Diesel Foundry Furnace Burner - Part 4
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.พ. 2025
- #metalcasting #homeshop #foundry
In this episode,
Making some sheet aluminium collars for the blower tube.
Making the control box housing from extruded aluminium tube.
Completing the wiring of the control box.
Carrying out a fuel consumption test.
How to make a giant matchstick.
Melting some aluminium in the furnace and timing the melt.
Wrap up including what's happening in the next video.
Sneak preview of a future project.
If we were neighbours, I’d gladly come over and do all your wiring. That’s my favourite part of any project! 😄 Great job on this. I’m really enjoy this series.
I really hope you getting into casting. Its amazing the strange shape stuff you can make. I made stands so for my 6" bandsaw so I can mount it to a work bench, amongst other things. I'd love to see your trials and tribulations with casting. Once you have finished your steam engine of course. So 2025. Maybe 2026 🙂
You would be welcome to take over that phase of the project. I hate it! I start off with the best of intentions and it soon descends into chaos.
Regards,
Mark
everybody would love to be Mark's neighbor
This has been fascinating to watch. Thanks for sharing!
I LOVE IT WHEN A PLAN COMES TOGETHER. Nice work.
Mark - What I love about your projects is that you take them 2 steps farther than I do. I tend to stop at the "good enough" stage, optimum half-assing. You're not a perfectionist or a glamorist, so I still relate to your methods and goals, but you'll add features and improve fit and finish so that each of your projects crosses over that "janky" line into "respectable". It's great to live vicariously through someone who builds things the same way I tend to, but... better. It's a real treat.
yep, takes things a lot further than I do as well - he is a bad influence, thin edge of the wedge stuff, next thing you know I find myself painting what I make!
Thanks for the comments. At the end of the day, I have to justify my investment in a lot of the gear that I have purchased, at least to my wife! I must say that the powder coat system is one thing I would never regret buying. The range of colours and textures you can get can make even the worst looking part acceptable.
Regards,
Mark
Your attention to detail is second to none. Maybe Inheritance Machining might be a close tie. I really do appreciate the explanations and even the missteps. You should be proud of this project. I am really enjoying the series, Mark. Bravo!
i'd love to see a collab with inheritance machining
Thanks. I have watched a lot of Inheritance Machining videos and he does an excellent job. I really envy his stock supply. Making nice things often means having nice materials to make them from.
Regards,
Mark
Like a flaming tornado in there! Wicked! 😃
Well done Preso! 👍😁👍
Scary and hot! What's not to like?
Regards,
Mark
Love the "matchstick" lighting method, neat idea. I would suggest checking the controls box after running for a bit of time in the areas of the speed/voltage. They may heat up and burn out without ventalation. A small computer style fan may be needed. Just don't want you to have to do all that wiring a third time! cheers!
I have already made those changes. I ordered a 40mm silent fan that runs on 12V and I have fitted a small louvre panel in one of the end caps. You may get to see it on the next video. Thanks for the tip.
Regards,
Mark
Float Lock Vise! My favorite drill press vise of all time, been using one for 30 years.
Well spotted. I watched the Blondihacks build but I was keen to have a go at the Wahlstrom 24-12 style with the quick release mechanism.
Regards,
Mark
@@Preso58 The one I have has the screw inside the tube, but it doesn't have quick release mechanism. Mine is made by AMF, American Machine & Foundry I think they owned Harley-Davidson for a while. The threaded key got bad and I had to re-do it, luckily it's just a standard 60 degree V thread 7/16-14 maybe. They made one for Vertical bandsaws as well.
Great job! With the many, many ham radio transmitters, amplifiers and such I have made over the past 40 years I wish I had a CNC router!!! Using a chassis punch for 3" diameter meters in 1/4" aluminum is a stressful workout! What a neat project mate!!! Thanks for bringing us along! We can discuss your wiring off-line!!!!
As much as I deplore the limitations of my little Sieg X3 CNC mill, it does come in mighty handy sometimes. I had used a chassis punch many, many years ago when I used to make my own stereo amplifiers. Remember those 5 pin Din plugs? But a 3" punch in that thick stock would be an Arnold Schwarzenegger workout.
Regards,
Mark
I swear I could feel the heat of the furnace here in England! Great result Mark, well done. 👏👏👍😎
Works pretty good!
Just commenting on some of the talk about flow/pressure.
Flow is relative to pressure against a given restriction (nozzle). So "upgrading to a higher capacity pump", really means just increasing the pressure the pump is capable of delivering at a certain flow rate, and that in turns pushes more fuel through the restriction of that nozzle. The logic goes:
- The pump provides different pressures at a certain flow rates - there will be a curve (look up "Pump Head vs. Flow graph").
