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Lost 3 hours and a $90 crucible to a bad preheat routine
Last Thursday I was melting down some red brass and figured I could skip the preheat cycle since I was running late. Crucible absorbed moisture from sitting overnight, popped right when the charge melted, and spewed metal across the floor. That was a $90 crucible plus the cleanup time, and I still missed my pour window for the day. Anyone else ever cheap out on preheat and regret it, or do you guys have a lucky ritual that keeps your crucibles alive?
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oliviabutler1mo ago
Every skip is just a gamble that pays off until it doesn't, and the real mistake is acting like melting metal is a routine you can rush. Your $90 crucible and three hours are just the tuition fee for learning that shortcuts only work when nothing goes wrong, but they also teach you to actually respect the preheat next time. Maybe the lucky ritual is just remembering that the furnace doesn't care about your schedule, so why not treat those extra fifteen minutes as cheap insurance?
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