Test Burn

No, no, this isn't it. Those photos are later in this post.

The cement was taking way too long to dry, which is my fault for leaving it in a cold, damp garage for an entire night. Still, it was still wet on the bottom after three days, so I stuck a hair drier in to help it along. It seemed to work.

With that all done, I was able to install the gas burner and test it out. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough gas left in the tank to do what I had hoped, which was to coat the crucible with flux (a 50/50 mixture of boric acid and borax).

By the time it got up to 500 degrees (far from hot enough for what I was doing), I noticed the pressure on the regulator starting to drop - a telltale sign that I was quickly running out of gas.

The flux mixture was only just starting to melt when I decided to shut off the gas. I can't say when I'll get more gas, but I got my supply of wax rods today, so I'll probably make a part tree tomorrow and start working on a mould.

I suspect that I have enough footage to justify one complete video with just the setup, and casting some test pieces will make for a second.