# yahoo! finally found firebricks locally



## 924T (Jul 23, 2013)

Wow-----I thought it would never happen, and that I was going to have to pay some hefty shipping, but
I just now tracked down a contractor supply place here in town that has the 9x4.5x2.5" firebricks.

Now I can experiment with a basic furnace to incinerate chips.

I'd like to try both charcoal and propane-----I can visualize how to pipe air in underneath the charcoal,
but I have no idea what kind of burner to use for propane.

I'm wide open for propane burner suggestions.

Cheers,

Mike


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## MEANIE (Jul 23, 2013)

Check out lionels labs website.. 
http://backyardmetalcasting.com/index.html

Meanie


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## bswartzwelder (Jul 23, 2013)

I got my firebricks from True Value or Ace Hardware locally. It is possible to order them online and they are sometimes seen on eBay or Amazon. Good luck with your design.


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## rickbb (Jul 23, 2013)

Here's a guy that talks about building your own furnace.

http://www.artmetal.com/project/TOC/proces/cast/ag_cast.html


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## MysticColby (Jul 24, 2013)

For a burner, I recommend: http://www.hybridburners.com I got the 1/2" Shorty.
I had made my own burner of an identical design out of plumbing parts, it worked ok but tended to flutter out sometimes. there's just no substitution for having reliable stuff.
if you do want to make your own, it takes like $20 worth of plumbing parts and some metal working tools. google "venturi burner"

as for fire bricks, I found all mine on craigslist. first few were some people had listings selling them. Then I needed some more and no listings for weeks, so I made my own wanted listing. couple days later, I get an email from a lady who had cases of K-26 insulating fire bricks cluttering up this area under her house. she had like 70 cases (I think 24 bricks/case, 2.5"x4.5"x9"), it was crazy. dirty from cobwebs and critter droppings, but unopened and unbroken (easily a decade old). I only needed 20 bricks, but bought 4 cases at $2/brick just in case.
be proactive!
and clearly say what you need... I also had someone that wanted to sell me firebricks, but turned out to be the dense non-insulating type despite him telling me over the phone they weren't.


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## JHS (Jul 24, 2013)

you can build this $50.00
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxzdqcPzXj8


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## 924T (Jul 26, 2013)

MysticColby,

Hey, thanks for the tip!

Those look like prime burners; I'll look at them some more later tonight.

I did locate this burner at ThermalArtDesign http://www.thermalartdesign.com/----what
do you think of it?

Cheers,

Mike


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## JHS (Jul 26, 2013)

That one looks real nice,but it will not heat any hotter than the one i sent you in the vidio
and you will still have to get a regulator,hoses,and a shut off.
with a up grade on the regulator,i spent $70.00 and most of it was the regulator.
john


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## 924T (Jul 26, 2013)

JHS,

Now that I'm gradually learning a little bit more about torches, I've got a few questions:

Are you using your burner handheld, or fixed in place?

What PSI are you running the propane at (I thought it was pretty cool that Hybridburners has reference
charts showing the BTU's at different PSI levels)?

Is there some advantage to running the shorter burner that you bought? I'm thinking for my purposes, using
the burner in a fixed position like Goldnscrap does, that the T-Rex burner's slightly larger size might work
well for me.

Cheers,

Mike


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## JHS (Jul 26, 2013)

pm sent and i posted a source for refractory cement and a link to build
a furnace.
john


