Thank you, that not only looks awesome, but it seems to function magnificently, as well as having the ability to stand the test of time. I'm more worried about the awesome information you are sharing with me, than your videography/cinematography skills or lack thereof.
Been anxiously waiting for this video. Thanks for taking the time to record and share it with us. You packed a lot of information in a short video!! Time for me to start working on building my new furnace. I'm sure I'll be watching this video a bunch of times.
Top job mate I'm half way through making one and it's now just changed thanks .I couldn't make my mind up what to use as insulation .As always your a top bloke 👍
G’day, I’m just starting metal melting and I love your channel. It’s a big thumbs up from me. Cheers and thank you very much, you have taught me heaps.👍😀
Great video! You showed the steps without belaboring the process. It's as simple as you made it seem. Excellent point about the dryness of the refractory mix. It's often called "castable" refractory, but that's a bad name for it. Cement of any kind is very sensitive to the amount of water in the mixture. People often think it should be like a liquid when you mix it, but it shouldn't. Too much water weakens the cement. Never put more than the recommended amount of water in a cement mix. I bought a used vibrator at the thrift store -- NOT THAT KIND -- the big, muscle massager kind -- and used that on the inside of the Sono-tube to vibrate the concrete as I rammed it. I also used a heat gun and a random wax candle to wax the outside if the Sono-tube. The combination of the vibrator and the waxed tube gave me a very smooth, and very compacted refractory wall. When I removed the tube (the same way you did) none of the tube stuck to the cement. Pro job, on your part! Pro results! Do you use a plinth beneath your crucible in the furnace? I used some leftover refractory to make a couple of plinths to go beneath my crucible. I think they help by elevating the bottom of the crucible do that the flame can get to the bottom area more efficiently than if the crucible just sits on n the floor of the furnace.
Thank you Carl. I didn’t see any point in showing me weld for 35 minutes. 😄 I’ve made that mistake more often than I care to admit, adding more water than necessary. I wasn’t prepared to ram the walls of the furnace. I had intended to simply do the lid and the floor but when I finished the floor I still had more “wet” refractory. That stuff is so expensive that I didn’t want to just let it dry out so I hurriedly put the KAO wool in and the form. After I started putting it in, I had to race around trying to find something I could ram it with. To top it off, that was the last night I had that was going to stay above freezing. The temperature dropped below freezing for several nights starting the next evening. All in all, I wasn’t prepared to finish ramming the walls but I didn’t want to waste material and I had to finish so it would cure without freezing. I ended up brining it inside the house for 3-4 days to let it cure. I could have done a better job with the walls but when you don’t plan ahead this is what you get. Funny you should ask about a plinth. I got an email from another sub just a day or two ago that contained a document from an ingot supplier. They talked about a phenomenon that I had never experienced until the night before. They said if your crucible is too low, the metal will swirl in the crucible. I had that going. It got so bad that a small amount of aluminum splashed out of the crucible into the furnace. I’ll be making a plinth or three out of the half bag of refractory I have left.
Have to say, I'm jealous. I was in sheet metal fabrication a loonng time ago and my instructor, mentor told me then, the sign of a good mechanic was one who could lay out, fabricate construct their own tool box. I still have mine, 16ga galv steel, all welded seams, self made handles, the only store bought was the lock and hinge. Something to keep an eye out for. Old welding rods that have gotten wet or are breaking apart. If you have a large gap the core of the welding rod can be used as a filler rod using your mig welder, saves a lot of wire.
Great tip Donny, thank you. I will keep an eye for old rod. I owe much of the success to the shop that cut and rolled the metal for me. It wouldn't be half as nice of they hadn't done such a good job.
@@swdweeb yeah I caught myself looking at the roll of the metal. Someone knew what they were doing. The first sign of not knowing the process is flat spots at the beginning and ending of the roll. It's like running a piece of wood through a planner, the ends are usually thinner than the middle. If you want to see a very simple furnace that has no metal in it take a look at MBMMLLC. Lol
@@donniebrown2896 They talked about there being a flat spot at the end and told me they actually cut the piece long do I could cut it off and get the size I ordered. I never saw the flat spot and it was the size I ordered when I welded it together. They even threw in the handles even though I didn't ask for them. They guy said he just thought I'd need/want them. Yeah, that MBMMLLC furnace is more portable than mine too 😄
You're welcome. It was so rushed I'm not sure how useful it was to people. I suppose if you have the means to build a furnace of your own, you've got the ability to figure most of it out yourself. If you don't have the ability to build a furnace then it was just entertainment
Very cool indeed! Just starting out researching how to make a foundry and I absolutely love the quality and detail that you put into your build. Definitely top contender for how I'd like to make mine. Thank you. God bless!
we used that ceramic coating as a wash to coat what we were pigging out into. Also, I was a furnace tender for years and was wondering if you had to cure your furnace by slowly bringing it up to temp. Obviously what you used is completely different than what we used, we used a powder that we would fork and then air hammer between the furnace wall and iron inner lining, then would let it cure by slowly bring the furnace up to temp over 24 hours incrementally. Anyways, I really like your Home Furnace, awesome job!!!
