Iron Melting Cupola Furnaces for the Small Foundry Paperback – July 1, 2000

I won't re-iterate the previous good reviews on this book. However, there's one review in which the author mentions the cupola furnace is "small". A furnace that melts upwards of 600 pounds of grey iron per hour is nothing to sneeze at. And, the furnace can provide approximately 200 lbs of iron per tap. That's more than one man can handle. Besides, he gives you all the information necessary to build whatever size you want! As for the requirement of welding equipment, lathe, etc. - if you don't own or have access to this equipment and the knowledge to use it correctly, you shouldn't be attempting to build anything of this sort to begin with. This is an excellent book written by someone with the practical knowledge that uses the furnace the way an above average machinist/mechainc/repairman would. This book will give an individual an opportunity to make him/herself an excellent living.

Will not buy again

So far I have made a blower as described in this book. I used his calculations to size it and it is working with no problems. [...]

Great information, easy to read and understand. I'm going to be using the info to build my own soon. Hand drawings are easy to read and helps brake up the read, makes it feel less grinding.

Steve Chastain's usual good information, clearly written & quite thorough.

very informative for back yard hobbyist but a little danger is in the cards and hard work sometimes frustrating

Steve Chastain has written a modern, comprehensive "how to" guide on the construction and operation of small cupola furnaces. I have built and operated a 10 inch cupola furnace using his book as the major reference. The chapters include:1) Cupola theory and design considerations2) Building a 10 inch cupola3) Cupola operation4) Air supply and blowers5) Designing centrifugal fans6) Construction of centrifugal fans7) Construction of a Pitot tube and manometer8) Calculation of Air Flow9) Additional Cupolas based on the 15 inch shell10) Oxygen enrichment11) Purchase of Coke12) ConclusionAppendix:SuppliersAirflow through pipeThis 128 page book is a treasure trove for the amateur foundryman. It is absolutely packed with accurate information. I have operated a small propane fired crucible furnace for several years and needed larger volumes of cast iron. Without any prior experience I was able to build a functioning 10 inch cupola furnace. I made mistakes along the way. The two most glaring were not following the blower selection and cupola operation exactly. You can not take shortcuts, period. I was intimidated by the thought of building a powerful blower and tried to substitute insulation and dust collection blowers. It didn't work. Re-reading the book explained why in eloquent detail (with straight forward math to back it up). I had never built and balanced a blower before. Following the book I had a blower that worked the first time and exceeded design specifications. I picked the wrong size coke for the furnace and produced a disappointing quantity of cast iron as a result. Using the correct size coke and following the instructions remedied the situation. If there are limitations with this small book it is that the author expects that you will read and comprehend the book before you rush off and start building the furnace. Do not take short cuts. This will ultimately save you time, money and frustration.I can recommend Mr. Chastains book with enthusiasm.

This is a great book that I’ve had for years. I wanted another copy after I lost mine. BUT DO NOT WASTE OVER 900 DOLLARS. I bought it for about 1% of this cost elsewhere. It’s a 10 buck paperback book. Also don’t believe some of these reviews that have obviously been written by people who haven’t built or used a cupula furnace before. This furnace can produce up to a 55 pound iron tap if you bod off the slag hole and run it up to capacity, but not 200 pounds as some are saying. You can simply make multiple taps if you need more iron. Save yourself $900 as I did. Imagine adding $900 to the selling price of a $10 book. Highway robbery.