Casting Temperature

[txbirdman]

I'm sure it's been asked before but I was unable to find anything through the "SEARCH" option.

At what temperature do you cast when using wheel weights and/or Lyman #2?

Thanks

[felix]

Casting temperature? As hot as the pot and mold will go. Adjust the pot spout opening accordingly. Use a continuously wet, but rung out, rag to dab over the sprues to cool them fast, and then slice off the sprues quickly, dropping the boolits into a shallow pail of water (cushion boolits with floating rags, etc.). When the boolits begin getting frosty looking AND looking like the boolit edges are becoming a little too rounded, then lower the pot temp AND/OR slow down the spout some. Pretty soon you will learn which mold likes what alloy at what temp and lead drop pressure from the spout. ... felix

[BlueMoon]

Any advise about after a mold heats up, switching to casting with two molds? I've been trying this lately but am not sure how many seconds to hold mold after I fill, then set it down and fill another. I guess this would depend on how hot your melt is and how big the bullet or how many cav. the mold is. All I have now are two cavity except a few Lee singles. I usually water quinch with rags but using two molds might take too long to drop the bullets at the right heat.

I've only been casting a few years and not year round. I seem to cull more bullets than I would like to but I weigh them on a little electric scale and look them over, the base for sure. I may need to turn up the heat on my Lee bottom pour until the bullets get frosted looking, then turn it down and concentrate on one mold at a time.

Bill

[Maven]

I don't think there's a simple answer to this [question] because of mold composition and cavity & block size: Aluminum molds seem to need higher temps. as do molds with large cavities. E.g., all of my LBT molds and some of my 400gr. Lee's work best at 800 deg. F (alloy is WW + 1% Sn), but after a dozen or so casts, I can drop back to 775. My iron molds (.243 up to .357), however, generally cast very well between 730 and 760 deg. There are exceptions to this. To wit, I was casting with a Lee .30cal. mold (C309-180-R) on Saturday, but at 730 deg. and with few rejects.

[BruceB]

At the top of this page in red, there's a 'clickable' line about checking out the Cast Boolit Articles. My take on temperatures and casting rates is among those articles. You may get an idea or two from it, if you want.

[Willbird]

As you will see if you read what BruceB aimed you towards you can run at a rate where you don't have time to use 2 molds. I have thought of modifying Bruce's method by setting the second mold on a hotplate with a 1" thick slab of alum. on it and some precise temperature control to allow that to determine the mold temp instead of using the speed of casting and amount you quench on the wet rag. BUT I never seem to get round to that because the simpler Bruce Method works so well.


Bill

[MTWeatherman]

I'll second Maven's post on this one...depends on the mould and bullet size. Aluminum moulds like it hot...iron moulds can be run cooler. Small bullets require a hotter mould than the big ones.

Lee moulds like it hot but I've found that by opening the vent lines they can be run a bit cooler. I usually run the pot at about 750 for them...once the temperature falls below about 700 fill-out becomes a problem.

I've got a Saeco 200 gr 10mm mould that I use a 625 melt for...much hotter than that and it's got serious fill-out problems...frosted bases one one side yielding bases .005 undersize. I initially thought the mould was poorly vented but it wasn't...it just likes a lower melt temperature. At 625 it drops beautiful bullets.

I'm a believer in the use of a casting thermometer. Since each mould seems to have its own personality, once you've got a mould dropping good bullets...just log the melt temperature and duplicate it the next time around.

[txbirdman]

Thanks for all the replies. Until recently I haven't had a thermometer and had been running my Lee bottom pour wide open but I was thinking that I had been running too hot. I'm going to try all the suggestions including recording casting temperatures by mould. I like the idea of quick cooling, Bruce and felix. Got to be careful with that water bowl though, I thinking.

[ddixie884]

Bruce B. I am very impressed with your practical Knowledge, and the fact that you share your expertise so freely on the boards. In an earlier life I was a semi-professional Bullet caster. I made LOTS of bullets on a regular basis, and every thing you say rings so true. However, only after finding this board, did I know you were so well known. Thanx for sharing. dd884.

[BlueMoon]

BruceB,

Some very good info. Speed cooling is what I do when making ingots because I only have one ingot mold. And, I'm going to have to work out my own way of using this method for my casting as I'm using a 10lb bottom pour and don't have a thermometer, yet. I do have a Lyman lead ladle and tried that with a few but like the bottom pour better for most.

I think I need to start out with the pot knob turned up all the way before I back it off. I've been just turning it up to about 8 1/2 or so and end up with it around 7 or so.

I don't usually wear gloves casting, so does the steam off the sprue cooling burn any? I may need to start wearing gloves.

Seems a lot of times, even though I dump the first 5-7 casts, my first 30 minutes of casting are re-melted. Maybe I'm not getting my melt hot enough before I start.

Also, I see some other good reading in that red link you pointed out. I'm new here and haven't looked around enough. Thanks

Bill