If firing clear/translucent porcelain is not working, try good old "Old School Technology" tried and true techniques. Back when techs were techs, smoked & drank beer at the bench, and porcelain was stacked with metal instruments and high end paint by number brushes . lol
How do you know if your opaque and dentin porcelain is fired correctly,,, Visual using "Old School Techniques" Start by using a test crown using suggested firing temps as the beginning temp.
Opaque should have a slight sheen, which is just beyond the so called eye shell
Bis-Bake..... High finish, and just under a glaze.
Add- Ons... Drop temp each addition firing, aprox 5 to 10c ,, check user manual !
Glazing: I prefer to be able to control the porcelain surface/ texture, more so with the kind of tools I'm using. Example... green stones can leave a very smooth surface, and to much for my liken, if you know what I mean.
I prefer assorted diamond and the newer wheels, disks, like the ones we use to pre polish, adjust emax, zirconia. Tools like these gives me more control on the surface for glazing, rather than increasing high temp which can give over glazed glassy surface and rounded off edges.
Adding a hint of glaze powder with your stain liquid can help on over looked surfaces that are slightly to rough. Polishing after glazing is preferred rather than over firing to achieve a high glaze.........
fyi Back in the later 70's or early 80's Flex P who worked for Vita and lectured all over the world taught me to fire bisbakes on the high end and forget about the temp. Since then I rarely calibrate my "porcelain oven" and only because I will need to change all my locked in visual temps again.
