Luke, I am your Father's Mother's Brother's Uncle. There's no going back now.

[Hamish]

I have been considering it for about a month now.
To take that next step had so many ramifications.
So many, many, ramifications.

What would my wife say in a couple of weeks when it will be time to
have a fish fry?

What would the neighbors think since I would have to do it out in plain
sight, during the day, no less?

I guess there's really nothing to do but take a deep breath, stand up,
and publicly admit to doing it.

"Hi, my name is Rich, and I *ruined* my best Dutch Oven Fish Fryer by
crossing the line and shmell-ting all my berm fodder, sheet lead, and WW
in one (AMAZINGLY) quick act of giving up on that diddely-doo, hokey-pokey,
SLOW, routine of adding bits of this and that, and dorking around trying to do
it all in a small Lee bottom leaker."




There. I said it.

( Stupid hobbies. )( Yeah, I know I love it.) @(;^]#>::: :lovebooli http://castboolits.gunloads.com/imagehosting/thum_170694da614fb7441b.jpg (http://castboolits.gunloads.com/vbimghost.php?do=displayimg&imgid=528)

[Hardcast416taylor]

As we have said in the past to those here on the site that have done similar acts, "Welcome to the sickness of collecting and the melting of the Lead".Robert

[Charlie Two Tracks]

Do it Hamish, do it!

[bumpo628]

It's not too late! Bass Pro has their fish fryer on sale for $30.
Buy another one and nobody will be the wiser.


http://www.basspro.com/Bass-Pro-Shops-Propane-Cooker-with-Aluminum-Pot/product/10205245/-1631022

[onondaga]

Now don't wreck your Lee again by melting scrap in it!! Cleanup the Lee, there is plenty of tips on that and only put clean ingots in it for bullet casting. Fixing the leak is easy, trashing it back to the way it was is even easier if you melt scrap in it again.

Gary

[nanuk]

I was wondering how a large truck wheel hub would work.

just carefully weld a plate into the bottom and put the fire to it.....

any thoughts?

[olafhardt]

Is not shooting only a way to create emties to reload? J things are a thing of the past. Now after I go out to blast, I must come home to cast.

[truckjohn]

??!!

Why would you use a good, high quality dutch oven when you can buy a giant cast iron dutch oven that holds about 200 lbs worth of lead for $15.00 from Harbor Freight...... That's how I got mine.... No way I am ruining my good, seasoned, antique cast iron Chicken-Fryin'-Pot on a big batch of oily, greasy Lead.....

Now... my advice to you is to buy an even better one for fry duty..... NO sense getting tempted to lead up your wife, kids, and relatives because it is the only one laying around......

Thanks

[jmsj]

Hamish,
You truly have crossed to the Dark Side !!
jmsj

[Hamish]

WHY YES, AS A MATTER OF FACT I DO! Ever heard of a brake drum forge???

BTW-Onandaga, I was being *poetic* calling it a bottom leaker, I couldn't come up with a good verbal picture with Lee Bottom Pour and something Dairy Cow'is and the being milked. I have been blessed to not have had any trash problems due to my ocd nature. Way back when, the very first time the spout was trapped open for a second the light switch went on, I power wash my berm lead and dry it for a week or so, and then am very careful about the amount of J bullets that go in at a time. But you know what?


NOT NO MORE! Ingots and only ingots!! Long Live the Casters! (Movie Reference)

[MT Gianni]

I was wondering how a large truck wheel hub would work.

just carefully weld a plate into the bottom and put the fire to it.....

any thoughts?

That last inch is going to be a pain to get out.

[geargnasher]

The hub will work fine, but if you can weld dissimilar metals (or even cast-iron-to-cast-iron) and trust it with 50 lbs or more of lead sitting on the weld on top of a really hot burner, you either have mad skills or bigger cojones than most people I know. My solution would be to whack the end off an old axle and bolt that up to the bottom, or just make a plate. Remember that even a small gap will lead like crazy, so a copper gasket may be in order. You could also rig up a fitting in the plate and a pintle and lever at the top to make a bottom pour, or even make a carriage for the thing that would pivot in the middle like a rotisserie and allow you to pour like a blast-furnace crucible.

Gear

[nanuk]

after thinking about your replys, I can see where it would be difficult to use a hub.

my initial thought was a plate inside laying on the bottom and welded around to as to seal... but I can see where it can seriously weaken the hub....... and a big hub can hold a LOT of hot lead....

[geargnasher]

The issue isn't weakening the 1"+ thick nodular cast iron truck hub, it's getting a weld to STICK to it.

Gear

[Longwood]

Use the correct rod and it is no biggie. Problem is the Nirod is now outrageously expensive and very few people have a rod burning machine these days.
Is there still welders out there that know how to burn rod?

