Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Heating mantles from India

CharlieA - 3-2-2016 at 18:19

Ebay is replete with heating mantles from India. As an example, a 1L mantle with built-in temperature control, 1L size, with shipping, is in the $80-90 range. I saw similar listings for mantles from China. In general, are Indian and/or Chinese heating mantles a good buy?
I'm sure many SM members have these mantles, and therefore have opinions on their value/usability. I would very much like to hear them.
Thanks in advance!

gsd - 3-2-2016 at 19:28

I am from India and I use Indian heating mantles of all sizes from 500 ml to 10 lit. (Some custom built too for 2 lit kettles).

Generally of good quality and sturdy design. prices range locally (without shipment) between INR 1000 to 4000 (US$ 15 to 60).

gsd

chemrox - 3-2-2016 at 20:43

I like the older US ones in good shape and have bought many at good prices. Heating mantles will last forever if treated kindly. I tried getting information on one from a manufacturer but as in the case of balances they balk at support info and try to make you buy new ones.

Sulaiman - 4-2-2016 at 02:14

I have bought some kitchen equipment from India
and it appears to me that Indian products are simple and robust and cheap
Chinese products can be very cheap, high-tech, but not so reliable.

Based on superficial knowledge I would buy a heating mantle from India rather than China.

With modern manufacturing techniques and cost considerations,
in a commercial environment, repair is not an option due to labour cost.
My day job is repairing industrial electronic equipment
the main reason that we are in business is the poor investment in UK industry,
leaving production lines of decrepitating equipment needing occasional emergency repairs.
Repair of consumer items is not a good business to go into !

zed - 7-2-2016 at 15:03

Yup! Usta know lots of guys in the electronic repair business. TVs, VCRs, Stereo equipment, pretty much anything.

Everybody made a decent living. And then, the world changed. Electronics became better and better, and cheaper and cheaper.

Last time I bought a DVD player, it was $40 bucks. It has operated flawlessly, for a decade.
Play CDs too, and it produces beautiful clean sound. No distortion, no Dolby required....nice.
Perhaps HiFi is somewhat diminished, as it isn't Vinyl, but it is plenty good enough.

Amplifier? No, not required. My TV produces beautiful stereo sound. Sounds so damned good, I sometimes mistakes soundtrack noises, for outside street noises.

Electronics repair guys are going the way of Blacksmiths......and Payphones. Gotta find some new way to express their genius.

Funkerman23 - 8-2-2016 at 02:03

Quote: Originally posted by gsd  
I am from India and I use Indian heating mantles of all sizes from 500 ml to 10 lit. (Some custom built too for 2 lit kettles).

Generally of good quality and sturdy design. prices range locally (without shipment) between INR 1000 to 4000 (US$ 15 to 60).

gsd
Would you say this is also true of Indian made lab equipment in general? What about their glassware? Goodness knows it'd be nice to have another option for affordable flasks...maybe even Perkins triangles since china won't..

gsd - 8-2-2016 at 08:36

Quote: Originally posted by Funkerman23  

Would you say this is also true of Indian made lab equipment in general? What about their glassware? Goodness knows it'd be nice to have another option for affordable flasks...maybe even Perkins triangles since china won't..


There are several Indian manufacturers who make excellent quality laboratory glassware. following 3 I have personally used and would highly recommend.
A point to be noted here is none of them makes there own borosilicate glass. Glass bulbs and Tubings are imported from either China, Eastern Europe or Germany and all sorts glass items are made by glass blowing. All these companies do proper heat treatment and quality control.

http://www.goelscientific.com
http://ablazeglassworks.com
http://www.borosil.com

For Overhead and Magnetic Stirrers, I would recommend:
http://www.remilabworld.com/Plus_Lab_stirrers.asp

Good, sturdy equipments, extremely affordable.

gsd

CharlieA - 8-2-2016 at 08:44

Thanks, all, for the very helpful information. - Charlie

Loptr - 11-2-2016 at 11:42

Let us know how these turn out. I have been eyeing them as well.

I need mantles. Tired of hot plates and baths....

gsd - 11-2-2016 at 17:01

You can get details of several mantle suppliers here:
https://www.google.co.in/?gfe_rd=cr&ei=kym9VpLUI8fCuATai...

Some specific manufacturers are:
http://www.sakav.com/heating-mantle.html
http://www.sunlabexporters.com/heating-mantle.htm
http://www.ganeshscientific.com/heating_mantle.html

However I must say that I have not dealt with them personally.

You will have to ask for packing and forwarding costs to them to your locations.
also the current exchange rate is approx. 1 US$ = 67.5 INR

gsd

Loptr - 12-2-2016 at 01:25

Thank you, gsd.

CharlieA - 18-2-2016 at 04:04

I certainly appreciate all of the input, but for now I am settling for 1 L and 100 mL mantles from eBay. With glass wool "stuffing" I think these should cover my needs (still mostly undefined) from 25-50 ti 1000 mL.

nlegaux - 22-2-2016 at 11:42

I bought a 1L unbranded Indian heating mantle from Amazon a few months back. It works well, especially considering the price ($85). The only issue is the input voltage, 250v instead of the 120v we have in the US, so I had to purchase a cheap adapter ($15).

nlegaux

CharlieA - 22-2-2016 at 12:04

Still sounds like a good deal.:)

Funkerman23 - 22-2-2016 at 21:31

If only any of these guys would make a stirring heating mantle.. so far I haven't found a maker yet but I'll keep looking.

gsd - 23-2-2016 at 07:46

Quote: Originally posted by Funkerman23  
If only any of these guys would make a stirring heating mantle.. so far I haven't found a maker yet but I'll keep looking.


Do you mean this?
http://www.eltekindia.com/Rotamantle.html

Here is a British one which looks more sophisticated and refined.
http://www.electrothermal.com/product.asp?dsl=751

gsd