60 percent of carpenters use the same hammer for 20 years.

Has anyone actually tested how stud finders do with older plaster walls though? I mean the ones with metal lathe behind them. My place was built in the 50s and the stud finder goes crazy every time I try to use it, just beeping at random spots. Idk maybe the newer ones are better but the knock trick has never failed me on these old walls.

Learned this lesson myself a few years back when I tried to save money on a mount for my Celestron. Thought hey, a tripod's a tripod, right? Spent a whole night watching my gear slowly sag and lose tracking on Jupiter. Now I refuse to put anything heavier than a pair of binoculars on a cheap tripod. That $30 tripod cost you way more than $30 in the end with all the trouble it caused.

Did you ever read that old foundry handbook article about how ceramic sleeves actually have lower thermal conductivity than fiber once you get past a certain wall thickness? @jesse84 is right that it's a mass and heat capacity problem, I remember someone from a shop up in Portland posting about the same issue with gear blanks. The math just doesn't work out for heavy sections unless you're pouring super hot.

Ditch the liners entirely and just spray the basket with oil.