BuschKraft Forge Pottery Trimming Starter Kit

The BuschKraft Forge Pottery Trimming Starter Kit is a set of three modular trimming tools with replaceable, sharpenable stainless steel blades: fin, rectangle and crescent. It is made in the USA and designed by Nicholai Busch, who brings nearly twenty years in ceramics together with a background in engineering and product development.

The idea is minimal parts, maximum edge. A replaceable blade insert in stainless steel alloy does the cutting. It holds an edge through hard, sustained use and is sharp enough to shave paper-thin layers of clay. Two soft-touch silicone grips snap magnetically around the blade for a balanced, secure hold that reduces hand fatigue over a long session.

In the kit, three complete Forge tools, each a pair of grips with a stainless steel blade:

• Fin: the corner removes bulk from inside the foot ring, the pointed tip cuts small, precise lines and the arced side refines medium to small curves. Point the fin down to trim all the way to the wheel head.
• Rectangle: square precision, for the inside of the foot ring and for clean, sharp corners on angular forms or flat surfaces.
• Crescent: the workhorse for removing material. The large radius on top takes large and medium curves, and the side radius and tip handle medium to small ones.

When an edge finally dulls you sharpen the blade or swap the insert rather than replacing the whole tool, so it stays sharp and lasts. The blades are very sharp, so handle them with care. The design draws on homemade hacksaw-blade tools, Japanese-style L tools and the precision of a hobby knife, refined into one piece.