2014-2015 Blaze King Performance thread (Everything BK)

[NinjaTech]

Thanks highbeam! That's what I thought and judge the cat being active by the condar cat temp gauge I put in. Am still wondering about the thermo air flow knob though....

How is it not smooth? Is the flapper itself not moving smooth, or does the knob just seem almost "gritty" feeling when turning it?

 

[Shane Collins]

Thanks highbeam! That's what I thought and judge the cat being active by the condar cat temp gauge I put in. Am still wondering about the thermo air flow knob though....

What's happening with your thermostat knob exactly? When I got my stove it wasn't working properly. I discovered it was spinning on the rod and not really turning it unless you pushed hard. I made another post about it and BKVP replied this, which fixed my problem :

"Turn the rod clockwise until the rod will turn no more and comes to a natural stop. This may require a small pair of pliers depending upon hand or grip strength.
Now turn the knob clockwise until the white line is pointing straight down to the 6 o'clock position. Tighten the hex screw using your allen wrench.
Our apologies for this having come loose. It doesn't happen very often at all but it does a few times each year."

You have a different stove to me so it's probably different for yours, but could it be that it's spinning and not properly turning the rod to open/close the airflow?

 

[claybe]

How is it not smooth? Is the flapper itself not moving smooth, or does the knob just seem almost "gritty" feeling when turning it?

When it gets to the lowest 2 dots it seems like it tightens up. Also, yes, it feels gritty throughout. It feels like the spring gets caught or doesn't move like it should.

 

[Highbeam]

When it gets to the lowest 2 dots it seems like it tightens up. Also, yes, it feels gritty throughout. It feels like the spring gets caught or doesn't move like it should.

It won't be silky smooth like a car radio knob. The shaft turns a gear that tightens the stat coil shaft which is on a perpendicular axis. You'll always feel the gear teeth.

 

[NinjaTech]

The inserts are a little different, the bimetalic coil is directly on the end of the shaft that the tstat knob is on. Mine has that same gritty feel, there is a tension spring that adjusts how hard it is to turn the knob. What your feeling is the edge of the spring rubbing across another metal surface. Its normal and doesn't effect how the tstat works at all. When I get home tonight I'll pop the cover off and take some pictures so you can see how the entire mechanism works if you like.

 

[Parallax]

Thanks highbeam! That's what I thought and judge the cat being active by the condar cat temp gauge I put in. Am still wondering about the thermo air flow knob though....

I wonder if your cat byplass plate is leaking. BKVP walked me through how to tighten mine. With the stove cooled down, you can check it with a dollar bill, same way you check the door. It won't be as tight as the door because it's metal on metal, but there should be some resistance.

 

[claybe]

I wonder if your cat byplass plate is leaking. BKVP walked me through how to tighten mine. With the stove cooled down, you can check it with a dollar bill, same way you check the door. It won't be as tight as the door because it's metal on metal, but there should be some resistance.

Interesting. I have never heard of this. It will be about a week before I can shut it down long enough to check. I guess this should be on the annual checklist before starting her up for the season!

Ninja, yes pics would help!

 

[Highbeam]

I wonder if your cat byplass plate is leaking. BKVP walked me through how to tighten mine. With the stove cooled down, you can check it with a dollar bill, same way you check the door. It won't be as tight as the door because it's metal on metal, but there should be some resistance.

Yours is metal on metal? The bypass door has a gasket on my princess.

 

[Highbeam]

The inserts are a little different, the bimetalic coil is directly on the end of the shaft that the tstat knob is on. Mine has that same gritty feel, there is a tension spring that adjusts how hard it is to turn the knob. What your feeling is the edge of the spring rubbing across another metal surface. Its normal and doesn't effect how the tstat works at all. When I get home tonight I'll pop the cover off and take some pictures so you can see how the entire mechanism works if you like.

Dang it. Bit by the insert trick.

Pics would be great for all.

 

[Archer39]

I have a two year old princesse insert and have a question about the cat temp gauge. Where is the needle suppose to sit when cold? Mine is almost all the back around to the active zone when cold. Is this normal?

 

[BKVP]

I have a two year old princesse insert and have a question about the cat temp gauge. Where is the needle suppose to sit when cold? Mine is almost all the back around to the active zone when cold. Is this normal?

loosen the tiny nut on the bottom, set needle pointing at about 7 o'clock and retighten the nut. That should do it.

Thank you
Chris

 

[NinjaTech]

Pictures as promised! I was wrong, I thought I remembered the coil was directly on the end of the shaft, but its not. There is a cam on the end of the shaft that moves a lever the coil is mounted on.

 

[HotCoals]

Wow..way diff setup.

 

[NinjaTech]

I thought I might mention this for BKVP, something you may want to pass along to whoever it needs to go to. On the inserts they come with four bolts that act as feet/levelers. They are made with nuts welded to the insert, the two rear ones are very securely welded to the side of the firebox in the back. But the front two are welded on to much thinner sheet steel thats not nearly as sturdy. If you look in picture 1 and 2 you can see the nut I'm talking about down at the bottom. I was not able to even use the front two bolts as the weight of the insert would bend those thinner sections up. On the blower side it was bending it so far it was interfering with the operation of the blower rheostat. I had to take the front two out and support the front of the firebox with a few scraps of 3/8 plate under the thicker firebox section.

 

[RustyShackleford]

loosen the tiny nut on the bottom, set needle pointing at about 7 o'clock and retighten the nut. That should do it.

Mine won't stay put; I loosen the nut and put the needle back to the "cold position", but if drifts pretty soon, so that it's way below that spot. Not BK's fault of course, since they're made by Condar.

