but it still is a mess. Does anyone know how to take care of it? Thank you.
@June Frederick: Hi June, I have had a stray piece or two land on the floor, and then I pick it up, dust it off, and put it in my scrap jar (unless it’s a big piece, then I try to clean it off with alcohol and use tweezers to get any stray fibers.) But I’ve never had clay landing all over the floor.
I usually put my hand under the rollers, so that the clay rolls out right into my hand. If it is crumbly, some pieces end up on the table, some in my hands. (This is where a stray piece lands on the floor sometimes.) I keep the table & pasta machine base clean in-between colors with baby-wipes. This way I can just pick up these pieces and stick them together again. Then I keep running them back through the PM again & again until they stick together in a sheet. I’ve never had the stuff go all over the floor, though. Are you working with really crumbly clay or something? Or is there not much table under your pasta machine to catch the clay?
@June Frederick: June, this post from you was from a while back so you may have solved your problem, but I had the same problem with “crumbs” on the floor. I read somewhere online that someone solved the problem by putting her pasta machine inside a tin or cardboard box lid (shallow) and then fastened it to the table, thus kept them contained and could scoop them up to put in the scrap pile easier. Also, I just used a paint scraper, held at an angle, to carefully scrape up the clay on the floor. Carefully, as you don’t want to gouge the floor if it is “gougable.” Lol.
Great idea, thanks. I am going to get a tray for under my machine to keep my computer desk tidy – it is the only place in the house I can set my new toy up.
@June Frederick: Just spent I wonderful Saturday down on my hands and knees scraping the kitchen floor clean. Started with a small window blade scraper which broke. then moved up my arsenal by grabbing the BBQ rack scraper, which has a can do blade on the top, and some wire brushes if needed.
HUD housing so standard linoleum floors. Took elbow grease and some applications of alcohol and paper towels for bled spotting, but all in all, came up like a dream.
Acrylic carpet is another story. Leave a bit on there too long and it eats a spot out of the rug, plus adds a little blop of color, very not needed on a beige carpet.
Try to keep the entire area on a tarp or easy to fold up rug, and empty the little bits before they migrate….but, alas, the best made plans of mice and men…..LOL!
my pasta machine sits on a bench it is the only place i have to clamp it to
and my clay some of it is really crumbly i think some of it from the stores is probably old i use mix quick and a clay softener but it really takes awhile to get it to the right stage in the mean time putting it thru the pasta machine even with my hand under it i can’t catch all the crumbly pieces
my craft room is in my basement and this time of year the furnace doen’t run as much so its a little cool.is there anything to use to get it off the floor. i know rubbing acholol working for some things but you would need a lot for a floor.
@j frederick: I would use baby wipes or swiffer or some kind of damp, disposible cloth to get the majority of it off the floor. If it’s really spread out, you might need to use a dust broom or something first to get the scattered pieces. Go over it with the wipes until you’ve got all but “resistant” spots. Then, use something like alcohol (or acetone? depending on your floor-type) to get just the bits that don’t want to come up with the baby wipes or whatever. Actually, I would imagine that after you get the loose bits of clay up off the floor, you could go over it with anything that your floor type could handle — bleach, pine-sol, vinegar & warm water, etc.
I’ve never seen this topic anywhere, so I’m just saying what I think I would do. What kind of floor do you have in your basement? After you get it cleaned up, you might want to put some kind of plastic tarp or something under your bench to protect it. They have those acrylic office mat-type things that might work, too. Just so that when you get a lot of clay on it, you could gather it up and shake it into a bin for easier clean-up next time.
Hopefully, someone else has some better cleanup suggestions. I’m sorry I can’t be of more help! The only other thing I can think of is to try to put something at the base of your pasta machine to catch the clay (not sure what, though – I’d have to see the setup to get my brain working on it!) Good luck with this unique problem!
thanks for the help have scraped it up off the floor am scrubbing it next
and a new paint job when thats done its cement ive put an old carpet
by the machine.
@j frederick: Maybe you should try using a food processor for conditioning, so you can avoid the super-crumbly stage (and most of the mess!) I hate to think of you having to clean up all of that clay!
@j frederick: I use Kato clay which is reknowned (notorious?) for being crumbly as you start to condition it. Perhaps the way I deal with this will also help you avoid all the crumbles with your clay. Here’s what I do, which is my variation on a process I saw at Over The Rainbow (polymerclay.com.au/polymer-clay-kato-polyclay-c-21_446_493.html):
1. Cut a slice from the block that’s just a bit thicker than the thickest setting on the pasta machine.
2. Feed it through the pasta machine at the thickest setting (#1 on mine).
3. WITHOUT FOLDING THE CLAY, set the pasta machine one setting thinner (e.g. #2 on mine), and feed the clay through again.
