New to Casting - A few Questions for the Pros

[grizzly]

I've been reading and taking in. Took the plunge and got a Lee mold and went to town. I had a Lee 10lb pot I used for jigheads but it leaks. No matter what I try it still leaks. I'm tired of getting splashed by dripping lead. Last night I vowed to deep six the Lee 10lb and look or an alternative.

So I found the Lyman. It looks interesting. I have concern of the customer service and longevity. The RCBS is out of my price range. I mean...I'm casting to save money. My math shows it taking several years to re-coup my investment. So...I'm looking for ideas to either repair my Lee from leaking or input on the Lyman.

I'm also looking at coating alternatives. I began powdercoating. It works well, but is time consuming and in my case due to varying humidity isn't consistent. I discovered the 45/45/10 tumble lube and tried it for the first time last night. This seems to be the "Bees - Knees" so long as i don't get any leading. The coating seems thin. Should you do 2 coats of this?

Sorry for all of the questions. It seems the search function yields so many different opinions it makes my head spin.:veryconfu

[farmerjim]

Which Lyman? I have the Mag25 and it works great. Lee 6 bangers do not fit on the mold guide. but you can pull it across the top at an angle and it works fine. My lee 20 lb does not drip most of the time.
I do all my BBDT powder coating in an air conditioned room because of the outside humidity. Also use Smoke4320 powders. I can't get HF red to work good even in the AC. On 45-45-10 some do one coat some do 2. Most of the 2 coaters do one before sizing and one after.

[shoot-n-lead]

No suggestion on the pot as I have never had a Lee pot that leaked. But, tumble powder coat using the dump method...rather than setting the bullets on their bases...makes powder coat a lot less trouble and they perform just as well.

[grizzly]

Which Lyman? I have the Mag25 and it works great. Lee 6 bangers do not fit on the mold guide. but you can pull it across the top at an angle and it works fine. My lee 20 lb does not drip most of the time.
I do all my BBDT powder coating in an air conditioned room because of the outside humidity. Also use Smoke4320 powders. I can't get HF red to work good even in the AC. On 45-45-10 some do one coat some do 2. Most of the 2 coaters do one before sizing and one after.

Interesting on the humidity. I assumed that was my common denominator as I coated some beautiful boolits one day and then a few days later the summer weather changes to hotter than hades and humid and the HF powder wouldn't stick.

But to your question. Yes I was referring to the Lyman Mag 25.

[grizzly]

No suggestion on the pot as I have never had a Lee pot that leaked. But, tumble powder coat using the dump method...rather than setting the bullets on their bases...makes powder coat a lot less trouble and they perform just as well.

Yep. That's my method. I tumble them in a harbor freight tumbler top that I dedicated to just PC. It's been hit or miss with the high RH though. did some last night that passed my test, only just barely. Maybe once winter sets in I can get better results.

[murf205]

Grizzly, On my Lee pot, the top stem that plugs the spout when you raise and lower the handle, has a slot in the top where the linkage attaches to it. Take a screwdriver and turn it back and forth with the pot up to temp and see if it doesn't stop the leak. It does on mine. It probably has some small pieces of junk in the bottom and maybe this will allow to pass through. I used a Lee pot for yrs before biting the boolit and found a gently used RCBS. You will NEVER regret buying one!

[grizzly]

Grizzly, On my Lee pot, the top stem that plugs the spout when you raise and lower the handle, has a slot in the top where the linkage attaches to it. Take a screwdriver and turn it back and forth with the pot up to temp and see if it doesn't stop the leak. It does on mine. It probably has some small pieces of junk in the bottom and maybe this will allow to pass through. I used a Lee pot for yrs before biting the boolit and found a gently used RCBS. You will NEVER regret buying one!

Been there done that. Last night I decided to drain all the lead from the pot and investigate. I cleaned the pot and the stopper stem. Re-assembled the pot and it would then barely drain. So I drain it again. I took my carb jet drills and cleaned the spout very well. reloaded it and it was back to dripping. Very annoying to say the least.