Thank you so much for your comment makes my day. I did not heat it slowly, I let it dry I can’t remember for about two weeks inside the house and then I took it out to the garage and let the flame burning side without forced air for brief periods of time a few minutes at a time. Eventually I started increasing the time that I used to heating heat and dry out the refractory
It was the absolutely wrong method I used to cure the furnace I had no idea how much moisture was in the factory fortunately luckily for me it was dry and I didn’t blow up when I apply heat to it. I hated it slowly I brought it up to a couple hundred degrees before and let it do that for a few cycles before I actually started applying more and more heat
Thank you Perry! I was waiting your video to make my own furnace, already have almost all the components at home, I will let you know when i'm done, wish me good luck 🤞🏻😄
Awesome work Perry. One tip for when you have to mate cylinders together at angles. Fusion360 and 3D printed moulds and templates are easy to design and make it easy to mark up and cut complex intersections.
That was great, may have to be my next big project. As I am getting a little better at welding & already would have the burner from the little Devil-Forge. You know I will be asking questions, when I get around to it. hahaha
Really nice furnace Perry, made mine with similar materials except my ceramic fiber is inside the castable refractory and coated with some high temp coating. Works great, about the same size as yours also. Happy castings friend.
I hadn't really thought of reversing the order. I was really looking to simply reduce the weight and keep the insulation factor. Thanks bud and happy casting to you as well 😄
Hell yeah. Appreciate you putting out this video. I’m about to go ram in my Mizzou refractory right now actually. I just built a very similar furnace except I live in Minnesota and want to be able to cast this winter so I had to use a heating element and do electric. I hope mine turns out like yours because yours looks great
Hi. Great video and good job on the furnace. Are the plans available somewhere? I’m wondering if you ever considered a 4 burner furnace where you have 4 burners separated by 90 degrees to uniformly wrap flame all around the crucible. I’ve been toying with the idea of four single row ribbon burners spaced by 90 degrees. Maybe not necessary but I haven’t seen anyone talk about the pros and cons. What is the design of your burner? Thanks, Paul
Here's my burner design. ua-cam.com/video/keQ83RTZ1JE/v-deo.html I thought about a ribbon burner very early on when they were brought to my attention. I was burning propane at the time as was looking for more heat. I'm a firm believer today that heat equals fuel + air. More fuel, more air will produce more heat. The burner I'm using today is a little air starved and as a result I'm not getting all of the heat I could out of things. If you can provide enough air and fuel to service multiple burners, I'd guess you'd get things hot real quick.
That original coating is still on the walls. It never turned to "ceramic" at least not like I expected (I expected a glaze). It always stayed powder. It you touch it, it will while off.
@@swdweeb Yes, but which of us is going to get there first? Personally, melting iron scares the living daylights out of me but it's tantalizing at the same time.
@@Preso58 Well, you can always drive down to Luckygen1001's place and pour some with him. 😄 Not the same as pouring it yourself but maybe you'd pick up some good pointers 😄
Hey perry fan bloody tastic build. I tell ya what that would have to be the best furnace I've seen. Unbelievable work as always and I must say you look and act just a little on the proud side.. :) as you should be. Wish mine was half as impressive as that.. although I do have a pretty heavy duty crucible that I think would give you a concerned smile of excitement and or exhaustion lol. Weights about 20 odd kg or about 45lb empty hahaha
Thanks mate. I almost put "best furnace on YT" as the title but figured I'd have to deal with a boat-load of comments telling me what a jerk I am or how theirs is better. 😄 That is an impressive crucible. Just curious, what are the external dimensions? Would it fit inside my furnace? 305mm diameter and 305mm tall
The furnace looks pretty good. I do have a question where did you get the paint on ceramic coding? I attempted to look it up but I can't seem to find that exact product.
I bought it at a place in Denver unitedwesterndenver.com/ It's called frankote. I checked their website and don't see it. You could always call them and see if they still carry it.
It's actually listed in the description for this video ua-cam.com/video/keQ83RTZ1JE/v-deo.html. this is a link to the blower but the video might be useful for you. www.amazon.com/dp/B00FBEAXCA
Great build and great message! Thank you for this video. You de-mystify the foundry components very well. Would it make sense to "build-in" a crucible transfer station and plinth connected to your rolling stand? Or maybe a separate stand (with no wheels) that could hold the crucible stable onto the floor, before you grab the crucible for the pour.
Interesting thought... I'll have to think about something like that. It would have to work with the shank that I use to pour with. I put the crucible down on a firebrick and that is the scariest part of the whole process
@@swdweeb Removing the scary part of the process is exactly what I'm referring to. It would be designed to give the crucible more stability, before the pour.
