WarmGlass.com

My Paragon kiln elements have been sagging and the pins have been falling out - I finally got some replacement pins and now want to replace them - My question is that with heating my element to about 300 degrees I am going to have to wear gloves to insert them - my gloves are so big on my hands I don't know if I will be able to grab onto the pins and shove them in. Any suggestions? I checked at Ed Hoys this past week and all the gloves I found were large on me.
thanks for any help! Kim

I've always repinned my elements without reheating them. I just do so very carefully and slowly. I would think that the only time you'd need to reheat is if the elements are really distorted; I try to catch them before they get that bad.

I have never had to heat and re-pin(maybe dumb luck) If you do heat... do not forget to uplug the kiln before work. I re-pin pushing in at an angle so that there more fresh brick to hold the pin and gravity will be countered to some degree...good luck
jim

I also didn't heat the kiln to pin saggers. I did put 2 pins in the same place, angling them at 45 degrees opposite each other, hoping for some tension. Seemed to work.

So glad to read that I DON'T have to heat the kiln -hopefully that will make the job much easier - please cross your fingers for me - I will attempt to fix the sagging elements tomorrow as I have a bowl in the kiln now!
Many thanks for this board's help once again! Kim

I have not found any gloves to fit me either. Why is it that so many things are only available in men's sizes? Anyone know of a source?

Isn't the heating step required only if you need to stretch the elements for fit. In my first kiln, the elements came loose because (as I was told) the elements were not "burnt in" properly and they shrunk. After stretching them and repinning, I have had no problems....

Does anyone know where to find these pins? Is there an internet source where I can order them from? Thanks!

When reinserting pins I've found that putting a slight bend in the pin (at about the center of the long part) makes the pin fit tighter. This "spring fit" technique helped keep the pins from falling out in my ten year old Paragon, just like putting a very slight bend in a door hinge pin will help keep a door open in the position you want. But I wonder if you could find a source of the wire that the pins are made from and make U-shaped pins with equal length sides? Maybe pins like this would be better?

Greg Rawls wrote:Does anyone know where to find these pins? Is there an internet source where I can order them from? Thanks!

Any pottery place will have element pins. Or you can order them from any kiln or element manufacturer.

Brad Walker wrote:

Greg Rawls wrote:Does anyone know where to find these pins? Is there an internet source where I can order them from? Thanks!

Any pottery place will have element pins. Or you can order them from any kiln or element manufacturer.

you can also get a 10' spool of wire and make your own: http://delphiglass.com/index.cfm?page=i ... o=itemList

I found my replacement pins on eBay

Last Xmas they were advertising something called "Ovgloves". I decided to try them out. I find them much more agile than my expensive giant padded gloves from C&R Loo. They may not be quite as heat resistant, but perfect for moving hot shelves or handling hot kiln handles. I seldom use my big bulky gloves anymore.

I bought mine at Walgreens but I'm not sure if anyone still carries them or if they were an Christmas wonder. $20 each I believe.

Has anybody tried these Coolhands Kevlar gloves from CDV? They are only rated to 800F, but they look very flexible.

http://www.cdvkiln.com/menuacc.htm

Carol

I have some of the kevlar gloves as well as the sleeves from CDV. I bought them 2 or 3 years ago. I use them for glory hole work. The gloves do a good job with the heat from a full size glory hole.They fit well and there is no problem with dexterity. I would highly recommend the sleeves be used with the gloves I don't know how they would be for raking and other kiln work..I use the heavy duty gloves for that.
jim

I've found a real easy way to push around/ shink or stretch elements is to use a propane torch to heat a section of the element to move it to where you want to. Needle nose pliers are a help for handleing the elements.
I keep a roll of nichrome wire in the studio and make my own pins, element holders wall supports etc. Good luck