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## MysticColby (Jul 26, 2013)

that burner looks pretty. same venturi design. It's impossible to tell how well it works unless you're sitting there using it. I will notice that it looks like a unibody, meaning everything is one piece. One good thing about hybridburners is that it disassembles into a few parts: the tip the gas goes into, the shaft, the nozzle where the flame is. They also sell extra flame nozzles as that part will eventually degrade from normal use.
The only significant differences between hybridburner's shorty and T-rex is how much BTU it puts out at a given psi. T-rex's BTU range is higher. Basically, I didn't need one that big. I melt 1000 grams of silver with this shorty burner at 10 psi. 5 psi will work, but takes longer. 15 psi for fast melts. my regulator goes up to 30 for fun demos 
The larger size is to accommodate more propane and air. 14-30 tip vs. 14-35. They are literally MIG welding tips, type 14, size 0.030" and 0.035" ID. So 0.035" is a larger hole than 0.030", allows more propane, needs more air, gets a bigger diameter pipe. Pretty much any burner with that tip will give that BTU.
Both hybridburner and themalartdesign burners just come with the burner, not propane attachments. Actually, I just had to go buy replacement hoses and regulators  The ones I had I lent to a friend to power his steamer (boil water, steam soak some wood, bend it into place, it stays bent) he's refurbishing a boat. It's just easier for me to get a new one  this was my parts list (he's not borrowing the burner):
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002YQP76/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004W4TCAY/ref=oh_details_o02_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009PKKY1Q/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000C1UBSS/ref=oh_details_o09_s00_i04?ie=UTF8&psc=1


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## 924T (Jul 27, 2013)

JHS and MysticColby,

Many thanks guys, with your help I'm starting to get a feel for these burners.

The 'Shorty' burner I think is around 70,000 BTU maximum, and the 'T-Rex' is up around 100,000 BTU.

If 1 kg of Ag can be melted with the Shorty with no hassles, and it also incinerates chips with no hassles,
and a tank of propane would last longer by using that burner, it doesn't seem to make much sense to go
with the T-Rex.

With the links and info you have given me, I'm going to have to spend some time poring through these
things, and make a purchase decision by Monday, and get a burner ordered.

Again, many thanks, because this is all new to me.

Cheers,

Mike


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## 924T (Jul 27, 2013)

MysticColby,

I completely forgot to ask how long it takes you to incinerate chips, let's say Ram chips and/or quads,
with that Shorty burner (and what weight of chips are you incinerating at a time)?

And, if that's privileged information that you'd rather not toss out to the world, I understand.

Cheers,

Mike


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## 924T (Aug 18, 2013)

MysticColby,

Thanks for the links----I just got those 4 items ordered from Amazon tonight.

Next up is the torch.

Cheers,

Mike


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## MysticColby (Aug 19, 2013)

I haven't incinerated or pyrolyzed any chips, sorry I can't help you there. I am interested to know how this works for you.

I'm sorry to hear you already ordered them, it turns out my list was a bit inaccurate. When I received mine, I realized the brass tee wasn't quite right. The regulator has a female fitting, and so does the tee. The tee should of had one male and 2 female ends, also known as a straight tee, such as the 1/4" one found at:
http://www.amazon.com/Parker-Brass-Fitting-Street-Female/dp/B004XEL12U/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1376941545&sr=8-2&keywords=brass+straight+tee

Alternatively, a male coupler could be used to attach the regulator to the tee. Something like the 1/4" size at:
http://www.amazon.com/Dixon-BCN25-Brass-Fitting-Nipple/dp/B00BG1U4ZS/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1376941681&sr=8-8&keywords=npt+male+coupler+1%2F4

Or, best of all was what I tried and it worked. I wasn't sure it would at first, but was pleasantly surprised. The regulator has a 1/8" fitting where a pressure gauge is meant to attach. This is a pressure gauge that works with it:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006K2QXTE/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i04?ie=UTF8&psc=1
The trick is that the port for the regulator is blocked off. It needs to have a hole drilled in it before it will work with a gauge attached. From what I could find, you want to be very careful not to drill too far or risk damaging the inner workings. the metal is pretty thin, and only a small hole should be required. It goes quick, only took me about 5 seconds to make a 1/32" hole. In the end, no tee was needed.
If I were to suggest a shopping list for this in the future, I would suggest:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002YQP76/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000C1UBSS/ref=oh_details_o09_s00_i04?ie=UTF8&psc=1
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006K2QXTE/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i04?ie=UTF8&psc=1

again, sorry for suggesting the wrong fitting.


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