Denver for sale [Archive] - CraftWEB Hot Glass Talk

Monica Johnson

03-04-2006, 01:33 PM

So guys, What other choice do I have? I MUST go electric because I am in a building built in 1886, in a National Historic District. Electric is the only option that the town will approve. (I've already fought that battle and they won't budge). The only options I have found are Denver and Electroglass. Since I am just starting out and have no guarantee of success, it doesn't seem to make sense to me to spend $17,000 for Elecroglass (not to mention the fact that I don't have that kind of spare cash).

If anyone out there has advice on how I can go electric without going broke in the start-up, I would be ever so greatful!!

Thanks,
Monica

Pete VanderLaan

03-04-2006, 02:07 PM

well monica, you left out the furnaces built by Steve Stadelman in Portland Oregon which are significantly better than either of the other two options you have mentioned. Unfortunately they cost more than you seem to be prepared to pay. Also, Steve is a touch behind on his orders.

Denver's really are terrible furnaces but they are cheap and they really have gotten some people started and that's a fact. You will get what you pay for. Expect a lot of element failures and a very expensive set of replacement crucibles.

My opinion of Electroglass is that silicon carbide electric is an evolutionary stage of furnace development that is no longer justifiable with the advent of the moly furnace. There are those who will disagree with that statement.

If Rollin didn't sell the furnace to Pringle, I think that you might do well to buy it. It will behave badly but it will get you going.

And three months is a very short lead time in the glass furnace industry.

Monica Johnson

03-04-2006, 02:12 PM

I have tried looking up Steve's stuff, but I get a huge amount of stuff to sift through. Do you have a link that would get me directly to info on his equipment?

Thanks much!
Monica

Steve Stadelman

03-04-2006, 02:15 PM

Originally posted by Monica Johnson
I have tried looking up Steve's stuff, but I get a huge amount of stuff to sift through. Do you have a link that would get me directly to info on his equipment?

Thanks much!
Monica

I'm too busy to really advertise except for my stickey thread here.

My website is done and the glory that is the trade for it is going to the frieght terminal this evening (luckily Gina will settle for dinner and frieght for a date!).

Really the best is to just call me at 503-709-9922.

Mark Rosenbaum

03-04-2006, 06:18 PM

Monica:
My Denver furnace is still available.
This is from a previous post:

I have a Denver 207 furnace that has been sitting for a few years that I am now ready to sell. It is the largest furnace that they make. It holds 215 lbs. It was completely rebuilt the year before I shut it off. I have been using gas and always thought that I might convert this to a color pot or an extra furnace. I now see that this will never happen! The price for a new furnace is $6700, I will sell this for $3500.The buyer will also pay for shipping. I will post pictures when I clear out some of the crap that has accumulated around it. This is a good chance for a "wire melter" to move up in size or add to their operation.

This is new for this post:

I don't have photos yet. I am willing to take $2900 for it. I spoke to Holly at Denver and she can upgrade the controls for @ $750. I don't know what happened to my controls. I probably took them off to use on something else and then upgraded that and in the 10 years since, lost them. I used this unit for four years. As Pete has said, some people have built their businesses on a Denver unit. I was one of them. I am now moving away from gas and after April, will be a proud owner of an electric "ferarri" Stadelman 400lb furnace.
If you are still interested, email or private message me. Good luck with your choice.....Mark

Doug Sweet

03-04-2006, 06:27 PM

There are several professional blowers using Denvers. They work but you need to know how to maintain them. They are what they are rather than a $20000 piece of junk. I put my trust in a veteran glass artist with years of experience but in the end after producing 20 furnaces production was stopped without notifying customers. It had a fiber crown which I was told was good and failed. It was later replaced with an upgrade hard crown. Gathering port casting cracked. New crown cracked and warped. Heating elements and passage block deteriated possibly due to wrong moly elements. Furnace door casting failed due to untested new material. Operation cost much higher than advertized. I'm not the only one with problems. Geoff Lee has had similar problems. A furnace in Texas has problems also. Steve has helped alot resolving problems. So if you need a Denver at least you know what you are getting. Steve has many satisfied customers.

