Speedball Artista Pottery Wheel

UPDATE July 2016: We've had this pottery wheel for a few years now and would still give it five stars with no hesitation at all! Here are a few key points we've found from using this wheel: - We've kept it outside under an umbrella and made a very light effort to cover the motor with plastic when not in use (but the plastic often blows off) - the wheel still works like new despite being exposed to the weather like this. - Kim has actually grown to prefer the speed dial as compared to the typical foot pedal. She is able to keep a steady constant speed more easily and she doesn't find it difficult to change speeds when she wants to. - It is very important that it be kept level. A more permanent larger wheel automatically kind of stays put, where the portability of this wheel be definition makes it move a little more easily so it can get bumped out of place when not in use, so if she hasn't used it in awhile we take a minute to level it up using some simple wood shims under one or two of the rubber feet. Takes just a second. -------- Original Review Below ------- I bought this for my wife Kim @EverythingEtsy and she loves it! It's so nice because we live in a tiny house and there really isn't anywhere to keep a full-size wheel set-up. She's able to slide this into an out of the way spot when not in use. When it is in use, she sets up outside so she can throw in the beautiful sunshine under the palm trees... hard to beat. And easy to clean up outside. She'll have to come back and edit my review to tell you how much she can throw on it, but essentially she's found it to work almost as well as the commercial grade wheels at the local pottery studio. It didn't take long for her to get used to the knob dial (rather than foot pedal) and she may even like it better.

Wasn’t included the glazes

What a great price for such a powerful, light weight, and reliable wheel. This wheel is small, yet full of power. With the plastic bats off it fits inside a plastic storage box measuring 26in long x 16in wide x 12 in tall. We store other tools and bats in the box with it. Additionally, we use plastic storage containers that are tall enough (17in tall) to put the lid back on and use as a stand for the wheel itself. There are legs that can be purchased for the wheel, but I prefer to use storage containers for a base as they then can be used to store the tools and wheel as well. A very portable and easily stored wheel. The price is right for a hobbyist. You won't need to sell a lot of artwork to justify the expense of this wheel. The Speedball Artista Pedal can be connected to the wheel. However, the knob on the wheel works great to control the speed of the wheel. This wheel can move very slowly, or quite fast. It is great for a beginner or advanced artist. This wheel cleans up very easily. All the surfaces that come in contact with clay or water are easy to clean with a rag, and the trays pull off the wheel to be washed quickly. After purchasing the first one I immediately bought a second Artista Wheel and I will be purchasing more of them to use when teaching pottery to students.

This is a great wheel. Powerful, reliable, and portable. NOTE: The glazes shown in the pictures DO NOT come with this wheel despite the appearance that they would. Also, I recommend getting the separate foot pedal. It's worth the price!

Product did not work. It was not like new. Already had dried clay on it and abrasions from use. Packaging was very damaged. Took 14 days for it to arrive. I would not recommend. Returning with the damaged packaging was an ordeal.

I've only had this two weeks - I can't write about it's longevity at this point. What I can write is this - works like a dream - I LOVE the speed control knob. It's spring here and no one wants to stay inside..... how very very nice to be able to pick this little puppy up, plop it on a cooler in my backyard and throw pots in the sunshine while my kids play. It's quiet and easy to clean and comes with a great little DVD to help get you started if it's been awhile for you. Absolutely nothing to do but plug it in - so easy. Thank you Arista!

Hello, I just bought this wheel couple of months ago. The wheel stopped spinning couple of times during one of the classess. I just needed to spin it once or twice manually and then it started working. Not sure why is this. It did not happen again. Another thing is that the bat is not very flat. So every time students are trimming or centering they have some issues with that. I am wondering if anyone has been throwing directly on the wheel or do you need to use the bay. When I tried the sky did the seen to stick on the wheel, so I have been using bat for all work on the wheel. Thanx

Ever bought something and had a niggling feeling as you unpacked the box that it was maybe not entirely new? So it was Christmas morning this year when my daughter opened her "brand new" Artista Pottery Wheel. The first clue it might not be: 1) It had dried clay stuck on the side. 2) More dried clay stuck on the power cord. 3) A chipped edge on the splash pan. 4) A crack in the side of the mud bucket that sent water leaking all over the table. On a happier note, there is nothing more heartbreakingly life-affirmingly joyous than watching a six-year-old artist-in-training hunker down at her Christmas pottery wheel, huge grin on her face, hands covered in goop, making her very first bowl. (It looks like a bagel and she will paint it blue). Truly, it hardly dimmed the fun knowing we had been sent a used item. And I might have kept it, out of sentiment, cracks and chips be damned, and said nothing at all had I not noticed today that everyone else on the planet apparently is selling the Artista for $350. That's $350 w/ lots of free goodies included as a starter package -- free tools, free clay, how-to DVDs, etc. The very same wheel I bought on Amazon from TCP Global for $460 (delivered used). This was the deal-breaker. A hundred dollar markup. For what? Don't get me wrong. I love Amazon, the "Get It Tomorrow" button has gotten me through some rough times. I just wish they would cull the herd of sellers that take advantage of their customers. This is as much of a community as Facebook. Let's kick TCP Global off the island, can we? Along with all the heartless cynics on here selling LEGOs at twice the original price. p.s. The Artista itself is a nice entry-level machine. Portable but solid-feeling. We have reordered it from elsewhere.

I love everything about this wheel. Although one of the plastic cups came cracked I think it was the lame delivery guy who just heaved it onto my door step without considering what was in the box was equivalent to his two week salary. (Dixkhead) and had a HUGE black lettering that said fragile this side up. I think I was very lucky it didn't break completely.