I'm going to attempt one more time to adjust the stopper rod. There is a good chance that during storage and moving etc. over the years it could have been bent and not allowing the stopper rod to drop deep enough into the spout hole.

[NyFirefighter357]

You need to watch Elvis Ammo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRVXic3-ztE The method that works best for HF powder is to heat the boolits to 140F before you powder coat. He has devised a quick and easy, & reliable way to powder coat. There is a sticky here on how to lap the valve to stop the leak but the Lee 20lbs don't have much leaking issues.

[shoot-n-lead]

You need to watch Elvis Ammo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRVXic3-ztE The method that works best for HF powder is to heat the boolits to 140F before you powder coat. He has devised a quick and easy, & reliable way to powder coat.

I have used Harbor Freight powder to good effect for THOUSANDS of rounds and never had to heat them. Swirl'em and bake'em.

I get plenty of coverage for them to perform great...but, then, I am not coating bullets to be works of art, either...I just coat them to work.

[grizzly]

You need to watch Elvis Ammo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRVXic3-ztE The method that works best for HF powder is to heat the boolits to 140F before you powder coat. He has devised a quick and easy, & reliable way to powder coat. There is a sticky here on how to lap the valve to stop the leak but the Lee 20lbs don't have much leaking issues. I considered the Lee 20 lb. The 90 down angle of the valve stop looks to be more effective at preventing leaking than the 10 lb 30 degree angled stopper.

FWIW I had watched that video and found that the heat method didn't seem to benefit me any when the RH is above 70% in my shop. 60% or below seems key.


I have used Harbor Freight powder to good effect for THOUSANDS of round and never had to heat them. Swirl'em and bake'em.

I get plenty of coverage for them to perform great...but, then, I am not coating bullets to be works of art, either...I just coat them to work.
I agree. I'm not looking to make these pretty either. But several runs in the tumbler left only 20% of the bullet covered with PC. Last night I did do a batch that came out well. RH is certainly a factor in consistency.

[gwpercle]

You don't have to use a bottom pour pot to cast with.
And just forget about saving any money, that's a lie we tell our wives so we can buy more casting stuff...moulds , pots , sizing dies , lube....it never ends. I'm still buying things and I started in 1967. It's the addiction thing !
I tried the bottom pour, I didn't like it....it didn't like me! Got a new Lee Magnum Melter rated for 20 lbs. (holds an honest 15 lbs.) and Lyman cast iron spouted dipper (bought in 1967) and do my best work pressure casting with this set up .
Before spending big bucks on a bottom pour , give ladle casting a try. A few years ago I was going to plug the spout of my 10 lb. Lee pot ( my 5 lb. pot was way too small) but midway had the Magnum Melter 20 lb. open top pot on sale and I wanted more capacity anyway, so bought it. Amazon has them right now for $54.45 and free shipping.
The dipper and open pot is the least expensive way to get going, I cast much better quality boolits with the dipper and the pot doesn't ever drip !
Welcome to the addiction,
Gary

[s mac]

I second the ladle idea, I usually get a better cast with a ladle. put an ingot mould under the spout, when it builds up an icicle to the spout it will quit dripping.

[grizzly]

You don't have to use a bottom pour pot to cast with.
And just forget about saving any money, that's a lie we tell our wives so we can buy more casting stuff...moulds , pots , sizing dies , lube....it never ends. I'm still buying things and I started in 1967. It's the addiction thing !
I tried the bottom pour, I didn't like it....it didn't like me! Got a new Lee Magnum Melter rated for 20 lbs. (holds an honest 15 lbs.) and Lyman cast iron spouted dipper (bought in 1967) and do my best work pressure casting with this set up .
Before spending big bucks on a bottom pour , give ladle casting a try. A few years ago I was going to plug the spout of my 10 lb. Lee pot ( my 5 lb. pot was way too small) but midway had the Magnum Melter 20 lb. open top pot on sale and I wanted more capacity anyway, so bought it. Amazon has them right now for $54.45 and free shipping.
The dipper and open pot is the least expensive way to get going, I cast much better quality boolits with the dipper and the pot doesn't ever drip !
Welcome to the addiction,
Gary

