Just got my kiln.....HELP!!!

[Bluebell]

I've finally got it!  My kiln has arrived (Skutt Hotstart Pro) and I've just spent the weekend getting it unpacked, positioned and I've been trying to devour the manual!

But I'm all in a tiz and I need your help.  I'm not very good with manuals and I had assumed by what I read on the internet that it was just a case of plug in and go!  But I've got to page 14 of the manual and it's giving me a chart to pick Fast, Medium or Slow heating rates.  It goes lilke this:-

FAST
1/8" Thick - 18" diameter or smaller
1/4" Thick - 4" diameter or smaller
3/8" Thick - Not recommended

MEDIUM
1/8" Thick - 20" diameter or smaller
1/4" Thick - 8" diameter or smaller
3/8" Thick - 5" diameter or smaller

SLOW
1/8" Thick - 24" diameter or smaller
1/4" Thick - 18" diameter or smaller
3/8" Thick - 12" diameter or smaller
1/2" Thick - 8" diameter or smaller

Sorry for being so dim here (hopefully I'll laugh about this later!) but all I want to do is put in all my prepared dichro pieces (which would just be pendants and smallish type cabochons) close the lid, and flick the switch.  I do intend to maximise use of the shelf space and (it's about 13"/33cm) and I know to keep them  an 1" apart and away from the sides.  So which one do I choose?

Then it asks for me to choose between Slump, Tac-Fuse or Full Fuse.  I've only witnessed full fuse on the course, but what happens with Tac-Fuse?

Also, how long does the whole process take?

I wish there was something with pictures that you could look at and say "well that's what I want" and click on it to see exactly how it's fired.  Is that wishful thinking?

I know there are so many factors that contribute to either the success or failure of firing and it all comes with experience and skill that you have to learn and knowing what your kiln can do.  I'm just anxious to try to get it right which is why I bought this model.

So, if anyone has the same model of kiln, I'd be really grateful if you could help me.
Thanks in advance,
Linda x

[Pat from Canvey]

Ask yourself first how thick your pendants are, probably 1/4 inch or less then look at the size, presumably 4 inch in diameter or smaller so you would choose FAST.The difference berween tack fuse is that full fuse results in a smooth surface while tack fuse leaves the top bits of glass still proud of the base. You probably want a full fuse for pendants and cabochons, leaving them with a nice smooth surface. Hope this helps.

[Zeldazog]

Linda, I have this kiln, to be honest, I took mine straight off the Glassfire program and I set all my ramps and holds myself, so I can't simply tell you which button to push as I never fired mine on it.

But I had been fusing for over a year before I got it, so I already understood kiln firing schedules.

If you have particular schedule you want to follow, you can easily do this with a Hot start programmer, but otherwise it's exactly as Pat says.

My kiln tends to take about 10 - 12 hours to do a full schedule, but I do tend to ramp up conservatively, so it's probably faster than that on the Glassfire schedule.

BEFORE you fire anything in it, though, run it through empty, leaving the bung out to vent off any residues - it will get a bit smelly!

You don't have to your pieces away from the sides with a Skutt, as it is a top firing kiln (it's side firing kilns that you have to be careful of the edges), I put my pieces much closer together, perhaps half an inch gap at most, and I will go that close to the edge too.

I've got a great info sheet from Bullseye, I will come back and either post the website link, or email it direct to you if you can read PDFs.

It explains what happens at each process temperature. 

When I teach my one day courses, I explain what the different processes are......

[Zeldazog]

Bullseye Tip Sheet - Heat and Glass


And Linda, don't panic!!! It's a fab kiln, if I am disappointed with any results out of mine, its usually my own design error, or not cleaning the glass, etc.

[bluefairy]

It is the bestest little kiln in the world!!!!  Have loads of fun with it, took me a while to get my head round it too, but one day a little light went "ting" and off I went! 

[Zeldazog]

It is the bestest little kiln in the world!!!! 

Lol, I was gonna say when I was singing its praises, just ask Helen Blue Fairy.....

[bluefairy]

It is the bestest little kiln in the world!!!! 

Lol, I was gonna say when I was singing its praises, just ask Helen Blue Fairy.....

[Krysia@No98]

Do I know that feeling!  I got my new kiln the other week (different to yours) and I was a good girl too and read the manual.  My question, how many different languages did they translate it through before it got to English and more importantly what happened to the pages that actually say push this button to start and that button to program!!  I do love my kiln though.  It's going to run up many and electrical bill for me

[Bluebell]

Gee, thanks folks!  I feel a little better now.  

BEFORE you fire anything in it, though, run it through empty, leaving the bung out to vent off any residues - it will get a bit smelly!

Is the "bung" you mention here, the little plug on the left hand side?

