Maskedmaven Posted October 16, 2020 Report Share Posted October 16, 2020 Hi All! Having given up on the Skutt 181 that just doesn't want to work I'm considering a new (used) kiln. Also not wanting to make the same uninformed mistakes as before I thought I'd run it by you awesome peeps here. So it's an Olympic Model #1818, 240 volt, Temp 2250, watts 5040 Cone 6. The odd thing is - I can't find ANY info on a 1818 model that is cone 6 ! I sunk a couple hours into looking it up. I found a cone 4 at 120 volt, and cone 8s and 10s. Has anyone come across this type of model? It has a kiln sitter rather than a digital controller. All the versions I can find are not set up this way. I don't want to sink money into it and not be able maintain it and find parts if needed. It is listed at $600. Is this a good price? With it being a cone 6 and a kiln sitter (which I don't mind), should it be lower? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick White Posted October 16, 2020 Report Share Posted October 16, 2020 The probable reason it is rated to only cone 6 is the blank ring in the middle. That adds volume but no additional heat. The blank ring can be removed to improve the watts to volume ratio, but that would limit the size of things you could fire. Mark C. and Bill Kielb 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted October 16, 2020 Report Share Posted October 16, 2020 (edited) 3 hours ago, Maskedmaven said: don't want to sink money into it and not be able maintain it and find parts if needed. It is listed at $600. Is this a good price? With it being a cone 6 and a kiln sitter (which I don't mind), should it be lower? One thing you might find handy is the kiln loss chart by L&L. They have several and I am really glad they did the research as it reveals that to get near cone ten you need a bit more than 3.5 watts per square inch of interior surface area and is really very consistent to the majority of their data with it going up in the 4 watts per square inch range as things get bigger. Keep in mind it’s still acceptable for almost all kilns to replace elements when they degrade by ten percent So not a lot of wiggle room or models that will perform well below this. Lots of other things can be realized from these charts as well but this shows clearly without enough power, it just ain’t gonna make it. Interior surface areas for round kilns involve 2 X pi X radius X height plus the area of top and bottom which is fairly easy to figure for most kilns to get an idea if it will perform reasonably. Interesting charts and also nice for figuring out how much heat will need to be removed, HVAC wise. https://hotkilns.com/sites/default/files/pdf/BTUS-School-Master.pdf https://hotkiln.com/sites/default/files/pdf/BTUS-Easy-Fire.pdf Edited October 16, 2020 by Bill Kielb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted October 16, 2020 Report Share Posted October 16, 2020 If you plan to fire to cone 6, you want a kiln that will at least get to cone 8, ideally cone 10. Otherwise you'll only get about 30 firings before you have to change the elements. I'd call Olympic, as they will be able to give you some info about this kiln and make recommendations about increasing the cone rating, possibly with just new elements, possibly with taking out the blank ring. Maskedmaven 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted October 16, 2020 Report Share Posted October 16, 2020 (edited) Here is an interesting find, as of 2008, with 2-1/2” brick, 18X18 - same wattage it’s rated cone 8. With a 4” blank making it 18X23 they increased the wattage to 6300 to achieve cone 8. Seems like the cone 6 designation on the equipment tag is likely pretty honest. I am guessing it was built this way new. Pretty amazing that an extra half inch of brick gets this rated to cone 10.in stock form. Edited October 16, 2020 by Bill Kielb Maskedmaven 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maskedmaven Posted October 16, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 16, 2020 1 hour ago, Bill Kielb said: Here is an interesting find, as of 2008, with 2-1/2” brick, 18X18 - same wattage it’s rated cone 8. With a 4” blank making it 18X23 they increased the wattage to 6300 to achieve cone 8. Seems like the cone 6 designation on the equipment tag is likely pretty honest. I am guessing it was built this way new. Pretty amazing that an extra half inch of brick gets this rated to cone 10.in stock form. So, in all likelihood the 'honest' label means instead of being rated a cone 8 but firing to 6 it's just labeled a 6? I guess I should ask what thickness the brick is. Visually I can't discern between 2.5 and 3.... Thoughts on removing the blank ring? