[Jewelry making - Article 00078] - Re: [Orchid] Ceramic kiln for PMC?

[Suzanne Wade]

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Lori,

    I asked this very question of Studio PMC's technical editor Tim
    McCreight for an upcoming article on selecting a kiln, and the answer
    is, well, maybe. But you may find it frustrating, with a good chance
    of failures. 

    According to Tim, most ceramic kilns will easily attain the 1650
    required for firing PMC, but there can be large hot and cool spots in
    a ceramic kiln, and a pretty wide discrepancy between those spots. In
    other words, while one portion of the kiln is at the right temp for
    fusing the PMC, another part is so hot it will actually melt the PMC.
    This is especially true for original PMC, which requires two hours at
    1650 deg F., and will only tolerate a variation of plus or minus 20
    deg or so. You may have better success with PMC+, which can be fired
    at temps ranging from 1470 to 1650 and needs to soak for just 10
    minutes, or with PMC3, which has a firing range of 1110 deg F to 1650
    deg F, and also only needs a 10 minute soak. 

    For more information on this topic, try the PMC Guild website at
    www.pmcguild.com. You might also want to consider Guild membership,
    and request a copy of the Spring 2003 issue of Studio PMC, which will
    include both Tim McCreight's article on choosing a kiln, and an
    article on homemade torch kilns for PMC+. (Guild membership is $25 a
    year, for anyone who's interested.) 

Good luck!

Suzanne


Suzanne Wade
writer/editor
Suzanne AT rswade.net
http://www.rswade.net
Phone: (508) 339-7366
Fax: (928) 563-8255 

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