- The nozzle also provides it's own Flow, given a certain Pressure. It's rated flow (eg 2.5gal/h will be at it's rated pressure, eg. 150psi, increase the pressure, you increase the flow, vice versa), there is no "efficiency" rating as you seem to have assigned it, some nozzles are designed to operate over multiple pressure ratings.
- The atomisation (droplet size) and velocity of the fuel from the nozzle will be relative to its flow, but that graph isn't linear - as flow decreases (from pressure decreasing), droplet size increases with larger and larger steps until droplet size is infinite (unbroken flow) is achieved.
So when sizing a system, you'll want a pump that can exceed the supply the rated nozzle flow at the given rated nozzle pressure - as you can overdrive them a bit.
But, if your pump's max pressure at the nozzle's given flow rate is lacking - and ends up with less than optimal atomisation, then you don't have a lot of play room to adjust - as turning down the pump's duty cycle below 100% will cause droplet size to increase, droplet velocity to decrease, which will coalesce into larger droplets over a shorter distance, create an inefficient burn, and potentially causing unburnt fuel droplets to reach the furnace wall - which is one explanation for your ongoing fuel issue after you turn the system off, the fuel isn't atomising optimally, and you're getting leakage into the concrete - which at temperature becomes dehydrated and very pourous, which will then push some liquid/evaporated fuel back out as it cools.
As a side note - you might be able to overdrive that pump a bit, since automotive charging systems often run at 14.4V, that pump will be rated for that - so should be happy enough to run at 16V, this could get your some more head room in fuel delivery.
Might also pay to get a pressure gauge on that line, just so you can better inform any further optimistation choices to that fuel system, also makes dialing in "known good fuel/air ratios" a lot easier than eyeballing a knob position.
Thanks for that. I must say that I totally guessed at what I would need in terms of the fuel pump. The nozzle size and GPH rating was suggested by Perry Merrit who built the burner that I was replicating. I sort of anticipated having to scrap the pump at some point once I had been able to verify the burner worked at all. I knew that the 84% "efficiency" thing was misleading but it was more about knowing what the fuel consumption was going to be and therefore the running cost. I have noticed the fuel line pressurising as the pump accelerates. A pressure gauge would be a hand addition.
Regards,
Mark
Good morning Mark,
Couple observations you may want to consider.
A) When opening your lid, it stops while still exposing the steel cover to the edge of the inner casting which allows the flame and heat to work on the metal. Bending your lever arm a little would allow it to move out and not allowing the direct flame to ruin your steel lid over time. My past was maintenance in an Aluminum reduction and rolling mill. Our furnace lids, and openings were a high maintenance repair/replacement issue where steel being exposed to open flame and heat.
B) Have you thought about an electric glow plug igniter for the nozzle? It could be wired into the circuit power and could be beneficial controlling ignition and eliminating your exposure over the open furnace and limit the amount of smoke and sut getting started. These should be readily available. Home heating oil furnaces are still in use.
You've gained a lot of time for heat-up and appears will be pretty economical to run. Great build, I am enjoying your build projects and following along on this project.
Thanks for sharing,
I did notice that the lid didn't swing well clear of the furnace interior but I think it will be OK. I can dial down the flame if I need to open it in future. I still need to get used to the operation and peculiarities of this design. I was keen to have some sort of electric or piezo ignition but sometimes simpler is better. Less to go wrong!
Regards,
Mark
Easiest way to put out the torch is to have a container filled with diesel, and then submerge it. Then it is always nice and soaked with diesel next time you use it.
If only I had sealed the bottom of that tube that the torch sits in! However, the wick seems to hold a lot of fuel anyway.
Regards,
Mark
The way I've always done it, is you clip the wire inside it's sheath of plastic, then fish the end out. Where you see the hoseclamp go over the wire. You clip it there. Then pull the 2-3" of wire out of the plastic tube it sits in. This gives you another 1/2" of plastic width to keep the actual cut end of the metal wire from springing outwards, and lets a hoseclamp work.
That's how I've always done it
Thanks. Part of my problem was not being able to get a hose clamp with a large enough range but removing the wire altogether would have resolved the issue.
Regards,
Mark
@@Preso58 It doesn't look great, but it does work! just put 2 hoseclamps on and make sure the first has a bit of tail sticking out
Nicely done, as usual. The fit and finish is always very good and you present in a very friendly manner.
My only change would be to make the fuel canister metal and maybe put metal dryer duct hose in replacement of the plastic one as well.
