I am glad you mentioned rigidizer and the risks of using uncoated ceramic wool insulation. For the home builder there is a pre coated product available and I would hope the manufactures would start using it.
If the lid does burn out at the opening and enlarge, I think cutting a larger hole (square for ease or round if you are up to it) and replacing it with a piece of stainless steel sheet larger than the hole with the exact same size center hole, held in place with solid steel rivets or steel bolts would end future issues. Use a slightly thicker piece of stainless steel if available. I would imagine that as the original steel erodes, the insulation will also. To cut out the patch, an electric or an air powered "zizz wheel" (cut off tool with a thin a thin abrasive disc, some people call it a "death wheel) cut off tool. Just make sure the blade is in good condition, worn evenly, etc. Thanks for posting this. I just got a notification from Vevor about their stainless steel 12KG model. It looks like the same tongs are supplied.
Opinion from a scrap yard’s perspective: Would not suggest creating personal ingots if you’re looking for profit on your scrap. You will have a tough time selling your material and likely downgrading your metal. You won’t be able to certify the metal in your ingots. Smaller yards won’t be able to verify the chemistry and although larger operations could run their tests they will likely downgrade knowing quality won’t be consistent from a garage smelter. Melting is definitely fun, would only suggest if you’re just looking to create cool content online and not looking to profit off this metal.
I agree. Eventually you will find someone that will buy them but it’s tough. Most yards won’t especially if they don’t know you. Surprisingly there’s people that will buy them on eBay. Even at crazy premiums for some reason. Personally I think a few 5 gallon buckets of bare bright solid core is just as pretty😂
I can verify this, I worked at a foundry that processed lots of aluminum, every batch was sparked on the spectrometer with the sheet included with the ingots. One exception was a nail company that paid for aluminum ingots for deoxidizing their alloys, but they only wanted extruded aluminum. Lead would be another exception, we melted down anything from poo pipe to used medical isotope casks for mill anchor. Hahaha, Zinc fires are great indoors, nothing like coming in to a dusting of snow. Oh, and slag is from smelters, what you skim off is called dross.
Oh I’m aware, you’re 100% right all the way down 😁 I’m only doing it because it’s a fun visual representation of the content recovered from specific scrap items (and the internet seems to enjoy scrap melting vids)
@@thubprintRemember to open your eyes in the morning when you wake up. Oh gosh i almost forgot, remember to put the toothpaste on the brush before you brush your teeth.. I'm here mate anymore advice 👍🏻
Mine JUST got to my door!.... Hence me coming here to see what you had to say about it! I feel a lot more confident in the purchase now. I only paid about $120 for the EXACT same setup. With some of the projects that I have in mind to do, I feel like it was money well spent now. All I need now is another pair of tongs, maybe a couple of different sizes of crucibles, and a couple of different molds (not to mention better gloves)... Thanks for the review buddy! It was really helpful! 👍
@@msoul3248 If I'm not mistaken, I think I got the extra crucible straight from vevor's site (for about $40). I can't remember who makes the extra pair of tong's that I got, but if I'm remembering right, I just shopped around on Amazon until I found a pair that was a little more affordable than what they were going for on Vevor's page. The ones I wound up getting were about $35, but they were $60 - $70 everywhere else I looked. 👍 (P.S. Still haven't got the molds that I want yet... been using muffin pans and stuff like that. lol)
You need a bimetal pyrometer to monitor temps. Drill a hole 3/4 upper furnace hight and use an angle so the tip 4" of the thermocouple is to the side of the fiber insulation. Use Sodium Silicate mixed with Kaolin powder as an adhesive to seal the probe hole. It makes a decent mortar also. I built about 20 furnaces like yours that could melt 200 pounds of copper.
Thanks Tim, I just got one last week and want my first firing, melt and pour to go as well as it can. I have a pyrometer (for firing a pottery kiln) but haven't yet considered applying it to this task. Your install description is helpful. I made cast sculptures 40 years ago using wax investment and also sand casting process. I don't want to overheat brass and do want to monitor the temperature to be able to plan for time and to calculate gas usage. The sodium silicate & kaolin combo for sealing up the kaowool surface sounds like a good treatment and will apply that. I have used a water- alumina - kaolin mixture to keep kiln shelves clean. I think I may add some alumina to increase the heat durability of the coating and reduce the possibility of cracking, what do you thinks?
