Ladle lining

Claim 1

A ladle comprising a conically curved side shell inclined upwardly and outwardly from a horizontal base lining, said side shell substantially circular in plan and inclined from the vertical at a substantially fixed angle between approximately 4*10* , said shell having a diameter of less than approximately 90 inches, a working side lining disposed adjacent substantially the entirety of the interior surface of said shell, said side lining including a plurality of vertically stacked courses of refractory blocks, each said course in turn including a plurality of laterally adjacent refractory blocks, said blocks of vertically adjacent courses of congruent configuration, each said block having a planar and congruent top and bottom walls parallel to one another, parallel front and back faces on each said block both angularly disposed with respect to said block top and bottom walls, each said block having a pair of end walls disposed in vertical planes, and said block top and bottom walls are parallel to the horizontal plane of said base lining while said angularly disposed front and back faces are vertically inclined an amount substantially corresponding to said inclination of said shell side from the horizontal, whereby the lateral edges of said front faces of adjacent blocks are contiguous throughout said side lining.