Paragon - Caldera

Make jewelry from the amazing silver, bronze, and copper clays that are shaped with simple tools and fired. Fire ceramics, porcelain, or stoneware jewelry. When you are ready to try something new, fire china, decals, enameling, and glass in Paragon’s digital Caldera kiln. Glass compatibility and glaze color tests are fast and easy. The Caldera fires rapidly to 2350°F/1287°C. Steel stand, stackable design The Caldera ships with a sturdy 2 3/4" high x 14" x 12 3/4" steel stand, complete with mar-proof rubber feet. With a separate top and bottom, the Caldera is stackable and portable. The kiln is easy to carry in sections to seminars. Take it with you on vacation retreats. For a digital kiln that can do this much, the Caldera is a bargain. A true workhorse “I love, love, love the Caldera. I not only fuse glass and work in metal clay, but I teach a lot of classes, so I'm firing the kiln all the time. It is a true workhorse. In three years I have not had one problem with it. I have done drop ring vases, small pot melts, small dishes, and candleholders in it. It is inexpensive to run on 120 volts.” --Lisel Crowley Versatile, fun Imagine the glass you could make with this kiln: Sag, slump, and fuse. Make small bowls, pendants, earrings, cufflinks, and even bracelets. Enjoy glittering dichroic glass. This kiln will give you a haven of creative enjoyment that you will especially appreciate when life gets hectic. You will soon find that glass fusing is addictive. The joy of testing You will never outgrow a small kiln. If you later buy a larger one, you can continue to use the small one for testing and small projects. Perfect a new design in the small kiln before running production quantities in the large kiln. A small test kiln is invaluable in solving ceramic glaze problems and perfecting difficult glazes such as crystallines. The Caldera in the classroom A Caldera is a nice addition to school programs. A test kiln is relatively inexpensive. Students can make gifts in the Caldera in time for a birthday or holiday instead of waiting until the school’s large kiln is fired. A test kiln creates enthusiasm for a clay program. Students can test glazes while they feel the momentum instead of waiting to fire them in the large kiln. New teachers inherit bags of unlabeled clay in their classrooms. Many kiln loads of ware have been ruined because they were fired to the wrong temperature. With a Caldera kiln, you can easily test unlabeled clay. Strong lap joints To strengthen the firing chamber, the firebrick corners are fitted together with L-shaped notches. This type of joint lasts longer than the butted joint and the "picture frame" mitered joint found on competitive brands. The base is versatile and can be flipped if one side is damaged. The lid and base are interchangeable unless you order the lid with a glass window. Reliable construction This kiln is built to last. Elements are coiled from the finest high-temperature wire available. They use heat-dissipating element connectors refined and proven over many years in Paragon kilns. 2 ½” insulating refractory firebricks Dropped, recessed brick grooves protect the element for long life. Vented switch box, heavy duty wiring for years of reliable service. Heavy-duty steel stand with mar-proof feet The optional glass window You can order your Caldera with an optional glass window in the top. The glass window is rated to 2300°F (1260°C), so it can easily withstand glass fusing temperatures. Please note, however, that the window reduces the kiln’s maximum temperature to approximately 2100°F (1148°C) and is meant for glass fusing. (You can still fire porcelain and stoneware jewelry even with the window, but you will need to plug the window with ceramic fiber.) Expansion collars The basic Caldera is part of a kiln expansion system. Add a collar for annealing glass beads or enameling small copper pieces. Add 4 1/2” of height to the Caldera with a Caldera-BC collar, which has a 7 ½” x 2” door on the side for annealing glass beads. The Caldera-X is the same type of collar, but without the bead door. Explore copper enameling with the 6 3/4” tall Caldera-E collar. Caldera-BC Bead Collar Caldera-X Collar Caldera-E Enameling Collar Warning for the caldera kiln equipped with a lid safety switch and collar The Caldera kiln was intended to be a stackable kiln with a separate lid and bottom. However, the lid must be hinged to the Caldera body when a lid safety switch is installed. To stabilize a Caldera kiln that has a hinged lid, we attach the kiln body and kiln bottom together with two latches. If an unlatched collar (enameling, bead, or extension) is mounted between the Caldera body and the kiln bottom, care must be taken when opening the hinged lid. Do not open the lid past 90 degrees (where the lid is straight up) unless the lid leans against a heat-proof support behind the kiln. Please be aware when firing the Caldera with any collar in place, the maximum temperature is reduced. Enameling Collar – 1800°F; Bead Collar – 2000°F; Extension Collar – 1700°F Choose Your ColorExpress yourself! One of our favorite features of all Paragon kilns is the ability to choose the color of your oven - Make your purchase truly your own with a splash of paint and make your workshop pop. Selecting a color on your oven is absolutely no additional cost and is simply one of the many perks of choosing Paragon.