Teresa Testa on tue 31 aug 04
I am getting ready to change out my electric kiln elements for the first
time. I learned a lot from all the recent past postings. I did have a question
about the barrel type connectors. Someone said they should be made of copper
or brass. I went to the local hardware store and I could not find any. I have
a friend who is a machinist. He suggested making custom made barrel
connectors. He insisted that they should be made out of stainless steel. So now I
have these custom barrel connectors made of stainless steel. I was wondering if
it would be OK to use them, or should I try to find some made of copper or
brass?
I have a 12 CU ft Crucible front loader, with a Bartlett controller.
Teresa Testa
Windancer Studio, Las Vegas, NV
Arnold Howard on wed 1 sep 04
Teresa, I would hesitate to use a custom-made barrel connector. If it fails,
you will lose all your elements. Paragon uses an element barrel connector.
We have found that small details such as hole size, number of screw threads,
and type of screws are important.
At any rate, no matter what type of connector you use, make sure to tighten
the screws securely. A loose connection can destroy an element. Getting the
screws tight is more important than the type of element connector used. A
loose connector will make a tiny electrical arc, which causes overheating. I
recently heard of a new element that failed after only nine firings. It was
due to a loose screw in the element connector.
Good luck with changing your elements. You will find that it is not at all
difficult if you are careful in following the instructions.
Sincerely,
Arnold Howard
Paragon Industries, L.P., Mesquite, Texas USA
arnoldhoward@att.net / www.paragonweb.com
----- Original Message -----
From: "Teresa Testa"
> I am getting ready to change out my electric kiln elements for the first
> time. I learned a lot from all the recent past postings. I did have a
question
> about the barrel type connectors. Someone said they should be made of
copper
> or brass. I went to the local hardware store and I could not find any. I
have
> a friend who is a machinist. He suggested making custom made barrel
> connectors. He insisted that they should be made out of stainless steel.
So now I
> have these custom barrel connectors made of stainless steel. I was
wondering if
> it would be OK to use them, or should I try to find some made of copper or
> brass?
> I have a 12 CU ft Crucible front loader, with a Bartlett controller.
Craig Clark on wed 1 sep 04
Teresa, if you are going to use the barrel type connectors it is a
good idea to use the ones that come with your elements.You shouldn't
have to get anything custom made. At least that has not been my
experience. ALso, check out ITC products before you change your
elements. Well worth the investment!!!!!
As to the stainless steel, I believe that is what all of the barrel
type connectors that I have used have been made of. They will resist
corrossion well and stand up to the high temp better.
Another option is to consisder split-bolt connectors. If you use
them you won't need to have a proper crimpiing tool that is reccommended
by manufacturers, atleast the folks at Skutt, for the barrel type crimp
connectors. If they loosen up a bit over the life of your elements all
you need to do is unscrew them, clean things up, and recconnect.
Hope this helps
Craig Dunn Clark
618 East 11 1/2 st
Houston, Texas 77008
(713)861-2083
mudman@hal-pc.org
Teresa Testa on thu 2 sep 04
Thank you for the timely reply about the connectors. I don't think I will
use the stainless steel ones. I just found out the electrical conductivity of
stainless steel is 12, whereas copper is 97. I called Seattle Pottery, (where I
bought the kiln) and they said they may have some barrel type connectors
around. So I ordered some from them. I will let you all know how it turns out.
Thanks, Teresa Testa
Windancer Studio
Las Vegas, NV
PS: My prayers are with all of you who are in hurricane territory.
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