4. Repeat the “one setting thinner, feed it through again” process WITHOUT FOLDING THE CLAY until it’s getting quite thin. For really crumbly Kato I go down to setting #7 (out of 9), but for normally-firm Kato I only go down to setting #5 (out of 9).
5. At that stage, fold once and feed through the pasta machine at that thin setting, then repeat this “fold and feed” process a few times.
6. After a few folded passes through that thin setting, back the machine off a couple of settings, fold and feed a few times, then back off again until you get to a medium thickness (e.g. #3 on my machine) where you can finish the conditioning process. For example, for really crumbly Kato that I’d started folding at #7, I’d back off to #5 for a bit, and then back off again to #3 to finish the conditioning; for normally-firm Kato that I’d started folding at #5, I back off once to #3 and condition there.
The other thing which I occasionally did before I discovered the above method was to take the unopened packet of clay out to the garage and beat the living daylights out of it from all sides with a mallet until I could feel it “moving” and deforming smoothly, at which point I’d slice it and finishing the conditioning as normal. (This is often referred to as the “Jana Whack” method.) When using a quantity of clay cut from a large block, I’d just use one or two layers of extra-heavy-duty ziplock bag.
thanks for the jana whack method that one sounds like a winner to takeout all my frustations ive already done the food processor with the clay softener and that seems to help thanks for the input everyone.
I had the same problem as Beverle Sweitzer. with the amaco pasta machine and the guy said NOt to take it apart. our only option was to put it together as best we could and exchange it.
Now with our new one we find that there are no thick settings and on settings 1 and 2 for the thinest setting it crinkles the clay. im not sure what to do. and it is getting very very frustrating.
Oh the pasta machine i use or rather atempting to use is the amaco craft pasta machine. thats all the info i can find on the box and info sheet. also it states no where to not take it apart.
any tips very much appreciated.
@streya: Hi Streya, Amaco has changed the way they manufacture their pasta machines, since the making of this video. If you have a model that has 9 settings instead of the 7 settings, like the one in my video, than it should not be taken apart because it will not go back together properly. It’s too bad they changed it, because I actually preferred the older model. Newer isn’t always better. If you have the new one, just clean it on the outside without taking it apart, underneath where the scrapers are, as best you can with a baby wipe or paper towel soaked in rubbing alcohol. Hope that helps.
Cindy Lietz -you mentioned wanting removable scraper blades in your rant. It appears that at monakissel.com/toolspasta.html they are making that easier on the Atlas machines. Maybe doing something about the rollers could be their next project.
I LOVE the camaraderie that is happening in this thread. Thanks everyone for going the extra mile by offering support, suggestions and resources. You guys are the reason why this community is such an awesome place to hang out and talk shop :-)
Wonder if you could use PMS fixative spray on the rollers to prevent the reaction?
@Jocelyn: Might be worth a try. That’s another item I still don’t have yet. I need about $1000 to buy all the clay-related stuff I want!
I have not had any marks on my clay since removing the offending scraper, it is working great, and I am now getting some creativity flowing. The problem took some working out, but I’m very happy now.
Wooohooo, Sue!!! Cindy, could you please do another video showing us how to remove those devil scrapers, threw out 2 machines (ATLAS, at that!!!) because once I took them apart…..well…..you know.
I don’t know what make my pasta machine is as there are no marks on it. It was an odd one a friend gave me.
I have since bought an Atlas, and from the outside it looks similar to my old one. The scrapers on my new Atlas look as if they are made of some type of hard plastic or nylon, not metal, and I am going to keep it for white clay only. The other one I will use for other colours and black as it is now so easy to clean.
It might pay to get an old machine from a second-hand shop to take apart and use for dark colours, and keep a good machine for white.
With my old machine, the round cover [inside where the numbers go around] kept falling off so I could see inside, and as the machine was making so much mess of my clay I had nothing to loose by dismantaling it and trying to fix the problem.
I undid the four screws underneeth; and a screw at each end [on the flat ends.] Took the round bit off by the numbers, then undid the nut inside which holds one of the rollers tight. I took the spring out and took the bit with the numbers on off, and the two ends off.
With the two ends off, the guards and scrapers came away. Now the fun of putting it back together. A bit fiddly, but do-able.
With my new Atlas, the round bit, fitted in the numbers part, is in tight, and that needs to come out – I think. On second thoughts, just getting the flat end off the other end should be enough to release it and get the guards and scrapers off.
Hope this helps, get your screwdriver out and experiment! Have fun, Sue
@Sue Nash: Thanks for the tips Sue!!! Great advice, thanks for sharing.