Rollin Karg

03-04-2006, 06:56 PM

Yes its true Henry can't see it, but I can. You can buy a Denver now and can be working pretty quick. Work hard on the Denver and out of the Denver and soon you will have enough to down stroke on one of Steve's(Steve really is the man). Keep working hard and smart and by the time Steve's gets there you will have some or all of the dough to pay for it. All from something Henry can't understand.
Myself if my choice was to sit and wait or blow glass while I was waiting for a new furnace I would get to work now.
Also Doug is correct there is a group of devoted Denver users that have learned how to keep them going and do respectable business too. So its been demonstrated many times that this can work.
Good luck
Rollin

Jim Vormelker

03-04-2006, 08:33 PM

More defense of the Denver furnaces.

I do not use one now, because my circumstance is more weekend warrier - I am on and off too much for an invested pot.

But I started in one and worked from one for most of the couple years I was learning, as well as from a larger gas fired unit.

My first one was a Denver - for which I waited impatiently, and which I sold only because how I was going to work changed. And I was using a pelletized batch that popped and got all over coils and shelves - not a pretty way to go.

As hs been noted above - A Denver is a great place to start. I am not sure I would go to a large one - I'll probably call Steve and get on HIS waiting list when it is time for a bigger unit.

Start now. It may not be the best design - but it exsists.

jv

Brody Shaw

03-05-2006, 08:28 AM

Hard to believe that anyone buys those pieces of junk.

what happened to the eazy-therm?

Donovan Brooke

03-05-2006, 02:28 PM

I think ppl are right on when saying Denver is a good place to start. I did all the quotes for Denvers and almost ordered one myself when I started out. I decided to build my own. It comes out cheaper and, if you have a knack for design, better for sure. However, you also need all the tools (mostly a welder), and you need the spare time.

I would offer to build you a wire melter for $4500 to $5000.. but then you are getting near Steve's cost, and at that point, it's probably wiser to go with a Stadleman Moly.

At the end, at $2900 for a instant furnace, if your on that type of budget, that is a furnace that is hard to beat.

Donovan

Doug Sheridan

03-05-2006, 03:22 PM

anyone can blow with straight pipes and a moly.

Brian Gingras

03-05-2006, 04:53 PM

Originally posted by Brody Shaw
Hard to believe that anyone buys those pieces of junk.

what happened to the eazy-therm?

in a word: gone

Parker Stafford

03-15-2006, 02:53 AM

When I first got on a glass board, I heard all this stuff about Denvers. It was early in the game for me, but I already had pretty good experience with mine. Met a guy on the show circuit who had one and had nothing but grief. Over time it has become clear to me that there are two small units that they make that run through elements like water, so be forewarned. 3-4 months or something per set of elements. Not acceptable, not even for a hobbyist (please tell me if four months out of a set of elements is considered good for you hobbyists). I have since met blowers who use the same unit as me who have similar results that I do, so I know I am not some weird abberation. My wife might dissagree with me here. I have used the EF-240, which has a pot with a capacity of about 130#. I have largely had consistent results with it.

I regularly get 9-10 months from a set of elements, and in my next rebuild (I do all my rebuilds which I suspect saves me quite a bit) I will be putting on a new controller to fire an scr that will hopefully increase life even more. We shall see. Up until recently the choices for electric were wire and Sic. Moly was too expensive. That is changing. With the problems of the smaller units, it has been easy to tar with the same brush.
Also, The crucibles that are being sold by Denver are not just crucibles but a crucible casting, which is a modular element that is put into place in the furnace. It is a hard vibracast material, so the price reflects more than just crucible cost. Holly at Denver Glass Macinery knows about my web pages covering my Denver rebuilds and has referred people to them who want to do their own rebuilds or who want to know if there is a way to fix a cracked crown short of having to buy a new upper chamber block.

I have learned that Spruce Pine 87 will go flat in the same time in my unit at a run temp as it does at charge temp, for example. I am now (right now) working on a modified batch which is based on Spruce Pine and does a few things that hopefully make melting and fining a little better. Since it is cooking right now in the furnace, I have not road tested it yet. All signs point to it being a faster glass to melt at lower temps.

When I first melted in the Denver, I did not believe I could melt batch at as low a temp as suggested, I overrode the temp limit and melted it the way we did in school. Elements lasted 4 months.

Once you see how a wire furnace is set up, it is extremely simple. However, design is deceptive. I tend to feel that there are likely limits on size for wire furnaces, and so wire can work within certain limits. I shudder when I hear about the relatively small gauge sizes on some of the smaller hobby furnaces, but if it works for them.......