A full ceramic mortar coating is better, and you should always preheat your molds to prevent explosions and get a smoother cast. You can always remelt if you get a lot of holes or a bad cast
did you temper the crucible first? slowly heat in a domestic oven to dry it out. then heat in furnace to highest temp you plan to use it at, and hold this temp for around 20 min. seems to glaze the crucible and make it last a lot longer without the flaking you saw. experiment with some casting, its great fun!
@brockverrall1514 it doesn't get hot enough to melt steel but does get it really hot. I bet with some mods it could get it hot enough for smelting. There are other platforms designed more specifically for it though.
I bought mine based on this review. They have improved the lid to keep the insulation in. But the tongs and the gloves are crap as you say. Great fun! And thanks!
I am glad you posted this video. I am new to this and debated making my own or possibly a purchase like the devil forge(before I saw this). I have most if not all the items needed except the batting and the burner to make. I have noticed many saying “its not worth it to melt down” or “your scrap yard may not take it” but I find my need is a little more of having large sized buckets of copper, aluminum, cast(fan motor ends) that I would like to convert to smaller stacking units. I need more info on useable sized quality crucibles (where to get) and tongs and it would be nice if anywhere had a forum where discussion on the topic could be accessible. Thanks again👍🏽
I know Reddit has a sub filled with good (and bad) advice! I noticed a lot of the people there strongly discourage buying a melting furnace because it’s “so much cheaper” to build your own. And while I am a huge fan of the DIY approach, I did the math and I think it costs about the same if you have to go buy all the components to do it
@@thubprint yes, while the model you evaluated was out of stock, the next model up with two burners (i think an extra $90) was available (it may not have the gloves but I have that taken care of already). You have more experience at this so where do you get your molds?
I look forward to seeing you out in a dumpster and find something you want to melt then run home as fast as you can strip down what ever it is you are melting and get the melting process started later experiment with different molds. This will be a cool addition to your channel.
Traces of moisture did not create the porosity. Molten metal will cause moisture to violently expand 1700 times its original volume into steam. An explosion that won't go unnoticed... The porosity is caused by the failure to degas the molten metal prior to pouring...
Havent watched this one yet but stoked to see your new setup up, no word of a lie, I have been watching your pouring videos all morning and I was thinking you needed a new setup, Like bigstackD Casting. Then Boom new video, new setup. Update: great video, I think the porous copper was from moisture in the mould. I tried the Discount code with no luck
9:34 Actually, the ceramic wool will degrade with each subsequent firing without a well applied even coat of rigidizer or appropriate coating. Even the coating will eventually break down and expose the wool. It needs to be periodically maintained. Ceramic wool has been compared to asbestos due to some similarities with those minerals. Your assessment of this product was pretty spot on. Some good suggestions for minor upgrades that would improve the product without terribly impacting the cost. Shoot, they don't even need to make the changes. Just put a slip of paper in the box with your suggestions and let the DIYers do it themselves.
I'm convinced that melting point has a direct correlation to cost. As the melting point goes up, so does the cost of melting it. Anything under 2000°F is surprisingly doable at home but above that and you start getting into technically challenging DIY engineering, and high cost materials and equipment. I had a forge burner project because I wanted to melt inconel and hastelloy (exotic nickel alloys $$$) and had to shelve it because of "lack of funding" lol
Thank you for this great video, you encouraged me to buy a vevor melting furnace. Just a question with which spray did you spray the inside of the oven and harden the ceramic wool?
I couldn’t believe this product could be good at the price.I am an experienced sculptor used to foundries so would be aware of the H&S precautions and would feel confident trying this out. Especially with the recent innovations in high temperature silicone moulding it’s very exciting. So personally I thank you. Anyone who is not fully aware of all the risks should invest in studying all the issues and processes involved first. This baby is not a toy and when things go wrong they go wrong big time!.
Superb! I always enjoy your product review vids, even for products I don't intend on purchasing. Your thoughtful presentation is always welcome, and the videos are fun.
I have just started scrapping after watching your videos. Doing it using my old car now.. I think this is way beyond me for now. I would like to see a video of how to use the grinder for idiots (like me) to cut metals. Maybe the types available in the market. The do's and dont's too.
Decided to get the wire stripper you use off your web site .I like it better than the china strippers with motors.I can use this stripper in the field with my cordless drill .Thanks enjoy the channel .
