Help Replacing Plates on Jotul 507

Thanks SteveZ, I will look up the Maine foundry, I just got another jotul nr500 from CL in Vt, and test fired it right out of the trunk when I got home. Also,pics of the sauna tube refractory cast method and refractory brick method, I did not go all the way up w/brick. Both work great, Recipe for refractory is 1 part furnace cement, 1 part masons sand, 2 parts perlite (horticulture glass infused beads @ home depot), 1 part water. Mix w/margin trowel, gotta move fast. Pack it as you fill it, My volume calculations were off, a bit(shy) due to the perlite loosing it volume when moistened, add 33% in your volume #. Let it dry a long time 2 to 3 weeks, and it gets hard as a rock. and takes the heat, crack free. I also flashed the burn chamber w/ furnace cement after the cure, bondo spreader really works great for this.
On another topic, has anyone had any good results w/welding grates that have cracked(cast iron), that have not been heated too much after the crack, still all there. My take on this would be to use a die grinder and cut yourself an angle in the crack and weld. Using a cast iron welding rod. I repaired cast iron bolt cutters in trade school and it has held up fine. ??? thank you r

found it; Broken Shaker Grate - Welding Help

I have welded several cast iron peices back together. I use a TIG welder and monel fill rod you have to grind it all the way out so the weld joint is a open butt type weld.

I get the 507 going w/nut, then top it off with stove coal, nice heat from sides, as I thought it may be less heat as I climbed high with the refractory, it is not an issue.

the snowman seemed to think that replacing the plates diminished the heat output. He seems to have run a controlled study as he had two stoves. He also coated that offending iron insert with refractory cement to protect it from xs heat. 1" deep. Cure slowly. He even coated the little iron lugs to protect them too. when you live in Tughill NY I guess you need to pump out the heat. I just think the Norwegians designed a great coalburner but had no idea of the incredible heat output from NEPA anthracite. So I get the impression if you wish to turn this stove into a nuclear reactor a little tweaking is needed.

BTW alpine I am noticing the same thing and have already learned to top off with stove. It' seems to burn nicely and lasts the night better with the input air really choked down.

Thanks For the monel weld tip CarlH,
Yes Chester, that extra to the top helps in the morning.
That is also a good idea, to fill the steel casts w/refractory, provided they are there to fill.
I had one with a large hole in it,(2" x 3") just filled it with furnace cement, it is fine.
I have seen a few 507 on CL the past week and the add is taken down within a day.
That NR500 I got on CL, the seller said there were 9 more people interested.
There is another clean nr500 in Hero, I do not know about the grates. I have to stop collecting these things.
The nr500 holds 10 pounds of coal and might be good for a small room, Bedroom? good luck.

Top Plate temperature at 600F, the grates are cool because the heat is well above. I notice the stove coal is is fun to burn but trickier to shake.