Great job
Nice. Mine is still in parts. I have purchased a misting oil spray nozzle complete with air spinner/bracket and high voltage ceramic igniter as a unit. I also purchased a Japan nippon electromagnetic pump VSC90A5. All of this from Aliexpress. I like your setup but not the plastic fuel tank. A splatter of hot metal could melt a hole and spill diesel everywhere. I have a steel Jerry can with a modified pourer. I will use fuel hose protected with stainless steel braid, and a metal can fuel filter. A lot of the heat applied to the crucible is radiant heat from the furnace walls. Reducing the thermal mass of the furnace will reduce heating time. I plan to melt iron. Good to follow behind your project.
Thanks. I have some of that stainless steel braid and I can fit it over the hose but I am sort of stuck with the tank for now. I could fit a stainless steel cover over the top surface though. I found an AliExpress seller that had all the items you have for your system.
Regards,
Mark
@@Preso58 Being an electronics engineer I will be avoiding electronics in my version. The electric pump pressure is mechanically adjustable and I have an all-metal pressure gauge that I will use while regulating fuel flow. The nozzles don't work well at low pressure so if needed, I will make an adjustable pulsed flow regulator, mechanical of course. This will supply fuel at full pressure, but regulate flow by PWM. I plan to regulate air flow with a sliding sleeve over the burner pipe. The blower will run at 100% but air flow to the nozzle will be controlled by sliding the sleeve to cover/uncover holes in the pipe. Surplus air will bleed off. I suspect the problem you have with burning after fuel shut off is because of fuel absorbed into the furnace refractory lining. Flame impingement on the lining is not a good thing. I plan to enlarge the inner diameter near the base of the furnace to give plenty of room for the flame to develop.
I really very much like your Service Cart, and while I'd considered doing something very like it, you've really helped me make up my mind that it's something I need to do before Fall this year. Especially with my kids around, having the whole foundry arrangement as something I can easily put away and which will remain tidy during operation as well as in storage is both safer for all of us and a good behavior to model for them, frankly. Your matchstick is a stroke of genius!
And, you can do a spot of fire twirling!
Regards,
Mark
@@Preso58 Now *there's* something to teach the kids...
Good to see the machine melting some metal. It runs really well, and melts the aluminum very fast, great job on this build. I like how you fabricated that metal bracket for the air hose, that worked out well.
I see the lid stop works nicely. Thanks for the shout out.
Cant wait for the float lock vise build. I have had one on my 'to do' list for a while, but there is never enough time...
Thanks Jon. It is a vast improvement over the old propane burner but I have been told that I should have run the blower with the propane and used a bigger jet for the gas. I guess the propane burner worked right from the start so I didn't bother to mess with it. I thought all propane burners were slow. Evidently not! The lid stop works great.
Regards,
Mark
Good series and a great outcome Mark, I hope this furnace will play a part in many future projects, nice job. 👍😊
What a fantastic series! Really nice build, the ease of using diesel is a real time saver and the convenience is really a big deal. Thanks for the step by step.
Excellent video. I'm saving this 😅
Gday Preso, absolutely brilliant result, im amazed how quick that melted the aluminium, cheers
Thanks Matty. I was just glad it worked at all.
Regards,
Mark
Great series, as usual Presso. Never would have considered diesel fuel for this situation, you've expanded my horizons!
I must say I was very sceptical when Perry Merrit first floated the idea of using diesel and trying to atomise it without compressed air but now I am a convert. I think the key is to buy a well engineered nozzle.
Regards,
Mark
Great video, Presso!
Unfortunately, my wife still says “No.”, so I’ll just have to be content watching you use yours.
Nice work Mark. Great video as usual.
Great job! The 3D printed parts really make it look professional.
So much wisdom in few hours, beautifully edited, thank you, looking forward to next video
Enjoyed….great video production/discussion/demonstration/build…….koko
Thanks Chuck. Wait until you see my float lock vice build! Inspired by your version.
Regards,
Mark
I'm surprised how quick it can melt aluminium. That's fast.
And indeed, that was a quick sneek peek
Thanks Michel. I must say I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly it melted that stock. I don't need to set aside a whole morning to make castings any more.
Regards,
Mark
top job Preso
I gave you a thumbs up because you are old and still working
Well, I'll take that as a compliment then 😁
Regards,
Mark
Greetings from Finland. I really enjoy your videos Mark and truly appreciate that you share your expertise to everyone. I believe that many, many people me including are inspired by your projects and your know how. Thanks, Mark!
