I'm a newbee, HELP

[Dogg]

Well it finally got cool enough for me to try my hand at actually casting bullets rather than buying cast bullets. It was a total *****! Problem#1: I got 170lb of lead but the guy I got it from smelted it in a 1 quart steel pot so the ingots are about 25-35lbs and I haven't got a way to cut them or re-smelt them.
Problem #2: I have a little electric Lee pot and a 10lb bottom pour. Decided to try the little Lee and just smelted down some wheel weights and some stick on wheel weights. Got a lot of dross,,, think I might have got it to hot cause the top of the lead was turning blue???? Was using a a Lee 300gr .452 2 cavity mold. Could not get it to fill completely where I had well defined lube groove and also had wavy indentation. the mold worked fine, bullets would fall right out when opened. Think part of the proble is the cheap piece of cr_p lee ladle didn't seem to hold enough lead. Problem #3: I haven't done this in over 40years and don't seem to have the nack and am feeling really incompetent.
So any help would be appreciated. IS there a sticky or good thread really outlining the procedure?
Otherwise this Dogg is going to be buying his cast bullets for some time to come.

Thanks
Dogg

[HORNET]

You'll probably get about a zillion responses in a little bit, but here's a starter:
1. Big ingots: They can be cut up with a SAWZALL wrecking saw, skillsaw, or even a wood saw (leads not hard to cut). Keep the blade lightly oiled so it doesnt bind and go to it. I've also used a cold chisel and BFH to get a good notch going and then flipped it over and bent it 'till it broke.
2. a. lead turning blue: not a problem. Happens a lot with the softer lead batches, also purple, gold, lots of other colors.
b. wavy indentation: probably too cold (mold and/or melt). Turn the alloy temp up, preheat the mold and smoke it (with a wooden match or butane lighter, DON'T use a candle). Cast a few and dump them as fast as the sprue sets up, then look at how they're filling out.
c. The Lee ladle is widely acknowledged to be a *** that's best used as a fluxing spoon. Lyman and RCBS ladles are MUCH better and hold enough alloy to fill both cavities of that 300 grainer.
3. Lack of experience: not a problem. Like many other vices, you'll improve with practice. As a start, go to the top of the Forums index page and check the "classics and Stickies". About the 12 th one down is a link to the Goatlips Casting Pages. Good basic visual instruction.
4. Relax, this isn't any more complex than you decide to make it. Read on the forum a bit, check out other noobies postings, enjoy it. Beats whats on TV.

[Echo]

Dogg, read all the stickies on this forum! There is SO MUCH GOOD INFO here it's scary!

Your problem sounds to me to be not enough tin in your alloy, and your mold not being up to temp. Both mold and alloy have to be hot enough, probably 750-800 degrees for your alloy.

And it's not a good idea to render in your casting furnace. You found this out when you found so much dross &cetera when you melted down your WW's. Render (some people call it smelting, but that's wrong) in another pot, that could be a dutch oven over a Coleman stove, or a strong stainless steel stock pot from HF over a turkey fryer (ideal for your huge ingots) or whatever. Once you render them down you can cast them into handy ingots in a muffin pan from the second-hand store or a cornbread form from the same source, or...

Good luck.

(My kids are 1/4 coonie - FIL red-headed Irish coonie from New Iberia.)

[mold maker]

Use brake cleaner, boiling in soapy water, or some such, to remove every bit of oils from your mold. Get your self some Bull Shop lube for the moving joints, and be sure nothing gets in the cavities. Your mold must be hot enough to keep the lead liquid till the mold is over full to eliminate wrinkles and poor fill out. The faster you cycle the mold the easier it is to keep it up to casting temp.
All the previous advice is sound proven information.
It isn't rocket science, but there are a few things to learn and overcome. Your experience, and the help available here will have you in Boolit heaven soon enough.

[Leftoverdj]

Getting your mould clean enough is the biggest hurdle for the new caster. No one ever believes how hard it is and how important it is. Boiling them in soapy water will do it. The other methods may or may not. Some make things worse. There is no guarantee that your can of brake cleaner is the same as some other guy's.

Particularly with Lee moulds, do not smoke them or use mould release until you know what they mould is doing and you absolutely have to. Both methods reduce bullet diameter and Lee moulds run small anyway. A coat of mould release can easily make the difference between just right and too small.

Keep the wheel weights out of your bottom pour pot. You'll spend more time unstopping clogs and cleaning the pot than casting if you put WW into it.

Be patient. Teething problems are normal. You can go nuts getting started, but once you are past all that, casting is really simple.

If you have any bright ideas, run then by us first. It's probably a mistake we've already made. We've got thousands of years of bright ideas that turned out to be mistakes behind us.

[44man]

Get a turkey fryer and a cast iron dutch oven large enough to hold the large ingots. Melt them and cast into small ones.
Now you are also set up to smelt the WW's too.

[462]

Dogg,

You'll receive nothing but good information, you can count on it.

I'll just say to not get frustrated or have thoughts about giving up. Casting boolits definitly has its nuances and quirks. I've found that reading this site's stickies and archives is more than worth the time spent. Lyman's "Cast Bullet Handbook" is a must-read, also.

