How do you guys water quench safely?

[jamesp81]

I'm thinking about trying this. Tried it exactly once. Water drops flew rather far out of the bucket I was dropping into. Given then dangers associated with molten lead and water, that put an end to that immediately.

How are you guys doing it safely?

A little background. I have a 6 cavity Lee mold that makes rather out of round bullets. It's common for them to be .455 at the widest and .451 at the narrowest. The .455 would be ok, the .451 is not. It's already been to Lee and they say it's fine, so I'm trying to determine if anything in my technique could cause an issue. My thinking right now is that the bullets are soft when dropped from the mold and are deforming when they land on my towel or land on another bullet on the towel. I figure water dropping could be a reliable way to get them hardened up fast enough to avoid the issue.

[Reddirt62]

I put about 3" in the bottom of a stew pot that sits on the floor between my legs. Just drop them in....no issues, not much splash.

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[Old colt]

I put an old kitchen towel over the top of a coffee can half full of water. I cut a hole in the center with a rubber band holding it to the rim of the can. Bullets hit the soft towel and roll into the water

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[reddog81]

Is the mold closing all the way? Can you see light through the mold when closed? I don't think your bullets are out of round due to hitting a towel.

As far as dropping into water I've only done it a couple of times. A 5 gallon bucket on the ground half full worked without any issues. The bucket doesn't need to be full or anything. I'm guessing 3 inches of water would be sufficient. But I'd guess this isn't going to solve your issue...

[shoot-n-lead]

Well, this ain't rocket science...just give it a little thought.

[imashooter2]

I place a half full 5 gallon bucket on top of an overturned 5 gallon bucket on my left hip. I cut the sprue, turn and drop into the bucket. The boolits don't fall far, so they don't splash much and for water to get into the pot it has to travel over three feet horizontally, 2 feet vertically and through my body.

[runfiverun]

I use a metal stool with a 1 gallon pail about 3/4 full sitting to my right and a bit above waist level.

your not gonna gain diameter enough to make them round.

[5Shot]

Even if water makes it to the pot, it will just sizzle on top, it isn't going to make it under the surface of the melt. My bucket is off to the side and a ways from the pot, but it's not a concern of mine. When water gets on the mold I just wait a second to let it evaporate before closing.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

I do most of my casting out of doors on my back patio sitting in a chair. The lead pot is on a table and my legs and feet are under the table about half way. I've got a big coffee can of water between my feet which is actually under the table, so any splashes would hit the bottom of the table, but there isn't much splashing. I seldom use a larger than two cavity mold.

[catskinner]

An old timer I used to shoot with told me when he quenched from the mild he put a layer of styrofoam packing peanuts on top of the water. I tried it myself and it does cut down on splashing. Never tried it but sawdust might work also.

[NavyVet1959]

The higher you drop the bullets from, the higher the splash is going to be. I have my bucket of water positioned such that my mold is right at the rim when I'm dropping the bullets from it. I position the bucket about 45 degrees away from my casting pot, but even a few drops of water are not going to cause a visit by the tinsel fairie. Water drops by themselves will just flash to steam on the top of the lead pool.

[Lloyd Smale]

3 gallons in a 5 gallon pail and dump them in out of the oven or put that pail of water next to me and open the mold over it and dump the bullets in the water. no need to overthink it

[44man]

I fill a 5 gallon bucket pretty full, off to the side on a stool. I don't bother with a towel and the water is deep enough so boolits don't dent at the bottom.
As was said a drop of water in the pot just dries up fast, water has to get under the lead surface to pop.

[GhostHawk]

I use a childs yellow plastic sand bucket. Holds maybe a gallon, about 2" of water in the bottom.
This is small enough to fit on the casting table next to my pot.

Crack the sprue, tap the mold on the bucket, boolits fall out and fall less than 5 inches to the water. No splashing. If a drop did hit my pot it would just evaporate and boil off. Water is lighter than lead. The problems start when you submerge water in lead.

