Technology
The design behind Dragon 17.
A side-mounted Vortex burner. A chamotte baking floor. An insulated, low-profile body. Discover how Dragon 17 brings these elements together for gas-fired pizza, with a direct view of the bake.
Published baking surface: 43 × 43 cm
Unboxed weight: 26 kg
Five technologies. Built around gas.
A compact chamber. A flame you can work with.
Dragon puts the flame on the left and the pizza on a chamotte stone. Heat reaches the pizza from the flame, the hot chamber and the stone beneath it. The low-profile body keeps the oven compact; the open front lets you follow the bake and make the next turn.
Side-fired heat
The burner sits beside the cooking area. Watch the flame-facing crust and turn the pizza as its colour develops.
Heat through the base
The chamotte stone absorbs heat during preheating, then transfers it directly into the dough.
Control at the burner
Choose the flame setting for preheating and baking. Keep checking the crust, toppings and underside.
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See the bake. Control the turn.
Dragon’s left-side flame and open front let you follow the crust and toppings, then turn the pizza when its colour tells you to.
03
Burner positions, browning & sightlines
One side burner. Heat across the chamber.
Dragon’s burner sits on the left. Its rolling flame carries heat across the compact chamber toward the opposite side of the pizza. Watch the visible side crusts and toppings, then turn a less-browned section toward the heat.
Rear crust can overbrown before you see it.
Flames are positioned along the left and rear. The rear outer crust face points away from you, so it can darken quickly without its color being directly visible. By the time you turn it into view, that section may already be overbrowned.
Hidden rear browning. Heat on both sides.
The rear crust can overbrown quickly while its outer face is hidden from view. After turning, flames still heat both sides. If those crust sections have already browned, continued exposure can take both too far while the center toppings are still finishing.
First click: turn Dragon by 90° and the L/U examples by 180°. A second click resets the comparison.
First click: Dragon turns 90°; L/U turn 180°. Second click: reset. The angles illustrate this comparison; choose the turning angle and timing from your actual bake.
The blind spot is behind the pizza.
From the illustrated front position, you can see the pizza top, front and side crusts and the open floor around it. The pizza hides its rear outer crust face and the low area immediately behind it. Here Dragon turns 90°, bringing the rear crust section toward the side; the L and U examples turn 180°, bringing it to the front. The hidden area stays behind the pizza.
Conceptual sightlines and heat exposure; drawings are not to scale or measured baking rates. In the L- and U-shaped examples, the hidden rear crust is already overbrowned before the turn. The U-shaped example then shows further darkening at both sides. Dragon’s remaining pale crust browns after turning while its already browned sections keep their colour in this illustration. Actual results depend on oven design, flame setting, pizza position and turning time.
How InView works
InView Baking Technology describes the relationship between Dragon’s side-mounted flame and the cook’s view through the opening. The burner is on the left, so the flame-facing side of the pizza can be watched from the front. You can see where the crust is rising, where darker spots develop and how the topping surface changes.
The flame and hot chamber transfer heat to the top of the pizza, while contact with the heated stone cooks its base. These processes do not advance at exactly the same rate. Moist toppings use energy to warm up and release water; the exposed crust can dry and colour sooner. Watch the centre as well as the outside edge.
When the flame-facing crust reaches the finish you want, turn the pizza to bring a less-browned section toward the heat. The comparison shows Dragon turning 90° and the L- and U-shaped layouts turning 180°. This brings the previously hidden rear crust into view. In the U-shaped example, already browned side sections darken further under continued heat exposure. Click again to reset. These are illustrative turns: choose the angle and timing from the pizza, its position and the flame setting. Check the underside with the peel when the dough is firm enough to lift.
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The flame starts with the mixture.
Dragon’s Vortex burner mixes gas with primary air inside the tube, then gives the flames access to secondary air in the chamber.
Follow the mixture to the flame.
Gas and primary air mix before combustion. Secondary air joins at the flames.
The shared Vortex mechanism is shown schematically. Flow paths, flame shape and speed differences illustrate the process; they are not measured CFD results or a dimensioned drawing of the Dragon 17 burner.
How Vortex works
Vortex Burner Technology names the gas-and-air preparation inside Glowen’s gas burners, including Dragon 17. A gas jet draws primary air into the inlet. The flow follows a straight section, a bend and a further straight mixing section before reaching the flame openings.
Changing direction in the bend creates an uneven flow and encourages transverse, swirling movement. Mixing continues downstream as these movements redistribute gas and air across the tube. The coloured paths explain the mechanism: yellow represents gas, green represents primary air and yellow-green represents their mixture. They are schematic paths, rather than measured flow speeds.
The mixture leaves through flame openings distributed along the burner. Combustion takes place outside the mixing passage. Primary air already in the mixture supports the inner reaction zone; secondary air from the chamber reaches the flames and supports further oxidation. The spacing between flames leaves routes for that additional air.
For the cook, this preparation sits behind the visible side flame used to heat the chamber and stone. Adjusting the burner changes heat input. Use the gas, regulator and pressure specified for your Dragon 17 burner: the pressure versions have different ratings. Flame colour alone does not establish combustion completeness or heat output.
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Prepare the stone. Then launch the pizza.
Gas heat input and the insulated compact chamber work together during warm-up. Stone readiness is the final check before the first pizza.
