Deciding which kiln

[tbach]

I’m really new to glass fusing, but I love it. Can’t stop the flood of ideas. Right now I am having my pieces fired at the glass school where I learned the basics a couple of months ago. They are great, but I am beginning to hate the trips back and forth . . . and the wait to see the finished project is something I could do without. I am convinced that this is not just a “flash in the pan,” so I want to purchase a glass kiln.

I have the space for it in my garage workroom, and I am prepared to have proper electrical service installed. My original plan was to purchase a smaller table top kiln – most of the pieces I have done were 12″ diameter/square or less, but it seems to be wiser to purchase a larger kiln now in anticipation of larger projects in the future rather than limiting myself to a small interior. One of the things I really want to pursue is draping, which requires more kiln height. The problem I have encountered is that the deepest glass kiln I have found in my search is 13.5′ deep . . . is that deep enough to drape a 10-12″ square blank into a vase? The only kilns I have found that are deeper are ceramic kilns – not glass kilns, and my understanding is that firing glass in a ceramic kiln adds firing time and is less effective with glass fusing because there are no coils in the lid.

I would love to have some feedback from someone with more experience.

Thanks.

Ted

[glassbymargot]

I have a Paragon Pearl 22. I can drape a 12″ square over a floral former in it.

[tbach]

Thanks for your reply about Paragon Pearl22 – I think that is a clamshell kiln with a height of 13.5 inches? If so, then I will be able to drape in the one I am looking at. Although the Skutt 1014 is not a clamshell kiln, it does have a 13.5 inch depth. Hooray!

[Author]

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