I don't think I have. I put it on Instagram. I'm likely to change it again so I'm going to wait until I settle on a design I like. Right now it's just a hair dryer
Hi Perry, the build was great but the final comment was the best. Would it help to put a base block in to lift the crucible base up into the flame? Stay safe and well :)
Thanks. More and more, I think that's how we're going to get out of the mess the politicians and media have led us into. I assume you're talking about adding a plinth. The things about a plinth is it is really a sacrificial part of the furnace that can be replaced as need be. My flame is already up off the bottom of the furnace by almost 2" so lifting the crucible will take it out of the flame. The flame in this new furnace doesn't actually hit the crucible either. It is able to wrap around the crucible without blasting right into it like my old one did. I've got more firebrick that I can make a small plinth out of. I'm told, but have never validated it, that the bottom of the crucible will heat faster of off the bottom of the furnace
Yes, I totally agree with the first point. I've just found where I read the other info. I'll email you a copy for you to check out ("Info on Metallurgy & Crucible Furnaces" - really interesting info). ATB :)
Here ya go. ua-cam.com/video/j5izf_r_dC8/v-deo.html ua-cam.com/video/eYuauZD0nFg/v-deo.html I've moved on to a diesel burner now. I keep trying to get a video out on it... maybe the next couple of days
My friend could show me when I'm going to start an aluminum casting I put the crucible first and let it heat up, or I put the crucible full with the aluminum that I'm going to melt
Heating the crucible first is a good thing to do. It reduces the time the aluminum is in the furnace and as a result reduces the oxidation (dross/slag) that will form on the surface
Nice job with your furnace, I’d like to make one that large one day! I’d definitely be interested to see how that white refractory goes over time. Was it expensive?
I don't remember how much it was, I remember thinking twice about it at the time. It was probably between $35-50 for a gallon container of the powder. Now, that will probably last me a very long time, we'll see.
I always try to answer, even when I do not know the answer 😄 I know aluminum is pretty corrosive and will react with iron causing the degradation of the crucible over time and adding small amounts of iron to your aluminum. Iron also oxidizes (rusts) quickly when heated to high temperatures Beyond that I really do not have an opinion as I am not familiar with that iron alloy. Just be careful and watch for places the iron might fail after multiple uses.
Out of pocket for me was about $350. I will admit that my son bought me a bag of refractory cement for Christmas last year and I used that to fill the lid and bottom of the furnace.
What kind of question is that Craig?? Cast iron is just a matter of heat. The real question is can m y burner do it. It did it once before. It melted the burner as well but that's another story
@@swdweebWhat, what?..thought you was throwin down the furnace gauntlet.... #ChallengeAccepted ... You ready to #mandance, Bossman?...That thing looks like it gets bout as hot as momma's curling iron...haha... #cobraknows #casting.....squad
@@cobraknowsjosephmcveigh9180 Alright, I gotcha. Wasn't really a challenge but more of an encouragement to build over buy. Yeah, so far I've only measured about 2100F inside a crucible. I suppose I could have done better
@@swdweeb 21 ain't gon' get us to iron temps, bossman...but you an Aluminum Cat...Cobra gotcha Boss...just Drivin ya a bit...haha...nice videos biggs...
7:52 As I mentioned before, my lid broke after two firings. It was made exclusively from refractory cement. I thought I should put some rods, or even some chicken wire to reinforce it, so if it would crack, it would at least not fall off. But I was afraid of metal expansion from the heat, making the situation worse. So my question is, did those rods do what I was afraid to your cement lid? That is, expand from heat, then crack it.
I buy them. They are PMC Procast clay graphite crucibles. I've only melted iron in one once. Luckygen1001 tells me that he uses clay graphite crucibles to melt iron in all of the time
@@swdweeb I am thinking about making one from 3000 degree refractory cement air crete mixture. I already have a furnace made from it I thought the pours would get hot enough to expand and blow out a side or something but I have had it red hot after curing for 2 weeks and it did great. I know we used a kind of air crete to line the ladles at a foundry I used to work at.
@@kevinlewis9151 Funny, I thought about making a crucible out of the remaining refractory that I have. I have no idea how or if it will work. I need to make a form to ram it in.
@@swdweeb we had steel and aluminum ladles that we covered with an air crete mixture to protect the metal from the high temperatures. I know with my furnace it can be red hot on the inside and I can touch the outside with my bare hand. I think I figured it to like an R60 insulation value
Perry, is that coating you painted on supposed to help the refractory cement to keep from being damaged by the heat? I didn’t catch the name of the coating. I’m wondering if it is similar to Satanite?. That furnace looks real nice! Did you heat cure your refractory before you painted on the coating?
The coating is called fankote PMC100. Yes its supposed to help protect the refractory. I let the refractory dry for several days and then applied small doses of heat to it to dry it further before painting on the coating
Not really. I had a picture with some measurements on it that I took to the fab shop to get the body rolled and the lid/bottom cut. I still have the picture but there are no measurements on it, I hand-wrote them for the shop. Email me via the web site or at swdweeb@gmail.com and I'm happy to share what I have. I would build it a bit differently if I were to do it again. I probably wouldn't use Kao wool but firebrick instead. It would be better for thermal stability... I think :-D
I've never relined it and its still in there. Still white and of metal ends up out of the crucible it just picks right up after things cool off. I thought about a ribbon burner when I made my first propane burner and just decided to go traditional. My newest burner is a diesel burner and I'm not sure I could have made it as a ribbon burner and I can't imagine it getting any hotter. At this point with the nozzle I'm using I am just a hair below the maximum amount of air I can get into the furnace with the blower I have and keep the flame burning at its optimum temp ua-cam.com/video/keQ83RTZ1JE/v-deo.html Since that video I've moved up to a 2.25 GPH nozzle which has taken me right up to the limit
You can kinda see it here ua-cam.com/video/fFADzuaCtQs/v-deo.html There are problems with the accidental implementation I ended up with so I'm hesitant to to spend any time talking about it as people will undoubtedly try to copy it. I basically taped a hair dryer to the end of the tube.
