Lead "Film"

[duffman]

Ok gentlemen, I ran into a problem I haven't seen before. Bear in mind I have only occasionally cast round ball (maybe 50-100 rounds per year at most) and nothing else. I got into casting for a .38/.357 last night and had a problem with the melt in my pot forming a thin film when i poured into the mold. It looked almost like tin foil hanging off the ladle and once it cooled it would fall off It made pouring into the mold difficult as i couldn't see the stream of lead itself. I re fluxed the whole thinking i may have impurities but fluxing again didn't help.

Did I get a bad batch of lead? Tin or zinc contamination? Temp too high or low?

I cast using a cheap portable electric range, cheap stainless pot and lee ladle and molds. Not the most glamorous set up but I am tight on cash. I plan on upgrading in the future income permitting.

[Big Dangle]

I'd say it's too cold. Is your mold and ladle hot enough? Thinking it some of the impurities not melting/mixing quite right.

[duffman]

Poor little walmart brand stove might not be cuttin it then. It just struck me odd as Ive never had this happen when casting ball. Maybe a zinc WW slipped in the batch somewhere. Im still very much new to casting in my opinion. I cut each WW with an old knife to make sure I didnt get any zinc in there maybe I missed one.

[jcren]

Had the same problem with electric burners. Any wind or a higher temp alloy caused problems, plus the bi-metal switch gets weak.

[duffman]

Sounds like I need to find an old propane turkey fryer then. I had to cast several dozen bullets before that .357 mold got up to heat and started making pretty slugs with sharp corners. With those big .50 balls i just discard the first 2 or 3 back in the pot before it got up to heat. Would setting the mold next to the flame be ok to preheat? Its a lee SWC 158 grain two cavity made of aluminum.

[Budzilla 19]

Cold mold if took that long to make acceptable casts. Yes, you can put that mold next to the flame, just watch it to not overheat. (it'll tell you when it's too hot.) good luck

[runfiverun]

you could do that.
for the price of a turkey fryer and some propane you could just get a 20 lb lee pot.
if you wanna ladle cast from it that is no problem.
I done it for a couple of years with no issues, and you can put a screw in the spout and strip the rod and stuff off the pot making it a ladle pot only.
this gives you 16 lbs of alloy to work with and a mostly controllable heat source.

as far as the lead hanging off your ladle it's just cooling off quickly making a foil and adding oxides back to your pot.
your ladle may not be retaining enough heat on it's trip to the mold.
I got so I would pour right on the edge of my pot this would keep some heat in the mold and allow me to ladle the remaining alloy right over the top of the sprue plate and back into the pot after filling the cavity's.

[Mk42gunner]

I cast for several years with a Lee 20 lb pot and an RCBS ladle. The Lee glorified spoon is not doing you any favors, it is way to small and light to hold enough heat, especially when your alloy is on the verge of too cold.

I'd find a Lee 4-20 first you might even like bottom pouring, that way you can wait a while on spending the bucks for a decent ladle.

I (and most of us here) understand being tight on funds, I have let many deals pass me by because I had other things that needed my money more than my hobbies.

Robert

[GunsAndHarley]

Sounds like I need to find an old propane turkey fryer then. I had to cast several dozen bullets before that .357 mold got up to heat and started making pretty slugs with sharp corners. With those big .50 balls i just discard the first 2 or 3 back in the pot before it got up to heat. Would setting the mold next to the flame be ok to preheat? Its a lee SWC 158 grain two cavity made of aluminum.

Coleman propane stove worked well. Hot enought for lead but not hot enought to melt zinc. I use It to cast ingot.

[bangerjim]

If you absolutely must ladle cast, get a real one. The cast iron RCBS botttom/side pour one is what I occasionally use. Holds the heat. And a lot of lead. That Lee spoon is a total joke. I use mine as a skimming/stirring spoon in my casting pot and for nothing else.

Still, save up and buy a Lee 4-20 bottom pour. You will not be sorry. Once you bottom pour, you will wonder why you ever wasted time with a ladle.

Banger

[Sasquatch-1]

I agree with "RUNFIVERUN", Put your money into a Lee pot. You may here a lot of people complain about the drip but that is because a lot of people use it.

Mid south has the 20# pot for $65.56. http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item/0000690947/Pro-4-20lb-Melter-110-Volt-

[44man]

I ladle cast only and plugged the drip hole with a tapered brass pin. Midsouth was out of stock on the production pot at the time.
I like the Lyman ladle best but the RCBS is also good. No problem pouring two cavities with one filling.

[Seeker]

I ladle pour with a Lee dipper and have no problem with the "tin foil like coating".....anymore that is. Once your pot reaches casting temp., drop in a small pea sized piece of wax. I use RCBS stick bullet lube (green). Stir it in good and let your ladle get a good coating of it. Skim off the dross and tap the ladle on the side of what ever you use to throw your dross in. I use a small sauce pan. No more lead sticking to the ladle.That is what works for me. I can fill a 2 cavity 300 gr. mould easily. I fill 6 cavities with 3 dips with no problems keeping things hot with the pot running at 675 degrees on the thermometer while getting nicely filled boolits.

[Toymaker]

Been there, done that. The lead isn't hot enough. If the lead isn't hot enough then the ladle and mold aren't hot enough. Weigh your roundball and see what the range of weights.

[Strtspdlx]

Go back to Walmart and buy a camp stove burner. I bought mine for $15 it's propane and I use it to render down all my ww's it'll be fine for ladle. I built a base for mine as I don't trust the plastic stand with 30-40lbs of lead on top of it. I think the brand is ozark or something like that. I too am on a budget and find a turkey fryer for under 20$ or free is very challenging to do.

[PBaholic]

I was melting some COWW today, and had one that was only half melted, so I hit it with the torch, and it melted.

I was purifying a bunch of small batches, and that one with the half melted COWW acted funny. I let it cool, and re-melted slowly, and part of it didn't melt. I poured off the liquid part, and played around with the rest.

It melts higher than my regular lead, and pours funny. It leaves a tin foil line like you have when I try to pour it. I think it's zinc! Some of the WW's were marked Zn-P, and I may have melted one of them.....

Luckily it's only a half a pound, and I will just throw it out.

[Czech_too]

+1 on runfiverun

"as far as the lead hanging off your ladle it's just cooling off quickly making a foil and adding oxides back to your pot.
your ladle may not be retaining enough heat on it's trip to the mold.
I got so I would pour right on the edge of my pot this would keep some heat in the mold and allow me to ladle the remaining alloy right over the top of the sprue plate and back into the pot after filling the cavity's."

[Wayne Smith]

Coleman propane stove worked well. Hot enought for lead but not hot enought to melt zinc. I use It to cast ingot.

My Coleman single burner stove gets my Lyman cast iron pot north of 800 degrees! It will melt zinc, no problem. Just give it a little time.

[w5pv]

I have some lead that is contaminated with some zinc and when gets in to the smelt and it looks like oatmeal I take a ladle and skim it off and go about my casting.I have tried removing it with sulphur but that is messy so I just skim it.