My new OLD Skutt 231 Kiln, walkthrough, and comparison to a Skutt 1027
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 14 ก.ค. 2024
- I've been firing my pots in a tiny Paragon Caldera kiln. Now that I've been doing pottery for awhile, and think I'll keep doing it, I started looking to upgrade to something bigger. Here I do a walk through of the Skutt 231 kiln I found. I go over the condition and how the Kiln Sitter and other electrical components work. I found the wiring diagrams on Skutt's website and walk though those. I also compare this kiln and it's wiring to a modern Skutt KM-1027.
Here are links to some of the documents I found from Skutt on these kilns:
Manual with 231 wiring diagram and other info: skutt.com/images/KilnSitterMa...
Manual for modern KM-2017 including wiring diagram: www.skutt.com/pdf/service_manu...
Explanation of Scutt's product naming scheme: www.skutt.com/pdf/KilnSelecti...
Etsy Shop: www.etsy.com/shop/potterybydr... - แนวปฏิบัติและการใช้ชีวิต
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Correction: That original plug is two hot 120v (240V total) lines and a ground that kiln does not have a neutral line.
Thanks for the clarification.
Squeee. Geek speak! More interesting then I thought it would be.
There's a lot more of that in the rest of my rebuild playlist.
Can i ask how much you bought it for? There is one for sale by me, same model, needs some work for $900. Seems steep for an old kiln?
I don't remember at this point, but it was way way less than that.
Hi Kent,
Thanks for the video. I am looking at getting this same model. Question for you. What did or would you use for a control box to upgrade this to “automatic”
Thanks
I replaced mine with a raspberry pi and some open source software (and a few small custom electronics bits). I've been happy with it - watching the temperature profiles in a web browser has been a great feature! I have a playlist here showing the full rebuild of the kiln including several videos on my controller that go into more details.
@@PotterybyKent thanks for the response! I now see your videos on that. I’ve concluded you know way more about the electronics than I do! Haha.
Haha. Yes it is one of the skills I already had. For most folks an off the shelf controller is the easier way to go. But I really don't know much about them.
hi Johnathan, I'm selling a used SKUTT 231 if you're still interested. Feel free to contact me via email: hfkint@gmail.com
I use a SOLO 4896 (I think it is called a PID) from automation direct. Bit of a learning curve to program it cuz it is not programmed the same way digital kilns are, but it ends up being way more versatile. My set up is the controller is mounted on a wall, it has a thermal couple input and a control output to a relay which just controls the power to the wall receptacle that the kiln is plugged in to, I then just leave the manual kiln on high and let the controller manage turning the elements on and off as per my programmed schedule. It also lets me just enter a temperature and it achieves it, which is helpful at the end my crystalline firings as different effects can be achieved by raising and lowering the hold temperatures. It's basically a temperature controller for all kinds of things, not just kilns, that is why it is so versatile. The controller was around $100 (several years ago). I also had to buy a Solid State Relay, a matching aluminum heat sink, a cpu cooling fan, and a K style thermocouple, all bought off amazon for dirt cheap, all working great so far. Back at automation Direct (.com) I bought the controller and some K style thermcouple wire, the proper wire for your thermocouple is very important..
Hi Kent, I just bought a Skutt 231 kiln and I need to refurbish it, can you give me any tips? It looks like everything needs replaced, it looks like it will cost a bit to repair.
That's great. I've really been enjoying mine - even with the one section I removed, it is still huge! Probably the biggest thing to keep an eye out for is the integrity of the high voltage system (power from the wall, relays and elements - I ended up swapping out my elements but in retrospect probably could have tried the old ones longer). And then there's the controller. As you can see in the playlist, I made my own since I have that knowledge. That probably isn't an option for most, but I didn't really look into alternatives.
you should test it for lead
Test what for lead and to what end?
Here's a specific question that you likely know the exact answer to. Do the 231 and the KS1027 use the exact same elements? I have opportunity to buy new elements for a 231 at a decent discount that I hope to be able to put in my KS1027. I know Skutt could answer this but they are closed till Monday, don't want to miss out on a deal. Elements have just about doubled in price since I last purchased, which was not that long ago!
I am not 100% sure, but I'm pretty sure they are. I went the other direction and when I put new elements in mine I used the 1027 elements. There were no issues with size, etc. I've had no issues at all using them.
This is a really good video, but I just have to say, it’s a bit long. I think this could’ve been a five minute video. I’m impatient. What can I say? I also really wish you said how much the kiln cost on craigslist. I’m going to sell my 231 and was looking for a price reference. By the way, today is July 1, 2022
Thanks! Pacing my videos is still something I work at. I watch TH-cam on 2x speed myself!
I actually don't remember the exact price - but I'm not sure a Silicon Valley price from a year ago would be of much help for a comparison. I was watching the local market for a while to get a sense of what kilns were going for in various conditions. After doing that, this one seemed like a reasonable deal to me (especially knowing what I wanted to do to it).