This thing is looking great. I've made about a dozen natural gas kilns and there's a lot of similarities here. I get my higher temp refractories from Morgan Thermal Ceramics. They have 5 locations across Australia. I use their Cerachem and Cerachrome line, but you can pick which ever you want to get you to the temps you need. Don't go over the rated temp like some people in the comments suggest because the surface will vitrify and harden and flake off. That'll be a major issue with all that whirling wind. The other thing i noticed is the black soot flaking off in places. That's from incomplete burning, obviously. My suggestion would be to dial back the fuel until no flames are coming out of the top at all. All of that fuel is wasted and it's a sign of incomplete burning in the chamber. I would also like to see you put a ceramic coated pyrometer in there. They're cheap and with the ceramic over them they will react more slowly, the way the crucible itself does. Do some ladder testing: 50% fuel maxes out at X temp and simply won't get any hotter, 60% maxes out at Y temp, etc. Only increase your fuel when you're getting close to them and you'll get the very most out of fuel and you should see a lot less of that flaky black soot and hopefully won't have any burning at the bottom when you're done.
I was waiting for the flame to turn blue.
I do have a pyrometer for checking the melt temperature but it gets dipped directly into the crucible. I bought another K type thermocouple but it has the short threaded sensor which wasn't suitable for dipping into the molten metal. I will look into your suggestion. The black soot deposits were a bit of a surprise to me too. I am going to need a lot more time to get used to the "personality" of this burner. I am just happy that it works and that it is quicker than the old propane burner. I am sure there is a lot of scope for optimising the whole system.
Regards,
Mark
Another great project done well and explained well.
I was thinking your air hose connections might be 3D printed bayonet or 1/4 turn quick disconnects.
Instead of cutting a hole in your tank for the fuel pump, maybe a metal plate to fit the fill opening with the pump attached and another 3D printed part, a nut, like the cap, to hold it in place. Fewer holes to worry about in the tank.
Good job!
Thanks for sharing.
Thanks. I am starting to rethink the fuel pump connection issue. Another viewer has made a similar suggestion. Luckily, I haven't committed to cutting any more holes in the tank so you may see a dramatic change of plan in the next video.
Regards,
Mark
@@Preso58 Thanks for the reply
I enjoy your content, thanks for sharing.
Looking and working great. The drill press clamp looks like a nice design. Looking forward to it 👍
Thanks 👍
Really cool. Another fine project, Mark. Seems like you got close to the nozzle rating. I bet that nozzle delivery rate assumes a certain temperature of the fuel. A higher fuel temp would make it less viscous and flow more at a give pressure. Regarding the continued burning after shutting down, if the level of liquid fuel in the tank is above the nozzle in the burner, and there's no check valve obstruction to overcome, fuel will likely continue to flow, even when the pump is shut down. As the fuel reaches the burner area, it warms up in the tube and likely flows really easy out of the nozzle at that point. A very light spring loaded blow back valve might offer just enough restriction to stop flow when the pump is off yet not cause enough of an impediment to affect burner operation.
I think I have found the reason it continues to burn. There is a small check valve built into the pump and the fuel line pressurises during the burn phase. Once the pump is shut down electrically, the pressure in the fuel hose continues to push fuel out of the nozzle. I did forget to turn off the tapered plug valve at the burner end and that is something I will have to get used to doing at the end of the melt. Hopefully, I will have more to say about it in the next video.
Regards,
Mark
The duct end covers are a great idea, and beautifully executed
Mark, if in future you need to get 240V AC in and out of a box use the IEC13 plugs and sockets. They take up way less space and Jaycar sell them. They also avoid having trailing leads which are just one more thing to wrangle.
The IEC13 power inlet can be had with a switch, a fuse and a neon indicator.
I have used those IEC3 plugs before on my laser cutter/engraver and my CNC controller. Unfortunately, the nearest Jaycar to me is now 45 minutes away. There used to be reseller very close by but they sold up. Jaycar also charge what I consider to be outrageous shipping fees. Remember the good old days when you could buy all that stuff at Dick Smith?
Regards,
Mark
@@Preso58 Yes, I remember the good old days when DIck Smith and Jaycar were a short walk away from one another and both were very close to where I live. I needed a lot of both inlets and outlets for a big lighting job so bought from Ali, cheaper by the 100 but I'm still trying to give the darn things away. The other alternative is just an outlet which you can buy at electrical trade suppliers. Bunnings stock them. They come in both surface and s\flush mount. All approved for use i behind appliances where having a switch makes no sense .
Like usual Mr P you always impress!!! Nice build and I like it when you explain what you are thinking as you build. Thank you so very much!!!!
Cheers
Hi Preso, excellent result. The service cart works well and makes everything neat and tidy.
Melting metal and casting can be extremely dangerous so its paramount to be well organisedand your setup is certainly that...
Regards Kevin
Thanks Kevin. I have a lot of respect for the whole process of metal casting. I can be a bit casual about workshop safety sometimes but when it comes to liquid metal I try not to take any chances.