Mark Wilson

03-15-2006, 09:53 AM

aim, evenheat, and jen ken sell low end crucible kilns that work fine for small crucibles (under 80 lbs). they don't get much respect around here, but they work fine and are quite cost effective. i have been using my evenheat kiln with a 30 lbs EC crucible for nearly 5 years of weekend warrior blowing and its still going strong. the cost of my crucible kiln was $1500 including a programable temperature controller. it runs off of a 240v 20 amp circuit breaker and costs less than $60/month in electricity costs (another $40/month for my annealer) blowing every weekend.

Originally posted by Monica Johnson
So guys, What other choice do I have? I MUST go electric because I am in a building built in 1886, in a National Historic District. Electric is the only option that the town will approve. (I've already fought that battle and they won't budge). The only options I have found are Denver and Electroglass. Since I am just starting out and have no guarantee of success, it doesn't seem to make sense to me to spend $17,000 for Elecroglass (not to mention the fact that I don't have that kind of spare cash).

If anyone out there has advice on how I can go electric without going broke in the start-up, I would be ever so greatful!!

Thanks,
Monica

Dave Bross

03-15-2006, 04:30 PM

Devil with a blue dress, blue dress, blue dress....devil with a blue dress on...

Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels.

But seriously, not a bad place to start if you're in a hurry and short financially. Parker is the man on ressurecting these, do check out his info.

Pete VanderLaan

03-15-2006, 06:27 PM

Now all the Denver needs is a special formula. How convenient.

Parker Stafford

03-16-2006, 02:23 PM

Originally posted by Dave Bross
Devil with a blue dress, blue dress, blue dress....devil with a blue dress on...
-snip- Parker is the man on ressurecting these, do check out his info.

After following some of your stuff on playing with batching in your electric unit with recipes that yield different results, I have finally begun the process of seeing what results I can get that will result in something better. I suspect it will be "convenient" for anyone working with wire. I have gotten perhaps THE best melt yet using this formula, so it has resulted in my thinking about a range of issues concerning glass bodies in my situation. Devil with a blue dress, indeed.

Pete VanderLaan

03-16-2006, 06:12 PM

It is simply the case that there is no free lunch. If you make a glass that melts below 2150 and fines there as well in a five or six hour period , it will of necessity be loaded with fluxes. At the 18% point, you stop having a glass that is very viable on solubility unless it's a lead glass. further, it will eat the refractories and very possibly your elements alive.

Dudley's original formula melted at about 1950. I beleive it was

100 sand
41 soda ash
15.5 lime hydrate
6.3 potasium carbonate

At the time it wwas a great thing and it got me started at making batch. It would not survive a night in the rain.

I think it better, if you want to melt batch to get out of the hobby furnace manufacturers kitchen and build a unit that melts any glass you throw at it. I don't know about a devil in a blue dress but I do know my batch limitations. The insidious thing about what you propose is that it can take a few years to discover that what you have been making simply has no staying power. For me, thats important.

Parker Stafford

03-17-2006, 03:56 PM

I would say that you are making some assumptions about what I have been including in the recipe and also about the temperatures at which I melt.

I think if you look around you will see that I normally melt Spruce Pine and that in my furnace it goes flat at run temp the same length of time as it does to go flat at charge temps., which goes as high for me as 2280. This in fact has stuck in my mind over the last couple of years where melting with wire goes. The SP will melt fine at these low temps but it wont fine. To do that you need higher temps.

But what I am doing does not cause a problem as it relates to durability. The adjustments are very small. I also understand that some materials used in glass can be used in minute amounts to create a very big difference on the other end. What I am doing is a very small change which wont effect durability but gives me some enhanced characteristics I seek. I understand the issues related to no free lunch, and you are right. However, you choose what is important for you and go forward. Some compensations or changes will create more undesirable results than others. What I have has been carefully considered. There are some dissadvantages I suppose, but durability is not one of them. For me, the real issue is getting a good glass for my needs.

Happy St. Paddy's day everybody!

Dave Bross

03-17-2006, 04:59 PM

My theory on durability for low melt temp glass is to put in lots of alumina, as in the old suggestion for bottle glass style durability with dividing the flux percent by 8, and adding that amount of alumina (in percent). Temper the stiffness with lithium and/or borax in different ratios. To get them to fine cook above the valence transformation temp. of the antimony, which is 2170F in my equipment.

There's an amazing range of working characteristics available within that little menage a trois.

Poor Parker, every time he looks at a Denver now that damn tune is going to go through his head.

Those tunes you just can't shake.....curse of the earworms crawling into your brain.