Nice! I was impressed with the discount they offered, happy to be able to pass it along and help somebody out! That’s gotta be way cheaper than a diy kiln
Great video, but I have to go back to how you seem to treat teflon tape. Its not used as a sealant, but as a means to allow you to tighten the brass further.
thumbscrew hose clamps are way cooler(easier to use) than conventional hose clamp fasteners, definitely the way to go. At least u got a solid torch to heat up those tongs to bend it. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and observations on this. Aloha
That's a nice review video, thanks for that. Any recommandations on the sealant ? More specifically brands cause that stuff is certainly called by a different name over here in france, and I wanted to be sure I got the right stuff
I would say if you're going to work with both aluminum and copper based alloys get two sets of equipment and keep things separate. It doesn't take much of one to contaminate the other. I've built a couple of furnaces before and you could do a lot better if you're willing to build a setup yourself. But for someone that's just getting into casting this doesn't look like a bad first setup and going with this could save you a lot of beginner mistakes in building your own equipment - you want to be safe after all. I'd suspect it won't be that durable though (but still good enough to get your feet wet) and if you do stay with it and decide to upgrade I'd plan on replacing most everything.
The tongs should be junked. I've seen ones designed so that the part picking up the crucible are at a right angle to the handles and grasp the crucible around the body - much safer. Have fun with your new toy!!
I would strongly advise putting down some plywood under your crucible path. If you spill molten material, the moisture in the concrete will vaporize explosively. I found this out the hard way many years ago. Preheat the mold?
I'm looking to be purchasing a smelter soon and I'm just curious as to what size yours is it seems close to the size I'm aiming for I have an electric smelter from vector but it doesn't have the capacity I'm looking for
Hi, thank you for this very decent review. I just wonder where to find the ceramic wall sealing solution. Is there any commercial product readily available ? Thank you.
A lot of people use refractory cement, the kind of mortar that is used to build brick fireplaces. I think you can buy colloidal silica on Amazon though, I was just fortunate when I googled businesses in my area that there was a furnace and forge supply house in my area. Advantages of living in a horse town I guess!
Alot of the comments seem to point to the fact that many scrap yards won't look at melted metals because they don't know the purity. Maybe you could do some videos on how to get your metals more pure?
When you use channel lock pliers to tighten brass regulatators instead of a proper sized wrench you end up rounding off the soft brass & then you will only be able to use pliers. I used to freak out on apprentices if they didn't use a wrench on regulators.
I think it would be great for bronze because you wouldn’t have the problems zinc creates like with brass. There’s plenty on the market, but this company just added a stainless steel version that comes with the cement too, which might be worth looking at
Threaded gas connections always always always use teflon tape or PTFE pipe sealant or both. Checking for leaks is good but for Pete's sake do it right then check your work rather than taking shoddy shortcuts.
@@thubprinttypical quick disconnect threaded bbq fitting in US anyway seats on a rubber seal you aren't trying to seal the threads at all they are there to mechanically press the seal into place. On a brass on brass or steel fitting with no rubber gasket of course you're going to use teflon tape how else are you creating a gas tight seal? Do you reckon Chinese thread tolerances are THAT good and the mfg just included the tape as a joke? Personally I prefer PTFE pipe dope or some use both but either is code compliant and safe if applied correctly.
I picked it up from a blacksmith supply, it’s a colloidal silica suspension. Not terribly expensive and just an alternative to the heavy firebrick cement most folks use
Do you have any suggestions with how to clean the inside of the furnace? It's gotten pretty disgusting and then one of my crucibles sprung a leak and molten zinc dripped inside. It makes me worry something might short out.
My regulator failed on about the 4th use. Won't melt silver anymore. Barely melts copper, but not as hot as it should be for proper pouring. The guage reads 20 PSI but the roar is gone and it just won't melt. The insulation defintely blows off to about 1/2 after 4 uses, thankfully there was a wind. I can save it as it is "Close" to the devils forge and the price was right.
do you actually put the firebrick on the bottom of the furnace while melting? or is supposed to serve as a base for the crucible, when you take it out ? Thanks!
Once you accumulate a decent amount of bars, I would like to see a video of your trip to the recycling center to cash in. I have wondered how they treat recyclables in this form.
Badly IME Most yards will not be able to verify the purity of an ingot so will downgrade at best refuse at worst, in my experience in the UK, obv different countries and rules apply 👍
Why would anyone spend their time and money melting copper just to turn it in at the scrap yard??? I take bright bare, melt it into an ingot, and then try to sell it as bright bare to the yard?????? Talk about lack of IQ...
I'm currently cleaning out my shed. I'd like to melt down the old nuts, bolts, screws, and nails, rather than throwing them out. It looks like I need to get a furnace that can reach the 2800-degree Fahrenheit level. My preference is a propane unit unless you talk me into an electric unit. Down the road, I'd like to use the resultant metal to mold various projects. Would you suggest this expensive unit for such a purpose?