Regards,
Mark
Nice job 👏👏
Cheers Chris
Great work with a beautiful fit and finish, I can barely wait to see a heat from start to finish, enjoyed. cheers!
don't forget some vent holes, those switch mode power supplies last longer when they are not hot
Fixed! I am in the process of fitting a louvre vent to one end and I have ordered a 40mm 12V fan for the other end.
Regards,
Mark
Grate edition to the furnace. Looking forward to the next edition. Would like for it to be a little sooner, but life gets in the way, so we get it. Thanks for sharing.
Looking forward to the next vid and the changes, (maybe 😉 )
Thanks, there will be no real changes in content or delivery but I am in the process of monetising the channel since TH-cam is going to insert advertising anyway and I am planning to donate any income to a wildlife charity.
Regards,
Mark
another AMAZING shop tool, impressive. I'm surprised you don't need vent holes in the electronics box. Might be a good idea to calibrate and then mark the outside of the fuel tank so you can tell how many minutes of fuel you have. Or, invent a fuel level gauge and program an Arduino to drive a digital read out to show time left for fuel and fuel flow ..... yeah right.
@@dazaspc or like I suggest, just look at the level, the tank is translucent.
I have modified the control box to include some forced air cooling. I don't think it really gets that hot but it's better to be safe than sorry. I must say that restraint is needed sometimes when it comes to adding new features to things that I make. You know what they say, "If it ain't broke, it doesn't have enough features yet". 😁
Regards,
Mark
Really satisfying to see it evolve with all the slots and holes in that enclosure.
its remarkable how similar our furnaces behave. I felt I could have been watching mine during the lighting, melt, and residual fuel flame thingy. Looking forward to the final fit and finish.
Thanks Perry. I have been working on a few improvements today. There are a lot of really good suggestions coming out of the comments.
Regards,
Mark
How have u not 100k subs yet? Underated channel in the algorythm for sure. Learn so much from you Preso. Very good series and very informative too. Stay amped!!
Thanks. My little TH-cam counter on my desk shows that my subscriber count is still growing so that's good enough for me.
Regards,
Mark
Very nice!! Great work on this project Mark !
Looking good Mark😊😊
Well done Mark. That’s an impressive build and I certainly gained a lot of useful knowledge from it. It’s interesting to me that it looks like you’re going to be making some clamps. I collect Australian made G clamps and have made a pattern to cast my own, first in aluminium and if that’s successful then brass. First though I’m trying my hand at lost wax casting to make an aluminium Michelin Man. I’ve made the silicone mould and the first wax copy has come out well so next is the plaster mould and so on. I’m really enjoying your channel. Cheers Stuart. Canberra.
Thanks Stuart. One day I will have a go at lost wax casting. We did a bit of it when I was at college and we had a centrifugal casting machine for making jewellery. It was terrifying to use but we only melted pewter. However the potential for flinging molten metal everywhere was not zero!
The clamp design is as close as I can get to the original float lock vice with the quick setting mechanism. Blondihacks made the type with the long feed screw but that mechanism requires a lot of cranking to fully open it.
It may not work but I have 3D printed some mockups and I will test it before committing to metal parts.
Regards,
Mark
@@Preso58 Of course it will work, I’ve never seen you fail. It’s all a learning curve and that’s what makes it interesting. 👍👍👍
I was watching it heat up and he dialed in the air mix and got it looking quite good of a burn, then @30:47 only moments later, he decides to DIAL UP THE FUEL!! flames start spewing out the top, bright orange and yellow flames too!! If the burning isn't happening inside the kiln, it isn't heating anything up either. Keep the flames inside and the air dialed in correctly so you get as complete of combustion as you can... not sure if you'll ever get blue torch going with your burner design but do your best to make damn sure there's no black smoke being produced... or any smoke produced at all for that matter! Anyhow you've got a real decent looking piece of kit there now and I'm sure you're going to have a blast melting all kinds of metals with it. Have fun and keep on posting the vids!
To be fair, I had almost zero experience with the whole setup when I made that video. It does take time to get to know the system and how it behaves. I have since dialled in the settings and I can get it to burn lean with little to no smoke and soot.
Regards,
Mark
That's how my daughter got from Honolulu to Oakland last week.
What a great series this has been...
Great build Presso! Enjoying the methodical way you build stuff! Don't change too much!
Nice job mate 👍
Great build Mark. Really impressive performance increase!
I know, it exceeded my expectations but it has a bit of "personality" and it will take some getting used to.
Regards,
Mark
@@Preso58 When I saw it smoking away like a locomotive before you increased the air I thought whoa, the missus will never go for that!