Pete VanderLaan

03-17-2006, 06:03 PM

Originally posted by Dave Bross

Poor Parker, every time he looks at a Denver now that damn tune is going to go through his head.

****************
I'd say "poor Parker, everytime he looks at a Denver he has to look at a Denver."

Good thing it isn't a "Hobbyist" Denver, but rather is a big burley gold chain with hairy chest showing Denver.

There are two ways to lower the viscosity of the melt. The first is fluorine and the second is lithium. The first is out and the second will eat your liner alive . If you recall, Tom talked about the original formula having more Lithium in it, bringing the original L.E.C. to 98. The stuff was eating the refractories so they backed off. Now it doesn't take much Lithium to change the expansion two points. Fluorine on the other hand, regardless of the form used to introduce it will eat the elements.

Ted Trower

03-18-2006, 11:01 PM

Originally posted by Pete VanderLaan
[BThere are two ways to lower the viscosity of the melt. The first is fluorine and the second is lithium. [/B]

Would it be possible to reduce an element that is responsible for increasing batch viscosity?

Pete VanderLaan

03-19-2006, 12:45 AM

I have trouble thinking that way. I don't particularly think of any element directly causing the glass to be more viscous that shows up in significant volume in commercial batches beyond silica and secondly it is just a way of increasing the flux amounts in the glass indirectly.

I would grant that a high potash glass or a high zinc glass will tend to be more viscous but there aren't commercial batches with those characteristics. Borax will lower the melt temp of a glass without radically altering it's expansion but it will cause a variety of problems as well.

My point is that there is no free lunch. When you change melt characteristics significantly you get problems to go with it and I have already mentioned the ones that fluorine and lithium will bring about.

For me,if you can't get your furnace past 2280 without causing problems with element failure, you don't have much of a furnace. I want to melt glass and be done with it and I melt a lot of different glass types and i don't want to hear about restrictions caused by the equipment and not the chemistry.

This makes me think of my MGB which is a nice enough old car but if I started to say that those pesky MG midgets that British Leyland produced are making it hard for those of us with real racing machines to be able to get out and show what my B can really do.

My MGB has something like 62 HP. It never was a race car despite the fact that you can put the top down, squint, and imagine that it goes fast. I feel the same way about Denvers, any make and any model. You should not habe to be altering formulas to make them perform. Professional furnaces should melt glass with no trouble, period.

Dave Bross

03-19-2006, 12:17 PM

Alumina or potash increase viscosity, but Pete cut to the mustard when he said you're just changing the ratio of fluxes anyway. Alumina you don't want less of and potash is a flux. There seems to be some correlation between the lithium and having enough alumina (and maybe what form the alumina is in) to keep the lithium busy within the melt and not going after the pot. SPB still has near 1% lithium (that's a LOT) and is most civilized about not digesting your pot.

Zinc is handy in that it loosens up the melt (lower viscosity) but it lowers the expansion, so it's a nice countermeasure to the alkalais that raise expansion. Boric acid lowers expansion too but can be troublesome about cords.

I'm having WAY too much fun pretending I'm going fast in my vitreous vintage MG TC furnace. I'll be buying a flat hat and start smoking a pipe any day now. Anyone know where I can score some tartan plaid pants and a smoking jacket?

Amazing what the need to tinker will teach you though.

My english machinery era was HIGHLY educational in that it forced you to learn (and be able to repair) all the intimate details,or you weren't going out that night.

I was able to score the equipment to have the experience at extremely low cost. I see a similar path with the weeniepower wire melter.

Pete VanderLaan

03-19-2006, 02:18 PM

I think "The need to tinker" sums it up totally. If you like it, Denver is your furnace" If you don't you build something with horsepower and no nonsense. I used to like playing with all the gadgets but these days I could care less. The only thing I care about is the quality of the glass coming out of the furnace. and how fast I can get it.

I don't drive the MG when I need to get there on time.

Richard Huntrods

03-19-2006, 06:35 PM

Originally posted by Pete VanderLaan
... Professional furnaces should melt glass with no trouble, period.

Spot on, Pete. Truer words, and all that.

