Pottery Wheel Repair and Maintainence

Has your pottery wheel taken a turn for the worst? We can help with our $89 quick tune-up & assessment service that will address issues such as poor engagement or reducing squeaks, we will get you spinning again and this service is available within Christchurch.

At Test Tag and Repair, we specialize in repair of all models (direct drive & double drive) of Cowley Pottery Wheels, Although these machines are very reliable, like all things they have a finite lifespan and will require periodic maintenance, especially if used in a commercial environment as downtime can be expensive.

Common Faults

Bearing failure – This can be inside the motor or either of the drive axles, the symptom of this is a noisy rumble developing as they wear. It can also cause heat to be transferred up the axle to the banding wheel. Repair of this nature typically take 2-4 hours

Motor failure – On well-worn machines, motors may fail, requiring bearing replacement using our specialized equipment. Symptoms of this include noisy rumble of worn bearings, this often results in excess heat being produced, at some point this will lead to the motors thermal overload tripping, and the motor will not work until such time as it has cooled down and/or the reset switch has been pressed. This type of repair can take between 3-6 hours depending on what other parts need to be replaced as a matter of course at the same time

Alignment & wear issues – Over time the linkages & limits may need re-adjustment as the consumable rubber parts wear down. Symptoms of this are slippage of the banding wheel or squealing cause by the rubber parts slipping against metal surfaces. These repairs can be typically completed within one hour.

What to expect

We advise proactive maintenance by scheduling a health check-up for your pottery wheel to take care of any preventative maintenance before any serious & more costly damage is done. Unless it is an alignment issue all repairs will be carried out off-site in our workshop, this is necessary as bearings will need to be removed and re-installed using a hydraulic press. Experience tells us an average turnaround time can be up to 2 weeks, as we may need to order specific parts for your repair. Contact us to schedule your service today!