Lee Production pot starting to shock me

[jonk]

What the title says. I have seen a few posts on here about the issue, and am planning to heat it up just once more to drain out the lead inside before taking it apart.

The threads were pretty clear on ordering a new heating coil and checking for stripped insulation, but what I'm wondering is, while I'm in there, should I just change it out to a 3 prong plug? Ground the center line to the inside of the chassis with a sheet metal screw and loop style electrical connecter that is.

Will probably also take the opportunity to lap and hone the main stem so it doesn't drip as much.

The question is, while I have it apart, is there anything else I should do?

[Old Caster]

You can also install a GFI receptacle which will trip if the hot side is leaking to ground in any manner including through your body and then you don't need a 3 prong plug.

[flyingmonkey35]

STOP!! Call LEE before you do anything, and let them know. take photos! they wont care if its 50 years old.

thell make it right! or put you on the right track to getting it fixed!

The reason is say Call lee first, is they need to know there's a issue, the more times its reported the more likely they will fix the issue.

[1874Sharps]

I certainly agree with Flyingmonkey35 that it would be a good idea to talk to Lee. My personal experience with Lee customer service is that they are not as good in that department as RCBS and others, but who knows, they may really come through for you.

My good ol' Lee 10 pound bottom pour lead pot gave up the ghost after about twenty years of frequent use. It was dripping a bit and quite rusty (I live close to the Gulf of Mexico and everything rusts here). It was very slow to melt lead and finally got to the point where it barely would. I bought a new one and figured I got my money's worth out of it and then some.

One thing I am doing differently with my new pot is that I always keep the bottom of the pot full of lead rather than draining it after a casting session so that it never is exposed to the salt air. That ought to help with the dripping problem years down the road. Hope this is helpful!

[dikman]

You don't need to empty it in order to check the electricals. Unscrew the top cover to see what's inside the "tower". If you're getting a shock, DON'T use it anymore until you find the problem! A visual inspection first, and if nothing obvious then use a multimeter to check for shorts etc. By all means talk to Lee, but they'll probably just say to return it to them (at your cost).

These things are pretty basic as regards the electrical side, it shouldn't be too hard to find the problem.

[Catshooter]

I wouldn't drain it before trouble-shooting it. I'd go straight to trying to fix. It can go from a little bit of a shock to one you won't survive pretty quickly.


Cat

[jonk]

Yeah, probably best that I look inside first, could be as simple as a cracked bit of insulation that a new cord or wire somewhere would fix- or depending where it is, maybe even can still use the current cord if snip off the offending bits and rewire. If nothing is visually obvious, then yeah, I'll call Lee. I wonder if they still do the whole 'we refurbish to like new for half the price of the current production model' thing?

I like the idea of a GFI for the lead pot.

I do have a multi meter, never used it. Got it from grandpa's basement when he passed. I'm a bright guy though, I'm sure I can figure it out.

The odd thing about it is, the first time it shocked me, I had left it outside in the garage on a damp night. I figured some night moisture had gotten in there and, after it heated up, the shocks went away. No issues with it for about 6 months, then it started shocking me again- but only until it heated up. I started operating the valve lever with my sprue cutting stick, but occasionally I'd still find a way to get a shock. Granted, we're talking about perhaps 5 shocks total in 6 months- and they still go away when it gets to temperature.

Things expand when they heat. I'm wondering if something is expanding enough to move the offending whatever out of the way when hot, but not cold. Which to me says something in the thermostat, as that's the only piece that should operate like that.

[imashooter2]

Yes, Lee will still repair or replace for half the price of new. Hardly worth the price of shipping if you can find a obvious wiring issue first.

[Old Caster]

The GHI will protect you from a bad shock but will turn off every time there is a leak somewhere even if the leak is to you. If you want to troubleshoot the pot yourself, you can measure if there is voltage from the metal on the pot to a ground with a voltage tester so you will know if you fixed the problem. If you want to check it while the pot is unplugged, check for ohm reading between the hot and the ground. If the plug can be inserted either way it is possible that just turning the plug around will fix the problem. Somewhere inside the pot, one side of the two wires is coming in contact with the pot and if it is the neutral side doing it, there will be no shock. (Which wire is the neutral depends on how you plug the two wire cord in). You could plug one side of your voltage meter into either the ground terminal or the large side of the receptacle which will be the neutral if it is wired right and watch for when the current leak starts. When it happens, turn the plug around and see if it will go away. If it does go away, install a 3 prong plug so it has to be plugged in the same way every time and would be impossible to do it backwards. Then if you also added a GFI, no matter what happens in the future you won't get caught again because the GFI will turn off.

[Norbrat]

The odd thing about it is, the first time it shocked me, I had left it outside in the garage on a damp night. I figured some night moisture had gotten in there and, after it heated up, the shocks went away. No issues with it for about 6 months, then it started shocking me again- but only until it heated up. I started operating the valve lever with my sprue cutting stick, but occasionally I'd still find a way to get a shock. Granted, we're talking about perhaps 5 shocks total in 6 months- and they still go away when it gets to temperature.

Things expand when they heat. I'm wondering if something is expanding enough to move the offending whatever out of the way when hot, but not cold. Which to me says something in the thermostat, as that's the only piece that should operate like that.

Sounds like a faulty element. I had a Lee pot trip the GFI when I first plugged it in after a few years of not using it. I changed the element and that fixed it.

Later I was speaking to a friend who used to work making clothers dryers and he told me that during winter they sometimes had the new elements trip GFI's due to moisture, so they would put them in an oven to drive off the moisture before assembly; problem solved.

[Stephen Cohen]

Fyingmonkey35 hit it on the head, the more who report problems before tampering the better.