Petit Godin 3271 Restore

 
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Jaysmuts
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Baseburners & Antiques: Godin 3726

Post by Jaysmuts » Fri. Jun. 15, 2018 10:21 am

I am quite sure that those brands (Rutland, Hercules and Imperial) are not available here. I have seen them on the internet so I recognize some of the names. Do you think that it would make sense to ad sand to a smoother fireclay? Could that be a possible solution to strengthen a smooth fireclay?

Thanks for the advice regarding fuel sources. Unfortunately firewood and soft coal are the two most readily available fuel sources where I live.


 
franco b
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Post by franco b » Fri. Jun. 15, 2018 10:55 am

Try a small quantity of what is available and experiment as to what works best.

You can try the available coal, but i think you will prefer wood. Getting well seasoned wood can be a problem though. Speak to local people using either fuel for advice. Soft coal can vary quite a lot in its properties, so trying the local variety is worth a shot. Speak to the people at the coal yard.

The Godin needs to keep those interior bricks hot for best combustion.

 
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Post by Jaysmuts » Tue. Jun. 26, 2018 8:45 am

franco b wrote:
Fri. Jun. 15, 2018 10:55 am
Try a small quantity of what is available and experiment as to what works best.

You can try the available coal, but i think you will prefer wood. Getting well seasoned wood can be a problem though. Speak to local people using either fuel for advice. Soft coal can vary quite a lot in its properties, so trying the local variety is worth a shot. Speak to the people at the coal yard.

The Godin needs to keep those interior bricks hot for best combustion.
Franco, and anyone else who might have an opinion, I have another stupid question to ask. But first an update.

After removing all of the removable parts I reviewed all the parts and made a decision on which parts to replace and which to keep. I had to replace the crown (Iron ring that holds both lids), Outer smoke box, Cleaning plate (I just had a milled steel plate made), fire protection bar and fuel shield. I then placed all of the rusted parts in a tub filled with vinegar and waited 24hours. The rust came off with a toothbrush and I then finished all of the parts with a brass brush attached to my drill. Parts cleaned up real nice. Then my new parts arrived as well as the rope gaskets, glue for the rope, fire putty and a graphite stove polish (I think you might refer to it as Grate Polish?). The only thing that I still need to buy (that I am sure of) are the replacement bolts, nuts and screws.

Franco please don't get mad at me for asking this question, because we have kind of already covered this topic.
So at one time you mentioned that it would be better to use paint instead of polish after having cleaned the iron. The guy who supplied me with the parts suggested that I rather use the graphite paste as it would be absorbed by the metal and 'revive' the iron. So last night I sat on my behind and started polishing two parts to begin with. Halfway through the process I realized that all of my new parts (parts I ordered) are painted and not polished. In other words half of the Godin parts will be matt black and others will be polished cast iron. That won't do.

Okay, so here is the question. Is it possible to paint over the polished cast iron?
Do the polish/graphite paste really get absorbed by the iron or does it make a greasy layer on top of the metal? My logical conclusion is that in the event that the polish is not really 'absorbed' by the iron then the paint won't stick to the 'greasy' surface. Am I losing the plot here?

Also, what sort of paint would you recommend be used on these iron surfaces?

I appreciate any assistance and advice that you can offer.

Regards
P(i)eter

 
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Post by franco b » Tue. Jun. 26, 2018 11:41 am

You can use the stove polish over paint but not the other way around. The polish does not penetrate the iron. It will fall off a very hot surface such as a cast iron fire pot. The wax base evaporates when heated, leaving the graphite. I like Williams stove polish.

If there is no paint available specifically for stoves, then paint labeled for barbecue use and high heat will do. Usually 1200 degrees F. Rustoleum makes a decent product. The paintable form has more body than the rattle can.

What works well on the antique stoves is to paint the steel barrel and stove polish on the cast iron.

 
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Post by Jaysmuts » Wed. Jun. 27, 2018 7:29 am

franco b wrote:
Tue. Jun. 26, 2018 11:41 am
You can use the stove polish over paint but not the other way around. The polish does not penetrate the iron. It will fall off a very hot surface such as a cast iron fire pot. The wax base evaporates when heated, leaving the graphite. I like Williams stove polish.