@@swdweeb ok gotcha. I actually found that for some reason my burner was burning inside of the tube for some reason and I couldn't figure out why so I purchased a stainless one from amazon for $50 and so I gave it another try using my second already built king of random foundry. I successfully melted copper at 15psi with no forced air so now I'm starting to build a permanent foundry from propane tank, kaowool, refractory cement and the kiln wash as you did. I also purchased welding equipment lol. Thanks for the inspiration man, you are awesome...
@@swdweeb www.amazon.com/Goede-Stainless-Steel-Foundry-Burner/dp/B019X6E7L4/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?dchild=1&keywords=goede+stainless+steel+burner&qid=1610845452&sr=8-4. This is not the one I have but it is identical. They just sold out of theconeci bought which was cheaper. It is made by Kibow.
Came out great buddy 👍🏻
Thanks 👍
Now that's a furnace! BigstackD sent me.
She's a beaut! Thanks for letting me know
At 1st glance wasn't as good as I thought, end of video, Better than 99% of purchased ones. Very good mate 👍
Thanks. Given that this furnace is still in great shape after 4 years of use I'd say its better than 99% of the ones you can purchase. 😂😂
"Double your pleasure, Double your fun..."
🤬 I'm old too. 😂
Clearly from the same vintage as me. Just be glad you remember 🤣🤣
Thank you, that not only looks awesome, but it seems to function magnificently, as well as having the ability to stand the test of time. I'm more worried about the awesome information you are sharing with me, than your videography/cinematography skills or lack thereof.
"Sharing knowledge is man's way to immortality". Thank you sir.
So nice of you, thank you
Perfect video Millions thumbs up
Ha! Well thank you so much 😄
Great stuff - I'm collecting copper at moment for the near future when I can get a furnace made and melt my own ingots lol
Good luck with it
Absolutely Brilliant....A star is born.
Ha!! Yeah right 😄 Thanks
Been anxiously waiting for this video. Thanks for taking the time to record and share it with us. You packed a lot of information in a short video!! Time for me to start working on building my new furnace. I'm sure I'll be watching this video a bunch of times.
It was fast wasn't it 😄 I'm glad you found it helpful
@@swdweebthanks ❤
Can't wait to see it Perry 👍
Let me know what you think after you've seen it
Top job mate I'm half way through making one and it's now just changed thanks .I couldn't make my mind up what to use as insulation .As always your a top bloke 👍
@@steffanstreet5105 Ha! I'm glad I got the video out in time. 😄 You can always email if you want to chat about stuff like this swdweeb@gmail.com
G’day, I’m just starting metal melting and I love your channel. It’s a big thumbs up from me. Cheers and thank you very much, you have taught me heaps.👍😀
Thanks Mark, don't hesitate to ask questions if you have them.
Great video! You showed the steps without belaboring the process. It's as simple as you made it seem.
Excellent point about the dryness of the refractory mix. It's often called "castable" refractory, but that's a bad name for it. Cement of any kind is very sensitive to the amount of water in the mixture. People often think it should be like a liquid when you mix it, but it shouldn't. Too much water weakens the cement. Never put more than the recommended amount of water in a cement mix.
I bought a used vibrator at the thrift store -- NOT THAT KIND -- the big, muscle massager kind -- and used that on the inside of the Sono-tube to vibrate the concrete as I rammed it. I also used a heat gun and a random wax candle to wax the outside if the Sono-tube. The combination of the vibrator and the waxed tube gave me a very smooth, and very compacted refractory wall. When I removed the tube (the same way you did) none of the tube stuck to the cement.
Pro job, on your part! Pro results!
Do you use a plinth beneath your crucible in the furnace? I used some leftover refractory to make a couple of plinths to go beneath my crucible. I think they help by elevating the bottom of the crucible do that the flame can get to the bottom area more efficiently than if the crucible just sits on n the floor of the furnace.
Thank you Carl. I didn’t see any point in showing me weld for 35 minutes. 😄
I’ve made that mistake more often than I care to admit, adding more water than necessary.
I wasn’t prepared to ram the walls of the furnace. I had intended to simply do the lid and the floor but when I finished the floor I still had more “wet” refractory. That stuff is so expensive that I didn’t want to just let it dry out so I hurriedly put the KAO wool in and the form. After I started putting it in, I had to race around trying to find something I could ram it with. To top it off, that was the last night I had that was going to stay above freezing. The temperature dropped below freezing for several nights starting the next evening. All in all, I wasn’t prepared to finish ramming the walls but I didn’t want to waste material and I had to finish so it would cure without freezing. I ended up brining it inside the house for 3-4 days to let it cure. I could have done a better job with the walls but when you don’t plan ahead this is what you get.
