Click on a thumbnail sketch to see the full size picture.

	I charged, or filled, the crucible with old brass faucet parts that I had cleaned. You can assume the metal in faucets is good for casting because that is how the faucet was made in the first place. The crucible is a commercially made, silicon carbide 'cup'. The furnace was constructed by me out of an old 20 gallon drum and some fire bricks. I welded on some handles that I made out of conduit and added wheels to the bottom. I then drilled holes for the burner and starter to go into. The burner is made of water pipe. I made a jet by drilling into a brass nipple. It is connected to the propane tank via copper tubing. The propane regulator gives pressure from 0 to 40 PSI.
	While I hold the crucible, John skims off the dross. Dross is the crud and oxidation that collects on the top of the melt. In case you are wondering why the crucible is that bright orange color, that is because it is HOT. My legs are feeling the burning heat from several feet away.
	I pour brass into the 'investment' or mold. The investment is plaster which was was cast around the wax original. After the plaster hardens I put it into my kiln and burn out the wax overnight. The plaster is still hot from the kiln during the pour. That reduces the thermal shock from the brass. The muffin pan to the lower left is where we would put any leftover brass. Unfortunately, due to a screwup there was no leftover. But that is also fortunate. I later learned from experience that brass permanently bonds to the muffin tin. We needed a better solution for overflow.
	In these pictures you can see the result of the pour. I haven't cleaned off all the plaster yet, so you can only get a rough idea of what it looks like. It also will look better after polishing.
	Trust me, it looks better with the plaster removed.
	Unfortunately there is a casting defect. He has a hole in his head.

Copyright (C) C Allen Brown 2002.