You want to melt down steel parts? I don’t really understand why but I imagine you’d rather use a horizontal forge so you can get pieces to temperature and remove them for some hammering and shaping and then put them back in. I’ve never heard of anyone getting steel and iron to a pourable liquid at home
By kitchen gas, I assume you mean natural gas. Yes it would be possible but you would need a new regulator (since this is how you adjust the temperature) and a new orifice. You could drill the existing one out if we know how many BTU the current one is and you know how to read the BTU charts.
I have some solid appears to be still rides from a car wash and their gold tenant on the outside. How do I test it to find out what kind of metal it is?
I'm considering buying the 35 pound 16kg furnace. Never did this before but I want to melt and stack and save my copper. What if the copper is dirty?? I'd do this outside of my garage as I'm a car collector and don't want to damage my Chevelles (burn down my garage, splash the copper etc..). Any advice? My thought is go big or go home. It's how I roll.
You can certainly go big if you like, but a few things to keep in mind: the crucibles get significantly more expensive when you get into the larger sizes and they are consumables, then secondly you’ll need to build some kind of lifting and pouring assistance because that is going to be very difficult to do safely by hand. “Dirty” isn’t really a problem when melting copper, you’ll want to remove any potential contaminants that would melt at a similar temperature and form alloys like aluminium/lead/zinc/nickle/brass/tin, but steel will just float and get skimmed off and bits of dirt and paint and dust will either burn away or get skimmed or fluxxed
I am glad you mentioned rigidizer and the risks of using uncoated ceramic wool insulation. For the home builder there is a pre coated product available and I would hope the manufactures would start using it.
I am just getting ready for my first aluminum melt in my Vevor 6kg furnace. I have it all put together and ready. Cant wait to get melting.
If the lid does burn out at the opening and enlarge, I think cutting a larger hole (square for ease or round if you are up to it) and replacing it with a piece of stainless steel sheet larger than the hole with the exact same size center hole, held in place with solid steel rivets or steel bolts would end future issues. Use a slightly thicker piece of stainless steel if available. I would imagine that as the original steel erodes, the insulation will also. To cut out the patch, an electric or an air powered "zizz wheel" (cut off tool with a thin a thin abrasive disc, some people call it a "death wheel) cut off tool. Just make sure the blade is in good condition, worn evenly, etc. Thanks for posting this. I just got a notification from Vevor about their stainless steel 12KG model. It looks like the same tongs are supplied.
Always a good day when Thubprint puts out a video.
Thank you!
Opinion from a scrap yard’s perspective: Would not suggest creating personal ingots if you’re looking for profit on your scrap. You will have a tough time selling your material and likely downgrading your metal. You won’t be able to certify the metal in your ingots. Smaller yards won’t be able to verify the chemistry and although larger operations could run their tests they will likely downgrade knowing quality won’t be consistent from a garage smelter. Melting is definitely fun, would only suggest if you’re just looking to create cool content online and not looking to profit off this metal.
I agree. Eventually you will find someone that will buy them but it’s tough. Most yards won’t especially if they don’t know you. Surprisingly there’s people that will buy them on eBay. Even at crazy premiums for some reason. Personally I think a few 5 gallon buckets of bare bright solid core is just as pretty😂
I can verify this, I worked at a foundry that processed lots of aluminum, every batch was sparked on the spectrometer with the sheet included with the ingots. One exception was a nail company that paid for aluminum ingots for deoxidizing their alloys, but they only wanted extruded aluminum. Lead would be another exception, we melted down anything from poo pipe to used medical isotope casks for mill anchor. Hahaha, Zinc fires are great indoors, nothing like coming in to a dusting of snow. Oh, and slag is from smelters, what you skim off is called dross.
eBay is huge exception to this, copper melted into ingots (especially when finished/polished) sell for minimum $10 per pound and even up to $50
Oh I’m aware, you’re 100% right all the way down 😁 I’m only doing it because it’s a fun visual representation of the content recovered from specific scrap items (and the internet seems to enjoy scrap melting vids)
If you're looking to profit, don't sell your copper and brass to the scrap yard.
Nice addition to the program. Remember to preheat your molds to avoid steam explosions. And always wear a respirator please.
10/4!
@@thubprint I watch BigSparksD melt a lot of stuff. You and him are my scrap/melt Friday routine.
@@thubprintRemember to open your eyes in the morning when you wake up. Oh gosh i almost forgot, remember to put the toothpaste on the brush before you brush your teeth..
