2017-18 Blaze King Performance Thread (Everything BK)

[webfish]

Here is new thread for the season.

Link to old thread https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads...ce-thread-everything-bk-part-2.159901/page-56

 

[bfitz3]

Odd... I don't have a blaze King, but was sad to see the last thread closed. It's been with us for so long.

 

[Ashful]

They just get too long. There were actually two BK Performance threads last year, splitting in mid-winter, to keep the length manageable.

 

[Highbeam]

Over the weekend I swept the BK chimney and vacuumed out the firebox of all 2016-2017remnants. I found one broken brick on the side up front! I removed the top half and behind those side bricks found quite a void. It's not like the sides of this stove are flat but there is an intentional weird shaped void behind the side bricks. So folks, be careful loading the stove since there is no support behind the side bricks.

 

[Ashful]

Never broken a side brick on mine, but I've lost quite a few rear bricks. Not sure why, as I don't exactly throw the splits in there, I set them in rather gently.

 

[WoodyIsGoody]

Over the weekend I swept the BK chimney and vacuumed out the firebox of all 2016-2017remnants. I found one broken brick on the side up front! I removed the top half and behind those side bricks found quite a void. It's not like the sides of this stove are flat but there is an intentional weird shaped void behind the side bricks. So folks, be careful loading the stove since there is no support behind the side bricks.

If the sides of the stove are flat, can you explain what causes the void behind the bricks on your Princess?

On my Chinook the bottom corner weld means the corners have a fillet or radius instead of being a perfect inside corner. Because the firebricks have sharp corners, they either need to stand slightly off the wall or the tops lean towards the center of the stove. This can be fixed by abrading the appropriate corners off the offending bricks with a coarse abrasive stone or tile file to allow for the weld fillets. It doesn't take long but I would like it better if they paid attention to this detail at the factory.

 

[Highbeam]

If the sides of the stove are flat, can you explain what causes the void behind the bricks on your Princess?

On my Chinook the bottom corner weld means the corners have a fillet or radius instead of being a perfect inside corner. Because the firebricks have sharp corners, they either need to stand slightly off the wall or the tops lean towards the center of the stove. This can be fixed by abrading the appropriate corners off the offending bricks with a coarse abrasive stone or tile file to allow for the weld fillets. It doesn't take long but I would like it better if they paid attention to this detail at the factory.

The outside sides of the princess ultra are flat (vertical) because of the bolted on side shields. The actual firebox has a pretty ugly shape underneath where it bulges out partway up not unlike a big-mac box. The bricks also lean back on the inside of the firebox but what is not obvious is that the bricks don't lean back against the inside of the firebox but are actually only supported at the top and bottom. So breaking a brick is much more likely than it would be if the brick was fully supported. I also found debris behind the brick that may have been wedging the brick away from the steel firebox wall and contributing to the breakage. There's a "rat run" tunnel behind the side bricks.

 

[jetsam]

I don't feel that there should be a Blaze King thread with no pictures of my smelly mutts in it, so I am rectifying this deficiency.



Watching for the approach of stove season!

 

[Poindexter]

Just finished loading my snow shoes back into my truck. What with solstice being 3 weeks ago now the countdown is on.

I did start reading the first book in Game of Thrones but that one king from the north kingdom reminded me too much of me always yammering away about 'winter is coming.'

 

[Ashful]

Snow shoes? We still have our most miserable summer weather ahead of us. Early July is our temperature peak, but early August is our misery peak, in terms of temperature / humidity index and cumulative sauna-like weariness.

 

[Highbeam]

Just yesterday had 2.5 cords of stove chow dropped off in log form. First time I had to buy logs since selling my old woodlot. The guy made fun of me for already having enough wood in my stacks, "what do you need this for?". Seems nobody else likes to be 2-3 years ahead!

 

[BrianN]

Here it is, July 16, and I needed to start a fire in my King.
After lighting it, I remembered that I was supposed to have a look at my cat combuster.
I will be ordering and installing one this year either way, as I have had the stove nearly 5 years.
Having said that, I was looking at them online, and all that I have found are saying that they no longer need gaskets installed. Is this some thing new?

 

[BKVP]

Here it is, July 16, and I needed to start a fire in my King.
After lighting it, I remembered that I was supposed to have a look at my cat combuster.
I will be ordering and installing one this year either way, as I have had the stove nearly 5 years.
Having said that, I was looking at them online, and all that I have found are saying that they no longer need gaskets installed. Is this some thing new?

They need gaskets! Ignore the misinformed. If you purchase from firecatcombustors.com, they come with the gasket.

 

[BrianN]

They need gaskets! Ignore the misinformed. If you purchase from firecatcombustors.com, they come with the gasket.