[ubetcha]

I put an old kitchen towel over the top of a coffee can half full of water. I cut a hole in the center with a rubber band holding it to the rim of the can. Bullets hit the soft towel and roll into the water

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An old towel with a hole in the center works well for me also but I use a 5gal bucket about 1/2 full of water. The towel is loose enough to act like a funnel. Another towel on the bottom for the bucket cushions the drop. Sometimes the bullets don't roll down the towel ,but a tap on the towel opposite of the bullet will make it roll off.

[centershot]

I'm thinking about trying this. Tried it exactly once. Water drops flew rather far out of the bucket I was dropping into. Given then dangers associated with molten lead and water, that put an end to that immediately.

How are you guys doing it safely?

A little background. I have a 6 cavity Lee mold that makes rather out of round bullets. It's common for them to be .455 at the widest and .451 at the narrowest. The .455 would be ok, the .451 is not. It's already been to Lee and they say it's fine, so I'm trying to determine if anything in my technique could cause an issue. My thinking right now is that the bullets are soft when dropped from the mold and are deforming when they land on my towel or land on another bullet on the towel. I figure water dropping could be a reliable way to get them hardened up fast enough to avoid the issue.


jamesp81,

If your boolits are .451" at a point 90* to the parting line, your mold my be too hot! Try slowing your pace, wait a little longer between pours and see if that works out for you. I had a similar problem a few weeks ago and 44man offered this recommendation to me.

[leebuilder]

You must have a slow pace, you will get bananas.
i have my melter on the bench, and the quenching bucket at my feet. I have used a floating sponge as an aiming point. Boolits leave the mold hit the sponge and roll off, no splash.
Be safe

[gwpercle]

I don't think water dropping it's going to solve you're problem. Out of round isn't caused by them landing on a towel. Even landing on another boolit will ding it but not out of round it. A better solution is centershot's advice and running them through a sizer.
Lee 6 cavity moulds are not the finest on the planet , sizing will do a lot more to round them out .
I pad a shallow cardboard box with a thick towel , start dropping at far end , work down, when towel is covered with fresh cast boolits , lift up bottom end and gently roll them to the far end, start covering surface again. I find the water dropping to be messy, splashing water around a hot mould and pot full of lead makes me nervous.
Gary

[C. Latch]

My thinking right now is that the bullets are soft when dropped from the mold and are deforming when they land on my towel or land on another bullet on the towel. I figure water dropping could be a reliable way to get them hardened up fast enough to avoid the issue.

I don't think that's your problem. Even with pure lead, a drop from a foot or two onto a hard surface will dent the bullet, but won't knock it out-of-round the way yours are.

You could demonstrate this to yourself by filling the mold and letting it cool, then carefully removing the 6 cooled bullets later and measuring them, but I'm 99.9% sure that your problem is with the mold, not how you're dropping.

[243winxb]

Mr Lee has all the answer to fix there products. http://www.ar15.com/images/smilies/icon_smile_big.gif MR Lee link (http://leeprecision.net/support/index.php?/Knowledgebase/List/Index/62/bullet-molds-and-casting)


Increasing mold diameterPosted by on 20 October 2011 01:34 PM


If you need the mold diameter of your cast bullets to be increased just slightly, there is a way to accomplish this at no cost.

Apply some lube to the mold blocks face, away from the bullet cavity. Place a small piece of cigarette paper or writing paper to the lubed block.

When casting the bullet, the diameter of the bullet will be increased by the paper thickness. You can actually go up to about .010 before you begin to see lead flashing appear. While the bullet will be slightly out of round, this very minimum amount will not effect accuracy or the manner in which the bullet travels through the forcing cone and barrel of your gun.

[quilbilly]

I just use a little sauce pan and put a couple inches of rainwater in it.

