yappystudent

Make sure you get a kiln that is in sections, they are easier to rewire.  I have had a big Skutt for thirty years,  the only thing that bothers me is that I have had to replace the lid three times.  L &L kilns lists  scratch and dent  kilns on there web site,  the government auctions is also a good place to look.  I missed out on a good one near me, they were clearing out a ceramics studio at a air force base.  They sold 3 computer control Skutt for a couple of hundred a piece.   Good Luck.   Denice

A very worthwhile, and rewarding, purchase.  Congrats!

I like Skutt, and they do their job.  If I had money to spare, I'd probably go for a L&L.  But then I'd also go for a Thomas Stuart wheel, a wall mounted clay extruder, a slab roller a...

My first classroom kiln was a Skutt, computer controlled.  It worked well, but it seemed to burn through elements quickly, and that was at Cone 04 max.  I was a that District for six years.  The elements had went bad twice, in that time. 

My second District, used two Skutts, with kiln sitters and a back up timer.  They worked great.

My kiln at home is a Skutt, with just the sitter.

My current classroom kiln is a L&L, computer controlled, and I can't think of anything bad to say about it.  It fires spot on every time.  The computer controlled Skutt I used previously, I would occasionally have some glazes that didn't quite mature, leaving bubbles, that didn't have time to smooth out.  I will say, the height of the kiln, with the stand, requires me to stand, on the stand, to reach the bottom.  Obviously that means, that I have plenty of space for student projects, but it also means, that I have to hang over the edge to load some projects...

Regardless of what you get, I have no doubt you will be happy with your purchase.

Make sure you think about what your end goal is for how large of things you want to fire. I have a little kiln and its brilliant and I love it, but I can't make big platters or tall vases. In retrospect, I wish I would have gotten either wider or taller, but not much bigger. That being said any kiln is 100% better than no kiln, or a kiln you don't have control over the firings.