Funny you should ask about a plinth. I got an email from another sub just a day or two ago that contained a document from an ingot supplier. They talked about a phenomenon that I had never experienced until the night before. They said if your crucible is too low, the metal will swirl in the crucible. I had that going. It got so bad that a small amount of aluminum splashed out of the crucible into the furnace. I’ll be making a plinth or three out of the half bag of refractory I have left.
Awesome furnace build, Perry. Your time spent making these videos and sharing your knowledge is greatly appreciated. Thank You, Nick
You're very welcome Nick, glad you appreciate them
Have to say, I'm jealous. I was in sheet metal fabrication a loonng time ago and my instructor, mentor told me then, the sign of a good mechanic was one who could lay out, fabricate construct their own tool box. I still have mine, 16ga galv steel, all welded seams, self made handles, the only store bought was the lock and hinge.
Something to keep an eye out for. Old welding rods that have gotten wet or are breaking apart. If you have a large gap the core of the welding rod can be used as a filler rod using your mig welder, saves a lot of wire.
Great tip Donny, thank you. I will keep an eye for old rod.
I owe much of the success to the shop that cut and rolled the metal for me. It wouldn't be half as nice of they hadn't done such a good job.
@@swdweeb yeah I caught myself looking at the roll of the metal. Someone knew what they were doing. The first sign of not knowing the process is flat spots at the beginning and ending of the roll. It's like running a piece of wood through a planner, the ends are usually thinner than the middle.
If you want to see a very simple furnace that has no metal in it take a look at MBMMLLC. Lol
@@donniebrown2896 They talked about there being a flat spot at the end and told me they actually cut the piece long do I could cut it off and get the size I ordered. I never saw the flat spot and it was the size I ordered when I welded it together. They even threw in the handles even though I didn't ask for them. They guy said he just thought I'd need/want them.
Yeah, that MBMMLLC furnace is more portable than mine too 😄
Nice furnace... thank you for running us through the build...
You're welcome. It was so rushed I'm not sure how useful it was to people. I suppose if you have the means to build a furnace of your own, you've got the ability to figure most of it out yourself. If you don't have the ability to build a furnace then it was just entertainment
G’day your furnace is a thing of beauty, well done. Cheers
Peter
Thanks Peter. I'm lovin' it
That furnace came out great and explains everything well on the build. Best one on UA-cam, Thanks Perry !
Thanks Lloyd... emailing you
Very cool indeed! Just starting out researching how to make a foundry and I absolutely love the quality and detail that you put into your build. Definitely top contender for how I'd like to make mine. Thank you. God bless!
Glad it was helpful!
we used that ceramic coating as a wash to coat what we were pigging out into. Also, I was a furnace tender for years and was wondering if you had to cure your furnace by slowly bringing it up to temp. Obviously what you used is completely different than what we used, we used a powder that we would fork and then air hammer between the furnace wall and iron inner lining, then would let it cure by slowly bring the furnace up to temp over 24 hours incrementally. Anyways, I really like your Home Furnace, awesome job!!!
Thank you so much for your comment makes my day. I did not heat it slowly, I let it dry I can’t remember for about two weeks inside the house and then I took it out to the garage and let the flame burning side without forced air for brief periods of time a few minutes at a time. Eventually I started increasing the time that I used to heating heat and dry out the refractory
It was the absolutely wrong method I used to cure the furnace I had no idea how much moisture was in the factory fortunately luckily for me it was dry and I didn’t blow up when I apply heat to it. I hated it slowly I brought it up to a couple hundred degrees before and let it do that for a few cycles before I actually started applying more and more heat
Thank you Perry!
I was waiting your video to make my own furnace, already have almost all the components at home, I will let you know when i'm done, wish me good luck 🤞🏻😄
Good luck. It's really not that hard, just take your time with it
Great job well done mate. Thanks Dale 🇦🇺
Thank you Dale 😄
Really nice job on that one. Looks like a factory/custom build...
Thanks John, I'm pretty happy with it
Awesome work Perry. One tip for when you have to mate cylinders together at angles. Fusion360 and 3D printed moulds and templates are easy to design and make it easy to mark up and cut complex intersections.
I would have done exactly that if my 3-D printer was working. Trust me I know that would have been far easier
Brilliant Perry really nice . Do something nice for someone! No problem!
I don't know, sometimes its harder than you think 😄
Mission completed! Nice to be nice.
Great job on the furnace! Haven’t been stalking you for quite a while. Life has a way of getting in the way sometimes.lol
It does, doesn't it. Welcome back
Awesome build. You will enjoy that one for years!
Boy I sure hope so! Thanks
Another excellent build!! Kind Sir and I love the new close!! Words everyone should live by!
Thanks, I was inspired by my buddy Nate
Great stuff! I love it. Looking forward to some videos about smelting...
Thanks Coen. Unfortunately, I don't smelt, I melt. Smelting in the extraction of metal from ore 😄😄 I'd love to create an iron bloom some day though
That was great, may have to be my next big project. As I am getting a little better at welding & already would have the burner from the little Devil-Forge. You know I will be asking questions, when I get around to it. hahaha
Go for it, I love questions.
Pretty sweet man
Thanks James, I'm likin' it 😄
Really nice furnace Perry, made mine with similar materials except my ceramic fiber is inside the castable refractory and coated with some high temp coating. Works great, about the same size as yours also. Happy castings friend.
