Got some casting done this weekend, how'd I do?

[Gunslinger]

We had 68 degrees this weekend which is pretty awesome in this country. So I thought why not cast some boolits. The alloy I used was made last summer. It consists of approximately 80% range lead 15% WW and 5% lino and a little tin. I know it's not the best alloy, but we were out of WWs at the time.

Most of the time I used 3 molds simultaneously but in the end I had to give up on the Lee 6-banger 120gr TC - it won't close properly and has been repaired numerous times... it's a really old mold and hasn't been maintained I think. It's not mine so I can't say for sure. It doesn't cast beautiful boolits anymore.

The pictures are of some of the not so nice looking boolits. They are not so sharp around the edges and it looks as if the alloy wasn't clean enough. I stirred with a stick and removed the dross every time I added an ingot and after every 8th or 9th I fluxed with a little candle. Using 3 molds at the same time empties the pot pretty quickly. I kept the pot almost full all the time and had the temp gage set at 8 to ensure a fairly constant temperature.

So what do you think went wrong?

[Slow Elk 45/70]

Could be several things, to little heat, crap in the alloy, molds need cleaning, etc. The 6 cavity Lee can be finicky, the first couple of cavities may be fine and the last couple may be to cool by the time you pour them, again there are a lot of variables as I'm sure you are aware.

[leadman]

Looks like the alloy was too cold. At 68' the pot could be too cold, especially if you were casting outside with a breeze. Do you have a temperature gauge?

It could also be contaminates in the alloy. Did you smoke your molds with a wooden match? This will help with fill out and release especially with an aluminum mold.

[stubshaft]

FWIW - looks like you alloy was not fluxed enough. Either you have rubbish in the mix or the components were not held in solution.

[44man]

Three molds are too many let alone one of them a six cavity. That is enough of a problem itself so it should be used alone.
Two, two cavity molds work fine if kept hot. As soon as a problem occurs, go back to one.
Quality is better then a pile you need to throw back.

[Gunslinger]

Hmm... but as stated above I think I fluxed it plenty. When scraping the pot with a stick, is some of the dross soot from the stick or is it all impurities from the alloy?

I don't think the alloy was too cold, my boolits don't have wrinkles....

[Nora]

To me it looks as if both the mold and the pot were a little on the cold side. I'm in the frosty camp though, when they are shiny it's time to crank it up just a touch.

[Cherokee]

Gunslinger - have you tried any of the bullets. I've shot many not so attractive cast bullets that did just fine for me. The base is the most important. No wrinkles does not mean the alloy was hot enough, try more heat.

[monadnock#5]

Try a stainless steel sauce pan. Remelt and reflux enough ingots to make a pot full, cast up a batch of boolits, and see if you get a better result.

[runfiverun]

just turn up the heat some and stay outta the wind/shade.
just size and shoot those, you'll be fine.
you gonna shoot them for 5,g prize money? or for holes in the paper?
work on them as as you go.

[Blammer]

Heat mon! We need some mo' HEAT! :)

[Gunslinger]

They are all meant for paper punching. I do a lot of pin shooting and another shooting that's very popular here, where we shoot at 13 yards.... so you're right, ultra precision is not that important to me. I sometimes even double tap the pins just because I don't have to think about the price on bullets he he :-D

Anyway the bases look clean and have shot less nice boolits with good results in the past.

Next time I'll crank up the heat and flux it a little more....

[jdgabbard]

I think its either not enough heat, or your alloy. Try cranking it up.

[wdr2]

I have measured lead temperature on several brands of melting pots using both a dial thermometer and a calibrated Fluke gage. In all cases, the numbers on the pot scale where off significantly. I consider a quality lead thermometer required for good repeatable bullet casting.

Bill