eclecticcottage
Minister of Fire
Huh...makes more sense on why the two lines that aren't that different...kinda like Ford and Mercury.
The short story of a stove genius!
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mellow
Resident Stove Connoisseur
Kiwi Firemaster
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Did you ever get the Pyroclassic IV in the US? http://www.pyroclassic.co.nz/
The story as give to me is that this fire was designed in the early 80's in what was called the DSIR (Department for Scientific and Industrial Research). Decades later it is still equal cleanest and in the top few for efficiency in New Zealand. The DSIR got privatised in the mid 80's, so the minds behind it are no longer associated with it and the technology has stagnated. Interestingly I asked the current version of the DSIR, Callaghan Innovation, for help in the Wood Stove Decathlon but they said that isn't something they do???
The story as give to me is that this fire was designed in the early 80's in what was called the DSIR (Department for Scientific and Industrial Research). Decades later it is still equal cleanest and in the top few for efficiency in New Zealand. The DSIR got privatised in the mid 80's, so the minds behind it are no longer associated with it and the technology has stagnated. Interestingly I asked the current version of the DSIR, Callaghan Innovation, for help in the Wood Stove Decathlon but they said that isn't something they do???
He did a bunch of work for me and others and was working for a fab company in china (he was there, but it was an American or Euro company).....
He came up will a billion dollar (yes) idea and I looked at for him years ago....I told him it was too big. Soon after, the folks who were financing it, etc. were caught in the 9/11 craziness (had offices in the WTC, not to mention the economic mess as a result). That idea is now being implemented by some of the biggest companies in the world (and I doubt he is seeing any of it!).
I did some searching around recently and it looks like his name is on some new patents and products relating to 3D printers, such as:
http://www.uspto.gov/web/patents/patog/week08/OG/html/1387-3/US08377360-20130219.html
Looks like he works for or with:
http://www.2bot.com/
Even the first Avalons were clean burning - I sold every model from day one until...well, my old shop still sells them today!
Basically, they all had a relatively small firebox and the airwash - and insulated or refractory baffles, so they worked well in the real world before any testing. But I am certain that all the folks on the W. Coast in 1985 had clean burning in mind because OR and WA were starting to clamp down.....I think they came up with regs in 1985/6.
I can't find a copy of the ad I want - but it has a picture of John on the back of the brochure saying something like "I'm an engineer, and blah blah".....I was impressed with the pitch because we used to joke that many stoves were designed on the back of a napkin in a diner....and continued the joke by saying that the draft control was only in that place because some ketchup spilled.
Gary, John used to tell the story of hauling that giant stamping press you guys have at Travis....when you bought it and moved it. He said the bolts weighed more than a person! That's this one!
I have big man-love for that dude, may he RIP. Another innovator who lost it all....come to think of it, many more innovators in this industry lost it all....than those who made it!
2bot never got off the ground. cool idea, but lack of fund last time I talked to John.
The 3D printing space is crazy.......Chinese companies are already knocking off the Makerbot...before it hardly hit the market.
Oh, well, it'll be a long time coming before we have 3D printed stoves, although your R&D dept will someday have one for fabbing high temp parts for prototypes....
I think of all John's stuff, the stoves are the things which actually ended up "in the field" and serving the most people. I remember Dan Melcon telling me stories of the early days at Lopi....it's a shame someone doesn't write down or document some of that stuff.
I know this is a two year old thread but I found it while researching a stove that came with the home we purchased a year ago. The stove we have is the 996 so not the exact stove but close enough. We brought our VC Dutchwest cat stove from our old house and have been using it since, maybe I should have given the Avalon a shot at providing our heat.
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