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I have been running SCR solid state relays since the mid 80's. I have had 2 runaways. One was caused by controller failure, the other was an SCR stuck closed. Neither of these events was catastrophic for me. In my single zone kiln, it was the controller failure. Both of my kilns have nichrome elemen...

I'll guess this was caused by the glass sticking to the mold. This could interfere with a good anneal.

Kiln manufacturers are designing for solid state relays on kilns they ship to Europe. I have seen a design that places the relay inside the box, but has the heat sink, sitting outside the box. You need the right box to set that up. Mechanical relays are good for an average 100,000 clicks. Solid stat...

In the stained glass world, black patina is nitric acid. All I know is that this dissolves vitreous enamels. I would guess it works on gold.

Thanks for all the replies. I'm using it in wind chimes, it is really beautiful glass that is true. I'm pretty sure he uses 96 cullet but I am going to ask him to be sure. I believe the owners name is Jim, he was so kind to us when we just showed up at his studio/warehouse while visiting Seattle. W...

Every kiln has it's plusses and minuses. Coffin kilns suck if what you want to do is comb. The good news is that you can do most kinds of work in most kilns, with adjustments for what is happening inside them. If you have side elements exposed to the edges of the glass, you have to slow down. If you...

I live in Hawaii, I do have a 220v 50amp extra plug so I guess I'm good on power for most things. I like the GL44AD, thinking more of kiln casting and thicker panels. My wife likes the Pearl44 thinking more of fusing and slumping. Are there any big advantages of these two kilns or is it really just...

Does anyone know the COE of Freemont glass? Bad question. COE is not the only determinate of compatibility. The question you want to ask is whether Fremont is compatible with any other glasses. I don't know. What I do know is that the beauty of mouth blown glass is diminished when fused, so it is a...

You use a sponge for the water delivery on this. I buy wet belts from CR Laurence. You need an account. I am sure there are many sources for 3 x 24 carbide wet belts.

You can test and find out, but my guess is they etch the air side. I know that a cream etch gets all fouled up on the tin side.

My goodness Bert! The process was quite daunting and would certainly give most of us pause when considering it. I recall another bar top you posted (had greenish color?) and wonder if this one is much larger. The pattern reminds me of Hubble telescope photos. Wow! The bartop was 30mm thick and narr...

I just installed a 200 lb table top. Normally this would be routine for me. In the middle of this process, I had hip replacement surgery. So challenge one was taking delivery of 2 hundred pound pieces of glass, getting one clean, on to my light table, painted, then loaded in my kiln, while being a c...

Northeast is still kind of vague. I know New England sources like Smart Ceramics or Ceramaterials (in NY), or Lynn Products, or Zampell. Most places only sell by the roll or the case. You will have to search for one that sells by the foot. I used to have one in Maine, but they switched focus. Go to ...

The problem is the max. available size: "Ceraboard 100 and Ceraboard 115 are available in 1200 x 1000mm panels". I'm looking for a replacement for the Dyson shelves that showed so much promise (at great cost) and then broke apart. 24"x48", 30"x60 and larger. Marty call cera...

http://www.ceramaterials.com/ceramicfiberboards.html This company sells only by the case. The second set down are the HD boards. These are Chinese boards and cost about half as much as Unifrax Duraboard HD. You might find a local refractory supplier who will sell you a single board. These are dotte...

Take your straight edge to a salvage store that sells pizza stones. These are made of the identical material that kiln shelves are made from. Sometimes they are a bit thinner. Flat is king. I once visited a factory that makes kiln shelves and kiln furniture. Next to the stacks of shelves were the st...

I did a test with Reusche enamels. Firing temp 1050-1080 F. The enamels shrunk and cracked. I haven't used Reusche enamels before. I didn't allow them to dry first. Is that necessary? Did the water-based medium boil away and create the shrinkage? Or is there another factor? Is there an ideal consis...

regardless of whether they are frit or stones, the spiral is a naturally good shape to get a decent bubble squeeze on any level of tack fuse.

I know that some sands contract more than glass (silica sand) and some less (olivine sand), so it wouldn't totally surprise me if garnets contract more.

The board you want by any manufacturer is designated HD for High Density. LD, low density will dent or fall apart too easily. Some companies make MD medium density. Chinese boards I just used cost about half as much as Unifrax. When I bought Chinese LD boards that cost about ⅓ as much as Unifrax the...

Take a look at the glass using a polarizer. Obviously the garnets shrink close to or more than glass.