Appreciate the informative response Mongo. Will see how things play out by the time I get to building the dome. Thinking through various options is all part of the planning and building process! My build is a weekend by weekend job so plenty of time to think things through.
One other thing that I can't settle on is the reason why people seem to prefer cutting fire brick base to a round shape before building the dome. Interested in the advantages, because it is quite a hassle compared to setting these bricks without cutting to cover beyond dome edge. Interested in others thoughts.
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Steve, welcome back.
I'd venture that for a wood form versus steel, it's mostly a matter of which material is easier to work with.
I think the typical DIY builder has the tools to form wood, as well as easy access to wood.
While I'm comfortable with both materials, in my case my arch is not a perfect arc/circle. There were a few specific cooking items I wanted to be able to fit in to my oven, thus the ellipse-ish shape versus the circle.
Even though I'm comfortable working with metal, and I have the tools to work it, it was much easier and faster to create a wood form than to try and bend a half-ellipse to my desired dimensions.
Perhaps the only other thing I MIGHT address is considering the possible effect of thermal expansion. A typically-sized steel arch for a 42" oven like I have could expand just under 1/4" in length when seeing a 900F temperature change. It's possible that the movement of the steel caused by thermal cycling could cause issues, it depends on the detailing.
Nothing wrong with either method, an acquaintance of mine used a chunk of metal from an old propane cylinder to form his arches.Leave a comment:
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Why not curved lentil as oven opening?
I am in the process of building my second 42" Pompeii style with half bricks after a 13 year hiatus. Enjoying the planning process and finding this forum invaluable again. I am half wat through the stand on the current build. Photos on Flickr at https://flic.kr/s/aHsmPNxjN5 (if interested original build photos available at https://www.flickr.com/gp/12961365@N00/39xwER)
My question is why do most opt to use a wooden mould to build over opening arch rather than use curved stell to define and hold shape. See my photo below from original build. As for the second layer of floor bricks over fire bricks, that is another story.
Steve from South Australia
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