North Star Tile Press

The North Star Big Blue Extruder is made in America!

North Star Tile Press

    North Star's Tile Press is the first available hand-operated tile press that uses compressed air pressure to gently and quickly release the finished part from the mold.  The Tile Press is capable of making tiles up to 5.5", as well as many other shapes with raised or impressed decorations that have no undercuts.  For example, you can create plain and decorated floor and wall tiles, switch plates, jewelry, ashtrays, spoon rests, small plates, saucers, shallow bowls and cups, handles, knobs, electronic porcelain parts, and much more at up to an astounding 100 pieces per hour... and all perfectly formed!

    Air-release presses have been in use by the industry for decades for many good reasons. It is fast, and produces nearly perfect ware requiring little or no fettling. Until now, tile presses have all been hydraulically-operated and were much too large, too heavy, and too expensive for all but the industrial market.  These industrial-type tile presses are very costly to tool up and could present many substantial dangers to both the operator and bystanders.  Furthermore, maintenance and repair of hydraulically-operated tile presses is very expensive and difficult to perform.

    The North Star Tile Press offers all the quality and versatility of industrial presses, but in a smaller, much less expensive configuration that is inherently safe in any setting.  As with all North Star Equipment, safety is a top priority in the design, engineering, and operation of our Tile Press.  Even school children with adult supervision may safely operate our Tile Press!

How North Star's Tile Press Works...

    A two-part die made of 'hard plaster' (gypsum cement such as UltraCal™ or Hydrostone™) is mounted on the bottom and center plates and aligned.  A wad of moist clay is placed on the bottom die half and the Wagon Wheel Handle is rotated to bring the two halves of the die together. A s they come together, the clay is forced into the impressions of the die.  A small puff of compressed air is fed into the bottom die half to release the formed clay. The Wagon Wheel is then rotated backward to raise the center plate and the top die half with the formed clay still clinging to it.  A paddle bat is then held under the clay while a puff of air is fed into the top die half, releasing the formed piece to be caught with the paddle bat. The clay piece is then set aside to dry and the process can be immediately repeated.

Tile Press Construction & Specifications

   The North Star Tile Press is comprised of three aluminum floor plates, each reinforced with 1/2 inch machined-steel stiffeners.  The top and bottom plates are connected to each other on both sides and the back by three 1" diameter machined-steel uprights.  The center plate slides up and down smoothly and securely on these steel uprights between the top and bottom plates.  All three plates are finished with North Star's attractive and durable blue powder-coat instead of paint.

    The center plate is driven up and down by turning North Star's trademark Wagon Wheel handle which moves a massive solid steel 6-pitch rack-and-pinion gear train.  Our gear train configuration allows the operator to easily apply up to 5,000 pounds of pressure on the clay being pressed without great physical exertion.

   A 3-way valve controls the air flow from an air compressor alternately to the lower and upper die halves to release the newly formed part. It is located conveniently on the top floor plate of the Tile Press, and safely away from any moving parts.

   An air compressor is required to operate the air release functionality of the Tile Press, and is not included with any of the Tile Press packages. We do not include any air compressors with our Tile Press packages due to the heavy nature of this type of equipment. It is much less expensive for our customers to purchase an air compressor readily available from their own local hardware or building supply center, than to pay the expensive shipping and handling charges they would otherwise incur on this type of equipment.

    The minimal recommendations for an air compressor for use with the North Star Tile Press is a unit that will generate at least 60 psi with a minimal 2 gallon storage tank.  The optimal recommendation for an air compressor is a unit that will generate at least 120 psi with a minimal 10 gallon storage tank.  As a rule of thumb, the larger the storage tank is on the air compressor unit, the less frequently the compressor will need to run to maintain the pressure needed to operate the Tile Press during the repeated consecutive pressings found in production-oriented work.

The Differences Between a Die and a Mold

    A mold is made of 'soft plaster', such as Potter Plaster #1.  The inside of the mold is usually shaped like the outside of the piece to be made.  The 'soft plaster' used to create molds are very absorbent in nature, as this material is designed to 'pull' water away from the clay, much like a sponge.  A mold may usually be used only once before it must be allowed to dry before another pressing, so a great many molds are required for any type of production work.