Good to see such a successful outcome. Well done Mark.
it's probably changed now as heating in the UK is fully metric but back when I started in the heating industry nozzle ratings were met at 100 psi fuel pressure. You had a limited amount of output adjustment by bumping up the pump pressure but that did give you better atomisation and a cleaner burn providing all the other settings were correct. There was also a ball and spring in the burner arm acting as a pressure cut off so the burner did not pee fuel and continue a dirty burn after the pump was shut down.
I think Perry Merrit tried to replicate the spring loaded check valve at the nozzle end of the line but he told me it failed prematurely. He told me to just put a plug valve in the line instead. I have done that but I forgot to shut it after I turned the pump off. Hopefully I'll get it right next time.
Regards,
Mark
Excellent! There’s quite a lot of chunky heat sinks on the components in the control unit so would you run a heat soak test at various pump and blower settings and check the working temperature in the control unit with the ends on? May need some airflow holes or even a small fan when running for longer periods or in the depths of the Australian summer 😀. Here in Yorkshire, heat is rarely a problem…
Thanks, I have reworked the end covers to include a 40mm 12V silent PC fan and a louvre vent. You should be able to see the upgrade in the next video.
Regards,
Mark
That was so Cool I ha ha ha can't believe how Bad to the Bone that sucker is totally awesome thank you very much Sr from Alaska 😂🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉😊
Thanks. It works great. I have used it quite a lot since making that video series. I sometimes forget that you can overheat the melt quite easily when working with aluminium. I had read that you should never try to ram up a mould while the furnace is melting material. It's tempting to go look for something else to do but you really do need to monitor what is going on inside the furnace.
Regards,
Mark
@Preso58 I'll bet you do need to keep an eye out what a beautiful furnace. Thanks for sharing your hard work and especially sending me a message I live in Alaska I have been up here for about 27 years and am 48 I love to prospect for gold and minerals I am working right now on an ammonium bifluoride deposit with gold and especially a metal called scandium a pricey alloy for aluminum and have learned a lot from you already It is federally regulated so I am working on my assay to send to the special laboratory in Fairbanks Alaska but it's a little bit pricey so when I get the paper work I will let you know how it turned out good to here from you and when I get my assessment I will let you know how it turned out see ya later have a wonderful day.
I rreally look forward to these videos.
Awesome! Looking forward to seeing the upcoming casting projects.
👍👍 great job, Mark !
Greetings !
Very impressive ! Thank you !
Excellent work Mark and a very enjoyable series. I look forward to seeing some castings in future videos.
Excellent job stem to stern. Thank you.
That's one very nice looking setup. Next time you need to make the wick torch use exhaust heat wrap. Back in my fire twirling days we were too cheap to buy the good fire staff wicks and used exhaust heat wrap. Lasts for ages and only really breaks down due to dropping and abrasion.
Thanks for the tip!
Regards,
Mark
@@Preso58 im in SE Qld and pretty sure I have some spare if you wanted me to send it to you.
@@NathanNostaw Thanks for the offer. I don't want to put you out though. I probably only use the furnace about 5 times a year. I will see how the hessian tape goes and if it doesn't hold up I will get in touch.
Regards,
Mark
Great video, not sure if you mention it, but I would recommend adding some air ventilation for the electrical box for cooling. You could add air slots in the 3d printed ends.
And that is done! I have fitted a small 12V fan and a vent on the electrical enclosure. You will see it in the next video.
Regards,
Mark
Thanks for the good research
I love to make the same
Well done Mark. The fuel, etc, a smaller jet..??????..😊 But be carefull, I am not a vulcaologist, but a half smart electrician and an old one at that.
The tab to locate the lid, I would have it on the lid instead of protruding from the body of the furnace. Less risk of grabbing onto something if the tab points down and is not on the lip of the furnace, no risk that the bottom of the crucible bumps into it when you are retrieving a crucible full of molten metal.
Sure, NOW you tell him…. 😅
There are proper fittings and clamps to suit different sizes of flexible hose. The tube fittings have a turned up flange and they are clamped together with a rubber lined cam close clamp. I have used them in different sizes on a couple of projects.
Another viewer had told me the name of the type of clamp to search for and I found a supplier. I knew that there would be something ready made that would do the job but it would have meant a three hour round trip to get them or I would have to order them online and wait forever to get them.
I can be impatient that way!
Regards,
Mark
You could also change the potentiometer to a twin pot, then as you ramp up the air the fuel would also ramp up 👍🏴
I think it's important to be able to tune the two independently. Once it all gets hot you can leave the fuel delivery as is and just increase the air supply. I have really only used it in the furnace twice so it's going to take a while to get used to the operation.
Regards,
Mark
Love it, thank you.
A good project and a fantastic result. Have you considered a propane fuelled "weed burner" for lighting, if you have such things in Oz.