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted October 16, 2020 Report Share Posted October 16, 2020 (edited) 1 hour ago, Maskedmaven said: Thoughts on removing the blank ring? Just my opinion I think what’s more interesting is you can likely buy a 6300 watt element set and turn this into a cone 8 kiln with the ring. My guess is they fit and wiring likely fine internally but easy to upgrade for little if needed. And of course your service to the kiln needs to be 40 amps. With creativity and the fact it’s currently only rated cone 6 maybe a good negotiating point. Of course you would need to confirm all this. My other thought is the difference in losses between 3” brick and 2” is about 20% thermally. 3” brick Or 2-1/2” with 1” insulation has jumped up higher on my list of priorities For sure. Your question: remove the blank ring and looks like it becomes a cone 8. By today’s standards I think I calculated it about 3.75 W / interior surface area square inch. With today’s elements (Kanthal) and by today’s standards it probably gets to cone 10 actually. Taking this farther installing a Bartlett V6 CF, old style digital (not touch screen) with relays etc.... and some creativity in searching for best price probably cost 250.00 - 400.00 depending how resourceful you are. So if you can get this with furniture for a super price, it has lots of possibilities. Edited October 16, 2020 by Bill Kielb Maskedmaven 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldlady Posted October 16, 2020 Report Share Posted October 16, 2020 (edited) depending on where you are, $600 seems a high price for a small, used kiln. can you get the owner to photograph the inside so you can see the elements inside their grooves? if they are upright they may have only been used lightly, perhaps for only cone 06 earthenware. if you can find out who used it, that might help, too. perhaps someones' mother or aunt who made china dolls. earthenware china. what else comes with the kiln, shelves, posts, anything? Edited October 16, 2020 by oldlady Maskedmaven 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted October 17, 2020 Report Share Posted October 17, 2020 offer them less say 400$ and negotiate as you need some room to fix it up cost wise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maskedmaven Posted October 17, 2020 Author Report Share Posted October 17, 2020 3 hours ago, oldlady said: depending on where you are, $600 seems a high price for a small, used kiln. can you get the owner to photograph the inside so you can see the elements inside their grooves? if they are upright they may have only been used lightly, perhaps for only cone 06 earthenware. if you can find out who used it, that might help, too. perhaps someones' mother or aunt who made china dolls. earthenware china. what else comes with the kiln, shelves, posts, anything? Pics of the kiln should show above in the thread. The inside looks really good and I can't see the elements sticking out anywhere. There is furniture as well-waiting on a response about how much gear comes with and how much it's been used-if/when elements were last changed. I'm near Phoenix, AZ which is a major metropolitan area. Not sure if that should make it more or less expensive. I'm doing extra diligence before buying this time as I bought a 1975 Skutt 181 (for $200) but couldn't get it running after repairs... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted October 17, 2020 Report Share Posted October 17, 2020 5 hours ago, Maskedmaven said: Skutt 181 (for $200) but couldn't get it running after repairs... Skutt 181 pretty simple kiln really. If the community around you was not able to make that run, maybe time to rethink purchasing a used kiln. Most will likely need maintenance at least as difficult as the Skutt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wildernessflowerco Posted October 2, 2021 Report Share Posted October 2, 2021 Wondering if you did buy this kiln and “upgraded”? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark C. Posted October 2, 2021 Report Share Posted October 2, 2021 (edited) maskedmaven has not been on this site since Nov 6th 2020 just click on the name and you can see that . You could send a message on that link to them and it may get to them via email if its setup. Welcome to the forum Edited October 2, 2021 by Mark C. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranger Dennis Posted July 3, 2022 Report Share Posted July 3, 2022 Does anyone know how much a used Olympic Kiln Model No. S18AH is worth these days My wife use to make some porcelain dolls but unable to make them anymore It's only been used very little bit ...Thanks in advance Ranger Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted July 4, 2022 Report Share Posted July 4, 2022 Is it manual or digital? It all depends on condition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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