I hadn't really thought of reversing the order. I was really looking to simply reduce the weight and keep the insulation factor.
Thanks bud and happy casting to you as well 😄
You did a great job love you man !!
Well, thank you :-D
Totally agree professional grade, just like the lifting tongs which I'd love to see in more detail
Picture the I-beam girders they build skyscrapers with 😂
Send me an email and I’ll send you pictures swdweeb@gmail.com
Well done, sir.
Thank you
Excellent work! I learn so much watching your videos.
Awesome, thank you!
You are the man!!!
😄 I don't know about "the" certainly "a" 😄
Nice build, congrats.
Thanks!
Love this build! I made mine similarly, only with a 6 gallon garbage can.
I must make one of these. Thanks for the tutorial..... 👍👍😎👍👍
I don't know how much of a tutorial it was, it was pretty much an extremely fast trip through "here's what I did". 😄 But I agree, you must make one 😄
Hell yeah. Appreciate you putting out this video. I’m about to go ram in my Mizzou refractory right now actually. I just built a very similar furnace except I live in Minnesota and want to be able to cast this winter so I had to use a heating element and do electric. I hope mine turns out like yours because yours looks great
Can't use gas in the winter? I realize it gets a lot colder there, maybe colder longer, than here in Colorado, but I'm able to use propane all winter.
Hi. Great video and good job on the furnace. Are the plans available somewhere?
I’m wondering if you ever considered a 4 burner furnace where you have 4 burners separated by 90 degrees to uniformly wrap flame all around the crucible. I’ve been toying with the idea of four single row ribbon burners spaced by 90 degrees. Maybe not necessary but I haven’t seen anyone talk about the pros and cons.
What is the design of your burner?
Thanks,
Paul
Here's my burner design. ua-cam.com/video/keQ83RTZ1JE/v-deo.html
I thought about a ribbon burner very early on when they were brought to my attention. I was burning propane at the time as was looking for more heat. I'm a firm believer today that heat equals fuel + air. More fuel, more air will produce more heat. The burner I'm using today is a little air starved and as a result I'm not getting all of the heat I could out of things.
If you can provide enough air and fuel to service multiple burners, I'd guess you'd get things hot real quick.
damn came out awesome. wish i had known about the ceramic glaze before I did mine but I did pretty much everything the same. great job!
That original coating is still on the walls. It never turned to "ceramic" at least not like I expected (I expected a glaze). It always stayed powder. It you touch it, it will while off.
@@swdweeb interesting. Thank you for the reply!
Beautiful! Will you be making a video on your crucible lifting/pouring tools as well? Thanks for sharing!
I can definitely show them off, I don't have any video of me making the tools that I use. The lifting tongs could probably lift a car if needed 😄😄
@@swdweeb awesome! a safe and fancy furnace needs good tools. Looking forward to it :)
Nice build i like it
Thanks 😄
Great job mate. Love your vids.
Thanks! 😄
Thank you nice furnace 👍
Thank you too. 😄
Looks awesome! Big enough to make a cannon or a bronze horseshoe for a Clydesdale. 😎
Cheers from Juneau Alaska,
Greg Chaney
😂😂. There it is. I’ve got to get that done
I like the comment BE A BLESSING TO SOMEONE. That inspires me to do more for others, it’s a good enough reason for me!
Thank you! I'm glad it reminds/inspired you to do it. I need that reminder every day.
Looks great. Next stop, melting iron! 👌🇦🇺
baby steps big boy baby steps. I've yet to melt copper in it. 😄
@@swdweeb Yes, but which of us is going to get there first? Personally, melting iron scares the living daylights out of me but it's tantalizing at the same time.
@@Preso58 Well, you can always drive down to Luckygen1001's place and pour some with him. 😄 Not the same as pouring it yourself but maybe you'd pick up some good pointers 😄
What a great guy, subscribed on that alone
You know I see these, right? 😄😄 Thanks 😄
I have been casting for a while now but nowhere near your quality, I have learnt a lot watching your vids, thanks for taking the time to share them.
You're awesome!
Thanks... unless you're being sarcastic because I was proud of what I made and said so 😆
great job.
Thanks!
Thanks. This should help a lot
Good luck with it 😁
Hey perry fan bloody tastic build. I tell ya what that would have to be the best furnace I've seen. Unbelievable work as always and I must say you look and act just a little on the proud side.. :) as you should be. Wish mine was half as impressive as that.. although I do have a pretty heavy duty crucible that I think would give you a concerned smile of excitement and or exhaustion lol. Weights about 20 odd kg or about 45lb empty hahaha
Thanks mate. I almost put "best furnace on YT" as the title but figured I'd have to deal with a boat-load of comments telling me what a jerk I am or how theirs is better. 😄
That is an impressive crucible. Just curious, what are the external dimensions? Would it fit inside my furnace? 305mm diameter and 305mm tall
The furnace looks pretty good.
I do have a question where did you get the paint on ceramic coding? I attempted to look it up but I can't seem to find that exact product.