I used to dip all the time when making sinkers and jigheads. And I have a dipper. Believe me after cursing several times from being burned by drip splatter last night, I had been eyeballing the old dipper and considered plugging that hole. I'm casting 230gr so as you know it doesn't take long to drain the pot. A bigger pot would soon be in order anyway once I move into casting for my 45-70.

[OS OK]

If your going to drain your pot and try again, I'd suggest using a little valve lapping compound to re-mate the two surfaces and possibly add a little weight to the end of the pour lever.
On my 20# pot I added a large 7/8" square nut behind the handle and that fixed the problem...well...along with making sure that you keep clean ingots going in.
176880
Sorry for the picture being upside down...sometimes they do a backflip in cyberspace, aggravating as hell sometimes!
But...you can see the big nut behind the handle there anyway.

charlie

[Yodogsandman]

Adding some weight to the counter weight lever helps on the 10 lb pot, too.

[John 242]

I considered the Lee 20 lb. The 90 down angle of the valve stop looks to be more effective at preventing leaking than the 10 lb 30 degree angled stopper.

I've had the Lee 20lb pot for about 10 years and it's leaked since day one. Usually it's a occaisional 'drip... drip,' but adjusting the plunger rod keeps this to a minimum. A small Lyman ingot mold fits perfectly under the pot and catches the drips, yet there is enough room for bullet molds to pass over with no problem. It's a little annoying, but not a big enough problem to warrant replacing the pot, in my opinion.

I highly recommend the 20 lb pot over the 10 lb, not because it drips less, but because you have more lead to work with in the pot. This means you stay in the "casting zone" longer and produce more bullets with better results. Mold temp is everything, and a 20 lb pot will keep you casting longer, for more consistent results.

In ten years I haven't burned myself. I teach a reloading class that also includes bullet casting and none of my students have ever burned themselves; however, I require my students to wear gloves and long sleeves when casting. Gloves for TIG welding are perfect for casting because they're very thin leather. They're readily available from any welding supply house. MIG gloves work well too, are a little thicker, and available at Tractor Supply, Atwoods or any other farm supply store. Any work gloves will do, but the welding gloves give you a little more dexterity.

I teach my students to use the bottom pour pot because I've found that I can have them casting good bullets in only a few minutes, with minimal practice. I feel that the learning curve is shorter with the bottom pour pot. They get more consistent results and produce bullets faster than hand pouring. There are many that would argue differently, and that's fine. Perhaps I'm a crappy teacher.

[runfiverun]

many just clamp some vice grips on the top of the 20-lber's stem.
for the 10lb pot my rod doesn't spin freely but if I keep the rod in the center it doesn't drip.
I took 2 45-70 boolits and drilled a hole through the center and cut one off and screwed them behind the knob on the handle of the 10 lber.
it settled down nicely after that.

[OS OK]

That's interesting on your casting classes but a question if you please...How do you teach them about pre-heating the molds?

[farmerjim]

I still have my lyman dipper from back in the 60's. It poured thousands of great boolits. I got a lee 20 lb about 4 years ago and it is so much faster with the 6 cavity molds. Got the Lyman mag25 about 4 months ago and started using 2 6 cavity lee 358-125-RF molds at a time casting 12 boolits in about 55 seconds.
Not bad for an old man. I could use 2 ,2 cavity molds at a time with the lee, but could not quite get 2, 6 cavity's to work.

