Pilchuck Furnace Builders

Day 6 – The Crucible is In!

After days of meticulous labor—cutting and mortaring a brick wall by hand, carefully layering in frax and microporous insulation—the moment we’d all been waiting for arrived: the star of the show, our massive 1000 lb (500 kg) crucible, was ready to take its place.

We strapped it up using long steel hooks and a solid metal ring, then brought in the forklift. Watching it lower slowly into the furnace body was intense.

Meanwhile, Fred went through all of our proposals for the controller’s component configuration. Turns out, we all did pretty well! Bit by bit, the electrical side of things is becoming less of a mystery. I’ll admit, Monday’s lecture on wiring had me feeling a little out of my depth—but today, I’m standing on more solid ground. Understanding electrical systems isn’t just useful—it’s empowering.

Onward we go. This build is shaping up beautifully.