Judy Nelson-Moore on tue 2 dec 03
I am considering buying a new electric kiln. I do medium to large
sculptural work, taller rather than wider, cone 06 to cone 6. I like to do
saggars in the electric kiln occasionally. I am considering the following
kilns and wonder if anyone has experience with either or has advice for me:
1. Axner SuperKiln. This has 3 inch bricks and 1" insulation. Also, of
primary interest is the ITC ceramic coating on the bricks and elements.
Does anyone know if this coating really as good as they claim for saving
energy and extending the life of the kiln? However, this kiln does not
stack like the ...
2. L&L Jupiter kiln. This has 3 inch bricks, no insulation, no coating,
but does have an option to stack 5 or 6 sections, which would be very handy
for sculptural work of variable height. Maybe I could spray the ITC
coating on, myself?
3. L&L DaVinci kiln. This one is square, also stackable. However, it is
much, much more expensive. Don't know that I can afford it.
Thanks for your help, anyone.
Judy Nelson-Moore
Santa Fe, New Mexico
www.nelsonmoore.com/art
Lou Roess on tue 2 dec 03
on 12/2/03 10:28 AM, Judy Nelson-Moore at judy@NELSONMOORE.COM wrote:
> I am considering buying a new electric kiln.
>
>
> 2. L&L Jupiter kiln. This has 3 inch bricks, no insulation, no coating,
> but does have an option to stack 5 or 6 sections, which would be very handy
> for sculptural work of variable height. Maybe I could spray the ITC
> coating on, myself?
>
>
Judy, When I bought my L&L kiln recently I mentioned putting on ITC since
they don't do it at the factory and was told if i did it would void my
warranty.
Lou in Colorado
william schran on tue 2 dec 03
Judy wrote: > I am considering the following
kilns and wonder if anyone has experience with either or has advice for me:
Axner SuperKiln, L&L Jupiter kiln , L&L DaVinci kiln<
I have at school 4 L&L kilns (J2927, 2ea. J236, J18X) and one Axner
Super kiln (can't remember model#, it's the biggest one)
The Axner kiln is an Olympic kiln. Fires well, cools slow (a good
thing). Warning, this kiln is one piece, not in sections! Didn't know
this when purchased. Thank goodness it fit through the door of kiln
shed. It's a heavy sucker! I'm sure the one piece construction
contributes to it's efficiency.
The negatives: Lid cracked (chunk came out) near the hinge plate.
Axner had Olympic send repair cement - didn't work. Now the area of
brick where the hinge plate attaches to the wall are separating from
the adjacent bricks. It's due to the poor design of the lid propping
bar. It's located on one side only and when the lid is propped open,
the lid (which is heavy) twists, causing all areas to which the lid
is attached to also twist. The lid propping bar also comes down right
over a handle for lifting the kiln. When I close the lid I have to
reach over and push the bar away from the kiln to clear the handle -
again simple poor design.
Changed out the elements in this kiln last year - what a pain. Called
Olympus and asked how they install the floor element - "Get a small
women to stand in the kiln". I balanced on my belly (a great cushion)
along the top of the wall and let all the blood go to my head.
All our L&L's are older models, all with 2 1/2" brick. The J236's and
J18X are fired to cone 6 many times each semester - change the
elements every 18-24 months. The J2927 is used primarily for bisque
firings. There are big cracks in the lid & bottom, corrosion from the
repeated bisque firings, but it keeps chugging along. Have changed
the elements once or twice in the ten years we've had it. I've put a
thin layer of fiber between the sections of all the L&L's. The
element holders make it lots easier to change out the elements.
The next electric kiln we get will be an L&L with 3" brick.
Bill
out the elements
Carl Finch on tue 2 dec 03
At 12:52 AM 12/3/03 +0000, piedpotterhamelin@COMCAST.NET wrote:
>Make some calls to Duralite or Euclid and ask them about the frequency of
>element replacement on the kilns that you listed. I had several
>conversations on this matter with them and was told that the larger the
>area for holding the coil, the longer it would last. One manufacturer has
>sucha small area that only a thin coil can be fitted and with some
>customers, they are replacing the coils every few months.
And that mfr would be..........?
"We shall all go on requesting
Till you tell us, never doubt it;
Everything is interesting,
Tell us, tell us all about it!"
--WSG, The Gondoliers
--Carl
in Medford, Oregon (pretty please?)
LindaBlossom on tue 2 dec 03
I really find such ignorance to be disgusting. L&L personnel obviously
don't know anything about itc The use of itc does nothing to a kiln that
could give them reason to threaten the warranty. What right do they have to
deny someone the use of a product that will add value to the product? What
exactly are they warranting that would be affected? The brick are made
stronger, the elements will last much, much longer, - what else is there?
