My Wood fired Redux

[Tscarborough]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

It sounds stupid telling you this, but you should butter them more so you don't have to go back and tuck them.

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

How dare you......


Seriously, I hear you, but I don't soak the bricks, just dampen them... so they grab right away. At this point in the game, I can tuck pretty fast, it's not a problem. Another thing is, is I hardly ever lay brick, so I suck at gauging how much to put down...so I fall back on what I know what works for me.

I can't wait to get to the stonework part.

EDIT 9/5/2013 : I realized that when you where saying the brick should be buttered more, you were looking at pictures showing dry set courses....I had not mortared anything in yet. Out of the first four pics, only the last 2 had mortared courses. No wonder you said that.

[Xene]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

It sounds stupid telling you this, but you should butter them more so you don't have to go back and tuck them.

This bit of advice saved me from nearly pulling my hair out as I got closer to closing that dome. I have never in my life thrown more things or allowed such expletives to escape as when the day every single brick in the row fell straight down to the oven floor...time after time. More mortar and a longer soak time saved my build. (thanks to the guys here)

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

This bit of advice saved me from nearly pulling my hair out as I got closer to closing that dome. I have never in my life thrown more things or allowed such expletives to escape as when the day every single brick in the row fell straight down to the oven floor...time after time. More mortar and a longer soak time saved my build. (thanks to the guys here)

And a nice build it is too, Xene.

Alas, I am going to remain a stubborn stonemason...and I will continue laying brick the way I lay brick...like a stonemason. To me this is more of a personal preference anyway, the end result would be the same..I doubt I would be any faster applying more mortar. But that's me...not saying it's wrong.

[Kurtloup]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

Unmoulded the latest cast pieces tonight. These are cast using a polymer fortified concrete with SS wire reinforcement. I added charcoal coloring to the mix so it wouldn't dry light grey. The plan is to slurry the holes with earthtone/white slurry. I have 4 more to cast for the first layer...hopefully this week. The second layer will get the same colors, but I'll be doing a technique that replicates marble.


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I'd like to cast a few pieces like you are doing on your build for my build. If you don't mind, what kind of mold are you using? I was thinking of using melamine or formica faced ply for a mold. I have a bit of formica laying around. I also have some corian I can use too. I've seen melamine used for concrete counter tops. Are you vibrating the forms after the pour? Do you know of an online guide for making the cast pieces you can refer me too? Thanks.

Kurt

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

I'd like to cast a few pieces like you are doing on your build for my build. If you don't mind, what kind of mold are you using? I was thinking of using melamine or formica faced ply for a mold. I have a bit of formica laying around. I also have some corian I can use too. I've seen melamine used for concrete counter tops. Are you vibrating the forms after the pour? Do you know of an online guide for making the cast pieces you can refer me too? Thanks.

Kurt

Hey Kurt,

I am using melamine on my table top, and made the form from pvc trim board. I have used melamine for the forms in the past, but I'm finding that the trim holds up to multiple castings. Also, I only use hot glue to put them together...no screws anywhere on the form. The other material you have should be fine too. Clean the form well then apply release agent...I use wd-40 or armor-all, but any kind of lightweight oil is works.

I did vibrate the grey pieces you see in this thread, because they are cast with a flowable mixture. I use the standard 3:2:1 - 1/2 (h2o) but tweek it a bit. I also add an acrylic or polymer admix to the concrete as well. Bagged concrete mixes work well too. The others are a combination of hand pressed and a technique called Scagliola.

I can shoot you some links in a PM...let me dig some up, not sure about the rules on that here. In the meantime, check the forums for some info. There are a few folks in here that have done some superb concrete work...to name a few - Gulf, Utah Beehiver, neil2...many more.

[Kurtloup]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

Thanks for information.

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

I've been picking away at it when I can, and should have it closed up next time I work on it. Then on to the cast concrete and granite carving for the arch !

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

I'll have it closed up today....

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

And once more, I get rained out. Looks like the topping out will wait for another day...Tuesday or Wednesday because of the big storm rolling through.

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

This seems so trivial after what happened in Boston today.....

I closed up the dome and applied a reinforced cladding. Now on to the cast concrete watertable and framing.

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

Today I got the final 4 watertable pieces cast for the first course. 2 color slurry was applied to the others, and I'll wet sand those down Saturday..because it's going to rain AGAIN tomorrow. I should be able to set them all by next weekend, and then begin casting the second layer. In between all this I'll start carving the granite arch so it will be ready when I start setting stone on the surround.

[V-wiz]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

Good stuff, ill be looking out for those photos.

[brickie in oz]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

V-wiz...something to look at in the meantime....

Here are a couple ovens I did in the past.


This is the first one..circa 2005

Very nice oven....

If you dont mind me saying the only thing Id change is a big stone lintel instead of the steel bar at the bottom.

Edit:-
I see in your pics of the second oven that you used a stone lintel.....

[stonecutter]

Re: My Wood fired Redux

I don't mind discussion or other opinions at all. To be honest, I don't think there has been a single project that I didn't think there was something I could have or should have done different and or better.

That oven was built at a long time clients home using up the last of a 300 ton pile of stone, taken from walls around the property. I did search around for a lintel that would work, but had to settle for the angle iron. One thing nice is he had some doors made and you don't see that straight line anymore