Thank you BKVP. It just didn't make sense that they didn't need gaskets.
I will have a look at firecatcombustors.com.
Thank you again.
Brian.

 

[Poindexter]

Getting closer. I got raspberries coming in faster than the wife and I can eat them. After the wife and I ate our fill today I put another pint in the freezer to make fruit leather from with the dehydrator later.

After raspberry, there will be blue berry picking, "summer" caribou season, and it'll be time to light the stove. I give it 5 more weeks of late summer tops.

 

[begreen]

That's a nice looking crop!

 

[Rangerbait]

Getting closer. I got raspberries coming in faster than the wife and I can eat them. After the wife and I ate our fill today I put another pint in the freezer to make fruit leather from with the dehydrator later.

After raspberry, there will be blue berry picking, "summer" caribou season, and it'll be time to light the stove. I give it 5 more weeks of late summer tops.

That's out of control...when do you stop burning, like July 1st?

 

[jetsam]

Getting closer. I got raspberries coming in faster than the wife and I can eat them. After the wife and I ate our fill today I put another pint in the freezer to make fruit leather from with the dehydrator later.

After raspberry, there will be blue berry picking, "summer" caribou season, and it'll be time to light the stove. I give it 5 more weeks of late summer tops.

View attachment 198612

I just realized something... I've never seen a blueberry in the woods, or a blueberry farm off the side of a road, or anything.

I basically don't know if they come from a bush or a vine or if they're mined or ranched ("just pick all them little legs off and toss 'em in the plastic bins, son. Ignore the screamin'.").

What the heck?

 

[Highbeam]

I just realized something... I've never seen a blueberry in the woods, or a blueberry farm off the side of a road, or anything.

I basically don't know if they come from a bush or a vine or if they're mined or ranched ("just pick all them little legs off and toss 'em in the plastic bins, son. Ignore the screamin'.").

What the heck?

It's a bush. Wild ones are usually knee high and farm ones are usually over your head. In the PNW we also have these things called huckleberries that are like miniature blueberries and much more flavorful but more labor to harvest.

 

[Ashful]

I just realized something... I've never seen a blueberry in the woods, or a blueberry farm off the side of a road, or anything.

I basically don't know if they come from a bush or a vine or if they're mined or ranched ("just pick all them little legs off and toss 'em in the plastic bins, son. Ignore the screamin'.").

What the heck?

Bush. We have domestic blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and then miles of wild raspberries. Despite many blueberry bushes, we really don't get to eat many, but our birds and deer are remarkably well fed (and probably chit blue). They don't touch the wild raspberries, and even leave about half the domestic raspberries for us. I don't think I've ever gotten a single blackberry, as they go directly from "almost ripe" to "disappeared", probably thanks to the deer.

 

[jetsam]

Bush. We have domestic blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and then miles of wild raspberries. Despite many blueberry bushes, we really don't get to eat many, but our birds and deer are remarkably well fed (and probably chit blue). They don't touch the wild raspberries, and even leave about half the domestic raspberries for us. I don't think I've ever gotten a single blackberry, as they go directly from "almost ripe" to "disappeared", probably thanks to the deer.

I have a mulberry tree like that. I learned that woodchucks could climb trees from that tree, too. It attracts hordes of critters, but it makes so many berries that I get some too.

 

[begreen]

Bush. We have domestic blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and then miles of wild raspberries. Despite many blueberry bushes, we really don't get to eat many, but our birds and deer are remarkably well fed (and probably chit blue). They don't touch the wild raspberries, and even leave about half the domestic raspberries for us. I don't think I've ever gotten a single blackberry, as they go directly from "almost ripe" to "disappeared", probably thanks to the deer.

Our area is thick with himalayan blackberries. Miles of them. We get pails filled with them every year. The birds get some and yes they chit purple, but there is plenty for all. In our yard we have an old cherry tree stump from which a big blackberry sprouted. I keep that bush trimmed so that we have very easy picking there. Besides being an aggressive grower the other problem with these big plants which are all along the yard perimeter is their thorns. They poke tiny holes in the lawn tractor tires. Fortunately green slime works well as a sealant.

 

[Highbeam]

I'm thinking it was too early for the 17/18 BK thread. We're all berry happy to not be burning right now!

I just split about a half cord of maple firewood for the 18/19 season and I'm splitting really big. Like so big that I need two hands to throw them. Are fellow BK guys splitting big 6" splits or still splitting small? The BK literature recommends extra big splits as a time saving benefit and a way to reduce the burn rate.

 

[Blazing]

I don't want to even look at my stove or wood stacks it's so hot...

 

[WoodyIsGoody]

I don't want to even look at my stove or wood stacks it's so hot...

Hmmm....It's 70 degrees here (69 inside). I want to finish my stove install ASAP in case it gets a bit chilly!