Hi, I hope I’m doing this comment right so all can see it. I saw an older post about trouble with the turn handle falling off the pasta machine. I solved this by cutting open a rubber band and putting in on the part of the handle that goes into the machine. Not around the handle. Lay the band at the bottom 1/4 to 1/2 inch side of the handle, let if follow across the bottom and back up the other side. Then hold the rubber band in place while inserting the handle back in the hole. It will be a tight fit, but once in it won’t fall out again until you are ready to remove it yourself. I found that a slightly wider rubber band was better than a thin one.
@Angela M: Great advice! When
I am not using the motor, I get my excercise bending to pick up that stupid handle, LOL. This trick will work perfectly, thanks!
I am new to polymer clay and the pasta machine I bought as well. I am having trouble with my clay wrinkling on the thinnest settings. It won’t come out smooth on the last couple thinnest settings. Am I doing something wrong? Any help as to why it would be doing this would be most helpful. Thank you for your time
@Amy R: Hi Amy, Yeah that wrinkling that happens on the thin settings is pretty common. One thing that can help is to gradually go down in thickness rather than jumping straight to a thin setting.
For example, if your thickest setting is a #1 and your thickest is 7 or 9 (each machine is different), then start at 1, then go to 2, then 3, etc until you get to 7 or 9. This way there isn’t so much clay being forced behind those rollers and the sheet shouldn’t wrinkle up so much. It won’t necessarily be perfect, but it will be much smoother. Hope that helps!
BTW there is tons of free information here at the blog if you want to use the search box at the top of the page. There are also many paid tutorials and even a Beginner’s Basics course that will help you along your way with polymer clay. For info on the course, click the link by my name.
I roll it as thin as it will go, while staying flat, then roll it out like I do with icing. Roll it on clingfilm, this way you can roll it very thin and it peels off easily.
Just peel it off the plastic each time you roll it to release it, then smoothe the plastic and roll it out again.
A piece of plastic pipe would work for a roller, or get one from a cake decorating website.
I have an AMACO 9-setting pasta machine. The handle is stuck and will rotate only about 45 degrees. I’ve cleaned everywhere I can see with a bamboo skewer and wipes with alcohol. I used a hat pin to pull clay bits from between the side of the roller and the side of the machine. (That space is wide enough only on the underside of the machine.) The machine is almost new. What else can I do?
Rita, it sounds to me like there is something caught in the gears or the ring that holds the gear mechanism together has popped off. I would see if you can return it or get it exchanged. If that is not possible, you may need to remove the cover from the pull and turn thickness dial.
Disclaimer: Only take apart your machine like this if it is a lost cause and you would have to throw it out anyways. Once you start taking stuff like this apart, you will never be allowed to return it, and it may not go back together. So only do this as a last resort!
You might scratch it up a bit, but you can usually pop off the cap on the dial with a screwdriver. Once the dial is open you can remove the nut and washer from the dial and slide it off the machine. Then you can remove the housing from the side of the machine. There you will see the gears clearly. It should be reasonably obvious why the handle will not turn, once you can see it all open like this. Fix the problem if you can and put the machine back together. You won’t have to put the housing or the cap back on if you don’t wish to. That way if it happens again you can fix it without taking it apart.
Now if you are not mechanically inclined, find someone who likes to tinker with stuff like this to help. Since it was broken anyway, there isn’t anything to lose by trying to fix it. Good Luck and let us know if you succeed!
Thanks so much for replying so quickly Doug!! I am so very new to this that I am not good at getting around the site yet either….I’ve read through this thread but haven’t found my solution just yet…..I will continue looking and if anyone has a suggestion once they’ve ready this–please let me know–I am anxious to get rolling :)
Hi Cindy!
I have just purchased the beginner clay tutorials and can’t wait to get started……and hello everyone!!! I have a question already–I purchased my Amaco Craft Pasta machine at Michaels and wanted to get right to work!!! I collected everything I watched in the tutorials, I have conditioned my Premo Cadmium Yellow and part way through, it started disappearing in the rollers…..maybe it’s too conditioned I thought…..so used some rubbing alcohol to clean up, then started in with a piece of Alizarin Crimson Hue–and it started disappearing into a section underneath also!!! I am in a mess already and can’t get the clay out of the rollers or from underneath–what am I doing wrong? I started at the largest setting and then came down to a 7…….help!!!!
Hi Cyndi – I sent you an email but also wanted to post a quick note here as well.
Cindy is not always as available to answer questions as quickly as she would like… but there is lots of helpful information here at the blog that can help you along. I moved your comment from it’s original location to this more relevant thread.
You will likely find some helpful information above. And you can also also use appropriate keywords in the search box at the top of this page to find other related articles and comments. Keywords such as…
sticky rollers
pasta machine rollers
pasta machine cleaning
sticky clay
etc.
After you have read through information that has already been posted, please update your question/comment here at it’s new location, to let Cindy know if you still need assistance.