I'm working on the blast furnace models for my layout (instead of painting the ceiling like I should be). I can't seem to find a good source on the depth of the runners on the casting floor where the iron flowed from the furnace to the torpedo cars. I'm leaning towards making it a foot deep right now. Anybody have any thoughts or info I missed on the internet? Photos make it look like I'm guessing close to the right depth.
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Bill,
I would think a scale foot (1/4") would be fine for hot metal. I looked at a photo I have for slag cars parked at base of the Weirton Steel blast furnaces. The sides of those troughs look to be 18"-24" high, but that's slag. If you want to go 3/8", you're probably golden.
George
A deeper slag channel makes sense. I know blast furnaces are hotter than the induction furnaces we ran (because metallurgy of big castings and yada yada eutectic) but I believe slag runs different than iron.
I think 3/8" is probably going to be the ticket as I sit here and think about it. Thanks!
If you watch any of the U tube videos of old time steel mills, it looks like the iron runner has mounds of gravel, slag, something piled along side of it to contain the flow.
This may help.
Go to the tube, copy and paste this Ypv7omlu-5A into the search box. Carrie Furnace in Rankin, PA (outside Pittsburgh). Start at the 48:32 mark.
Thanks guys! I appreciate the info/resources!
I suspect we'll be the only people questioning this on the finished product 
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