Read as much as you can, ask questions, and don't quit. Even a bad casting session is a positive learning experience.

By the way, my Lee moulds like a lot of heat.

[plus1hdcp]

I can only add what worked for me in improving the fill using lee molds is to adjust the amount of space between the mold and pot. For example, my best success with a 175gr 401 is about 1 inch clearance but with my 125gr is hardly any space at all. I have found it to be a try it an see process with each mold. I am sure you will find what works best.

[ghh3rd]

If you have a torch, it will melt the lead, especially the one that use Mapp gas. You can melt the lead off into little 'dribbles'.

Have fun!

Randy

[Leftoverdj]

If you have a torch, it will melt the lead, especially the one that use Mapp gas. You can melt the lead off into little 'dribbles'.

Have fun!

Randy

Randy, that ain't the best idea you ever had. Torches generate enough heat to to create toxic lead vapors, lead "steam" if you will. The surface subject to the torch gets way past the danger point before it melts deep enough to run off.

[semtav]

Other than adding the tin to get better fill, have you tried to flux it when you are casting?

Last time I cast, I was getting great fill on my little 225107 mold. then switched to the 257420. couldn't get it to fill for anything. little wavy things too. threw a little sawdust in the mix, stirred, skimmed and everything went to working again.

Just an observation from smelting stick on wheel weights. Never ever use your good pot. I now have a big cast iron pot for that. that sticky **** makes a mess out of your pot.

[WHITETAIL]

Dogg, You came to the right place for info.
The members here are great.
They will answer all your questions, because they
have been there done that!
So don't be scared to ask.:lovebooli

[looseprojectile]

First and very important is that your mould has to be really clean.

Your mould and metal has to be really hot. Turn your pot up to max. Heat the mould in the molten metal.

If you then get wrinkles or voids add some tin, like solder. An ounce at a time in a ten pound pot till you get good fillout. Flux and stir after each addition.

Fluxing can not be overdone. Use several different fluxes. Get the metal really clean. Stir with a wood stick.

When pouring if you dont have to wait several seconds for the sprue to solidify you don't have the metal and or the mould hot enough. Make sure the sprue plate is hot also. I wave a propane torch across the sprue plate for about ten seconds. Frosted boolits are good.

Then when you get good fillout you can start to turn the heat down to where you can cast faster and get a good boolit without waiting so long for the sprue to set.

The propane or Mapp gas torch is my friend but I am careful to not overdo it. Lead gas is very poisonous. Use lots of ventilation and stand downwind.

If you do these things you will get good boolits.

Life is good

[Kibby]

Beats whats on TV.

AMEN, Brother!

[Bloodman14]

'nuff said.

[462]

Who watches TV?

[mpmarty]

Excuse me, but I believe that advice should be "stand UPWIND"

[Dogg]

I want to thanik everyone for their advice. I will try to get these oversized chuncks of lead down to managable size and try again. Lots of good advice, thanks again
Dogg

[sundog]

Hornet: c. The Lee ladle is widely acknowledged to be a *** that's best used as a fluxing spoon. Lyman and RCBS ladles are MUCH better and hold enough alloy to fill both cavities of that 300 grainer.

I tend to agree except for one thing. I bent the shank into a nice curve between the wooden handle and the bowl. I've been using it for years, and it is great. Straight, I agree, ***. It only needs a little contour to become very usable. I've used mine for so long it's on it's second or third handle. I clean it regularly with a bronze brush, give it a light spray of drop out, and 'move out smartly'.

[Three44s]

I would acquire a large pot and a propane weed burner torch .......... mine sits a top a piece of large diameter steel pipe welded to a base and with a hole in the side of the pipe near the base for the torch poke through so the flame creates a chimney effect ...... thus heating the lead pot.

At the top, I used an old motorcycle sprocket (welded to the pipe) as an adapter and cut the center so the lead pot would sit level and not fall through.

This is my scrap melter and certainly suffices for melting large chuncks of alloy.

The temperature issue as I read your initial post was that you needed to flux. To flux, I like to lower my melt temp and then raise that temp back up some after I have fluxed. The rough top surface I would guess was your tin conglomerating with dross. After you have successfully fluxed, you will see any dirt etc. just patiently waiting on top without robbing you tin and you can skim it off.

I concentrated here on the big issue of reclaiming your lead to a more manageable size here because it comes before mold management in the scheme of things.

Don't panic and don't go away from casting over frustration.

We all got our "knees skinned up" when we started and we're here to help!

Regards

Three 44s

[mdi]

I don't care for sawing the lead bars; maybe just don'r like clean-up. I use an old wood chisel. I can either score (groove) a bar and break it off or cut chunks. I don't remember where the chisel came from and I use a 3 lb. single jack.`

[looseprojectile]

Thanks for catching that. Sometimes when I proof read my copy my filter keeps letting mistakes through.
I would like to add for Dogg.
For me fluxing and skimming works best when the melt is very hot.
And please do not stand in the cloud of smoke and flame rising from the pot when you melt and flux.
And when reading the words I print here you are relying on my brain.
Please use your own, as mine doesn't work as well as it once did[smilie=b:.

Life is good