I built my small anagama type kiln in 2003 and have had many years of satisfying results from it.

During the last firing, in October, 2019, I realized it was on its last legs. I knew this day was coming and have had ideas for a new kiln floating around in my head and on scraps of paper for a while.

Tearing down the old kiln

As I am now in my sixties, I needed a smaller kiln that takes less work and less wood. So in December I tore it down. Then in May, with help from some other potter friends who have been helping me fire for years, we built a new kiln with the salvaged material from the old kiln. A small “train” kiln.

Building the new kiln

We had fun trying to keep our distance from each other and stay safe from COVID-19. Nobody got sick and I have a new kiln. We fired it and it seems to work. Now I have to see what it can do. The adventure continues.

First firing