[waco]

The man said he is casting to save money! Lol! Are you gonna tell him or should I?:kidding:

[grizzly]

The man said he is casting to save money! Lol! Are you gonna tell him or should I?:kidding:

Well as I have understood there isn't a lot of money to be saved in this endeavor. However, I'll re-phrase casting to keep shooting costs at a minimum. But there is a caveat...I am also trying to cast to be able to be as self sufficient as the market will allow. At the moment, I can create a modern gun cartridge with minimal supplies from a retailer. Eventually, once I get the casting part down, I would like to learn to make a black powder cartridge. I may come off a little "prepper" minded. But I sense things may change some day. It could be a good skillset to have.


In ten years I haven't burned myself. I teach a reloading class that also includes bullet casting and none of my students have ever burned themselves; however, I require my students to wear gloves and long sleeves when casting. Gloves for TIG welding are perfect for casting because they're very thin leather. They're readily available from any welding supply house. MIG gloves work well too, are a little thicker, and available at Tractor Supply, Atwoods or any other farm supply store. Any work gloves will do, but the welding gloves give you a little more dexterity.
I know I should wear long sleeves and some gloves. I thought about that last night...My ADD gets in my own ways sometimes and I get excited to get started and think "Mehhh" It'll be fine".

[44man]

The 10# is too small. Get the 20# without bottom pour. Use a ladle. I have the bottom pour because Midsouth was out of stock so I plugged the hole with a tapered brass rod. I removed the trash on top.
Watch Lyman or RCBS since thermostats can fail. Cycle times are too long after time. Seen lead get hard in the pot while casting. This is when you need a PID. More expense and I have smoked a few.

[HeavyMetal]

Lee 10 pounders always drip, you can lap with valve compound but I never did!

Instead I took a course change from one of the members here and stacked my Lee 10# over top of my old Lyman Mold Master, both hold 10 pounds but I am using the Lee as a "Filler" pot.

I cast out of the Lyman and, when half empty, I fill it from the Lee and add ingots to the Lee for the next refill! even if it drips it goes in the Lyman and I make a boolit with it, LOL!

Now if you use Two Lee Six Bangers you can make a bunch of Boolits and I mean fast with this set up!

Now I will admit that I do own a Lyman 20 pound dipping pot for some older single cavity HP molds that I have, this would be the "newer" Orange colored pot and I found it at a yard sale with some molds and 80 pounds of lead.

I won't post what I paid for the lot because it was a stupid cheap number, so check yard sales ads in your local papers you might get lucky!

I also, very recently, bought a Lee 20 pound bottom pour pot and have been very impressed with the improvements Lee has made in this lead pot, it still runs all over the temp range after start up but settles down after a half hour or so and runs very well, for the price I will suggest you up grade IF your planning to do more than a minimal amount of one boolit type and mount your 10 pounder over it as a fill pot.


Hope this helps.

HM

[John 242]

That's interesting on your casting classes but a question if you please...How do you teach them about pre-heating the molds?

We mostly use Lee 6-cavity aluminum molds. We simply dip the end of the mold into the melt to heat it up. I get good results that way and it's easy for beginners.

I strongly emphasize that once they start casting, DON'T STOP. Keeping the mold up to temp can be a struggle because they're a little slow and unsure at first. Once they figure out how to find the holes in the sprue plate with the spout, they smooth out and make nice bullets. Believe it or not, hitting the holes in the sprue plate is really the biggest challenge for them. Once they get a rhythm going, they crank out bullets with no problems. They're usually amazed at how easy the process is and how fast they can make good bullets. This is why I use Lee 6-cavity molds. They make bullets quick.

Teaching bullet casting is a lot of fun. You can almost see the light bulb go on when they realize how easy this is.

[OS OK]

I imagine it's pretty funny when one of them reach barehanded to pick up a boolit and inspect it. When one of my friends do that I always say..."Ha, it sure didn't take you long to look at that huh?"

Good on you for doing this teaching...it's 'old school'...passing the knowledge on like you do. Good on You!

[John 242]

I know I should wear long sleeves and some gloves. I thought about that last night...My ADD gets in my own ways sometimes and I get excited to get started and think "Mehhh" It'll be fine".

