Ralph Keating's Flowerpot furnace foundry
Photos and captions Copyright © by Ralph Keating


Ralph is just getting into metalcasting and decided to go with the flowerpot furnace design for starters. But unlike most beginners he skipped aluminum and went straight for melting brass! Ok let me shut up and let Ralph do the talking! Thanks for the pics Ralph!


I'm new to this, and thought I would share some photos documenting how a beginner and his furnace look and feel. I built my furnace following the instructions found in the "Flowerpot crucible furnace." Hope to have a successful casting photo for you soon.
My brother picked up the bathroom exhaust fan for me at a thrift store. Cost $2.00. The hair dryer has been with me since the 70's, as can be discerned from the bright orange color.
My first crucible and soon to be ingot. Tin can worked in a pinch, for a small amount of brass. But it almost didn't last, and disintegrated in my hands when I picked it up. Working on a more suitable one.
Both blowers running full out.
Hard to tell in this photo, but the flame went blue. Seemed like a significant event. This poured like a liquid.
My second melt of the night, a brass candleholder. Slightly more mass than the first melt, only the hair dryer running (on medium), poured like a lava flow. Cool, but probably not what I want when I start to cast.
The missing cup is from the second melt, just to the right of that is the cup from my first. Both ingots fused to the cup, guess I'm leaving them in to long?
The results of the night's work.

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