teflon coated casting pot

[wayne h]

Being totally new to casting bullets, I wonder if there is any problem using a teflon coated pot for melting lead for casting. Wayne H

[Charlie Sometimes]

Great idea, but I would think the teflon coating would burn away during the melting process.
IIRC, the teflon cooking sheets (just the plastic sheets) are good for temps up to 400 or so degrees, but not much more. Lead alloys will be much hotter for longer periods.

Go with cast iron- can't beat that.

[Duckiller]

Why bother? As you scrape the pot to make sure you are getting everything fluxed you are going to scrape teflon off the pot. Teflon is to prevent sticking and lead alloy in a steel or cast iron pot doesn't stick. Biggest concern would be what is the pot made of? Steel, cast iron, aluminum? Aluminum pots have been reported to fail (lead all over the place) when melting lead alloy. If it is an old pot with the teflon wearing off and headed for the trash heap and not made out of aluminum then go ahead and use it, being careful about betting bits of teflon into your alloy.

[montana_charlie]

When Teflon coating breaks down (due to excessive heat) it gives off a vapor which is not very healthy. I'm not a 'chicken little' type when it comes to unsafe things, but I would torch the Teflon off while staying upwind.
After that, I think the pot would be as safe as any other of the same metal.
CM

[HeavyMetal]

Teflon usually coats an aluminum pot, matter of fact I don't know than i've seen anything but a steel cookie sheet coated with Teflon.

I'm curious if you were contemplating haveing something made or planned on just getting some Teflon cookware from the wife.

Point in fact "stealing" SWMBO's aluminum cookware to cast with is just about as dangerous as trying to "smelt" in an aluminum pot, Teflon coated or not!

Don't get involved in "Double Jeperody" only "steal" cast iron cook ware for "smelting"!

[KYCaster]

When Teflon coating breaks down (due to excessive heat) it gives off a vapor which is not very healthy. I'm not a 'chicken little' type when it comes to unsafe things, but I would torch the Teflon off while staying upwind.
After that, I think the pot would be as safe as any other of the same metal.
CM


Yeah, what he said. You don't want to breath that stuff.

Jerry

[calaloo]

My daughter killed her parrot when she left a teflon coated pan on a hot stove eye. The gas produced is deadly. Buy a cast iron pot.

[Dale53]

My daughter killed her parrot when she left a teflon coated pan on a hot stove eye. The gas produced is deadly. Buy a cast iron pot.

BELIEVE THIS!!

Harbor Freight sells a 12" cast iron dutch oven for less than $30.00. Mine holds about 120 lbs of lead and works just fine on my Fish/Turkey Fryer for smelting WW's, etc. Just don't bang on cast iron while hot.

Teflon when heated past normal cooking temps is a KILLER!

Dale53

[montana_charlie]

I wonder if there is any problem using a teflon coated pot
It looks like the 'group answer' to your question would read something like this...

If you plan to steal the pot from your wife; and the pot is made of aluminum; and the pot is coated with Teflon; you must have a death wish.

Other than that...no problem.
CM

[sleeper1428]

Some specific info on polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), also known as Teflon, as it relates to casting. Teflon melts at 621F so by the time you got your pot full of wheel weights, solder, etc., up to a proper temperature, the Teflon would already have melted, probably while emitting a lot of noxious fumes. Therefore it's probably best to avoid the use of Teflon coated pots for smelting purposes. Also saves on your headaches at home when your wife discovers that you've ruined her only good Teflon coated pan!

sleeper1428

[maddog2020]

check local thrift stores and yard sales
I got a big cast iron pot with cover for 10.00
I can do a bucket of wheel weights in 2-3 loads
what about stainless?
never used one but you can get them at dollar store for 20,00 a set of 4

[Cowboy T]

I wouldn't do it. That deadly gas that previous posters talked about? It's fluorine gas. VERY, VERY NASTY to lungs--think chlorine gas on steroids. See, Teflon, more precisely known as polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), is a fluorocarbon, basic chemical formula CF(2).

Just get a cheap cast iron (like I did) or stainless steel pot.

[dudel]

A cheap cast iron pot works well for me. When I started, I used the aluminum pot that came with the fish fyer. After I did 20# of WW in it, I noticed the bottom had pushed down to match the rings of the stove. Seemed a bit weak to me.

BTW, if you season the cast iron pot, it's pretty well anti stick. I ladle out my ingots, till I get to the last bit in the pot. I use gloves and pour the last bit into the cast iron corn muffin molds. Bottom of the pot gets pretty clean.

[moptop]

polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), is a fluorocarbon


Yes, teflon will produce what's called phosgene gas when heated above 600 deg. The same thing happens when you expose most types of Freon to an open flame. It's nasty stuff, burns the eyes & nose, and is very poisonous. In working with refrig's and A/C units we always make sure the system is empty of any freon before we go anywhere near it with a torch.

Years ago, before the EPA made us capture or reclaim all freon, if working on a sealed system in a house and we had to empty a the lines, we had to make sure there were no appliances the had a standing pilot ,oven or water heater, in the same room for the same reason. If there was we had to vent it to the outside by using a hose.

[bohokii]

teflon is normaly on aluminum i dont melt with aluminum its weakeness point is too close to overheated lead

steel has 1000 more degrees from the hottest i can get with propane or liquid fuels

[deerslayer]

Do a search on propane tank halves for a pot they are dirt cheap and work great strong and the rounded bottom lets you ladle almost every drop out!! Also the teflon burning is very bad stay away from that flourine gas!!!!