Advice on new kiln purchase
Hi all, Long time reader, first-time poster looking for advice on the best bang for the buck kiln for annealing glass beads and small lampwork pieces. I'm based in Australia so please only recommend brands available to me.
Also... once I buy the kiln is this a stand-alone "plug n play" item or do I need other gadgets and or accessories to run it. I have a budget of roughly $800 - $1000 Australian dollars. All recommendations and advice welcome. Thank you for taking the time to read and/or reply \\:D/ |
Not being familiar with what is available in Australia, no advice other than a digital controller will make your life much easier. You should not need peripherals to use it for lampwork. Plug, program and go.
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I have to think that Glass Hive ships everywhere. Contact them. If they do, that is a super great kiln, robust and functional. Well built.
https://www.theglasshive.com/ |
Essiemessy is in Australia, you might try to message her. She doesn't come here much anymore though. http://www.lampworketc.com/forums/member.php?u=16240
She had a bad experience with one manufacturer, if you do the advanced search and put in her user name it was a thread about Paragon Caldera. I can't remember what she finally got. |
That was really helpful, thank you. I wasn't a fan of the annealing collars to begin with but reading that kinda sealed the deal. I've narrowed my search down to a couple of kilns, just doing a bit of product review research before committing to a choice!
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Chockadoo in Australia sell glass hive kilns. Great service, great kilns.
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Definitely recommend Glass Hive! And second the digital controller as well.
dj |
sweet, i'll look into them also. thanks.
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Here's another Glass Hive recommendation.
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So one last question before I choose my kiln and commit to a purchase... I've narrowed it down to either the Paragon SC2 at $1700AUD or Bee Hive Small Beadmaking Kiln at $1500 AUD. Do I need kiln controllers to run these or can I use either of these kilns as is to anneal etc without the need for a kiln controller and other equipment? Once again thank you all for the feedback/tips/advice!
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They do not have a digital controller included?
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It's so much easier to control bead annealing w/a digital controller.
I started out w/a kiln w/an analog controller for lampworking because it was cheaper. It was so much harder to get correct annealing temps w/o a whole bunch of experimentation and it had to be watched constantly just to be sure of retaining correct temp. W/o any controller at all it would be a difficult thing to reach/keep correct temps for annealing. If it's fusing, metal clay or something other than lampwork annealing I haven't the experience to comment on difference in type of controller usage. Here's an article that might answer some questions on controllers https://www.soulceramics.com/pages/g...ln-controllers dj |
So my purchase of a new kiln is on hold for now, my father n' law has tracked down a guy with 4 old kilns and he knows at least one was used for glass so I'm off to check them out on Tuesday. Would be stoked if I could pick up one to do the job for a few hundred dollars, would allow me to sink some cash into a oxycon! Anyway, I really appreciate all of the help and advice, thank you everyone =)
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There are a few places to buy Kilns in Australia, I am in country Vic and have dealt with Jan at Beadglass she is in NSW just out of Sydney she might have some. of there is Silver Exchange in Warragul Vic she does Paragon Kilns or Game Co in Sydney they also do Paragon kilns.
Paragon Kilns are the easiest to work with a digital controller. Hope this helps |
So I got my new kiln today. Based on cost and what I need I purchased the Paragon SC2 kiln and am stoked with it. Perfect for what I wanted and easy to use! slowly getting my workshop together have a killer work bench, my ventilation has been sorted and am awaiting on my torch and hoses to be shipped. Glass arrived today also and now I'm just waiting on my oxy and propane tanks to be delivered. Only thing I need now is a steel plate to go on my bench and I will be good to go. I started putting this together about 5 weeks ago and have been like a little kid counting down the days to Christmas. As long as there are no issues connecting the torch and tanks I should be playing with glass in a week or so. Once again thanks for all of the recommendations and help.
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Awesome! SC2 is also a great kiln for metal clay if you ever do that.
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Congrats! Getting closer.
dj |
I picked up a couple of 10 foot by 3 foot sheets of galvanized metal used in duct work from a local heating and a/c company.
It wasn't that expensive and you can ask them to cut it to size or even put bends in it for you. they are also a great source for old house hold ventilation fans from the furnaces they remove when installing a new furnace. Junking it cost them money so they are likely to give to to you be nothing. When I had a furnace replaced the guy even pulled the fan out and left me the wiring diagram as well. I used it in my vent system over my torch bench and it moves a ton of air and didn't cost me a penny. |
I hope I am posting in the right place. I also am embarking on my first kiln purchase and was wondering if anyone has any in-site on the Jen Jen cube kiln. Thanks
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