WFO in Elk Grove

[mren50]

I have finally started my WFO build and have been following other threads in the forum to glean inspiration and techniques. I figured it's time to start my own posts. There is a lot of information you guys have provided and I want to thank all the other posters for their desire to share.

Pictures have been very helpful and they have gotten me to the point of where I have poured my slab, raised the block stand and I am ready to pour the oven slab. The firebricks have been purchased, as well as the FB board & FB insulating blanket. Heatstop 50 is traveling to my door as I post this and I am getting excited about laying some brick.

Is there anybody in the forum able to give me some tips on building the indispensible tool? I tried to order a ball joint from McMaster-Carr like someone sugested and what I got was not useable. (not enough angle play to be useful like a camera tripod joint is.) I'm sure there are other ways to make the swivel joint. I just need someone to point me in the right direction.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Michael

[C5dad]

Re: WFO in Elk Grove

Michael,

I bought a jaw/jaw swivel from Harbor freight and broke the bolt holding the sections. I then had a long 3/8ths id bolt drilled and then made my tool. Looking back, I should have purchased a threaded solid rod end, trimmed it down and attached the jaw to it instead.The threaded rod end would have been put through the baseplate made of wood. The Jaw/yoke would have been attached to the rod of the tool.

I have attached the picture of my learning experience!

[mren50]

Re: WFO in Elk Grove

C5Dad,

Thank you for the suggestion on building the Indispensable tool. I took some of the suggestions from others and made my own modification using a 1/2" universal joint & a 7/16 deepwell socket to make my swivel point anchored by a 1/4 20 bolt through some plywood that I used to cover my oven floor while building the dome. I actually was able to construct the dome without using any supports by being careful with mixing my morter and taking my time. The Indispensable tool was helpful for keeping my rows aligned. My oven is complete and I have been baking in it for about 3 weeks now.
I have attached a couple of photos.

Thank you,
Michael

[Les]

Re: WFO in Elk Grove

Michael,

You are just over the hill - welcome to the obsession. When I built my oven, I simply cut a piece of plywood 1/2 of the radius. It wasn't perfect, but it will keep your dome pretty much true to form.

Les...

[mren50]

Re: WFO in Elk Grove

Les,
You are my hero. I used your photos as a guide while building my oven. The literature sure is helpful but as they say, "A picture is worth a thousand words." I so admired your brick work. Mine is not as close fitting as yours but I think it turned out fairly well. Most important, the oven works really well. I cant say enough about the help to be found in the forum. Even though I built the entire project without feedback from anyone I still found the previous posts from other members invaluable. I am going to attach some more pictures of my build just for the fun of it. It truly has been a very rewarding time building my WFO.

Michael

Link to Picassa Picasa Web Albums - Michael Renaud - WFO in Elk Gr...

[sacwoodpusher]

Re: WFO in Elk Grove

Congratulations on your oven. I live in Wilton, CA.....

Your oven looks quite nice, and I looked at your web alblum too.

Now, tell me the truth, is that your first WFO pizza on the web, or is that maybe your second or third? I had to learn how to cook in a WFO...I had my initial firings way too hot.

Now I cook everything possible in the oven. I buy whole chickens, and before cooking them, I cut off the back and thow it and the neck and the giblets into a steel frying pan, add 2 carrots, 1 onion and a handul of garlic cloves...Add a little olive oil and salt and pepper, and brown this in the oven at about 600 degrees. Transfer this to a stockpot full of boiling water, and I have great stock to go with my chicken dinners. We find that chicken and meats done at a higher temperature in the WFO are much moister than the stovetop or household oven.

[mren50]

Re: WFO in Elk Grove

I had to make a few trial pizzas before I got it right. I was cooking at too high temps. I found if I wait for it to get down to 600 degrees it works really well. Sounds like you got a winner, winner chicken dinner going on. I will have to try that. I had used my oven for pizza one day and found 2 days later there was enough retained heat to bake a chicken. Put it into a cast iron roasting pan and left it in there for about 2 hours. Temp at the time was about 300 degrees. Came out all nice and golden and the meat was real moist.