I'm here mate anymore advice 👍🏻
Mine JUST got to my door!.... Hence me coming here to see what you had to say about it! I feel a lot more confident in the purchase now. I only paid about $120 for the EXACT same setup. With some of the projects that I have in mind to do, I feel like it was money well spent now. All I need now is another pair of tongs, maybe a couple of different sizes of crucibles, and a couple of different molds (not to mention better gloves)... Thanks for the review buddy! It was really helpful! 👍
Thank you for your reply. I am in the same boat. Where did you go for your crucible, mold, and tongs purchases?
@@msoul3248 If I'm not mistaken, I think I got the extra crucible straight from vevor's site (for about $40). I can't remember who makes the extra pair of tong's that I got, but if I'm remembering right, I just shopped around on Amazon until I found a pair that was a little more affordable than what they were going for on Vevor's page. The ones I wound up getting were about $35, but they were $60 - $70 everywhere else I looked. 👍
(P.S. Still haven't got the molds that I want yet... been using muffin pans and stuff like that. lol)
You need a bimetal pyrometer to monitor temps.
Drill a hole 3/4 upper furnace hight and use an angle so the tip 4" of the thermocouple is to the side of the fiber insulation.
Use Sodium Silicate mixed with Kaolin powder as an adhesive to seal the probe hole. It makes a decent mortar also.
I built about 20 furnaces like yours that could melt 200 pounds of copper.
The average Joe screwing around on the weekend in their garage doesn't need to monitor temperatures...
Thanks Tim, I just got one last week and want my first firing, melt and pour to go as well as it can. I have a pyrometer (for firing a pottery kiln) but haven't yet considered applying it to this task. Your install description is helpful. I made cast sculptures 40 years ago using wax investment and also sand casting process. I don't want to overheat brass and do want to monitor the temperature to be able to plan for time and to calculate gas usage. The sodium silicate & kaolin combo for sealing up the kaowool surface sounds like a good treatment and will apply that. I have used a water- alumina - kaolin mixture to keep kiln shelves clean. I think I may add some alumina to increase the heat durability of the coating and reduce the possibility of cracking, what do you thinks?
you need to heat the molds up as well. or the bar will have spots and cracks, and will splatter.
you mean warm up the mold?
A full ceramic mortar coating is better, and you should always preheat your molds to prevent explosions and get a smoother cast. You can always remelt if you get a lot of holes or a bad cast
You Should Preheat Everything. Thermal Shock Hurts.
Thank you for the great review! We’re so happy you loved your experience and can’t wait to have you back in the future.
did you temper the crucible first? slowly heat in a domestic oven to dry it out. then heat in furnace to highest temp you plan to use it at, and hold this temp for around 20 min. seems to glaze the crucible and make it last a lot longer without the flaking you saw. experiment with some casting, its great fun!
Excited to see you start the metal stack like bigstackD!
Thanks for the video. Great info. Mine is in the mail along with that ceramic wool rigidizer you recommended. Keep up that good work brother.
I got the exact same Furnace and love it. Meets all expectations for my first one.
Have you tried to smelt iron or steel in it???
@brockverrall1514 it doesn't get hot enough to melt steel but does get it really hot. I bet with some mods it could get it hot enough for smelting. There are other platforms designed more specifically for it though.
@@JoshBeq thanks heaps I’ll probably get 4mm mild steel pipe and line the inside with ceramic foam see if work like a bloomery furnace.
Yes!! I have this same exact one, and it is awesome. It'll turn silver into liquid in 10 mins or less.
I bought mine based on this review. They have improved the lid to keep the insulation in. But the tongs and the gloves are crap as you say. Great fun! And thanks!
I am glad you posted this video. I am new to this and debated making my own or possibly a purchase like the devil forge(before I saw this). I have most if not all the items needed except the batting and the burner to make. I have noticed many saying “its not worth it to melt down” or “your scrap yard may not take it” but I find my need is a little more of having large sized buckets of copper, aluminum, cast(fan motor ends) that I would like to convert to smaller stacking units.
I need more info on useable sized quality crucibles (where to get) and tongs and it would be nice if anywhere had a forum where discussion on the topic could be accessible.
Thanks again👍🏽
I know Reddit has a sub filled with good (and bad) advice! I noticed a lot of the people there strongly discourage buying a melting furnace because it’s “so much cheaper” to build your own. And while I am a huge fan of the DIY approach, I did the math and I think it costs about the same if you have to go buy all the components to do it
@@thubprint yes, while the model you evaluated was out of stock, the next model up with two burners (i think an extra $90) was available (it may not have the gloves but I have that taken care of already). You have more experience at this so where do you get your molds?