    A die is usually made from gypsum cement, often called 'hard plaster', such as Ceramical™ or Hydrostone™.  A die usually uses clay of throwing consistency which is not further wetted.   A die forms the clay in much the same way as a sheet of steel is stamped by a press into a three dimensional shape.  Dies have two halves, and each half forms one side of an object being pressed from the clay.  These two die halves are brought together under great pressure, forcing the clay placed between them into the impressions contained on each of the die surfaces to form the object.

    Each die half has a porous mold duct tube embedded into it when the die is made.  As compressed air is sent through the mold duct tube, the air escapes into the 'hard plaster' of the die.  The escaping air pushes the water, absorbed into the "hard plaster" surface of the die from the clay during pressing, back towards the clay pressed, releasing it very cleanly from the surface of the die.

    After pressing the clay into the shape of the die, the bottom die half is usually released first. The upper half of the die is then raised with the formed object still clinging to it. A paddle bat is then held under the upper half of the die before using the air to release the clay from the surface of the upper die half. The formed clay object is then released and caught very gently with the paddle bat. That finished clay object is set aside to dry and the entire pressing process can be immediately repeated.

Additional Tile Press Dies

    Custom Tile Press Dies can be created by customers using North Star's 'Die Maker Kit'.   The 'Die Maker Kit' includes everything needed to fabricate your very own custom air-release tile press dies, including 2 precut wire mesh pieces (used to retain the mold duct tubing in place during casting), 15 lbs. of 'hard plaster' (Hydrostone™ or UltraCal™ used to cast the dies), 5 ft. of mold duct tubing (embedded within the die casting to provide die release air), 32 wire ties (used to position and retain the mold duct tubing to the wire mesh during casting), 2- 8.25" x 2" Die Rings (used both to pour the castings for the dies, and then to affix the dies to the Tile Press), and 6 alignment pins (used to align the the upper and lower die halves to one another).

Tile Press Specifications:

Contents for #700 Standard Tile Press Package:

1 - Tile Press
Complete 4" x 4" x .5" Tile Die
12 - Paddle Bats
'Pressing Ceramics with Air Release' Book by Reid Harvey
Tile Press Manual & Instructions

Clay Requirements:

Any throwing clay may be used, although very groggy clays

may shorten the life of the die due to their abrasive nature.

Mounting Requirements:

The Tile Press must be securely fastened to a sturdy
workbench or built-in table to be operated safely.

Air Compressor Requirements:

The Tile Press requires an air compressor ( not included )
to utilize the air release functionality of the dies.

Minimal recommendation is an air compressor that will
generate 60 psi with a minimal 2 gallon storage tank.

Optimal recommendation is an air compressor that will
generate 120 psi with a minimal 10 gallon storage tank.

2011 North Star Tile Press

For a complete list of consumable parts and supplies please visit NorthStar's dedicated Tile Press webpage.

Simple UPS Shipping Rates for North Star Tile Press Packages:

The Simple UPS Shipping Rates include applicable insurance, oversized package fees and an allowance for the fuel surcharge.

The NorthStar Tile Press and accessories are shipped from the North Star factory

Freight Zone A = Western USA (AZ, CA, CO, ID, NM, NV, OR, UT, WA)
Freight Zone B = Western/Central USA (KS, MT ND, NE, OK, SD, TX, WY)

Freight Zone C = Central/Eastern USA(all States adjoining or EAST of the Mississippi River)

North Star Catalog

The North Star Tile Press is made in America!

    The North Star Tile Press is not a toy.  As previously noted, the center plate, driven by the North Star Wagon Wheel handle connected to the rack-and-pinion gear train, allows the operator to easily apply up to 5000 lbs of pressure upon the clay/die.  Obviously children's fingers would not offer much resistance to such pressure.  The North Star Tile Press is hugely popular with schools (especially so as the children enjoy making their own tiles to decorate), but the Tile Press should NEVER be used unsupervised.

12590 Dedeaux Road
Gulfport Mississippi, 39503
Telephone (228) 831-4848        Fax (228) 831-3111

Showroom Business Hours:

Monday, Tuesday, Friday and Saturday 10AM to 5PM
Thursday 1PM to 6PM

Closed Wednesday and Sunday

The North Star Tile Press is used to manufacture decorative and plain tile as well as other small pressed clay objects safely in the classroom or studio.