[buckwheatpaul]

MiHec has a tremendous thread on that subject....he takes a towel and loosely clip it on thee sides of the bucket with the excess towel dipping down into the bucket part way. then he lets the bullets hit the towel and roll into the water......have not tried it yet but it should avoid damage to the bullet and protect the person as well....

[country gent]

When I was water quenching bullets I sat on an old piano bench. SO I had plenty of room beside me on it. I made a ramp 3' long and 18" high with a heavy denium cloth for the ramp. this sat beside me on the bench and over hung a 5 gallon bucket 3/4 full of Ice water. I dropped bullets on the top of the ramp and they rolled down it to the bucket dropping in gently. The travel time down the ramp help give them time to solidify a little more also. The ice floating reduced splashing also.I could run 8 hours with 2 pots going and 2 moudlds and not have to deal with the bullets.

[mdi]

Even if water makes it to the pot, it will just sizzle on top, it isn't going to make it under the surface of the melt. My bucket is off to the side and a ways from the pot, but it's not a concern of mine. When water gets on the mold I just wait a second to let it evaporate before closing.
Here's the answer. The old "a drop of sweat caused an explosion in my pot" ,is just an old wives tale. As a kid casting sinkers on Ma's stove I used to cool the pot when I was done by pouring water directly on the top of the molten lead. Just a bunch of steam and no explosions. If you don't believe me, try it. All you'll get is steam...;)

[frankmako]

i use a old metal milk bucket that is full of water. i put a small towel in the bottom to make it easy to pull the bullets up with one pull. i put a floating sponge in the bucket. i drop the bullets on the sponge, the sponge flips over and the bullets fall on the bottom towel. cheap and easy. you don't have to over think these things.

[DanishM1Garand]

I place a half full 5 gallon bucket on top of an overturned 5 gallon bucket on my left hip. I cut the sprue, turn and drop into the bucket. The boolits don't fall far, so they don't splash much and for water to get into the pot it has to travel over three feet horizontally, 2 feet vertically and through my body.
Pretty much my method too

[zubrato]

I think a lot of folks are concerned about water drops getting onto the lead pot, which is not your major concern. The real issue is water splashes on your cooled sprues, which you may add back into the pot if you didn't notice that drop of water. That is the real risk for tinsel fairy visits.

To reduce this risk I drop my sprues into a large high sided metal bowl from goodwill. Water has less chance getting in, and if it does the sprues stay warmer for longer when piled.

I use a large plastic tray with high walls, with an old shirt clipped on so the bullets roll off it into the water.


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[jamesp81]

jamesp81,

If your boolits are .451" at a point 90* to the parting line, your mold my be too hot! Try slowing your pace, wait a little longer between pours and see if that works out for you. I had a similar problem a few weeks ago and 44man offered this recommendation to me.

By parting line, I assume you mean the seam you get where the blocks meet. The thing is, they aren't .451 90 degrees from the parting line. It's usually about 45 degrees off the line.

[jamesp81]

You must have a slow pace, you will get bananas.
i have my melter on the bench, and the quenching bucket at my feet. I have used a floating sponge as an aiming point. Boolits leave the mold hit the sponge and roll off, no splash.
Be safe

I expect that my pace is probably slow compared to most here.

[centershot]

By parting line, I assume you mean the seam you get where the blocks meet. The thing is, they aren't .451 90 degrees from the parting line. It's usually about 45 degrees off the line.

Hmmmm.....that doesn't sound like an overheated mold, but, I'd run some boolits at a slower pace just to test it out. I use Lee molds and the 6 cavity are a great way to make lotsa' boolits in a little bit of time, but, they often are not the "precision" tools we want them to be. They can be rescued! See the link below:

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?257858-Expanding-a-boolit-mould-the-quot-WEET-quot-method-(In-parts)

[Oklahoma Rebel]

I drop into a kitty litter pan with 2-3 inches of pine shavings, this softens the landing, and when I need some to insulate the surface of the lead from oxidization, I can just grab some out of there!

