Elisabeth H Posted January 11, 2021 Report Share Posted January 11, 2021 Hello All, I am beginning my home pottery journey. I acquired a free kiln a couple years ago and now am finally getting around to running it. The kiln is an L&L K23 from 1969. It’s a 2 zone manual kiln, rated to cone 6. I have replaced all the elements and found that they’re not all heating (some multimeter work showed bad connections) so I will be replacing the switches in the coming days. After that I am hoping the kiln will be operational again. How high and long should I run a test firing? I am wondering if anyone would be able to walk me through a bisque firing and then a glaze firing schedule. Or at least sending me in the right direction with any helpful links you might know of. My glaze is rated for cone 6. Also, after talking to a local artist I have invested in a pyrometer and two thermocouples to keep track of the temperature. I plan to run that with my 5,6,7 cones to keep track. I would appreciate any advice! Elisabeth Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted January 11, 2021 Report Share Posted January 11, 2021 Can you double check the model #? Maybe add a picture or so including if this kiln has a dynatrol kiln controller. Unfortunately if this is a cone six kiln you can get many lowfire cone (04) firings out of it but firing up to its absolute max (cone 6) you will not get many. It’s customary to always advise folks to buy a cone ten kiln which then gats them 100-150 firings on a set of elements at cone six. Post some pics, you will get great feedback. Let’s figure out exactly what ya got first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted January 12, 2021 Report Share Posted January 12, 2021 Post a picture of the serial plate and we'll see what can be done with this kiln. It's not ideal for use at cone 6, as the elements have to be in perfect condition in order to reach cone 6. You'll only get about 30 firings before they need to be replaced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elisabeth H Posted January 12, 2021 Author Report Share Posted January 12, 2021 I probably won’t get more than a couple rounds of firing done a year with my production rate. Do you think I’ll be able to get a reliable cone 6 firing a handful of times and then replace the elements or should I use this kiln only for bisque firing and then find another option for the glaze firings? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Kielb Posted January 12, 2021 Report Share Posted January 12, 2021 Do not operate above 2300 would imply cone eight to me. Not the best but if true you can generally get say 20 - 40 firings on them at cone six. A cone six max rated kiln, I would say no. A cone eight kiln in my opinion is good for occasional cone six firings but not a workhorse. So yes if the label is true, with new elements you should get some cone six firings. Neil is the L&L guy, he might have specific experience with this model. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted January 12, 2021 Report Share Posted January 12, 2021 Let me check on something with L&L and I'll get back to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catatonic Posted January 20, 2021 Report Share Posted January 20, 2021 On 1/11/2021 at 6:42 PM, neilestrick said: You'll only get about 30 firings before they need to be replaced. Is this true of any kiln that fires to ^6? Just wondering. My elements are new on my Duncan, rated to ^8. Just wondering how long I might expect them to last. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted January 20, 2021 Report Share Posted January 20, 2021 13 minutes ago, Catatonic said: Is this true of any kiln that fires to ^6? Just wondering. My elements are new on my Duncan, rated to ^8. Just wondering how long I might expect them to last. Yes, true of any cone 6 max kiln. With a cone 8 kiln we see more like 70-85 firings. That's with a combination of bisque and cone 6 glaze firings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neilestrick Posted January 20, 2021 Report Share Posted January 20, 2021 @Elisabeth H Sorry for taking so long to get back to you. I spoke with L&L, and they said your kiln is going to max out somewhere between cone 6 and cone 8. The current version of that kiln, the JD23V, is rated to cone 5, and it has elements that are only slightly different resistance than the elements in your kiln. L&L said it may be able to get to cone 8 with new elements, but it's more likely that it's really a cone 6 kiln. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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