We do have them here but it's just another thing that you have to have filled with gas. One of my initial criteria was to have a furnace that was simple and that didn't rely on too many ancillary systems. I do have a little gas lighter that I use for my Oxy Propane torch but it is small and easy to put in my pocket once I have lit up the giant match.
Regards,
Mark
I’ve been liking the burner build. Very nice and it works well.
Kinda puzzled about all the soot. Maybe it’s from the impurities in the diesel. I would suggest trying kerosene. But after hearing what your diesel cost! Kerosene would be ungodly!
Thanks for sharing and I’ll keep on watching.
The soot just indicates rich running. I need to do a lot more testing to dial in the settings. The reality is that that last video was only the second time I had run it and the first time was just a short test. Things will get better!
Regards,
Mark
I'm sure I'm not telling you anything you don't know, but 8 lph is approximately 80 kw/h with diesel. 273,000 btu/h. That's a lot, I think...
As for the nozzle, pressure and flow. These nozzles are designed to run between 100 and 200 psi (usually). Altho the atomization is plenty good for a foundry furnace, the fine mist makes for smaller droplets. This leads to more efficient combustion. If all you are worried about is being able to ignite the fuel, then what you have is fine. Also, due to the intense heat of the foundry, as long as you have enough air flow, there will be a secondary burn in the foundry itself.
I know the videos were released a year ago, so this comment is more so that I can feel good about myself trying to help. I'm sure you've got this all figured out by now.
I do know that the nozzles are optimised for a much higher pressure than my little pump can provide. The spray that my setup can create is somewhat "coarse" and you do need to be careful when everything is cold. It's easy to get the fuel/air mixture too rich or lean, but once everything is hot it just seems settle down and I can lean out the mixture without worrying about creating a lot of smoke and soot. At the end of the session, the inside of the furnace is pure white so I guess that it is running efficiently.
Regards,
Mark
@@Preso58 I have watched a few more videos. Awesome project. Well done.
32:02 most of your fire is just above the vent hole. I lengthened the burn tube on my diesel furnace to get the hottest part of the fire in the chamber and not just above it.
33:53 yeah it's not burning right, look at all the soot on the crucible. The diesel needs a longer "chute" to blow through before it enters the burn chamber.
This was my very first experience with the burner and I was still learning to finesse the air and fuel settings. I made some more castings and worked out how to tune the settings better. Once the refractory is hot I can dial the fuel back and increase the air to lean out the flame considerably. The interior of the furnace was pure white at the end of that session.
Regards,
Mark
Looks great. Change... Change... what change is this you speak of Mr Presser???
There will be no change in the content or the delivery. I have decided to monetise the channel since TH-cam are going to insert advertising anyway. However, I will be donating any income to a local wildlife charity that care for sick and injured native birds and animals. Many people comment on the wildlife shots I sometime include at the end of the videos so it seemed like a good fit for the channel.
Regards,
Mark
All that soot suggests that the burner is running a bit rich.
Other than that, congratulations on a very nice project.
It was when I first tested it but I have been able to experiment with the settings and I can now lean the flame out after the refractory has heated up. The last time I ran it the interior was pure white when I let it cool down after melting some aluminium.
Regards,
Mark
If you want a wider Hose Clamp chase up NORMA as a brand. I have used them on heavy duty Pump Suction lines over the years and should be easy to find.
Hi Mark. I enjoy your projects. If I may throw in an idea for the fuel tank?
You already have the pump in there. Why cut more holes in it? Why not fit a gland fitting close the current opening, allowing easier fitting of the gland nut and feeding the fuel and electrical through. How often will you need to pull the pump out?
Cheers.
I had not thought of that. I did mount the fuel pump rigidly on a copper conduit today and I was planning on making the flange and mounting hardware for the top of the tank tomorrow. I will take your suggestion on board and take another look at it.
Regards,
Mark
this will be epic
I built very similar furnace, I use diesel / waste oil mix. It will burn just about anything as long as its clean. I had the same after burn problem turned out the shut off valve was leaking a little when the furnace was off and would soak the floor of the furnace with oil, eventually it burns out. It looks like your setup could siphon from the tank if the valve wasn't closed.
I will be talking about the burn run on issue in the next video. It's an easy fix and it's to do with me just getting the order of operations sorted out.
Regards,
Mark
brilliant
Excellent build, vid & series Preso, so when do we add the Turbo!? The “Handle Scandal”, I always thought should have been raised 200-300mm above the cart handle & in the same line so you could open it in either direction & it would be higher & out of the way of the heat exhausting. TFS & a very entertaining few hours, havta check out what else you got. Cheers
Thanks for watching. I am almost finished the next instalment of the build and then I can get onto some actual metal casting.