[Longwood]

In the last few days, I have read here on cast bullets about several people that have had castiron pots crack.
I also have seen those cheap cast iron pots crack the first time they are heated and he was not melting lead in it.
It is amazing how thin the Chinese can cast them. I have one that I will sell to you since I sure don't trust it. Personally, I would not pay to ship a free Chinese or Taiwanese ones to me.

[excess650]

I bought a NEW 5 quart dutch oven about 20 years ago for my smelting. I MIGHT have saved a little $ by searching for one at flea markets and such, but have had no regrets. It stays in the garage.

I briefly entertained the thought of using a stainless steel soup pot, but decided they are too thin for the weight of the smelt. Too, I was unsure as to how well they would take the heat from my (propane) plumbers' furnace.

Years ago I tried aluminum muffin tins for ingot molds. They work great for a while, and then the aluminum gives up.

[Three44s]

The hub will work fine, but if you can weld dissimilar metals (or even cast-iron-to-cast-iron) and trust it with 50 lbs or more of lead sitting on the weld on top of a really hot burner, you either have mad skills or bigger cojones than most people I know. My solution would be to whack the end off an old axle and bolt that up to the bottom, or just make a plate. Remember that even a small gap will lead like crazy, so a copper gasket may be in order. You could also rig up a fitting in the plate and a pintle and lever at the top to make a bottom pour, or even make a carriage for the thing that would pivot in the middle like a rotisserie and allow you to pour like a blast-furnace crucible.

Gear


You could well have sticking issues but it's more dependent on how much oil, grease or brake fluid is impregnated into the cast iron.

With clean cast ........ there are actually quite a few rods that stick ........... with oily cast ... it takes patience and sometimes some pretty spendy high nickle alloyed rod to get it going.

The bigger concern is post welding cracking ..........

If we are talking a structural weld .......... you've go more concerns ........ for plugging smaller holes ......... not as much.

The thing that gets most cast welding projects sideways if you've got the right rod is not dealing with stresses built up during the welding ........ cast does not "bend well".

Sometimes .......... preheating helps but lately, things have generally swung to less of that and more to smaller amounts of rod used and over a longer time with lots of peening.

Peening is using a hammer with a sharp point and giving your new weld a work over that looks with a thousand bird pecks. Since the cast can't conform ...... you are litterally reshaping the weld to stretch instead.

Brazing is another option. I have seen brass weld break cast too though. But a bigger concern is that brass melts at a low enough temp to be troublesome as to having it go gunnysack if it was unattended and the lead pot got over temp'd.

Gearmasher's ideas about a pedestal mount for the brake drum with a truck axle and the alternative of building a crucible mount sure have me thinking .............. as I have lots of these old cast offs laying around and could always use a BIGGER lead pot for breaking WW's and other sourced lead down .............. !

Three 44s

[Longwood]

If you can weld, there are few limits to what you could make. I have been welding for about 50 years and personally I would try to find something other than cast iron to start with. Nirod has gone way, way, way up in price. I heard it jumped to $48 a pound in one year alone.
Might as well make something you will be proud to show your friends.

[montana_charlie]

I couldn't come up with a good verbal picture with Lee Bottom Pour and something Dairy Cow'is and the being milked.
How about a Lee 'single-teated plumbum udder'?
CM

[Hamish]

montana charlie, *that* gets the cookie! Not only classic, but classy, too. @(;^]#>:::

"Cow's, nothin' but trouble in a leather bag." Louis La'mour

[stubshaft]

You could take your cast Dutch Oven and have it bead blasted and re-season it for it's intended use.

[Hamish]

You know, I had'nt considered the question of just how far *does* the lead impinge/sequester/penetrate. Hmmm,,,,,

[bumpo628]

You could take your cast Dutch Oven and have it bead blasted and re-season it for it's intended use.

I wouldn't do that. Face it - it's dead Jim.
Just get another one...

[DJ1]

Congradulations,

The turkey fryer isn't that bad to replace. Just smile and tell the Mrs. how you thought she would really appreciate a new one.

Now I do like the idea of a foundry style pot. Since I can still weld with a rod burner, have the proper rod I might just buy me another Dutch Oven and try that one. Also a little hint to those that wish to try this........ New clean cast will weld to carbon steel with 7018 or er-7018. You will not have enough stress or temp's associated with molten lead to worry.

DJ1

[truckjohn]

Stay away from brazing and silver solder when trying to keep lead inside of a pot.....

Lead dissolves all of those things at liquid temperatures.... so the braze will eventually dissolve into the lead - and your pot will spring a nice leak...

Thanks

[Y2K]

A "Centerfuse" (Brand name) brake drum off an 18 wheeler is steel center and can be easily welded with a steel plate (1/4") to cover the bolt pattern. Do a good preheat, and weld away. Drawback is that it weighs about 90# empty, be a bear to tip out the last of the lead.