3 Inches Of Blood - Long Live Heavy Metal Review

    Long Live Heavy Metal is the 5th studio album from Vancouver metal band 3 Inches Of Blood.

     This album is a little different than their other releases in that it includes a couple of instrumental tracks and some acoustic guitar. At this point I believe vocalist Cam Pipes is the only current member who has appeared on all 5 albums and he is still belting the songs out like a small, bearded viking version of King Diamond. The album starts off strong with the epic Metal Woman and the even better My Sword Will Not Sleep. Both songs are great classic 3 Inches Of Blood. The first instrumental track, Chief And The Blade,  features the acoustic guitar with a  flute and is not bad at all. It leads into the song Dark Messenger which features an acoustic intro but quickly changes over to the standard metal 3 Inches is so good at. The rest of the album is pretty straight forward and features a mixed bag of songs. I enjoyed the marching rhythms of 4000 Torches but there's something about  the song Storming Juno that makes me want to skip it. The album ends with another instrumental tune called One For The Ditch that has a nice electric solo over an acoustic backing. I give the album a 7.5/10

Metal Woman. Track 1 of Long Live Heavy Metal

Bottle Brew Conclusion

     My beers are brewed! They were actually done at the beginning of last week but I didn't feel like drinking 2 litres of beer by myself on a week night. I opened the bottle of Cerveza on Saturday night while I rolled my sushi dinner. As you can see in this picture the beer is once again clear (it's very murky while fermenting in the bottle) and there is a layer of yeast sitting at the bottom of the bottle. Try not to disturb the yeast layer while pouring the bottle. It's not bad for you, it will just alter the flavour of the beer and give you some extra B group vitamins.

     I have been told by some friends and family who have previously brewed their own beer at home that it will taste like crap but I was very pleased with this beer. When I opened the bottle it let off a satisfying hiss and it's easily just as good as the majority of bottled beers available at the LCBO or Beer Store.

     The Cerveza has a smooth and refreshing taste and had more carbonation than I was expecting. However, the carbonation will eventually disappear after the bottle is opened and will probably last less than three days. I managed to finish most of the bottle in an evening with a glass remaining to have with lunch the next day.

     Based on this bottle I plan on buying more of these beers in the near future. For the month of April Bottlebrew is holding a promotion called the MB24 special. You get 24 2 litre bottles of beer for $89 including taxes and you can select any combination of flavours that you want. That comes out to just over 60 cents per glass of beer! Get the MB24 Special coupon HERE.



Vanilla Kipferl Recipe

     These cookies are from Austria but are also commonly made in Germany and Switzerland. They take a bit of work but the end result is delicious so it's worth the effort.

Ingredients

4-1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 pinches salt

1-3/4 cups butter

1 cup confectioners' sugar

2 egg

2 tablespoons vanilla sugar

2-1/2 cups ground almonds/almond flour

Directions

To Make Your Own Vanilla Sugar: Place 1 1/2 to 2 cups of sugar and place in pint jar. Put a clean vanilla bean in the jar, cover and shake well. Let stand for a few days, shaking the jar occasionally, before using the sugar. As you use the sugar, replace with fresh sugar. I did not do this because it sounded like a pain in the ass so I just used some vanilla extract.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the salt and the flour. Cut in the butter or margarine, and mix in with your hands.

Add the confectioners' sugar, the egg, the vanilla sugar, and the ground almonds to the flour mixture. Place the dough in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Divide the dough into several parts. Make rolls that are approximately 1 inch thick. Cut the rolls into 1 inch pieces, and bend the pieces into the shape of a semicircle ( just like a croissant). This step takes a while so for my second batch I just made circles. I went back to the curved shape for the the last batch. Place the kipferl on a baking tray, and leave them in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.

Bake at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) for 10 to 15 minutes (I did 15 minutes because my oven is weak).

When done, remove kipferl carefully from the tray.

While still warm, dip the kipferl in a mixture of confectioners' sugar and vanilla sugar.

     Here's what the completed cookies look like!

Dental Lab Model Fabrication

     In this demonstration I will be showing how to fabricate the working lab models from the die stone that was poured in the post from April 5th. There are many ways to fabricate a working model but I will just be illustrating how it is done at my lab.

Model Fabrication

The first step is to separate the die stone model that was poured from the dental impression. Slide a knife between the stone and the tray edge and twist the blade to release the model. It is best to hold the stone in your hand and have the tray pointing upwards. That way, if the impression were to suddenly release it would be the tray to fly across the room and not your model.



Inspect the poured model for any flaws such as bubbles. This looks ok.

Once separated, trim the base of the model flat and level, and the facial of the model using a wet model trimmer. Use eye protection.

After trimming, allow the model to dry a little. If you need to work fast simply spray the model with a compressed air hose to speed the drying process. Trim the lingual portion of the model with an arch trimmer if you have one. If not, you can use a handpiece. Do not create any undercuts on the model when trimming or it will be extremely difficult to separate from the base that will be poured later. 

Drill pin holes in the base of the die stone models so you can independently section the dies later on. One pin per abutment, pontic, and any other portions that will need to be removable to facilitate working on the case. Blow out the dust from the drilled hole with some compressed air.