I bought it at a place in Denver unitedwesterndenver.com/ It's called frankote. I checked their website and don't see it. You could always call them and see if they still carry it.
great vid mate..as a matter of interest what are you using for a blower?im looking at a vintage secomak blower for mine maybe...its quite compact
It's actually listed in the description for this video ua-cam.com/video/keQ83RTZ1JE/v-deo.html. this is a link to the blower but the video might be useful for you. www.amazon.com/dp/B00FBEAXCA
Great build and great message! Thank you for this video. You de-mystify the foundry components very well. Would it make sense to "build-in" a crucible transfer station and plinth connected to your rolling stand? Or maybe a separate stand (with no wheels) that could hold the crucible stable onto the floor, before you grab the crucible for the pour.
Interesting thought... I'll have to think about something like that. It would have to work with the shank that I use to pour with. I put the crucible down on a firebrick and that is the scariest part of the whole process
@@swdweeb Removing the scary part of the process is exactly what I'm referring to. It would be designed to give the crucible more stability, before the pour.
@@hippie-io7225 Yeah, we're on the same page. That's exactly how I took your comment.
Looks good. Can't wait to see it do some melting. Have you shown your forced air setup? I don't remember seeing it
I don't think I have. I put it on Instagram. I'm likely to change it again so I'm going to wait until I settle on a design I like. Right now it's just a hair dryer
Hi Perry, the build was great but the final comment was the best.
Would it help to put a base block in to lift the crucible base up into the flame? Stay safe and well :)
Thanks. More and more, I think that's how we're going to get out of the mess the politicians and media have led us into.
I assume you're talking about adding a plinth. The things about a plinth is it is really a sacrificial part of the furnace that can be replaced as need be. My flame is already up off the bottom of the furnace by almost 2" so lifting the crucible will take it out of the flame. The flame in this new furnace doesn't actually hit the crucible either. It is able to wrap around the crucible without blasting right into it like my old one did.
I've got more firebrick that I can make a small plinth out of. I'm told, but have never validated it, that the bottom of the crucible will heat faster of off the bottom of the furnace
Yes, I totally agree with the first point. I've just found where I read the other info. I'll email you a copy for you to check out ("Info on Metallurgy & Crucible Furnaces" - really interesting info). ATB :)
@@AJR2208 Cool, got your email and will take a look at it shortly. Yeah the geek in me does the same thing 😄
Hi can u give a little more info on your burner set up I am just about to rehash mine as I do not think it is as efficient as it should be ?
Here ya go.
ua-cam.com/video/j5izf_r_dC8/v-deo.html ua-cam.com/video/eYuauZD0nFg/v-deo.html I've moved on to a diesel burner now. I keep trying to get a video out on it... maybe the next couple of days
Awesome furnace Perry!
I look forward to seeing it in action! :D
Thanx for a great vid!
Thanks Capn' Been a long time
@@swdweeb Been around. Just don't comment as much. LOL
My friend could show me when I'm going to start an aluminum casting I put the crucible first and let it heat up, or I put the crucible full with the aluminum that I'm going to melt
Heating the crucible first is a good thing to do. It reduces the time the aluminum is in the furnace and as a result reduces the oxidation (dross/slag) that will form on the surface
Michicimas grasias mi amigo estoy altamene agradecido por las respuestas 😊
Nice job with your furnace, I’d like to make one that large one day!
I’d definitely be interested to see how that white refractory goes over time. Was it expensive?
I don't remember how much it was, I remember thinking twice about it at the time. It was probably between $35-50 for a gallon container of the powder. Now, that will probably last me a very long time, we'll see.
Great job perry! Love the white lining! Does it help with the insulation or more for strength?
It's certainly not for strength. It claims to help protect the refractor lining from gas coming from the metal/crucible. It's like a powder on there.
My friend, what do you think of a crucible that I made of iron ASTM A572 grade, please answer me!
I always try to answer, even when I do not know the answer 😄
I know aluminum is pretty corrosive and will react with iron causing the degradation of the crucible over time and adding small amounts of iron to your aluminum.
Iron also oxidizes (rusts) quickly when heated to high temperatures
Beyond that I really do not have an opinion as I am not familiar with that iron alloy. Just be careful and watch for places the iron might fail after multiple uses.
Not sure i caught it if you said, but what do you think you spent on the build? looked like a lot of fun to make.
Out of pocket for me was about $350. I will admit that my son bought me a bag of refractory cement for Christmas last year and I used that to fill the lid and bottom of the furnace.
Nice!
it is, thanks
That looks excellent but can it do cast iron like Windy Hills. Thanks for sharing!
What kind of question is that Craig?? Cast iron is just a matter of heat. The real question is can m y burner do it. It did it once before. It melted the burner as well but that's another story
Professional GWAD. 😎
That's right bucko
Thanks
You're welcome :-D
Stop it bigs...haha...Cobra will take the Pepsi Challenge, Boss... #cobraknows #alwaysdrillin
What??
@@swdweebWhat, what?..thought you was throwin down the furnace gauntlet.... #ChallengeAccepted ... You ready to #mandance, Bossman?...That thing looks like it gets bout as hot as momma's curling iron...haha... #cobraknows #casting.....squad
@@cobraknowsjosephmcveigh9180 Alright, I gotcha. Wasn't really a challenge but more of an encouragement to build over buy.