If there is no paint available specifically for stoves, then paint labeled for barbecue use and high heat will do. Usually 1200 degrees F. Rustoleum makes a decent product. The paintable form has more body than the rattle can.

What works well on the antique stoves is to paint the steel barrel and stove polish on the cast iron.
Franco, I owe you a beer or three by now! Your advice is invaluable.

Okay, so... as I have already polished some of the Godin parts. My plan now is to go ahead and thoroughly wipe them off with a dry cloth to remove as much of the excess surface polish as possible. After that I plan on painting these parts with a high heat paint in order to give the stove a uniform look. I don't really have another plan.

Don't be too worried though because I have only polished five parts, namely:
A) The internal lid - I might not even paint as it will remain hidden under the more decorative outer lid),
B) The small ash tray that hangs outside (front) the stove - I will need to repaint this part as it is clearly visible on the stove,
C) The hooked tool used to open the lid when hot, will not paint this as it is not part of/attached to the stove,
D) The knob attached to the front of the stove that is used to regulate airflow - will have to paint this part,
E) The frontal ash grate - I am not going to paint this part as it is hidden inside of the stove. So a polish should be enough.

I think that Rustoleum is available in SA, so I might have a look into it.

 
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Post by franco b » Wed. Jun. 27, 2018 10:52 am

The polish will fall off that front grate, as it gets too hot for polish to keep sticking. Just leave it bare.

To remove polish,wet the cloth with paint thinner to start with. You have to remove the carrier of the graphite which is probably wax. You might even use hot water and soap as well. Dry well.

Any new cast iron should be heat cured by putting in oven and gradually raising temperature to 500 F over the course of an hour, and then let cool in oven to room temperature.

 
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Post by Jaysmuts » Thu. Jul. 19, 2018 8:43 am

Hey Franco

Thought I would just give a quick update on the status of my project. I was very ill for some time and had a couple of other holdups but am finally getting traction.

So, since my last update I went ahead and painted all of the cast iron parts with Rustoleum high heat paint. Then I sourced all the new replacement nuts, screws and bolts using stainless steel as far as possible. Now I am busy putting all of the parts together.

One thing that I have done with my build, that I don't think people usually do was to seal the exterior parts with ceramic rope.
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I have done this with a 4mm ceramic rope and I used high-heat glue to stick them into place to make a gasket. I have done this for the exterior spigot, the round cleaning plate and the exterior smoke box. I tested the smoke box with a cigarette and it did not leak any smoke at the seams.

The other thing that I did was to build a rounded mold with cardboard in order to effectively build up a putty bridge over the thin metal area on the ring of the oven. By the time I took the photos I had already removed the cardboard.
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Smoke opening putty lining.jpg
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I will most probably be finished by end of week.


 
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Post by franco b » Thu. Jul. 19, 2018 9:43 am

Coming along very well, good job.
Isn't it winter right now where you are?

 
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Post by Jaysmuts » Fri. Jul. 20, 2018 5:59 am

Hey Franco

Thank you. Could not have done such a good job without your help and this forum. I hope that this thread could be useful to someone else in future.
It certainly is winter here in the Southern Hemisphere. That being said, our idea of winter does not even come close to what you guys experience. When it gets really cold where I live temps are around 45°F but normal winter days are 58°F. Our homes aren't constructed to insulate as well as you guys in the colder parts of the states. So even if it does not get very cold, our homes feel very cold.

 
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Post by Jaysmuts » Tue. Aug. 14, 2018 5:09 am

It has been some time since my last post. Once again other matters kept me away from this project. However I am happy to report that the Godin 3726 is almost finished.

Before I share the final progress report let me just correct something that I mentioned in my earlier post. Yes, it is true that I used a cardboard shaped like a cylinder to create a putty bridge over a gap at the back of the oven between the firebricks. At the time I though it was a great idea but it ended up hampering the installation of the Ring (large metal ring that rests on top of firebricks) after the putty had hardened. The Godin 3726 was designed to have a gap at the back of the oven, between the firebricks as part of the inner smokebox construction. The reason for this design feature is to allow space for the fuel shield that is attached to the underside of the Ring. The fuel shield needs to fit into that gap otherwise you won't be able to fit the Ring onto the oven. This is what happened to me so I ended up taking a small saw and cutting out a section of my putty bridge.