Glue the brass pins into the holes. I use Krazy Glue Original because it bonds the stone and pin well and it flows easily. I apply a drop of glue to the pin threads then insert the pin into the drilled hole with the flat portion of the pin facing distally. Having the flat portion face the same direction each time makes placement of the dies back into the base easier where there are multiple units on one model. I also attach a rubber sleeve to the base of each pin which I will explain later.

Apply a stone separator to the die model using a brush. We use Super-Sep.

Allow the separator to dry a little, then you can pour a base for the die stone. Mix some Hydrocal 105 in a rubber bowl and pour into a base former until it is full. Vibrate the base former to remove any trapped air bubbles. Invert your die stone model so the pins are facing up and using an action like you were cleaning off the spatula apply yellow stone to the base of the model around the pins. Once the base is completely covered give the wet stone a little bit of a tap with your spatula to remove any air bubbles and ensure that it is smooth against the base of the model. place the die stone model into the base former that is filled with yellow stone and give the whole thing a couple of taps against the counter top to once again eliminate any air bubbles which may have been trapped. Allow the stone to harden for at least half an hour.

Once solid you can remove the model from the base former. Using the wet model trimmer, trim the base around the facial and flat at the posterior. Trim the base of the model to expose the brass pins and rubber ends. Let it all dry again.

After the model has dried somewhat, it is ready to be cut. Use a fine blade saw to cut the model. As I already stated, each die must be individually removable for working. If it makes it easier to cut out the dies, you can cut the model in half and remove the non working side before making the die cuts. Do NOT cut the margins or contacts off or you will have to start everything over again.

Remove the sectioned portions by pushing on the exposed pin bottoms at the base of the model. I use an old drill bit.

After all the segments have been removed clean up the base of the model with a sharp knife. Blow out any dust from the base with a air hose and be sure to use eye protection while doing that because tiny fragments of stone often fly towards your face at a high speed. Clean the die pieces with a brush. Do not brush the margins or contact areas because you may inadvertently chip or break the model.



Remove the black rubber prices from the bottom of the base and you can then replace all the die stone pieces. With the black rubber removed it creates an easy and clean looking access to the pin bottoms for easier removal of the dies.

Do a rough trim of the prepared dies around the margins to remove the bulk of the stone that will be removed during die preparation. I use the arch trimmer for this purpose.

Write the patient name or case number on the model so it can be identified and make sure you have poured the second pours of the models and you are done.



Electric Wizard - Legalise Drugs and Murder

     I haven't heard anything new from the Doom Metal band Electric Wizard since their 2010 album Black Masses (which is awesome by the way). Just this past week they released a new 7" single called Legalise Drugs and Murder. I'm thrilled to hear something new from this band and hope a new album is on the way! If the Doom gods have any mercy Electric Wizard will come to Toronto for a live show.

Here's the new song!!!

     It kind of sounds like their own song The Chosen Few from the album Witch Cult Today (2007). Guess they got high and forgot they already wrote this song? It's cool though... I still love you Electric Wizard!

Children of the grave....Children of the grave....Children of the grave

Fail Compilation Video For March 2012

     Enjoy!

Dental Lab Model Pouring

     This is my first pictorial step-by-step procedure for work in the Dental Lab. I don't plan on explaining why all the steps are done but feel free to ask any questions if you don't understand something. I'm starting at the beginning with model pouring and then will be moving along the stages of completing a porcelain fused to metal restoration. After that, I plan to feature procedures for implants, full gold restorations, inlays/onlays, zirconia, veneers and whatever else may pass through the lab.

Model Pouring

After receiving the box from the dentist unpack and disinfect the case.

After disinfection, prepare the models for pouring by:
     - Removing any cotton that may be on the impression.

     - Cutting away any impression material that may be creating an undercut that could lock the die stone into the impression.

     - Blocking out any undercuts in the tray with some sort of putty. I like to use some cheap stuff from the nearby Dollar Store.

Inspect the prepared die section of the impressions for any voids or bubbles to be aware of when pouring the model. These impressions have nothing serious.

Spray the models with a debubbleizer and either allow it to dry or spray out the excess with compressed air. There should be no pooled liquid remaining in the impression.

Now that the impressions are ready to be poured measure out the required amount of liquid for the amount of die stone you intend to use. Follow the manufacturer's guidelines as they are designed to achieve the required final hardness and expansion of the die stone model.

Place the liquid into a dry vacuum mixing bowl and then place on a scale. Re-zero the scale and weigh out the required die stone. No scale is necessary if you have pre-measured stone packets.

Stir the stone and water together by hand to ensure complete stone saturation then vacuume mix for the required amount of time.

Using a vibrator slowly vibrate the stone into the impression. Start at one side and flow the stone it towards the other. Watch the stone flow into the teeth so you can prevent bubbles.

Once the teeth have been poured fill the remainder of the impression with some more stone. I like to place an extra small amount of stone on the heels of the arch as they tend to sag. 

Finish up by laying a bead of stone along the top of the impression using your spatula.

If you have any mixed die stone remaining use it to pour any second pour models that you need to make.

Clean up!

Up next is model fabrication using the models you just poured.