Pot options bottom pour.

[C.I.D]

Looking for options on a Quality long lasting bottom pour pot to Cast with 20+# pot. Thoughts options. Feed back and help is welcome.

[jmort]

If you have the $$$
http://www.magmaengineering.com/masterpot/
Otherwise get the RCBS Pro Melt

[Suo Gan]

I like the Lyman unit I have. Works fine. Not everyone needs or wants a Ferrari.

[bangerjim]

Don't forget the Lee 4-20. Thousands of them out there! My 2 have worked great for a long time. You can buy several of them for the price of just one of those "other" guys.

[C.I.D]

Was looking at the lee's but reviews are all over......

Like the master pot.. 600 bucks... Rcbs is not much less at all so mine as well get the better of the 2. I don't mind spending good money on a good product.

Just doing my resreach right now. So keep the options coming!

[jmort]

The only other realistic option is the Lyman Mag 25.

I don't use a bottom pour and have a Waage Electric special order pot that is so very awesome. I like ladle pour. Good luck with your decision.

[retread]

Don't forget the Lee 4-20. Thousands of them out there! My 2 have worked great for a long time. You can buy several of them for the price of just one of those "other" guys.

I am with you bangerjim. I have two 4-20's and love them. No way I could afford to have two pots with any other brand of bottom pours. A little bit of tinkering and regular maintenance and they work perfectly. What I saved on pots much more than paid for the two PID setups I have on the 4-20's.

[C.I.D]

What is pid!

[Beagle333]

What is pid!

There are several stickies in this section on it.

It's just a fancy thermostat that learns about the device it is controlling and holds a set temperature closer to true than other thermostats.

[VHoward]

It all depends on how much tinkering you want to do to keep the pot in working order. With Lee pots, you have to tinker continuously to keep them going. With RCBS, I haven't had to do anything to keep it going. I don't use anything but clean lead in my bottom pours and don't have problems with crud build up. I recently bought a Master Caster that has the Master Pot setting on top of it. The Master Pot is a better pot than the RCBS ProMelt and it hold 40 pounds of alloy instead of 20 pounds.

I hated the Lee pot I bought when I first started casting. Then a year later I bought the Pro Melt and thought "I should have just bought one of these to start with." after I used it the first time. I don't regret spending 4 times as much for it either. Gave the Lee pot away, still have the Pro Melt.

[dragon813gt]

I haven't had to tinker w/ my Lee pot at all. It's not like one of their molds where you have to modify it to make it work. I can afford one of the other pots. I just can't justify spending the money on one when the Lee works just fine.

The only one I would consider buying is the Magma. 40 pounds and two spouts is very appealing. I honestly wish I would have bought a master caster to begin w/. Hand casting is something I enjoy but my time is a premium.

[bangerjim]

It all depends on how much tinkering you want to do to keep the pot in working order. With Lee pots, you have to tinker continuously to keep them going. With RCBS, I haven't had to do anything to keep it going. I don't use anything but clean lead in my bottom pours and don't have problems with crud build up. I recently bought a Master Caster that has the Master Pot setting on top of it. The Master Pot is a better pot than the RCBS ProMelt and it hold 40 pounds of alloy instead of 20 pounds.

I hated the Lee pot I bought when I first started casting. Then a year later I bought the Pro Melt and thought "I should have just bought one of these to start with." after I used it the first time. I don't regret spending 4 times as much for it either. Gave the Lee pot away, still have the Pro Melt.


I have never tinkered EVEN ONCE with any of my 4-20's! No drips, no runs, no errors.....ever. I just pays to keep all sawdust and other flux garbage out of your casting pot! Beeswax ONLY.

So if anyone is looking for a good reliable pot and does not want to take a 2nd on their house, buy the Lee 4-20.

banger

[RogerDat]

Lee has two bottom pour pots. This one has a better reputation http://www.amazon.com/Lee-Precision-Pound-Electric-Melter/dp/B001MYESWE/

Than this one http://www.amazon.com/Lee-Precision-Production-Pot-Grey/dp/B000NOORXY At least according to my research. I ladle cast but have considered one of these two bottom pour models so I have done some research.

Seems that the one model is less likely to have leaks and that if it does drip they are easier to adjust away. Also there is the ever popular replace that wood knob with a weighted knob to put more down pressure on the spout.

[edctexas]

I have a lee "drip o matic". Contrary to Banger's remark I do have some troubles with dripping. I don't put any "crud" in my Lee and only flux with beeswax. Recently I disassembled the beast. I improved its operation (less drips) by making sure that the screws that guide the plunger up and down were straight. It does drip less now. I wish I had bought the Pro-melt, but I did get to buy more molds with the change!

Ed C

[clum553946]

If there's someplace local that sells some pots, look at your options first hand. I just noticed there's a Bass Pro Shop in Rocklin fairly close to you.

[Tazzy]

Don't forget to check your local buy and sell ads. This is what $60 bought me. Plus a set of RCBS handles still in the box.

http://i660.photobucket.com/albums/uu326/Tazzy_123/Mobile%20Uploads/P1020415_zps0ridoltn.jpg (http://s660.photobucket.com/user/Tazzy_123/media/Mobile%20Uploads/P1020415_zps0ridoltn.jpg.html)

[propwashp47]

great deal tazzy. I to went with #61 put the fun back in casting. I all so order a a Lyman mag 25 for more fun

[Ola]

I have both Lee's.

The first was the smaller one, the infamous drip-o-matic. I casted maybe 20 - 30 000 bullets with it. Constant dripping and constant tinkering to prevent that dripping. But, it worked. After a while the tinkering just becomes part of your casting routine.

2 years ago I got the bigger one. I have not heated the smaller one since.. Excellent product for the price. Zero problems.

[RedHawk357Mag]

The only other realistic option is the Lyman Mag 25.

I don't use a bottom pour and have a Waage Electric special order pot that is so very awesome. I like ladle pour. Good luck with your decision.
About how wide is the opening on your pot? I produce my best product with a Rowell #1 and I think my ladel might be kind of crowded in there. Heard nothing but excellent comments on them though.

[Ola]

2 years ago I got the bigger one. I have not heated the smaller one since.. Excellent product for the price. Zero problems. And 4 days later it happened: the drip-free Lee turned into a drip-o-matic! So it is possible to get too much dirt in the nozzle in that one too. Wouldn't call it a problem, it was fixed in 3 seconds with a little needle. Now it works like a new one again.

[Walter Laich]

I was able to find an RCBS Pro-Melt used for $125 back a few years--couldn't pass it up

Added a self made PID unit and converted it to 'pull down to pour' and haven't looked back

Before this had Lees (still do) and have used them--like the Pro-Melt better, though

[Retumbo]

Built my own...the way to go

http://i1061.photobucket.com/albums/t477/yomma4/Hunting/IMG_20140607_161708_zps90b0ee31.jpg

[propwashp47]

nice job. 40+ lbs?. UNIT AND FULL OF LEAD.

[pmer]

I have a Lee 4-20. It does have an occasional drip but it doesn't bug me. It has really let go and made some fancy art work too but I see that as my hint to clean it out and then its good to go for a while again.

[Lloyd Smale]

had lees, no thank you. Had a two lymans and they were good pots. Lost them in a fire and now have to rcbs pots and like them better then the lymans but then they cost more. Buddy has a magma. Its a great pot and is big enough that you can just keep topping it off with ingots as you cast which is nice. Expensive though. I just run my two rcbs pots at the same time and feed on from the other. Yes I could have bought an magma for the same price as two rcbs pots but sometimes I do two alloy bullets or find its just nice to have two pots with different alloys.