Love the product rating at the end 🤣
I look forward to seeing you out in a dumpster and find something you want to melt then run home as fast as you can strip down what ever it is you are melting and get the melting process started later experiment with different molds. This will be a cool addition to your channel.
That’s a really neat idea! Just a solid one-day challenge from dumpster diving to ingots. I’ll be sure to give it a go!
pre heat your molds to prevent metal exploding while you pour. a piece of cardboard between your firebrick and crucible will prevent them sticking.
Seems like I found fellow BigstackD viewer
@@joku8900 haha was wondering if someone would notice. I have it ingrained in my brain.
Cardboard between firebrick and crucible.. inside the kiln right? Neat! I’ll have to watch more of his content to pick up more useful tricks 😊
@@thubprint u got it!
Preheat your cleaned molds. The porosity was created from traces of moisture or something that gassed out from the heated molten metal.
Traces of moisture did not create the porosity. Molten metal will cause moisture to violently expand 1700 times its original volume into steam.
An explosion that won't go unnoticed...
The porosity is caused by the failure to degas the molten metal prior to pouring...
This is so exciting, I was hoping you were eventually going to get something like this. can't wait to see how the bars pile up
Havent watched this one yet but stoked to see your new setup up, no word of a lie, I have been watching your pouring videos all morning and I was thinking you needed a new setup, Like bigstackD Casting. Then Boom new video, new setup.
Update: great video, I think the porous copper was from moisture in the mould.
I tried the Discount code with no luck
Another bounce on the discount code.. that’s annoying. 😕
@@thubprint no worries, keep up the excellent content
Nice review Thub! At least you'll be able to keep your shed warm now! 😉😊
9:34 Actually, the ceramic wool will degrade with each subsequent firing without a well applied even coat of rigidizer or appropriate coating. Even the coating will eventually break down and expose the wool. It needs to be periodically maintained. Ceramic wool has been compared to asbestos due to some similarities with those minerals. Your assessment of this product was pretty spot on. Some good suggestions for minor upgrades that would improve the product without terribly impacting the cost. Shoot, they don't even need to make the changes. Just put a slip of paper in the box with your suggestions and let the DIYers do it themselves.
Is there anything that will fix this permanently or at least longer?
I'm convinced that melting point has a direct correlation to cost. As the melting point goes up, so does the cost of melting it. Anything under 2000°F is surprisingly doable at home but above that and you start getting into technically challenging DIY engineering, and high cost materials and equipment. I had a forge burner project because I wanted to melt inconel and hastelloy (exotic nickel alloys $$$) and had to shelve it because of "lack of funding" lol
Thank you for this great video, you encouraged me to buy a vevor melting furnace. Just a question with which spray did you spray the inside of the oven and harden the ceramic wool?
I couldn’t believe this product could be good at the price.I am an experienced sculptor used to foundries so would be aware of the H&S precautions and would feel confident trying this out. Especially with the recent innovations in high temperature silicone moulding it’s very exciting. So personally I thank you. Anyone who is not fully aware of all the risks should invest in studying all the issues and processes involved first. This baby is not a toy and when things go wrong they go wrong big time!.
Sending love from Minnesota, Big inspiration to scrap thanks really exciting hobby!
Got this one for my birthday, it looks very well working
Superb! I always enjoy your product review vids, even for products I don't intend on purchasing. Your thoughtful presentation is always welcome, and the videos are fun.
I am so happy for you that you got your new toy! Looking forward to a bunch of videos of you making cool, weird stuff.
Harbor freight has those kinds of hose clamps btw. I like them for things that get removed a lot. Like radiator hoses.
I have just started scrapping after watching your videos. Doing it using my old car now..
I think this is way beyond me for now. I would like to see a video of how to use the grinder for idiots (like me) to cut metals. Maybe the types available in the market. The do's and dont's too.
thanx thubprint, very well spoken and great explaintion, spot on!!😀😀
Ooh new toy day! Happy for you mate, looks fun.
awesome!! that thing will heat up your garage very nicely too
Nice review, now that you have a proper melting station I cant wait to see you start melting stuff - imagine a giant stack of those bars
Decided to get the wire stripper you use off your web site .I like it better than the china strippers with motors.I can use this stripper in the field with my cordless drill .Thanks enjoy the channel .
With discount and coupon, Amazon price went from $249 to $145 with free shipping. Thnak you!!
Nice! I was impressed with the discount they offered, happy to be able to pass it along and help somebody out! That’s gotta be way cheaper than a diy kiln
@@thubprint Love supporting that chinese prison labor.