A second point I would also like to mention, that won't blow anyone's mind, is to remember to test all new parts on a existing oven/original parts. As an example I bought a brand new Ring from Godin. However when I fitted the Crown (large outer lid) onto the Ring I found a construction flaw. The original and the new part did not work together even though they were designed to. If I waited until after I had affixed the new Ring to the oven to fit the Crown only to realize that there was a problem, it would have been a real mess to fix. Luckily I tested it before I mounted the Ring and was able to fix the flaw with a grinder before attaching.

Anyway, so here is the makeshift plastic cover I used to catch all wet putty from falling into the oven.
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Here you can see me applying the final layer of fire putty before mounting the Ring. Placing the Ring onto wet putty helps to seal the space between the Cast Iron top and the firebrick bottom.
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Here I am mounting the Ring onto the wet putty and using a level to make sure it fits correctly.
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So here is the finished product. Just needs to be cleaned and polished afterwards.
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All that is left now is to fire it up and do a smoke test to see if it leaks.

 
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Post by franco b » Tue. Aug. 14, 2018 10:19 am

Looking good.

Now comes the satisfaction of the reward for your labor.

Several small fires first to season the new cast iron, and to allow parts to shift gently when first heated.

 
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Post by Jaysmuts » Tue. Aug. 14, 2018 11:07 am

I can't wait for that first fire!

Will remember to ease into it.

Once again many thanks for all the assistance Franco!

If there is anyone with additional questions regarding this build, or just 3726 models in general, you are more than welcome to contact me.

 
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Post by Jaysmuts » Wed. Aug. 22, 2018 11:08 am

Hi guys

I am not really sure which thread I should use to post this question so I am just going to continue from my last post. If anyone knows of a more applicable thread please point me in the right direction so that I may repost this message to a more appropriate thread.

My question relates to any experiences that users might have had with cement tiles, a.k.a. Moroccan tiles or Encaustic tiles. I recently became the owner of a Godin 3144 (a.k.a. Regence). The plan is to install it in our existing fireplace opening which has a basic cement floor and is backed by sand stone.

Pictured here is the opening
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Pictured is the Stove in the space
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The Head of the aesthetics department (my wife) has requested that I install cement tiles to cover up the cement floor. The stove will naturally be placed on top of these tiles and there is a clearance of 100mm (3.93701 inches). I have never worked with these tiles and don’t know of other people who have used them for a freestanding fireplace. However, I have seen pictures of such an installation (wood burning stove on top of cement/encaustic tiles) but these seem to be mostly stock photos or promotional. In any event the installations pictured all seem brand new and not yet used for a couple of years.

So I take issue/ have concerns with two things. 1) As I understand it, and I am no expert, cement does not do so well with heat. Ceramic and porcelain certainly does well with heat. But then again aren’t some pizza ovens constructed using cement or concrete? Does anyone know if these tiles will be able to handle the heat emitting from the stove?
2) These tiles are normally sealed with a resin based sealer. You can imagine that they are porous and will stain instantly when soiled. So, even if the cement tiles can handle the stove-heat should the tiles then be sealed? I don’t know much about resin based sealers, but I know that they aren’t used in geysers, ovens or engines, right? Does anybody hane any experience with something like this.

Cheers from South Africa

 
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Post by franco b » Wed. Aug. 22, 2018 3:43 pm

Floor tiles are generally ceramic and installed with a type of mortar called thinset. If you go on the Home Depot site you can find a video on installation. Grout is also a type of cement for the spaces between tiles.

Your supplier should also have recommendations.

 
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Post by rmchambers » Mon. Dec. 17, 2018 2:00 pm

I got some overspray on my enamel and used a metal polish (Flitz) to clean that off and it really brought a shine to the enamel so I went ahead and painstakingly polished all the enameled parts and it made it look really good. If you find your enamel looking a bit tired, perhaps give that a try.


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