Now hobby furnaces, otoh ... ;)

-R

Steve Beckwith

04-11-2007, 09:05 PM

I have to weigh in on the Denver EF240 furnace. I have had one for 7 years. Prior to that I had their 40 lb furnace that I eventually upgraded to 60 lb. I have been blowing for 13 years and I am self taught. I originally researched building a gas furnace but settled on the Denver because of the price and it was plug and go. Just like a giant toaster. These furnaces have sucked elements like there is no tomorrow, I have had a maximum of almost 5 months and a minimum of 21 days. When I called Denver about the defective coils, they said that they were sorry and did I want to buy another set at the regular price. They actually sent me the EF240 with defective castings that they had to modify a coil to fit when it was new. When I changed out the coils, I actually broke one of them trying to fit it into the casting. Their response was that I would have to grind down the casting to accept the coils. They HAD to have known this was defective when the sent it. I did the repair through the gathering port and that was a real bit@h. Denver warranties absolutely NOTHING! I have been really considering quitting glass blowing because I regretted having to baby sit this furnace. I have fretted over these machines for 13 years and I am going to make a change this summer. It has been a means to an end for me but I can honestly say that I would not recommend that anyone purchase one of these machines. What I saved in the original price I have more than paid back in time and $$ for the coils as well as the aggravation of going out into the hot shop on any given day wondering if the furnace is still hot.

Nick Jones

04-12-2007, 12:54 AM

This thread makes me think there might be a market for my furnaces after all.
http://img106.imageshack.us/img106/674/nickgatherpc7.jpg

Brent Hickenbotham

04-12-2007, 02:09 AM

is that a cafeteria tray you have those bricks set on?

Ed Pennebaker

04-12-2007, 07:37 AM

That kind of reminds me of one of the first furnaces I worked out of...one layer of scrounged hard brick on the inside, one layer of softbrick on the outside, a homemade burner on the top, throw in some broken bottles after a run to the dumpsters behind the local bars and you're in business with a tank furnace that could be rebuilt in an afternoon. Except the furnace I worked out of was built by a 6'6" blower and the sill was at about my eye level. I couldn't see to gather, just had to stick the pipe in and feel for the glass.

Nick Jones

04-12-2007, 11:31 AM

Originally posted by Brent Hickenbotham
is that a cafeteria tray you have those bricks set on?
It's an overturned cafeteria table actually. Upgrade! The stand and supports from underneath the table are used as part of the gloryhole's burner support. http://img238.imageshack.us/img238/8/burnerstand1sn.jpg
Originally posted by Ed Pennebaker
I couldn't see to gather, just had to stick the pipe in and feel for the glass.
Haha.

Brian Gingras

04-12-2007, 04:41 PM

the best Denver furnace I have ever used was at Sky Campbell's studio...it was nice and hot, he simply cut a hole in the side of the thing and stuck a burner in, even left the bad elements in place...best move I've seen with a Denver, period.

F Thumb

04-12-2007, 07:40 PM

Originally posted by Pete VanderLaan
I think "The need to tinker" sums it up totally. If you like it, Denver is your furnace" If you don't you build something with horsepower and no nonsense.

Yep.

:thumb:

Roger Gandelman

04-12-2007, 09:01 PM

I had a friend who worked as an accountant during the day. He rented a small office in another office building on like the 6 or 7th floor, put in a 60lb denver (snuck it in at night), built a small glory hole and annealler, carried a barbeque size bottle of propane up there each night in the elevator (in his suit and tie), and blew glass. No one ever knew he was doing it.........oh,yeh, he did say he had to open the window.

Pete VanderLaan

04-12-2007, 09:23 PM

Originally posted by Brian Gingras
the best Denver furnace I have ever used was at Sky Campbell's studio...it was nice and hot, he simply cut a hole in the side of the thing and stuck a burner in, even left the bad elements in place...best move I've seen with a Denver, period.
*********************
This is kind of the equivalent of jacking up the radiator cap and putting a new car under it.

Denvers are what they are but they really have gotten a whole lot of people started. Kind of like owning a 63 corvair. At least you have wheels.

Steve Beckwith

04-13-2007, 04:45 AM

In my own defense, I have used the Denver furnaces as a means to an end. I am a hot glass junkie and I was willing to put up with just about anything to get it. I run another business full time and I was (and still am)teaching myself to blow so I just didn't have (didn't take)time to learn another way. This is the only furnace I have ever used but I have hated the #%@@& thing for a long time now. This summer the 'ol EF240 is coming apart for good. I will save the the controls, and use the frame as a base for a new wire melter of my own build. What a great forum!

Pete VanderLaan

04-13-2007, 10:42 AM

Don't ever let Ralph Nadar know you modified it.

