Recommendation? Refractory Question

Travis Talboys

Travis Talboys

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Oct 30, 2018
Messages
385
Could someone recommend an alternative to Mizzou for a cashable refractory? I am having trouble finding a source that has reasonable shipping rates, and shopping locally has been less than fruitful. I am planning a ribbon burner as well as an entirely new forge, so any help sourcing a suitable refractory would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance,
Travis
 
I don't know if you've checked High Temp Tools, but they have Kast-O-Lite in addition to Mizzou. They say they can ship 20 lbs in a flat rate UPS box.
 
weo said:
Have you looked for any relatively local pottery supply stores?
Click to expand...
I haven't, but I have a friend that teaches pottery/ceramics that might know where to find that stuff.
 
Refractories can also be found at many masonry suppliers and also search for "Boiler Repair" and larger plumbing suppliers.
 
I'm about the only commercial forge builder that uses castable refractory, so hopefully my input will be helpful.

Both Harbison Walker and Plibrico have distributors in Buffalo, NY. Plicast LWI-26 or KastoLite 50-25+ are what I use. Both have superior insulating properties compared to Mizzou, but neither are as tough or flux resistant. I've tested several different castables, and Kastolite 50-25 has the best texture, insulating properties, and castability of everything I've found so far. Find some mixture and I've most likely tested forges using it.

Plistix 900F is the best thin coating I've found, 94% alumina and a fine texture make it a great ceramic coating. You only need about 2 lbs of Plistix to coat most forges, but it's sold in 55 lbs buckets, $180 per bucket from the factory. Save your money and buy 2 lbs of it either on my website or Amazon, IronDungeonForge, etc. Plistix 900f needs to be mixed with a blender. Mixing by hand takes forever and does not mix as well.


Many retailers sell Plistix 900F, but I believe I'm the only one selling Kastolite 50-25. Most only sell LI-30, which doesn't insulate nearly as well.
Kastolite 50-25
Plistix 900F
 
re local, kiln repair, pottery kiln repair... and so on
New York North East Ceramic Supply Upstate NY 518-274-2722
New York Kiln-Ray Services Warwick 914-987-9589
New York Brooklyn Kiln Works Inc NYC, Eastern NJ 917-837-4329
New York Pulick Pottery Suffolk, Nassau, Long Island 631-379-8453
New York Nicks Ceramics & Pottery Rochester 585-254-0640

 
Thank you for all the links and advice. Unless someone sees an issue with it, I have been thinking about using Kast o Lite 30 for both the lining and my burner.
 
LI-30 is a very strong refractory, but has a relatively high "thermal conductivity". As such, it is usually used as a 1/2"-1" layer over wool. It is an air-drying formulation, which means it will take an unknown amount of time to dry, then must be fired to fully harden. It is very fragile until it is fired. 50-25+ is chemically cured, and will be fully hardened after about 20 hours. It is more appropriate for monolithic casting compared to LI-30. 50-25+ is not suitable for layering over wool.
 
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