Regards,
Mark
Nice way of lighting the furnace. And overall nice build and interresting miniseries :)
The residual fuel that burns after you have turned it off, could it be some that has absorbed into the refractory material?
I think it just that there is some residual pressure between the check valve in the pump and the nozzle. I forgot to turn off the plug valve in the burner.
Regards,
Mark
Hi I enjoy build videos thanks . Could I suggest that your flame is burning too rich and thats why you are getting the yellow flame and the burning flame after you have turned it off , is unburned fuel in the bottom of your furnace . I have built a simular size furnace using diesel siphon nozzel . This means I don't need a blower or a fuel pump , just a compressor which I already had . It takes about 15 to 20 minutes to melt about 5KG of aluminuim and uses very little fuel .
I guess I am a bit inexperienced with this burner and I am going to have to work with it for a while to discover how to manage the fuel/air mix. It's quite unlike my propane burner which is sort of light and forget! However it is quick and despite the soot, it's certainly hot. I am sure you will see it running much better in future videos.
Regards,
Mark
very nice project, thanks for sharing. GPO you must have a bit of sparky in you?
No, but don't tell anyone that I fit my own GPO's in my shed.
Regards,
Mark
The tab on the side of the foundry body is a good feature to position the lid in teh closed position.
However this results in a tab protruding up when the lid is open.
this may be a hazard r may get in the way when using the foundry in the open position.
I suggest that it is better to secure the tab to the underside of the lid, does the same thing but is safer and out of the way.
True, and indeed the TH-camr I stole the idea from made the same suggestion but so far it has not been an issue.
Regards,
Mark
Great video series Mark. I had wondered if the furnace that Martin (Olfoundryman) used in his setup could be mimicked on a smaller scale and you have done just that.
Martin sent me some drawings of his burner design and it was way, way more complex than what I have made. It was a true commercial foundry furnace burner with all cast iron construction and multiple jets for air and fuel. It made my brain hurt just looking at it. At the end of the day though, fuel and air go in and heat comes out. At least that's what you hope for.
Regards,
Mark
Ooooh float lock vise a la blondihacks!
Almost. I am going to try to replicate the Wahlstrom quick set mechanism known as the 24-12. It only has the one bar and a short clamping screw, but you can move the fixed jaw quickly over the whole range.
Regards,
Mark
it certainly looks capable of melting iron, i wouldn't worry too much about your refractory, it'll hold, it's just that it won't last for years if you hold it high temps for days at a time like in an industrial setup. aluminium will only take you so far!
I think you have to be a real man to melt iron. I think I will stick with the wimpy non ferrous stuff.
Regards,
Mark
@@Preso58 nah, if I can do it, anybody can! it seems scarier at first due to the higher temps but it's all hot enough to hurt if you're not careful. It's the density of the stuff that's the big difference, so as long as your handling gear (and physique!) can handle it, you'll have no worries. Weirdly enough, I wen't the opposite way to most, I started with iron, then bronze, then ali! there's nothing like learning to swim at the deep end!
Mark nice job! If wiring is hidden away, it only needs good integrity not good looks.
When you shut off furnace did only pump get turned off? A hard shutoff valve may help. I am suspecting siphoning from tank to burner.???
Yes, I just cut the power to the pump and I wasn't prepared for the back pressure in the delivery line. I do have a plug valve at the burner nozzle and once I turned that off the flame died down very quickly. I think there is a check valve built into the pump which stops back flow so the pressurised fuel has to leak out of the burner nozzle. I am sure I will get these little wrinkles ironed out with a bit more use.
Regards,
Mark
hey there are special hose clamps for spiral hoses, in german its called "brückenschelle DIN3017" wich would roughly translate to bridge clamp for spiral hose - that could be exactly what you are looking for! (just googled, they are called bridge clamp in english too :) )
I just googled it too. Amazing! They are made in left and right handed versions as well. I will remember that for next time!
Regards,
Mark
Nice, now that you have it dialed in do you notice having to deal with much soot compared to propane? Does it add soot inclusions into your casting or anything? Is it generally messier than dealing with propane?
Once everything is hot I can lean out the flame and by that time the metal in the crucible has started to melt. The interior of the furnace is pure white after a casting session so it seems there is no soot or carbon particles left in the furnace. I haven't noticed any issues with the quality of the castings and one thing I was told was to ensure that the metal is melted as quickly as possible. The longer the metal is in contact with any sort of flame, the more chance there is for porosity to develop. In my view, it's a better solution than propane in terms of fuel cost and storage but there is a learning curve for starting up the furnace. It is possible to mismanage the fuel air ratio when things are cold and you need to be adjusting the blower and fuel pump settings but once it is hot, it just looks after itself.
Regards,
Mark
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