Salt Pots just arrivednd

J

jimmyseymour

Joined
Dec 31, 2003
Messages
335
Well I just took delivery of two salt pots kiln's and controllers from Tim Zowada. I had been trying to build my own before I decided something professionally built would serve me better, and probably be less dangerous. For those of you on here that have the same set up's what are your recommendations. I plan on putting stainless steel sheet metal on the wall's around the kiln's in and a drip tray that Mr. Zowada sent me in a email. I'm just wondering what worked for everyone else and what didn't.
 
I'm guessing there's not many salt pot users here! I was hoping there'd be a few replies as I'm hoping one day to get high/low temp pots.
 
I just learned about salt pots from a maker at a Hammer-In. It's intriguing. I'm just going to try using a regular kiln first, but the salt pots sound like the way to go (except for cost of course):eek:
OP, what size did you get? Let us know how it works please, I'm anxious to learn more about it.
 
Cashen uses salt pots and has posted about it here. They're not used much in industry anymore, I believe because of safety issues (they can be deadly dangerous), but it appears they offer the ultimate in performance in several ways. :thumbup:
 
Nathan, I talked to a company in Rhode Island that still uses them because they are apparently still the best way to HT high speed steels. I asked how they ended up in Rhode Island and the guy joked or not) that they wouldn't let you use salt pots in Massachusetts and some other states in the area. :D I have a buddy in Belgium who is a heat treater for a compnay that does a fair bit of defense contract work in Liege and he says that they still use salt, but you have to dress up like the Michelin Man in a spacesuit to use them. To the OP, I say congratulations. You just replaced the buffer as the most dangerous machine in your shop! Hope your shop has a metal or concrete ceiling. :thumbup:
Nathan the Machinist said:
Cashen uses salt pots and has posted about it here. They're not used much in industry anymore, I believe because of safety issues (they can be deadly dangerous), but it appears they offer the ultimate in performance in several ways. :thumbup:
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Ok, why are they so dangerous? I understand there are always issues with fires, but are they worse than a forge burning?
 
DANGEROUS for sure .... Any moisture in the tubes and what you'll have is a rapid explosion of molten salts in your shop. BE EXTREMLY CAUTIOUS IN USING THEM. Also you electric company will love you. Best with deep hardening steels such as O1 and L6. Best for larger batches of blades and not so good for ht just a couple at a time. Just my 2 cents folks but be VERY cautious or you could have a new face. Good luck!
 
A fairly large volume of Molten salt at 1500 degree's is nothing to mess around with if you don't know what you are doing. It can erupt from the pot like a volcano if moisture is introduced. Tt can leak and run like lava all over your shop if the pot gets compromised. This could start everything instantly on fire that it touches. It is electrically conductive, so if you are using a kiln and something shorts or arcs to the pot and you are holding a steel blade by a metal wire, ouch. And probably more dangers that I don't even know about. They offer some cool benefits but not worth the risk in my shop.
 
ANY moisture, including the moisture locked up in rust will violently expand when it comes into contact with 1500F+ molten salt. IIRC, that is about 600 degrees HOTTER than the high pressure steam loop in the propulsion side of a nuclear submarine's reactor and a pinhole size jet of steam from a reactor can take your arm off. Think a small, salty version of Kraktoa in your garage and guys who use the stuff say it is not a question of IF it will happen but WHEN. Kevin Cashen say NEVER put your facer over the pot. Use a mirror on a stick to check for sludge on the surface.:eek::D You can also have an explosion if you don't use the tapered rod tick to form a well when the salt solidifies
Mooseyard said:
Ok, why are they so dangerous? I understand there are always issues with fires, but are they worse than a forge burning?
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That's what the saying is. "If you have to ask how to use or build a salt pot, then you shouldn't have one"!
 
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Are they dangerous? Of course. But, I built mine about 10 years ago, and I have never had a steel or concrete ceiling, haven't burned anything down, and haven't caught myself on fire.

A salt bath is like any tool... you have to understand and respect it.

It seems the guys who are usually most vocal about how dangerous they are, don't have one and have never even used one. Kind'a like people talking about guns... :rolleyes:

As long as you have a good thermocouple with a quality controller, IMHO, there is no more accurate way to heat treat knife blades.
 
Nick, the guys who tell us how dangerous they are use them. LOL Well, except for you and Howard Clark and both of you guys are a bit crazy. ;)
NickWheeler said:
Are they dangerous? Of course. But, I built mine about 10 years ago, and I have never had a steel or concrete ceiling, haven't burned anything down, and haven't caught myself on fire.

A salt bath is like any tool... you have to understand and respect it.

It seems the guys who are usually most vocal about how dangerous they are, don't have one and have never even used one. Kind'a like people talking about guns... :rolleyes:

As long as you have a good thermocouple with a quality controller, IMHO, there is no more accurate way to heat treat knife blades.
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It's about a million times more dangerous to get in a car and drive down the freeway than it is to run a salt bath.
 
NickWheeler said:
It seems the guys who are usually most vocal about how dangerous they are, don't have one and have never even used one. Kind'a like people talking about guns... :rolleyes:
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LOL...that's exactly what I was thinking when I came across your reply!
 
NickWheeler said:
Are they dangerous? Of course. But, I built mine about 10 years ago, and I have never had a steel or concrete ceiling, haven't burned anything down, and haven't caught myself on fire.

A salt bath is like any tool... you have to understand and respect it.

It seems the guys who are usually most vocal about how dangerous they are, don't have one and have never even used one. Kind'a like people talking about guns... :rolleyes:

As long as you have a good thermocouple with a quality controller, IMHO, there is no more accurate way to heat treat knife blades.
Click to expand...

Hey folks- I had used them for several years. YES THEY ARE DANGEROUS :eek:.....sort of like having a loaded shot gun without a safety lying around (and yes I have guns too). The main point here is that a new user of this type of equipment not to under estimate the potential for an accident. Know what you're dealing with and that ANY moisture problem in the pots is a major one.

Yes they're a great way to HT :thumbup:.....but expensive too as in your elect bill (for kiln type). As I said before great for HTing many blades once the salts are at temp but to get them up to temp for just one or two at a time not so practical. And really best for ausquenching as in deep hardening steels such as O1/L6. Both Kevin Cashen and Tim Zowata use O1/L6 for this reason (among other reasons) and both really know what they are doing with salts.

Just be extra fricken careful and don't look down the tubes when using them. Treat them like a firearm as in no room for error. Good luck!!! :thumbup::D
 
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