ghh3rd
02-15-2009, 10:46 PM
I smelted 58 lbs of clip on WW ingots and 70 lbs of stick on WW ingots tonight. I've been testing for Zinc by rubbing the WW on the driveway, and by cutting into them with dikes, but after getting a blister from doing that, I got brave and just tossed everything into the mix. I kept the burner just hot enough to melt the lead, and let it take longer than usual. As soon as it was hot enough to stir around easily, I skimmed off all of the zinc and steel WW. Worked like a charm, and even though it took longer to melt the lead, it saved me a lot of work not having to test the WW. The trick is to be patient and melt at a much slower temperature so the Zinc won't melt.
The suggestion of putting the mold on a damp rag to cool it off quicker works wonders. I actually use a wet rag folded about 1" thick to set the mold on. Steam pours from the mold and the ingots cool very quickly. Thanks to whoever mentioned that.
I think I know why we call it smelting by the way... my 11 yr old son told me that everyone on our block 'smelt' them :-)
Randy
The suggestion of putting the mold on a damp rag to cool it off quicker works wonders. I actually use a wet rag folded about 1" thick to set the mold on. Steam pours from the mold and the ingots cool very quickly. Thanks to whoever mentioned that.
I think I know why we call it smelting by the way... my 11 yr old son told me that everyone on our block 'smelt' them :-)
Randy