Great video, but I have to go back to how you seem to treat teflon tape. Its not used as a sealant, but as a means to allow you to tighten the brass further.
thumbscrew hose clamps are way cooler(easier to use) than conventional hose clamp fasteners, definitely the way to go. At least u got a solid torch to heat up those tongs to bend it. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and observations on this. Aloha
very nice to see a review , just got mine
Vevor eh! They got their hands 🙌 in everything. Just bought a distillery kit from them. Haven’t used it yet. I also like melting. Intriguing 🧐
Awesome review, thanks for posting the review.
Thanks Man ! - Great demo and review ! - Well done bro 👍👍👍👍👍
That's a nice review video, thanks for that. Any recommandations on the sealant ? More specifically brands cause that stuff is certainly called by a different name over here in france, and I wanted to be sure I got the right stuff
ordered one from Devil Forge today. I have a smaller electric one already.
I would say if you're going to work with both aluminum and copper based alloys get two sets of equipment and keep things separate. It doesn't take much of one to contaminate the other. I've built a couple of furnaces before and you could do a lot better if you're willing to build a setup yourself. But for someone that's just getting into casting this doesn't look like a bad first setup and going with this could save you a lot of beginner mistakes in building your own equipment - you want to be safe after all. I'd suspect it won't be that durable though (but still good enough to get your feet wet) and if you do stay with it and decide to upgrade I'd plan on replacing most everything.
I got the 5kg size, I've used it about 10 times and had to customize the burner tip. The hinge weld broke off on it.
Hi, interesting video, I would like to know how long does it take to cast bronze? Thank you
lol that rating system is amazing!
😆👍
The tongs should be junked. I've seen ones designed so that the part picking up the crucible are at a right angle to the handles and grasp the crucible around the body - much safer. Have fun with your new toy!!
This is pretty cool. Looking forward to seeing you melt many things lol
Very cool i have been thinking about getting one of these.
I would strongly advise putting down some plywood under your crucible path. If you spill molten material, the moisture in the concrete will vaporize explosively. I found this out the hard way many years ago. Preheat the mold?
I'm looking to be purchasing a smelter soon and I'm just curious as to what size yours is it seems close to the size I'm aiming for I have an electric smelter from vector but it doesn't have the capacity I'm looking for
Hey did u find that the double valve to the propane tank , the male connect is longer then the average male pol connector
Excellent video. where did you get the refractory seal you use at minute 2 in the video to seal the blanket?
KOOOL! Now you need a Panda stamp.
Hi, thank you for this very decent review. I just wonder where to find the ceramic wall sealing solution. Is there any commercial product readily available ? Thank you.
A lot of people use refractory cement, the kind of mortar that is used to build brick fireplaces. I think you can buy colloidal silica on Amazon though, I was just fortunate when I googled businesses in my area that there was a furnace and forge supply house in my area. Advantages of living in a horse town I guess!
Where you get your ceramic wool rigidizer ? Please and thank you
Alot of the comments seem to point to the fact that many scrap yards won't look at melted metals because they don't know the purity.
Maybe you could do some videos on how to get your metals more pure?
Hi my friend,1 question... for you is ok to make this in close place,like in garage or at home?
Sorry for my englesh 😂💪
Same one I got. The regulator 'tank-side' connector doesn't fit into a blue rhino tank.
I'm wondering if my A12 crucibles will fit in there.
When you use channel lock pliers to tighten brass regulatators instead of a proper sized wrench you end up rounding off the soft brass & then you will only be able to use pliers. I used to freak out on apprentices if they didn't use a wrench on regulators.
Gotta heat them molds before pouring keeps all that crackling and popping to a minimum. Good work
I have one of these. The regulator 'tank-side' fitting won't fit into a blue-rhino tank.
I do not see one so can you link me to the ridigizer you recomend?
Hi! It is good for melting bronze? Can you suggest other ones? Thx!
I think it would be great for bronze because you wouldn’t have the problems zinc creates like with brass. There’s plenty on the market, but this company just added a stainless steel version that comes with the cement too, which might be worth looking at
Threaded gas connections always always always use teflon tape or PTFE pipe sealant or both. Checking for leaks is good but for Pete's sake do it right then check your work rather than taking shoddy shortcuts.
I’m not a pipe fitter, but I don’t use Teflon tape when hooking up my bbq either, are people supposed to?