How RapidPreheat works
RapidPreheat Technology describes Dragon’s preparation for the first bake. The gas burner supplies heat to the chamber and cooking floor. The compact chamber and insulated body work with that heat input as the oven warms up, while the chamotte stone absorbs energy for the pizza base.
A strong flame is visible immediately, but it does not mean the stone is ready. The chamber surfaces and the cooking floor warm at different rates. Heat also needs time to spread into the stone. Its stored energy matters when cold dough first contacts the baking surface.
Check several points on the area where the pizza will sit with an infrared thermometer. This measures surface temperature; it does not directly measure the centre of the stone. Choose a suitable launch temperature for your dough and baking style, and use the oven’s instructions for lighting and preheating. Weather, starting temperature, gas pressure and burner setting can all change the warm-up time.
After a pizza comes out, the area beneath it has given up heat. Let the burner restore that energy and check the cooking floor before the next launch. RapidPreheat prepares the first bake; continued heat input and stone checks help you manage the following ones.
The gas flame supplies heat to the chamber and stone. A visible flame does not establish stone readiness.
The base has its own heat source.
A hot chamotte floor gives heat directly to the dough. Its readiness matters as much as the flame above it.
Dragon 17 uses a 25 mm chamotte stone. The stone stores energy during warm-up. When a pizza lands, the temperature difference drives heat across the contact between stone and dough. That direct transfer sets and bakes the underside while the exposed top receives heat from the chamber and flame.
One pizza removes energy from the patch of stone beneath it. Keep the burner running as required and check that area before the next launch. A dark crust with a pale underside can be a reason to reassess stone readiness, flame setting and dough thickness separately.
Designed for the heat cycle.
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Keep more heat working inside.
One layer at the rear, one continuous layer around the upper shell and two layers beneath the stone help Dragon 17 retain cooking heat.
Rear: 1 layer · Upper shell: 1 continuous layer · Base: 2 layers
Insulation layout for Dragon 17. Proportions and layer thicknesses are illustrative.
How ThermaShell works
ThermaShell Design is the insulating construction around Dragon’s cooking chamber. Dragon 17 uses one layer at the rear, one continuous layer following the complete upper shell and two layers beneath the cooking stone.
Heat moves from the hot interior toward the cooler surroundings. The insulating layers add resistance along these paths. During warm-up, they reduce heat loss as the burner heats the chamber and stone. During baking, they reduce part of the energy the flame must continually replace.
The two lower layers limit heat transfer through the base beneath the stone. This matters when the temperature difference between the oven and its surroundings is large, including cold-weather use. The lower insulation helps retain heat in the cooking floor while the burner replenishes energy used in each bake.
Insulation and chamotte do different jobs: insulation slows heat loss, while the stone stores energy and transfers it into the dough. Check stone readiness between pizzas. The open front still allows air and hot gases to move, and the exterior can become hot. Use the specified supporting surface and clearances, and let the oven cool before moving it.
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Connected parts. Room for heat expansion.
Dragon’s construction accommodates limited movement between connected parts as they heat up and cool down.
Cold reference: watch the plate edge as the joint heats.
Conceptual joint. Movement enlarged for clarity.
How ThermoFlex works
ThermoFlex Design describes the provision for thermal movement in Dragon’s construction. Metal expands as its temperature rises and contracts as it cools. The amount depends on the material, the length of a part and its temperature change.
An oven does not warm every component equally. The inner chamber, outer body and connections can reach different temperatures at different times. Even similar metal parts may therefore try to change dimensions by different amounts. Fully restraining this difference can create stress in the assembly.
ThermoFlex accommodates limited relative movement while keeping the parts connected. In the enlarged joint illustration, the heated sheet edge shifts against a reference showing its cold position. The movement is exaggerated so you can see the principle: the connection retains the parts while the assembly allows for their changing dimensions.
This is a passive construction feature. There is no thermal-expansion setting to adjust before launching a pizza. Its role is to account for the temperature changes experienced during warm-up, baking and cooling. Let the oven cool naturally after use. The connection remains part of the assembled oven throughout that normal cycle.
Dragon 17. Space for the bake.
A 43 × 43 cm chamotte floor, gas heat and the five Dragon technologies. Check the dimensions, weight and matching gas equipment for your cooking setup.
Dragon 17
A larger baking floor for more working space.
Baking surface: 43 × 43 cm
Published outer dimensions: 52 × 54 × 22 cm
Unboxed weight: 26 kg
Chamotte stone: 25 mm
Dragon 17
Nominal gas input · 30 mbar version
Nominal gas input · 50 mbar version
Oven body: AISI 430 stainless steel
Baking floor: 25 mm chamotte
Burner & stone in standard oven package
Hose & regulator
Gas input figures above refer to I3B/P versions at their specified pressure. They describe fuel heat input, not heat delivered to the pizza. Match the gas supply and regulator to the burner’s rating label and the manual for your market.
Prepare the gas setup.
Use the specified hose and regulator, check the connections as instructed and follow the model’s lighting procedure. Use the oven outdoors with the required clearances.
Plan the cooking rhythm.
Preheat the stone, follow the crust and toppings, turn manually, then check the floor before the next pizza. Let the oven cool fully before moving or storing it.
Make space for pizza.
Explore the oven, available packages and matching gas equipment.
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