This morning I decided to do some thing fun and helpful.
Last year my old gas range was replaced so it was installed in my shop. The day I was going to fire it up A had a minor stroke that made my left lower leg gimpy.
George suggested checking it with a junk block and cool it slowly for warping as the range on self clean can get to 900 degrees.
I had three blocks out but no junk, The one I am currently heating is a 28 I think.
On regular baking the oven should heat to 500 degrees and the door will not lock for checking the heat through the glass door that will not check.
Its a waiting game now checking to see how hot the block gets BEFORE its turned on self clean.
I want to keep it as close as possible to 750 degrees, starting temperature is 59 degrees.
If it works as hoped pictures will be posted.
Not bad for a first try. Some modifying will be necessary, the shop had smoky haze after the self clean was turned on. That was expected but the exhaust fan was not installed yet. I have to dis arm the door lock. You cant check the block temperature through the glass on the door so it was shut down early last night. The block is about half clean with powder particles laying in the bottom of the oven.
Paul
I'm interested as I have a electric wall oven in my shop ( bought cheap at a garage sale). Convection even!! I was wondering how hot it gets in self cleaning mode. Please keep posting
Get your vent done FIRST. Some chemicals, residue from cleaning agents and paints will produce toxic gasses/vapors. While it may not be evident at first, the poisoning is cumulative over multiple exposures and can reach a critical level in the body with no prior warning or symptoms. KNOW WHAT YOU'RE BAKING!
Agree Ken, I could have turned on my 42 inch seven blade one but did not. It will suck the windows out if you do not keep one open. Bad stories about heated brake clean.
How about a thermocouple probe in the oven? It won't tell you the block temperature but it will tell you the oven interior temperature.
Still screwing with oven control, I cut the latch off so the door would not lock then put the oven on bake thinking I could turn it to self clean after the heat got to 500. The problem was there is a control hidden some where that would not allow changing to self clean at that high of temperature so today I will try starting with self clean for an hour and a half to see how high it gets.
I know it will easily go over 600 but the heat is from the bottom so checking the block yesterday the bottom of the block was 200 degrees hotter then the top. it takes some time for the heat to even out on that large hunk of iron. Think I will space the block off the bottom of the oven for this try.
on the short term the big explosion proof fan was turned on the shop had no smoke.
After thinking about the issue it would be best to complexly disarm that oven control then heat the block s few hundred degrees at a time to let the iron temperature even out. Guess that's why J and M heats for five hours.
I see a profitable side business of methamphetamine manufacture here. Probably
about as good for you to be smelling the fumes.
Cooking engine parts = zzzzzzz
Cooking meth = $$$$$$
I am adamantly against drug use money or not! had to many folks cost me time and green because of there drug habits.
With legal pot now in Oregon my bride comes home after a day of dealing with some who use daily needing an hour and a half to wind down.
Watching history its interesting what happened to the German army when they fed there meth to there solders---------ITS COMEING!!!!!!!!!!!!
Have to get back to my none profit oven LOL!
Did some experimenting yesterday interesting but time consuming. With the block right side up on the oven floor starting dead cold in fifteen minuets the bottom of the block was over s hundred degrees hotter then the top like 370. with the oven on bake and heat set at 200. I lowered the heat on the switch to warm, After half an hour the spread was 60. then lowered again to just above off. The spread was 20. The iron was evening out.
After watching Mike Benders installation of block Babbitt heating larger of areas of iron with a torch longer its easy to understand but the torch only heats a small area.
Slowly through out the day the heat was increased then let set until the temperature evened out.
I don't know how a convection oven works but if the heat is more even it would work better. As far as total heat it would be easy I think!
Today the block will be turned upside down and raised two inches off the oven floor starting at just above off if I have time.
After thinking about the issue it would be best to complexly disarm that oven control then heat the block s few hundred degrees at a time to let the iron temperature even out. Guess that's why J and M heats for five hours.
Don't know where you got the idea we heat for 5 hours? at 1.5million BTU. Plus has an afterburner to remove smoke from exhaust. Keeping it green.
Our machine runs 600 degrees and the cycle time is one hour. Engines are left to cool down in the machine then shot blasted.
Of course you may have similar results but the EPA and local fire department would want to have a word with you about all the smoke.
The above picture represents one part of thermal clean system. After cool down blocks/parts get shot blasted in similar size unit. Result is example of Model T block pics, shown. It's clean inside and out.
J and M, I was hoping you would post! More information helps. To bad you are across the US with no one around here even with a hot tank any more to clean parts or do radiator work you do what you can with what you have.
Not only can you use your old oven for cleaning parts, you can also use it for curing paint at around 200 degrees.
I have also used mine for molding plastics.
Here is a 2010 thread in which I did the same thing with an old oven to cure out the Glyptal on my block, Hogshead, pan and other engine parts. I had to make an insulation lined box that fit over the opening to hold in the heat, as the oven was too small to accommodate the parts. Worked great! Jim Patrick
www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/118802/152476.html
One of the reasons I want a clean block head, and radiator is to help cooling as much as I can. I wonder if painting the block insulates heat in. I was told by a long time radiator builder that radiator paint has no effect on its cooling ability. But that was before better checking tools were available.
Interesting day, I turned the block upside down putting the major part of iron on the bottom. set the range on bake so heat comes from the bottom.
raised the block an inch off the oven floor. Stuck temperature just above warm. After 45 minuets the total was within 10 degrees of equal top and bottom
I must have heated the block more then intended because half the Babbitt was melted out!! Still learning.
At what temperature did your babbit melt? That would be good information to know for anyone contemplating doing what you are doing.
In any case, it is a serious and expensive lesson. If you can't pour it yourself, you'll have to send the block off top have it re-poured. Jim Patrick
My intent is to do my own main bearings. Notice no Babbitt in the J and M block. Again no one around this area does them. I have a Gene French setup. I experienced a Babbitt blow up from a block that was not prepared properly. Its not funny to have 800 degree Babbitt on the ceiling of the garage of the craftsman who was doing my main bearings.
The reason it melted was the block was right side up with the range heating from the bottom. Although the thick top of the block was about 450 the bottom was much hotter like a lid on kettle that could not be seen setting on the bottom of the oven.
If the oven had one inch less in width the block would not fit
A temperature gun is necessary setting up this idea or pouring Babbitt. Turning the block over was the trick----it works as intended now. It should have cooled down over night in the oven so it might get shot blasted today if time permits.
I guess I'm unfamiliar with this process. Can you explain how this works? Sorry if it's a dumb question, but I've never heard of baking a block to clean it out. We have access to a hot tank, so that's what we use when we need to.
Jared: What he is trying to make is a burn-off oven. These are used in Industry for all kinds, like burning paint off paint hooks. You can google burn off oven and you should learn all you need to know. One thing, most burn off oven I have been around the door seals and locks. The reason is that they bake or roast the parts with little oxygen. This is to prevent fires. The stuff is then burned up in the afterburner in the high temp stack. Dan
Ben under the weather with my daughter and bride sick I finally got what ever they had!
hopefully tomorrow I can give an opinion of what has ben tested to this point.
In short would I do it again? Yes!