Yeah, so far I've only measured about 2100F inside a crucible. I suppose I could have done better
@@swdweeb 21 ain't gon' get us to iron temps, bossman...but you an Aluminum Cat...Cobra gotcha Boss...just Drivin ya a bit...haha...nice videos biggs...
7:52 As I mentioned before, my lid broke after two firings. It was made exclusively from refractory cement.
I thought I should put some rods, or even some chicken wire to reinforce it, so if it would crack, it would at least not fall off. But I was afraid of metal expansion from the heat, making the situation worse.
So my question is, did those rods do what I was afraid to your cement lid? That is, expand from heat, then crack it.
So far, my lid is just fine. I took the furnace to hot enough to melt iron and it has held up just fine
@@swdweeb Great!
Are you making your crucibles or buying them and also will they melt iron?
I buy them. They are PMC Procast clay graphite crucibles. I've only melted iron in one once. Luckygen1001 tells me that he uses clay graphite crucibles to melt iron in all of the time
@@swdweeb I am thinking about making one from 3000 degree refractory cement air crete mixture. I already have a furnace made from it I thought the pours would get hot enough to expand and blow out a side or something but I have had it red hot after curing for 2 weeks and it did great. I know we used a kind of air crete to line the ladles at a foundry I used to work at.
@@kevinlewis9151 Funny, I thought about making a crucible out of the remaining refractory that I have. I have no idea how or if it will work. I need to make a form to ram it in.
@@swdweeb we had steel and aluminum ladles that we covered with an air crete mixture to protect the metal from the high temperatures. I know with my furnace it can be red hot on the inside and I can touch the outside with my bare hand. I think I figured it to like an R60 insulation value
Perry, is that coating you painted on supposed to help the refractory cement to keep from being damaged by the heat? I didn’t catch the name of the coating. I’m wondering if it is similar to Satanite?.
That furnace looks real nice! Did you heat cure your refractory before you painted on the coating?
The coating is called fankote PMC100. Yes its supposed to help protect the refractory.
I let the refractory dry for several days and then applied small doses of heat to it to dry it further before painting on the coating
Do you have the build plans for this? I didn't see any on your website.
Not really. I had a picture with some measurements on it that I took to the fab shop to get the body rolled and the lid/bottom cut. I still have the picture but there are no measurements on it, I hand-wrote them for the shop. Email me via the web site or at swdweeb@gmail.com and I'm happy to share what I have.
I would build it a bit differently if I were to do it again. I probably wouldn't use Kao wool but firebrick instead. It would be better for thermal stability... I think :-D
@@swdweeb Outstanding, email sent to you. A warm thank you to you for your help. Cheers!
@@WolfManJammer FWIW, I havent seen an email yet
Think you could melt palladium in this?
How is the coating holding up? Also, wouldn't a ribbon burner be a lot more efficient?
I've never relined it and its still in there. Still white and of metal ends up out of the crucible it just picks right up after things cool off.
I thought about a ribbon burner when I made my first propane burner and just decided to go traditional. My newest burner is a diesel burner and I'm not sure I could have made it as a ribbon burner and I can't imagine it getting any hotter. At this point with the nozzle I'm using I am just a hair below the maximum amount of air I can get into the furnace with the blower I have and keep the flame burning at its optimum temp ua-cam.com/video/keQ83RTZ1JE/v-deo.html Since that video I've moved up to a 2.25 GPH nozzle which has taken me right up to the limit
@@swdweeb thank you!
Will this furnace melt stainless steel?
I've never tried to melt stainless. The burner is the big key to it. With enough fuel and air you can melt just about anything.
like a water heater
What brand is the refractory cement?
I used Mizzou 3200
Where do you get a crucible?
Amazon
Can we see a pic of how you made your forced air tube attachment?
You can kinda see it here ua-cam.com/video/fFADzuaCtQs/v-deo.html
There are problems with the accidental implementation I ended up with so I'm hesitant to to spend any time talking about it as people will undoubtedly try to copy it. I basically taped a hair dryer to the end of the tube.
@@swdweeb ok gotcha. I actually found that for some reason my burner was burning inside of the tube for some reason and I couldn't figure out why so I purchased a stainless one from amazon for $50 and so I gave it another try using my second already built king of random foundry. I successfully melted copper at 15psi with no forced air so now I'm starting to build a permanent foundry from propane tank, kaowool, refractory cement and the kiln wash as you did. I also purchased welding equipment lol. Thanks for the inspiration man, you are awesome...
Can you send me a link to the one you bought?
@@swdweeb www.amazon.com/Goede-Stainless-Steel-Foundry-Burner/dp/B019X6E7L4/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?dchild=1&keywords=goede+stainless+steel+burner&qid=1610845452&sr=8-4. This is not the one I have but it is identical. They just sold out of theconeci bought which was cheaper. It is made by Kibow.
Thanks
Hello sorry is it possible if i can melt tin cans of beans and fish
I suppose. "Tin cans" are actually steel cans. If you can melt steel you can melt the cans
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Let me guess, a devil forge fan 😂😂😂