 

[RustyShackleford]

On the inserts they come with four bolts that act as feet/levelers.

I actually added leveler bolts to my free-standing Princess Ultra. Just used a right-angle drill to drill a couple holes (in the flange that sticks out about 4" around the pedestal), then tapped 'em and put in bolts. Also put a piece of metal between each bolt-end and the floor for them to push against. That metal is fairly thin, so wanna use a very fine thread so there's as many threads as possible. Not sure how this could be done on the Parlor and the Classic models

 

[Quentin2]

Been holding out waiting for a cold snap that hasn't come yet. Loaded up the stove last night with mostly cottonwood at 10pm 30-40f outside. Charred it on full for 5 min or so, closed bypass turned it down to 2 or halfway for about ten minutes then set it to just above 1 left blowers on medium low.

Got back from work at about 6:30 today was gonna ask the wife if she knew how long the stove stayed warm expecting it went out sometime early afternoon when whadyano stove tops at 300 cat is just below active and blowers are pushing good heat.

Upstairs thermo is set at 71 but it's 74, downstairs stove room is 78. I turn the stove stat up to 3 and instantly the coals come to life the cat climbs well into the active range. An hour later I stuff the box again and remember all over again why this beast impresses the heck out of me. 21 hours on cottonwood!, I don't know how much of that time was inactive.

I will say it is a big box to fill, you can easily take three trips to the wood pile to get enough to fill the king.

 

[BKVP]

I thought I might mention this for BKVP, something you may want to pass along to whoever it needs to go to. On the inserts they come with four bolts that act as feet/levelers. They are made with nuts welded to the insert, the two rear ones are very securely welded to the side of the firebox in the back. But the front two are welded on to much thinner sheet steel thats not nearly as sturdy. If you look in picture 1 and 2 you can see the nut I'm talking about down at the bottom. I was not able to even use the front two bolts as the weight of the insert would bend those thinner sections up. On the blower side it was bending it so far it was interfering with the operation of the blower rheostat. I had to take the front two out and support the front of the firebox with a few scraps of 3/8 plate under the thicker firebox section.

Thanks. Got the info and will speak with the engineers. I now know why dealers says they use firebrick in the corners/center to prop up the insert during install. Not just to prop up, but because two of locations used with the leveling bolts are not robust...thank you.

 

[Rossco]

Well god dam it.

So just in from nightshift, said it was -26C on the ride home. Pulled on drive, no visible smoke from stack.

Stove out and stone cold. Wife forgot to turn it down at bed time.

Dam it what's the point!

 

[BKVP]

Been there.

 

[jeffsk7]

Okay reading this thread I'm still a little confused on the t-stat on my sirocco 30. My dial has a normal range in gold. (1) At where should I here it close on a cold stove? And by closed this means that the flapper just shuts all the way correct? (2) when the stove is heated up and cat engaged and i turn the dial down from 3 and I hear it click i assume the flap is closed and the bimetallic piece of metal controls the are intake from that point? I'm just curious because my stove seems to fall inactive in a few hours at setting 1.75. I have seen maybe 15 hours of good heat output but not any more than that. From my undetstanding the t-stat should keep this from happening and this is how long burns are achieved. I burn fir. Just trying to see if my burns are running long enough.

 

[AlaskanChick]

How do i fix my temp knob?
one day i came home after work and my knob would turn, but the rod would not catch it stays in one place.
i believe its stuck on 1 but, i need it at a 2. do to the cold weather in alaska.
so if someone can get back to me on how to fix it that'll be great.

 

[tarzan]

Okay reading this thread I'm still a little confused on the t-stat on my sirocco 30. My dial has a normal range in gold. (1) At where should I here it close on a cold stove? And by closed this means that the flapper just shuts all the way correct? (2) when the stove is heated up and cat engaged and i turn the dial down from 3 and I hear it click i assume the flap is closed and the bimetallic piece of metal controls the are intake from that point? I'm just curious because my stove seems to fall inactive in a few hours at setting 1.75. I have seen maybe 15 hours of good heat output but not any more than that. From my undetstanding the t-stat should keep this from happening and this is how long burns are achieved. I burn fir. Just trying to see if my burns are running long enough.

The thermostat strives to maintain at any setting. If it's falling inactive at a setting of 1.75 then try turning it up a bit. Your wood and or draft may simply not allow you to run at that setting. You don't need to run the stove by the sound of the draft shutting at a particular setting but you should here it at or near 1 on a cold stove.

 

[tarzan]

How do i fix my temp knob?
one day i came home after work and my knob would turn, but the rod would not catch it stays in one place.
i believe its stuck on 1 but, i need it at a 2. do to the cold weather in alaska.
so if someone can get back to me on how to fix it that'll be great.

If the rod that the knob is directly attached is not turning then there is an Allen head set jhggf

How do i fix my temp knob?
one day i came home after work and my knob would turn, but the rod would not catch it stays in one place.
i believe its stuck on 1 but, i need it at a 2. do to the cold weather in alaska.
so if someone can get back to me on how to fix it that'll be great.

If the rod the knob is attached to will not turn there is an Allen head set screw on the knob that probably needs tightened. If that is it you will likely need to tighten it to get the rod to turn, then open the draft all the way till it stops. Loosen knob, adjust to 6:00 and retighten.

 

[Highbeam]

How do i fix my temp knob?
one day i came home after work and my knob would turn, but the rod would not catch it stays in one place.
i believe its stuck on 1 but, i need it at a 2. do to the cold weather in alaska.
so if someone can get back to me on how to fix it that'll be great.

In the meantime, to prevent freezing to death, use a pair of pliers to twist the rod as needed.