Scott Young

04-16-2007, 05:55 PM

I was going to buy a Denver before reading this post. That being said, I do NOT like to "tinker" and it seems that this is basically what needs to be done with the Denver.

Now, for the important question:

What would you purchase if you were thinking of a 100-150# (could be a little smaller I guess... depends on the bang for the buck) electric that would be used initially for "play" (I am a production blower at a facility and don't get much time to try new things on my own)

I'd like to use the System 96 nuggets (just because it is what I am used to - unless someone talks me out of that as well)

Now, the next question everyone will ask is "how much can you budget?" I have 2 different answers, mine > wife

So, help me out with the logic to convince my wife.

Brian Gingras

04-16-2007, 06:09 PM

I'm not sure a 100-150 lb unit is a "play" unit...that's the size of my production furnace, blowing several days per week. I have a 105lb SiC furnace, great little guy, going strong for 2 years now...

If you really don't want to tinker at all and just want to plug and "play" talk to Steve Stadelman. He has a 100lb unit.

A little bit of tinkering(changing elements on occasion) will yield you an SiC furnace of the same capacity. It's a furnace that you can build yourself or have built for you for decent money also.

Or plan "C" would be a wire furnace if you like changing elements more frequently(3-6 months)

Steve Stadelman

04-16-2007, 06:57 PM

My 100lb furnace is , to many in the field, expensive.

$13.000.00 F.O.B. Portland Ore, plus one plane ticket for Brent or Me to come down and install it.

The selling points I like to make are that one of us will always answear the phone.............ALWAYS or call back A.S.A.P. and you will have someone to talk to if there is any trouble.

It is ready made, proven design that works whenever you want it to............no tinkering and no B.S.

I keep spare EVERYTHING in the shop and will U.P.S. red at the drop of a hat if there is ever a problem. Our panels have U.L. stickers (UL 508).

I have many customers who have my equipment just for the glass quality AND the ease of operation, safety, and low operating costs come as a bonus.

Ben Rosenfield

04-16-2007, 07:42 PM

Originally posted by Scott Young
So, help me out with the logic to convince my wife. Scott, how long have you been married? :D

But seriously, if you want to go more than 75 lb (I'm building my wire melter for 75 lb), you really need a furnace that has more ass than what wire can give you. Some have gone the SiC route, and some have gone to Moly furnaces. For my money, I'd go Moly.

Steve Stadelman and I go back a few years now, and my studio is outfitted with a glory hole he built for me. I do not own one of his furnaces, so speaking solely as the guy who put numerous testimonials on his Website (having gathered some of them myself), I can say that there are lots of satisfied customers.

Check out the testimonials page at www.stadelmanglass.com (http://www.stadelmanglass.com) and see what some of your peers have to say. Most importantly, note the comments about Steve's technical support.

In summary, if you don't wish to build it yourself, but you want a quality product and the ability to keep your money in the glass community, I sincerely urge you to at least give Steve a call.

Brian Gingras

04-16-2007, 07:45 PM

Originally posted by Steve Stadelman
My 100lb furnace is , to many in the field, expensive.

Actually when compared to the only other guys offering a moly system your cheap, very cheap...compared to most of the top furnaces, gas or electric, your not expensive at all. Add in combustion safety and piping and your much cheaper.

Scott Dunahee

04-16-2007, 09:01 PM

Originally posted by Ben Rosenfield
if you want to go more than 75 lb (I'm building my wire melter for 75 lb), you really need a furnace that has more ass than what wire can give you. Some have gone the SiC route, and some have gone to Moly furnaces. For my money, I'd go Moly.

I would love to have one of Steve's 100# or 300# furnaces. That said, I run a 75# wire melter, melting 96 nugs which suits my current needs. I also know of another blower local to me who built one based around the 105# pot and it is also a satisfactory machine, for a wire melter (and all that that entails).

BSD

Ed Mc Donald

04-17-2007, 02:07 PM

I've got a Stadelman hundred pounder thats fantastic..I'm also melting Spectrum 96 nuggets.. Its turned into a simple efficient system, good glass(a tad stiff..), a great shake n bake process, which allows me time and energy to do the rest of the juggling required to run my own studio. Its money well spent with a good payoff in energy savings, but the big bonus has been that Steve's always been there, a quick phone call away.. considerate of my technical abilities, and eager to help, no matter what it takes..(Whew!)..
A good deal and a good deal more.