@@thubprinttypical quick disconnect threaded bbq fitting in US anyway seats on a rubber seal you aren't trying to seal the threads at all they are there to mechanically press the seal into place. On a brass on brass or steel fitting with no rubber gasket of course you're going to use teflon tape how else are you creating a gas tight seal? Do you reckon Chinese thread tolerances are THAT good and the mfg just included the tape as a joke? Personally I prefer PTFE pipe dope or some use both but either is code compliant and safe if applied correctly.
Actually no they don't. You should never use teflon tape on flare or chatlef style fittings. Only on tapered threaded pipe.
Are the Vevor ones less expensive than devil forges or more?
Hello, what is the name of the liquid that you spray, thanks in advance
where would you find Ridgedizer at?
Good review! Ceramic “ridgidizer “ what exactly is this spray you use to harden insulation?
Something off the shelf from hardware store?
I picked it up from a blacksmith supply, it’s a colloidal silica suspension. Not terribly expensive and just an alternative to the heavy firebrick cement most folks use
Hi. What spray did you use to crystallise a fibre? Thanks.
Where do i get the red stuff you sprayed on the inside?
Love your channel bro
Do you have any suggestions with how to clean the inside of the furnace? It's gotten pretty disgusting and then one of my crucibles sprung a leak and molten zinc dripped inside. It makes me worry something might short out.
Good review.
Bro is it possible to remplace propane by butane ?
No link for rigidizer?
My regulator failed on about the 4th use. Won't melt silver anymore. Barely melts copper, but not as hot as it should be for proper pouring. The guage reads 20 PSI but the roar is gone and it just won't melt. The insulation defintely blows off to about 1/2 after 4 uses, thankfully there was a wind. I can save it as it is "Close" to the devils forge and the price was right.
do you actually put the firebrick on the bottom of the furnace while melting? or is supposed to serve as a base for the crucible, when you take it out ? Thanks!
Once you accumulate a decent amount of bars, I would like to see a video of your trip to the recycling center to cash in. I have wondered how they treat recyclables in this form.
Badly IME
Most yards will not be able to verify the purity of an ingot so will downgrade at best refuse at worst, in my experience in the UK, obv different countries and rules apply 👍
Why would anyone spend their time and money melting copper just to turn it in at the scrap yard???
I take bright bare, melt it into an ingot, and then try to sell it as bright bare to the yard??????
Talk about lack of IQ...
I'm currently cleaning out my shed. I'd like to melt down the old nuts, bolts, screws, and nails, rather than throwing them out. It looks like I need to get a furnace that can reach the 2800-degree Fahrenheit level. My preference is a propane unit unless you talk me into an electric unit. Down the road, I'd like to use the resultant metal to mold various projects.
Would you suggest this expensive unit for such a purpose?
You want to melt down steel parts? I don’t really understand why but I imagine you’d rather use a horizontal forge so you can get pieces to temperature and remove them for some hammering and shaping and then put them back in. I’ve never heard of anyone getting steel and iron to a pourable liquid at home
What's the crucible u use volume?
Thanks, can i use normal kitchen gas instead of propane?
By kitchen gas, I assume you mean natural gas. Yes it would be possible but you would need a new regulator (since this is how you adjust the temperature) and a new orifice. You could drill the existing one out if we know how many BTU the current one is and you know how to read the BTU charts.
I want one of these to melt both US and Canadian pennies to make some bars.
I have some solid appears to be still rides from a car wash and their gold tenant on the outside. How do I test it to find out what kind of metal it is?
They watch the videos and usually make upgrades according to the u tubers recamendations. They make numerous items.
How long did you cure it and how much did you use?
Have you ever heard of Devil’s Forge products? They have some good kits as well that could be reviewed.
Thanks for a great video
Do you have a different buyer for the metals than a scrap yard? How much of a premium do you get vs scrap yard prices? Great vid thub!
To melt down what you melted how much fuel did you use propane
cheers, stay learning.
I'm considering buying the 35 pound 16kg furnace. Never did this before but I want to melt and stack and save my copper. What if the copper is dirty?? I'd do this outside of my garage as I'm a car collector and don't want to damage my Chevelles (burn down my garage, splash the copper etc..). Any advice? My thought is go big or go home. It's how I roll.
You can certainly go big if you like, but a few things to keep in mind: the crucibles get significantly more expensive when you get into the larger sizes and they are consumables, then secondly you’ll need to build some kind of lifting and pouring assistance because that is going to be very difficult to do safely by hand.
“Dirty” isn’t really a problem when melting copper, you’ll want to remove any potential contaminants that would melt at a similar temperature and form alloys like aluminium/lead/zinc/nickle/brass/tin, but steel will just float and get skimmed off and bits of dirt and paint and dust will either burn away or get skimmed or fluxxed