[Bama]

6to 8 inches of water in a 5 gallon bucket with an old Tee shirt stretched over it with one thickness only. Push center down about 6" and cut an X in bottom about 4 to 5 in total per side. Bullet will roll down an drop into water. Works great.

[tazman]

I have a swivel chair at my casting table( I cast seated since I am an old fart). I have a small step stool to my left where my tupperware bowl with water sits about 16 inches below the casting table level. I fill the mold, knock off the sprue, then turn slightly and open the mold over the bowl of water. I have about 4 inches of water in the bowl. By the time the boolits reach the bottom, they have hardened somewhat and slowed so I don't get dents.
Any drops of water hit the mold only and you just wait for the sizzle to stop before filling the mold again.
This method has worked well for several decades with pistol boolits. I really haven't done much in the way of rifle this way yet.

[Bigslug]

Buy a bunch of kitchen sponges. Cut them into rough cubes. Float them on top of your quench water. Really cuts down on splash.

[DerekP Houston]

I made a raft with an old tshirt and a rectangular piece of styrofoam. It fits in a 5gal bucket at an angle and the bullets roll down into the water. Tshirt wicks up plenty of water to keep them from burning on impact. I keep my bucket around 1/2 full with water.

[tazman]

Buy a bunch of kitchen sponges. Cut them into rough cubes. Float them on top of your quench water. Really cuts down on splash.

Good idea. I like that.

[PaulG67]

I use a five gallon bucket and fill it to 2" from the top, I then insert another bucket into it that I have drilled many holes in the bottom, holes that are smaller than the smallest boolit I cast. I drop the boolits directly into the water from about 12" above. When done I just lift the inner bucket and let it drain then dump the boolits out on a towel to dry. In 30 plus years I have never had a problem.

[762sultan]

I use a pillow case and place it over the rim pf a 5 gallon bucket that is half full of water. A large pillow case is much longer than the bucket and has enough material to form a cushion for the bullets to fall on. When done casting just pull the pillow case up and out of the bucket and drain out the water.

[trixter]

Just drop them out of the mold into a 5 gallon bucket with some water in it, keep it simple st..........

[Down South]

I use a 5-gallon bucket and during warm weather I add ice to the water to cool it down even more. If you are worried about splash, use an old towel over the bucket sagged down with a hole in it. Tie the towel around the bucket to keep it in place.

[ole_270]

Been a few years since I water dropped. My pot sits on a waist high bench, I sit on a swivel bar stool, keep a 5 gallon bucket 2/3 full on the floor behind me with a couple small sponges on top.
Make the pour, cut the sprue into a box on the bench, swivel around and drop the bullets. Not that much splash and it would have to get through me and fly 3 feet higher to get to the pot.
Did a lot of 311041 that way for a 30-30 that used to be my beater/ woods bum rifle.

[ShooterAZ]

Yep, it's a problem with the mold. Keep your hands off the sprue plate handle when casting with Lee 6 bangers or you will get out of round boolits! I buy the Lee molds I get from Midway. If there is problems with it they will take it back no questions asked. No matter what some might say, they are still a carp shoot, but to be expected at the price you pay for them I suppose. Not so much for me any more because I know when one is a *** pretty much right away and send it back. Having said all that, I like the Lee molds when I get ones that don't need to be returned or exchanged. I have some really good ones that cast perfectly.

[Shiloh]

A 2 1/2 gal bucket on a stool below and to the right of the casting pot.

SHiloh

[sutherpride59]

I use the top of an old egg carton filled with water for pistol boolits, for rifle I water quench after I heat them in the oven at a controlled temp in a abucket.

[BAGTIC]

I use same approach but with a five gallon paint bucket. Get fewer 'misses' that way.

[Bird]

1 and 1/2'' deep saucepan next to the melting pot. 1 inch water with a cloth on the bottom. Part of the cloth sits above pan level for cooling the base of the mold.