Dutch Oven

[dk17hmr]

I bought a new Dutch Oven today for $10 dang thing weighs about 8 pounds without the lid, so its pretty good sized.

Need to dig out the Turkey cooker bought my dad for Christmas 2 years ago. Looks like if its not to hot tomorrow Im going to be making a big batch of Ingots and Bullets.

[BOOM BOOM]

HI,
DON'T USE THOSE IF YOU EVER PLAN TO COOK FOOD IN THEM!
If you are going to only use them for smelting no problem.
I use #10 & #5 tin cans for smelting w/ no problem.

[454PB]

Something to consider with a dutch oven is that they are cast iron and will shatter if dropped. That's not a big deal if it's empty, but a dangerous mess if full of molten lead!

[Beerd]

lots of us have picked up dutch ovens at yard sales & use them for melting lead.
anyone have an idea for marking them so (someday after we are gone and our family cleans out our stuff) an unknowing person won't cook a pot of chili in it?
..

[JSH]

I doubt a cast pot would shatter like glass if dropped, crack yes. My question is, who would be wanting to pick one up full of molton alloy to begin with?
I have a cast pot that I have used for smelting in since 45nut and Fourarmed got me into this mess. I picked this china made iron pot up at the "Cummins" tool story,local here, similar to harbor fright. I gave Fourarmed a piece of heavy walled 14 or 16" pipe. He has made a dandy pot from it.
I refuse to melt in a tin can or aluminum pot. Dad and I used to make sinkers on the wood stove in the winter in an old aluminum coffee pot. It worked pretty good, but I wouldn't try it today.
We are all pretty "frugal" as Ken says. But, you end up with what you started with. If you are afraid the cast will crack, look at a local pipe supply and see what a weld on pipe cap sells for. I will guess they are not cheap as high as metal is.
I still don't have a problem with a cast pot, jumped up and ran down stairs. I found what dad and I used to melt lead in to seal around cast iron pipes with. It was his fathers glue pot, it has 1887 on the bottom of it, nary a crack............
jeff

[dk17hmr]

Im not to worried about mine crackin....if it does it does, Im out 10 bucks. I used it the other day to make some ingots. Dug out the Turkey fry and used that. I had almost 80 pounds of melt in there and not a problem what so ever.

As for marking the pot, maybe get some heat paint and paint the outside pink or something.

[steveb]

lots of us have picked up dutch ovens at yard sales & use them for melting lead.
anyone have an idea for marking them so (someday after we are gone and our family cleans out our stuff) an unknowing person won't cook a pot of chili in it?
..

I never thought about this kind of stuff before I started casting my own. We have a local muzzloading shoot (NMLA friendship IN) twice a year with a flea market and lots of used cast iron pots are sold. I wonder if any of those have had lead put in them. I can tell you one thing though the cast iron pot I bought from there sure has had some lead put through it now![smilie=w:

http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a199/steveb3006/guns003.jpg

[MT Gianni]

I mark all my ovens with wraps of wire around the lid and around the handle as I dont want to get confused as to which lid seals the best for cooking. [we have 3 12" alone]. A tag stating" NOT FOR COOKING" could be added to both lid and handle. Gianni.

[waksupi]

You can take a Dremel, to engrave across it, lead contaminated. You can do it inside, and out.

[utk]

As for marking the pot, maybe get some heat paint and paint the outside pink or something.

I would say it will look too "horrible" afterwards for anyone to want to cook any food in it...
My stainless steel pot looks disaster, anyway.

Urban

[fatnhappy]

lots of us have picked up dutch ovens at yard sales & use them for melting lead.
anyone have an idea for marking them so (someday after we are gone and our family cleans out our stuff) an unknowing person won't cook a pot of chili in it?
..

Yeah, leave some lead in the bottom when you're done, or stack ingots in it.