My New Crawford!

I tried a few bags of Blaschak stove in the range last winter. Still have one bag left for testing/experimenting with the #6 when it gets installed.

Yup, lots of size variance and fines. Some bags were wet with water/fines slurry pouring out, other bags were dry and dusty. It all burned very well though. This year my bulk dealer told me he buys the bulk nut I get from Blaschak, or two other breakers mining the same coal seam as Blaschak, so I'm not going to get anymore Blaschak bagged.

Then, I tried just using the biggest pieces to see how the range reacts. As you found, it burned up much faster, what with all the air spaces.

Even burned fast when I could cram as much as four or five pieces at a time in the range's small fire box. I'll leave the big coal for the big boy stoves !

Paul

Kinda creepy when its dark ...

Sweet photo Scott!

Looks like a Santana album cover.

Here we go. 35 pounds of coal burned in 18 hours at this temperature and notice the stack temperature also. The amazing, so efficient it's staggering, Crawford 40 Base Heater, ladies and gentlemen.

Posted to simply share some base heater joy all around.

That's awesome William!

wsherrick wrote:Here we go. 35 pounds of coal burned in 18 hours at this temperature and notice the stack temperature also. The amazing, so efficient it's staggering, Crawford 40 Base Heater, ladies and gentlemen.

How do you feel this Crawford 40 compares to your Glenwood 6?

The No 6 is a different animal, than the Crawford.
I feel that their overall efficiency is very similar. I haven't measured so in order to keep my friend Isyare from getting on to me about suppositions that's all I can say about it. The Crawford can be maintained at a lower temperature than the No 6. It will also maintain a fire at super low temperatures with very tiny amounts of coal.
This is very handy in the fall and spring.
The No 6 can maintain low temperatures also but it has to have a larger mass of coal burning to maintain the fire, therefore you get more heat out of it, if that makes any sense at all.
The No 6 heats up faster and produces large amounts of heat quickly.
The Crawford is a very heavy cast stove with a thick inner layer of bricks which surround the suspended fire pot. It takes a good while for all of that mass to heat up, but; once it does it kicks out the BTU's for about roughly the same amount of coal as the No 6 at cruising temperatures which run around 400-475 on the barrel. At lower temperatures the Crawford can be run for less coal than the No 6 due to its design.
Again the main difference in performance comes at very slow rates of combustion at low temperatures.
Now tending, shaking and maintaining the fire is easiest by far with the No 6. The prismatic grates which are inclosed inside the stove is a work of art in my opinion. It's hands down the cleanest and easiest stove to run.
The deep firepot of the Crawford will hold lots of ash. The standard round shaker grate is easy to use but it's just not as clean as the other. You have to be very careful not to make a mess cleaning the fire.
I can't say which I like better. I love them both.

I'm always glad to see a hot stove. As far as ease of use I have to agree the Glenwood #6 is hands down the easiest to use. I recently had to go out of town for a couple of days and I left mine in the care of my Brother-in-law who has never used a coal stove before. I sent him the links to your youtube videos on the #6 and he did just fine. It is by far cleaner than any "new" stove out there. The old ways are the best ways with coal stoves.

Excellent points William and that is some nice coal you are burning to get those beautiful blues!

I have never run a 6 or similar stove, but to ME, from detailed inspection and observation, they are simply hotrod pot belly stoves with a return flue and a good grate system.

The cylinder stove with its suspended pot and internally bypassed gas path design, was/is the Ferrari of stoves. If these stoves were made with sealed prism grates, there would be no comparison at all.

wsherrick wrote: It will also maintain a fire at super low temperatures with very tiny amounts of coal.

I am still amazed at how long my #2 will burn with very little coal in the pot. Truely amazing and comes in very handy like you mentioned in the Fall and Spring. My #2 does take a while to get truely warmed up from a cold start and even a bit of a lag on refreshing the firepot. But once ole "Joan" gets going... LOOK OUT.. She purrs along like the Energizer Bunny and I know I don't have to touch her for close to 30 hours or more if I don't want or can't for some reason.

If there is one drawback is the clean factor. While I don't have a Glenwood I do know what clean is when it comes to coal and burning coal and the while I wouldn't say the Crawford is a dirty stove to operate by any means but the stove isn't as clean as I would like. Takes a tad more care in dealing with things. I wish as Scott mentioned that Crawford had Glenwood type grates. I wonder if it would be possible to retro fit prismatic type grates in a Crawford BB? Wiliam.. What do you think? I volunteer "Joan" for the test.....

There is a reason lost in the deepness of time that Oak type Base Heaters had prismatic grates and the Cylinder, suspended fire pot stoves didn't. I have a method of cleaning the Crawford that keeps it reasonably clean. I have an old cookie sheet which comes out from under the stove when it is time to fool with the ash pan or do a vigorous shakedown. The total shake down is called giving the stove a, "Sharpton," it's meaning should be self explanatory. Having a ash pan that is of the proper size also helps a lot to keep everything orderly.

William thanks for the excellent explanation. Will we be seeing Crawford videos as we did with the Glenwood 6?

Jim

wsherrick wrote: The total shake down is called giving the stove a, "Sharpton," it's meaning should be self explanatory. .

Hummmmmm !