Homecasting; Safety Should be First!

        Most of the casting in the last post came from particularly successful casting  session. I tried to repeat it several times after; without success. I examined the different possible causes. The first session the temperature was over 50 degrees; the next time the temperature dropped down into the teens and I do my casting in the cellar. Maybe the cellar was too cold for the metal to stay hot enough to pour properly. I then tried to use the kitchen. The metal was just not getting hot enough. I finally decided that maybe the stove itself needed replacing. And so yesterday I placed an order for the new stove.  After ordering the new stove I happened to pull the plug from the oven and found the problem. And what a problem it was! The plug itself had melted and started to fall apart. It was a serious fire hazard. And while I try to keep flammable items from the oven, it was sitting on a wood table.

I believe this is still the first over I bought over 30 years ago. 

The plug after unplugging.

It will have to become a habit to check this cord before using, even if the cord is a new one.
I also used to have the stove on a piece of formica instead of plain wood. I shall go back to the formica.