I think we've all been guilty of that from time to time. I've got a small scar on my arm caused by slag while using a cutting torch and a few other safety reminders here and there. Burns hurt!

[farmerjim]

No. 1 piece of safety equipment is eye protection. Burns on arms legs and face hurt and scar but they do heal. Burns on the eye do not. Its hard to judge distance with one eye. When the tinsel fairy pays you a visit, you will be glad you have your safety equipment on.

[country gent]

It depends on what Im casting as to the pot Im using and how I pour. For small bullets 55 grns up to 250 grns in pistol lengths bottom pour is fine and does well. For the bigger or longer rifle bullet 180 grn to 550 grns I perfer to ladle pour with a rcbs ladle and the spout opened up to .210 dia to get the fastest strongest fill possible. As to the Lee pot dripping sometimes lapping the rods surfaces to the pots helps alot. Another trick I tried was a light copper wire around the lever bar and rod holding them togehter in tlocation not tightly but just so therod didnt move around side to side and front to back. An occasional twist with a screw driver helps also. My pot for casting the big rifle bullets is gas fired and holds 130 lbs of 20-1 alloy when full. You can cast 550 grn 34s all day and not run out of lead LOL.

[lightman]

I understand the "budget" thing, but if you were to buy the RCBS pot you would never be sorry. Back to your Lee pot, try what the others have done. Lapp the mating surfaces, add some weight to the handle and be mindful to only add clean lead to the pot. Melt your bulk lead another way and cast clean ingots to feed your casting pot. Oh yeah, saving money, Ha ha!

[John 242]

I imagine it's pretty funny when one of them reach barehanded to pick up a boolit and inspect it. When one of my friends do that I always say..."Ha, it sure didn't take you long to look at that huh?"

Good on you for doing this teaching...it's 'old school'...passing the knowledge on like you do. Good on You!

Yeah, usually happens once per class, LOL.

Whenever I talk about bullet casting with my students, I recommend this forum.
This is where I learned about bullet casting, starting about 10 years ago. I had no one to show me the way, but the members of this forum helped me out and schooled me. They helped me trouble shoot when I had problems. Good on this forum, because without it, I wouldn't be teaching bullet casting. I would have given up on bullet casting a long time ago.

[John 242]

No. 1 piece of safety equipment is eye protection.

Absolutely right!

[grizzly]

Well I think I am going to be in the market for a new melt pot. One fact is that I noticed last night casting 230gr boolits how fast the pot drained and how cumbersome it was to constantly fiddle with the rheostat just to keep the temp stabilized. Albeit it was leaking like a sieve. I am looking as a couple other moulds including something for 45-70, so I can see using a lot of lead quick. Again the RCBS is probably out. But the Lyman Mag 25 looks interesting and may be a viable option.

[country gent]

I always tell them its shiny and pretty and really looks good but its still hot. It never fails thee new casters see that new shhiney bullet and just have to pick it up to look at it and admire it. I started keeping a pair of pliers with leather lined jaws for them to set it on the concrete floor to cool. Alot dont realize how long it takes those bullets to cool sitting on the towels in the paint tray. Set on the concrete floor where a breeze gets to them they cool alot quicker. An investment in a good pot wont be regretted, and will make casting easier and more enjoyable.

[runfiverun]

if you wanna see what a lot of us use instead of the lyman or rcbs or LEE check this one out.
I think the price has come down a little in the last couple of years.
http://www.magmaengineering.com/masterpot/

[OS OK]

Just skimming through to keep up with this thread...thinking of hot stuff...remembering a YouTube flick where a young beautiful 20 something was shooting some auto pistol with such authority and grace when a hot case went down the front of her tank top and into her brazier...boy I tell you she started backing up, hopping up and down and reaching between those chest bumps trying to fetch that case...dang that was funny, she sure had a serious look on her face too!
Cudos for her though, she kept that auto pointed down range the whole time.
Glad I wasn't sipping a cold beer or else I'd have 1/2 of it up my nose on that one.