I got my first piece of casting kit today...Big Grin

[corbinace]

:bigsmyl2::bigsmyl2::bigsmyl2:

Yep, It is OK for you to grin at my exuberance as well.

It is not a real exciting piece of kit for most, just a turkey fryer burner for smelting some of the lead I have saved up.

We all start where we are, and I am at the very bottom.

Tim.

[tdoor4570]

You have now lost your mind

[country gent]

A good start, now for a pot, ladle, strainer and stand heavy enough to hold up. Your on your way to being addicted. Its a short trip my friend

[tdoor4570]

there is no cure

[Seeker]

Welcome...now you are gonna get lead poisoning. I knew it was contagious!

[RED333]

You are well on your way to spending every spare penny on your new addiction!!!
CONGRATS

[GhostHawk]

Only one way to go from there, UP,

A smelting burner seems to me like a sensible first step.

Hang on, it can be a rocky ride!

[corbinace]

Well, I did not really have all of the approved tools but I did sort of make do. I was able to cast 40 corn cobs of 1.25# in a old cast iron corn bread baker.

I used an old stainless steel pot and an old spoon to clean the slag off the top after stirring in sawdust with the stick. I only stopped because the propane did. I guess I wont be BBQing tonight.

Let the fun begin, Tim.

[lightman]

Thats a good start! Everyone started someplace and very few started at the top!

[country gent]

Well here a thought for you. Im still using a heaavy turkey frier stand, cuttoff propane tank, and ladle to cast bullets. Not just ingots. Set your burner up with 2 valvesfirst is lever valve ( on / off) second is a ball valve ( regulates temerature) this allows you to turn on and off with out losing temp setting. a regulator on the tank may help the tanks last longer also. Useing a spoon or other utensils works well, look for garage sale barbeque utensils a long spatula works good in a big pot for stiring a serving spoon with long handle for skimming. Your set up dosnt have to be fancy. A thermometer is a big plus as it keeps you from over heating the melt, anything over 700-750* is using more propane and taking more time to cool. I dont have a regulator on my set up but a 25lb tank last 2-3 4 hour sessions for us holding 700 degrees. With practice you will see the pot reach XXX* temp and know to start throttling back on the burner. Soon you will have enough lead and be looking to clean up lead for others LOL

[Petro58]

Congrats that's how I got all my stuff, a piece here and there at a Time. I finally just Cast my first Boolit's last week. I even powder coated them, put a pic of them in my Post earlier. But not to try and derail your excitement or steal your thunder, Keep getting it together, I'm Hooked!

[rancher1913]

my whole set up is from goodwill. need to hit them again as my dross tool has lost its handle.

[dilly]

When I first started I cast over my turkey fryer as well as "smelted." Was not an ideal set up in retrospect but I did enjoy it. The nice thing was the sprues went right back in the pot as soon as I cut them, and they only lost enough heat to just barely solidify.

[mac266]

Uh oh! Uh oh! We got another one boys!

Welcome to the club. In no time, you'll find yourself buying guns in oddball, obsolete calibers just to have an excuse to experiment with casting and handloading.

If you're a pistol shooter, I highly recommend getting a Star lubrisizer. I've been using my RCBS Lube-a-matic II for a decade. It's very high quality like anything made by RCBS, but it's slow, slow going. I'm buying a Star in the spring to keep up with the high volume required to keep my pistols fed. I like to load in batches of 1000, so the hours upon hours spent in front of the Lube-a-matic feel wasted, and not nearly as fun as casting, loading, or shooting. The Star, with the attachments that make it even faster, is going to guarantee more time on the range and less at the table.

[Lead Fred]

Been castin for decades and have never owned a turkey cooker or lubing machine of any type.

My Coleman camp stove gave way to a 20lb furnace, and Im using the same $2 nine inch cake pans for lubing.

When it comes to molds, leave them Lee cheap ones alone, and get a quality mold.
My Lyman, Ideal, and Ranch Dog molds are just so much better to use than the Lee, which i have a dozen or so of.

[Sasquatch-1]

A good tool for straining out WW clips or range scrap jackets is on of the tools used for WOK cooking. Get one that is all metal, not the one with the bamboo handle.


151970

[dudel]

Great first move! My turkey fryer came with an aluminum pot. Resist the temptation to use it. I didn't, and after my first smelting session, the pot had softened enough to sag down into the grate over the burner. Didn't give way, but I quickly replaced that pot with something much more sturdy.

I started with the Lee molds. They work. If you're going to mess up a mold while starting out, it's better to mess up a cheap one.

[dilly]

Great first move! My turkey fryer came with an aluminum pot. Resist the temptation to use it. I didn't, and after my first smelting session, the pot had softened enough to sag down into the grate over the burner. Didn't give way, but I quickly replaced that pot with something much more sturdy.

I started with the Lee molds. They work. If you're going to mess up a mold while starting out, it's better to mess up a cheap one.

I messed up one of my first molds. It was a Lee and I was out about $20. Glad I didn't have a Saeco at the time.

[corbinace]

Country Gent, I just may try that ladeling trick as I am thinking low volume for my purposes. Luckily, me setup has all the valving and even an adjustable regulator.

Mac266, I may already have the oddballs , that is the primary driver for wanting to cast. 10.4x38 Veterli, 2 converted 32 long rimfires and several milsurp rifles. I had thought that I would try to use the Lee sizers for what I see as low volume. I am still working and do not think I have the time to cast the volume that my .356 and .358 guns can consume. Time will tell.

Lead Fred, You are trying to get me in trouble with the missus. I have several different sizes I wanted to work with and at $75+ a piece I may have to be a bit more judicious.

As Dudel says what if I mess up one of those high dollar tools. As a mechanic, I do know the value of quality tools though so maybe I should just concentrate on one projectile until I get the swing of things and then move forward when I have some experience,

[mdi]

Yer hooked now! Playing with melted lead get into your blood (no, I ain't talking about lead poisoning!) and it's addicting. I get a lot of satisfaction taking some dirty, greasy, old scrap lead and turning it into shiny clean ingots, then turning those ingots into perfect, custom bullets... Yahoo! Life is good.

One hint; when a perfect bullet drops outta your mold, don't pick it up (BTDT; "Wow, look at that beauty. OUCH!).

[mold maker]

A $20. screwdriver wont tighten a screw, that a $1. one can't remove. LEE molds may not all be perfect, but the targets won't mind, and the dead game won't complain.
When starting out, let safety determine your purchases. Mistakes by beginners usually hurt.
Welcome to the addition, and don't get caught collecting WWs from cars at Walmart. ;-)