I have an Axner super kiln. It has a controller and not only 3" brick but
an extra inch of fiber and an element in the bottom. It came coated with
itc because Howard Axner does know something about itc. I recently
fired it with 60 stackable tile setters in it - a lot of mass. It held the
temperature I set all through the firing which was 100C per hour. It is a
workhorse of a kiln which I am glad I chose. I should add that I have it
setting on the floor, on a layer of insulating brick and I cover it with
about 4" of fiber and fiber board when I fire. Seems silly to lose heat to
the floor and out the top.
Linda
> > I am considering buying a new electric kiln.
> >
> >
> > 2. L&L Jupiter kiln. This has 3 inch bricks, no insulation, no
coating,
> > but does have an option to stack 5 or 6 sections, which would be very
handy
> > for sculptural work of variable height. Maybe I could spray the ITC
> > coating on, myself?
> >
>
> >
> Judy, When I bought my L&L kiln recently I mentioned putting on ITC since
> they don't do it at the factory and was told if i did it would void my
> warranty.
> Lou in Colorado
Teresa Testa on wed 3 dec 03
Is that Axner a front loading kiln?
Steve Slatin on wed 3 dec 03
I'd hardly characterize it as ignorance. When a manufacturer offers a
warranty, they're at financial risk every time someone tinkers with a
product. I'd be willing to bet the warranty on your computer, car, TV,=20
furnace, ultralight aircraft, pacemaker, etc. would be invalidated by =
the
installation of non-OEM parts too. =20
If you buy an L&L you're buying certain known features, including the=20
element holders, the prop design, etc. They're reliable, require little
maintenance, and are easy to work on when you need to. Many people =
swear
by them, but if you buy one you should consider the consequences of the=20
warranty restriction.
There are plenty more kiln manufacturers out there, and if ITC is =
essential
for you, then you can go with a supplier that lets you use it.=20
-----Original Message-----
From: Clayart [mailto:CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG] On Behalf Of =
LindaBlossom
Sent: Tuesday, December 02, 2003 6:53 PM
To: CLAYART@LSV.CERAMICS.ORG
Subject: Re: Electric Kiln Choices
I really find such ignorance to be disgusting. L&L personnel obviously
don't know anything about itc The use of itc does nothing to a kiln =
that
could give them reason to threaten the warranty. What right do they =
have to
deny someone the use of a product that will add value to the product? =
What
exactly are they warranting that would be affected? The brick are made
stronger, the elements will last much, much longer, - what else is =
there?
Teresa Testa on wed 3 dec 03
I just bought a 12 CU. Crucible electric. It has 3" brick with 1"
insulation, (it also has a Bartlett programmable segment kiln sitter). It just arrived
last night and I am doing an 04 bisque in it now. Tomorrow I will do a cone
10 glaze firing. This kiln is impressive for the money. It was $3850.00. I
priced other kilns for the size and this was the best price. Check out Seattle
pottery on the web for more information.
Tess
Windancer Studio
Teresa Testa on wed 3 dec 03
Did I also mention that Crucible kiln is front loading???
LindaBlossom on wed 3 dec 03
> I just bought a 12 CU. Crucible electric. It has 3" brick with 1"
> insulation, (it also has a Bartlett programmable segment kiln sitter). It
just arrived
> last night and I am doing an 04 bisque in it now. Tomorrow I will do a
cone
> 10 glaze firing. This kiln is impressive for the money. It was $3850.00.
I
> priced other kilns for the size and this was the best price. Check out
Seattle
> pottery on the web for more information.
This seemed a little high so I checked my invoice for the 11.67 cu ft Axner
super kiln I have which has the same features plus the bottom element and
itc coating and including delivery from Florida to New York, it cost $2463
earlier this year.
Linda
NY
Laurie Kneppel on wed 3 dec 03
In my relatively brief time of firing my own stuff and owning kilns (10
years) I have had only two electric kilns. Neither of them has ever
given me any problems. The first one, which taught me how to load and
fire an electric kiln, was a VERY used 1967 vintage Cress AH-15. It had
no manual and the timer didn't work on the kilnsitter anymore. I also
immediately learned how to replace elements since they were probably
the originals that it came with. First thing I did was phone Cress and
ask them a lot of questions, then I found a book on electric kiln
firing... and read it. Got a lot of bisque out of that kiln to feed my
homemade raku kiln. But since the chamber was only a 15 inch cube I
sold it and bought a Skutt KM-1027 about 3-4 years ago. It's done it's
share of bisque and even a few cone 10 but mostly cone 6 glaze firings.
It's happy and I'm happy. Lots more choices on the market today. I
might go for a different shape if I were in the market for a new
electric kiln.
Laurie
Sacramento, CA
http://rockyraku.com
piedpotterhamelin@COMCAST.NET on wed 3 dec 03
Make some calls to Duralite or Euclid and ask them about the frequency of element replacement on the kilns that you listed. I had several conversations on this matter with them and was told that the larger the area for holding the coil, the longer it would last. One manufacturer has sucha small area that only a thin coil can be fitted and with some customers, they are replacing the coils every few months.
--
"Many a wiser men than I hath
gone to pot." 1649
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