your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

[Bren]

Well I don't know how you guys do it.
I have finally started the dome after months of looking at everyone else's. It looks so easy in the photos.

All seemed to be going well till i had to cut in the floor bricks.
I was given 85% phos bonded bricks from a refractory manufacturer. Probably normally used for metal furnaces.

These things were easy enough to cut into half bricks. BUT FORGET fiddly cut ins. No brick saw. I tried a diamond cutter on a 125mm angle grinder. But the bricks are just too hard it takes forever to cut through. Now I'm stuck.

Looks like I'm going to have to just hirer a brick saw and hope they cut quicker. At $140 a day hire charge, it better.


Man The door entry is doing my head in. I take my hat off to those previous posts who have finished their oven... I just can't figure it out. I hope it is clearer to me once i have cut in the floor in.

1mtr internal, In Sydney. Will send photos when i get time to figure out how to do that

[deejayoh]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

Welcome to oven building! Most of us started right where you are - it gets easier.

It sounds like you might have high-density fire bricks - which are a lot harder to cut.

[NCMan]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

Welcome to you, Bren. There are lots of knowledgeable oven owners/builders here who are willing and able to lend you a hand, if and when you need it. Best of luck w/your project.

[Greenman]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

Welcome Bren. I had a look at the saw options and found a good used 15" wet saw for $500 on Gumtree. It is the right tool for the job and has built 3 ovens now. I could sell it for what I paid for it still but being a tool hoarder it will probably be around for some time yet. I found the only reasonable replacement blades on ebay from USA and even if the postage is as much as the blade it is still half of what the locals want.

Good luck with your build and you will find plenty of support and advice from the members here.

[Bren]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

Hired a brick saw after letting the eBay one go at $400.

All going great till I got to the top of the dome. The angles are so tight there are massive triangles of just mortar.

I tried making up a sand form and laying onto it but the circle form just looked terrible. Without the tool to show the angle of t,he brick it just got messy..

Then the brick saw over heated with only a few to go... And I had a perfectionist hissy fit and pulled the oven back to before I started the sand form...

[Greenman]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

That is the interesting bit. You will have to share some pics with us.

[cobblerdave]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

G'day
I built my dome and finally a fully brick veneer brick cover over my oven with brick bulster and angle grinder for a few fancy cuts . Not highly accurate but were building a dome here, and mines still cooking away after 4 years.
I brought a 125 mm angle grinder and a packet of cheap diamond blades, a case of "horses for courses" my expectation was that they should survive the built. Just. The grinder still runs but its internals are pretty chewed out with dust.
I thought I had no illusions of the dust that dry cutting could produce until I started cutting.
The foliage of the bushes surrounding the oven were covered with dust that I had produced. The respirator mask had to its cartages replaced often and worst my prescription safety glasses had to be wiped down after ever cut. Otherwise you were as blind as a bat . They were useless after the build the dust is pretty abrasive.
So I became pretty good with the bluster and the angle grinder was used to mark the surface. Scour and snap.
Would I use the same method again? Yes, and I've helped someone else do the same and it produced a good working oven.
But would I attempt to build one with fine and accurate cuts with a dry saw. No way, nor would I encourage anyone to do it either. A wet saw is the only way to go if you are going to cut every brick. If you can't source one, that's fine. You'll still produce a good strong working dome without all the cuts.
Regards dave

[Bren]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

The stand test photo

[Bren]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

Brick halves


Set up


First seems easy

Gets hard from here on.


Next photo is not on the computer yet

[Bren]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

[QUOTE=huskerduck;182017]Get a 12" sliding chop saw and be done with it.

wow! That thing looks like i could take off a finger as well. I have never seen one before except the mega version for digging train tunnels.

[Bren]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

thanks coblerdave - Yeah i think i got a case of the perfectionist. I will try to finish this weekend without all the fancy cutting at the top of the dome. so the perfect lit up photos you see on other members photos aren't a necessity to cooking well? good to know.
Ill post photos after the weekend.

[huskerduck]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

[QUOTE=Bren;182029]

Get a 12" sliding chop saw and be done with it.

wow! That thing looks like i could take off a finger as well. I have never seen one before except the mega version for digging train tunnels.

They're the cats meow and aren't limited to brick and tile, want to cut some 8" crown moulding when you're done with your oven.... go for it. You can hook up a small pump and hose if you really want water to cut down on dust but buy the right type of blade for water cutting. I just dry cut with a garbage bag wrapped around the exhaust port

Compound miter cuts are so simple and take seconds to adjust every row I just tap the settings 1 degree on bevel and angle, cut 2 bricks into 4 pieces, test fit dry and then cut my others. If you find a brick needs some shaving I just hold it on the saw table and eyeball "chop"

I really wish I had used mine from the beginning instead of dragging out my wet saw and making jigs and getting water and dumping trays and.... I got to the arch bricks grabbed my Makita 12" and "chopped" out 20 bricks in 15 minutes

I've had my saw for over a decade and it's built a crazy amount of things and had I used it for the first 6 rows of my oven I would have saved probably a day at least

I can attest to the Makita "toughness" mines been abused big time and has sat in snow and rain and mud and.... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d56P9zpIaCE

[cobblerdave]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

G'day
So you going ahead on the weekend. What's your plan of attack?
Regards dave

[mikku]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

Hello Bren,
G'day Cobblerdave,

If closing the dome is as difficult as it seems using brick, then why not consider using a castable refractory? The products have very similar usage characteristics and would make a single (larger) keystone possible that fits perfectly.

Many large kilns use a variety of products: brick, castable, gunned and rammed. Mostly to achieve the best results at the best price overall.

I don't know the price for quality castable in Australia but I'm sure Davids would be glad to provide sources and costs if you asked him.

Here, a 25kg bag of Asahi goes for about 2800yen or $25US. All you need to do is add water, mix and pour into your form. It sets quickly, forms stripped the following day.

[Toomulla]

Re: your awesome... 1mtr internal dome Sydney Aus

thanks coblerdave - Yeah i think i got a case of the perfectionist. I will try to finish this weekend without all the fancy cutting at the top of the dome. so the perfect lit up photos you see on other members photos aren't a necessity to cooking well? good to know.
Ill post photos after the weekend.

Take your time I spent 9 hours for the key stone and associated final ring and most of that on the grinder with a similar diamond wheel. You will most likely only do this once so why rush it and not be happy with the final result