Thanks for the link btw! x

[Zeldazog]

Yeah, the porcelain "mushroom" thingy.

You'd normally fire with it in, after first firing, which will give off smells up to around 400 degrees C ---- and again, if ever you're firing anything that might give off fumes/burn of residue, fire the first few hundred degrees with it out, then pop it back in.

[Calico Cat]

I am so glad you asked 

Mine arrived last week but is still in its box 'cause I've been away.

Need to clear a space in the garage for it then I can get started 

[Dennis Brady]

There's a number of Tutorials here on fusing/slumping that will help you.  I expecially recommend "Kilnforming Kindergarten":

http://www.glasscampus.com

[Bluebell]

Thank you so much!  There's loads of very useful info covering lots of subjects in this link.  Just downloaded the Kilnforming Kindergarten - looks like a really good read!

[Zeldazog]

Linda, just had a thought....

I think the pre-programmed temperatures in the Hot Start are designed or Spectrum/System 96 glass -

Are you using that, or Bullseye, or float?


I don't know Spectrum, but IIRC it fires at slightly lower process temperatures than Bullseye (and float is higher still) - Dennis will no doubt confirm, cos he's a mine of information!

So, if your first results aren't quite as rounded as expected, that might explain it (which isn't a problem you can always re-fire a bit hotter)  - that said, EVERY kiln fires differently and you need to get used to yours - some seem to run hotter than others.


In fact, good advice is, for the first firing, even thought I know you want to maximize space, it might be worth firing just a very small number of items, just so you know how your kiln runs.  (many glass artists run full tests on their kilns to identify any hot or cold spots and ascertain whether their kiln runs hotter, etc - although you should find your Skutt fires nice an evenly).


It might sound wasteful, but it only costs about 50p-£1 (depending on what you pay for your leccy) to run a full fuse in the Pro - far cheaper to run one schedule for that, than a kiln full of glass which probably cost much more.

[Dennis Brady]

Linda, just had a thought....

I think the pre-programmed temperatures in the Hot Start are designed or Spectrum/System 96 glass -

Are you using that, or Bullseye, or float?


I don't know Spectrum, but IIRC it fires at slightly lower process temperatures than Bullseye (and float is higher still) - Dennis will no doubt confirm, cos he's a mine of information!

So, if your first results aren't quite as rounded as expected, that might explain it (which isn't a problem you can always re-fire a bit hotter)  - that said, EVERY kiln fires differently and you need to get used to yours - some seem to run hotter than others.


In fact, good advice is, for the first firing, even thought I know you want to maximize space, it might be worth firing just a very small number of items, just so you know how your kiln runs.  (many glass artists run full tests on their kilns to identify any hot or cold spots and ascertain whether their kiln runs hotter, etc - although you should find your Skutt fires nice an evenly).


It might sound wasteful, but it only costs about 50p-£1 (depending on what you pay for your leccy) to run a full fuse in the Pro - far cheaper to run one schedule for that, than a kiln full of glass which probably cost much more.

Yup.  You will NOT get the same results for Bullseye and Spectrum with the same firing schedules.  The lower the COE, the harder the glass.  The harder the glass, the more heat required to soften.  You can use the same firing schedules for all glass by varying the top temperatures in each segment.  From a schedule for COE 96 Spectrum, for Bullseye COE 90 add 25 deg F and for float or architectural COE 82 - 84, add 50 deg F.

For example:  The following is a basic tack fusing schedule for Spectrum that will produce a reliable fuse without flattening the edges other then a very slight rounding of the corners:

1.  400 dph to 1000F hold 20
2.  850 dph to 1350F hold 20
3.  FAP to 960F hold 60
4.  400 dph to 300 OFF

To get the identical results with Bullseye the schedule would be:

1.  400 dph to 1025F hold 20
2.  850 dph to 1375F hold 20
3.  FAP to 985F hold 60
4.  400 dph to 300 OFF

That would produce the same degree of tack fuse on both Spectrum and Bullseye.  Some things to consider that we routinely do that many others do not:

1.  Turn kiln off at 300F.  Although most fusers allow their final segment to cool to room temperature, our studio practice is to use the 3-2-1 expedited cooling on all firings.  At 300F crack the kiln an inch or so.  At 200F fully open the kiln.  At 100F remove the load and reload to refire.  This ensures the kiln fires rapidly enough it can always be fired twice each day.

2.  Hold to equalize at 1000F.  Many fuser just ramp up to performance temperature.  We make a routine practice of holding for a soak at 1000F because we know that it is only below that temp that thermal shock is a risk.  Above that temp (if the glass is uniformly heated) it's safe to ramp at very high speed.  Many specialized firing techniques are only possible with very high speed ramps.  Ramping slow might be a very common recommendation but it is NOT a universal solution.