Hot Plate, part 2 used!

So this is were I am at with this. I acquired a bucket of WW's and sorted those the other day and ended up with one small pan of small size COWW that I separated from the rest as some I couldn't quite tell if they were zinc or not. This small batch was about enough to fill the 9" cast iron skillet I picked up at the flea market. On my way!

I set up a small table outside to work on and proceeded with trying to melt my very first batch. What a learning experience in a number of ways. Either this hot plate of this 9" pan needs a better solution. It took forever to heat up enough to even start melting the lead, Then once a nice small puddle was in the pan I noticed that it would not stay hot enough to keep it liquid all the way out to the sides of the pan.

In all honesty it actually took me 4 hours to melt this one 9" skillet of small COWW. I did find that placing a cover over the pan helped tremendously. So I believe I either need a better heat source or a smaller diameter vessel. During this session I did turn up 5 pcs I believe were zinc as they did not melt. So that at least made me feel better!

All-in-all I did enjoy myself though I probably would have enjoyed it more if it hadn't taken so long.

Yep,
You need a better heat source, maybe find an old used 2 burner propane camping stove.
Plenty of support for a 9" cast iron skillet full of alloy.

Put some shiny aluminum foil UNDER the coils of the hot plate so that all the heat is reflected UP. Use an 8 inch CAST IRON skillet. The skillet will hold enough lead to pour about 2 ingots. Put just a few of the WW in the skillet, and as they melt, add more. My first attempt was with an 11" skillet. Those results were even more dismal than yours.

Thanks for the thought, this hot plate already has a shiny chrome cover under the burner. Today I may take the small sauce and and give that a try and also try putting in less lead to start with.

Not sure how accurate my scale is but it is showing I netted about 10 lbs. of muffins.

Next question is after it was all melted and I had removed the clips I took a pcs of candle to try and flux it. It melted quickly but did not flame and then left an oily substance on the surface. Was that the wax of the temp not being hot enough?

Hey Gary,
Yes I recall your post. From what experienced that night what looks like what is happening is a few things, one the pan is too large and extends way beyond the burner and two the burner does just get hot enough to melt but not efficiently. This plate has a power light and I didn't see it cycling on and off nor did I hear the burner creaking as if cooling down.

Anyways, your advice is good. I had this hot plate here and just had to try it out of curiosity and now I know how it will perform. Will work in a pinch but I certainly do not want to continue this way. But I admit I have a lot to learn.

When I couldn't get my new wally mart hot plate to melt a small pot of wheel weights , as soon as the WW's started to melt the unit would cycle off , I called the manufacturer ...it's a safety feature designed to not let pots catch on fire ! OK for preheating moulds but that's about it .

Take out your propane crawfish boiling burner and use that...If you don't boil crawfish then use the burner from your turkey fryer !
Gary

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Originally Posted by gwpercle

Take out your propane crawfish boiling burner and use that...If you don't boil crawfish then use the burner from your turkey fryer !
Gary

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I have neither of those. Though I did in my past life work in the food industry as a maint. mechanic and spent years working with ovens with gas burners. Some of these burners were 10' long made from 1.5" pipe. These were used in ovens to heat baking mold plates.

It sounds like this is just the beginning of your smelting adventures.
My advice is to buy a propane turkey fryer burner setup for your smelting.
They cost less than $50.00 if you look around.
It will speed up your process immensely.

Rizzo, also thanks for the suggestion. Still thinking that even a burner like that is way more than I will ever need. I honestly cannot see me melting much more than 100# a year between what I plan on casting and then shooting. Most are going to be 100gr Boolits to load for the 380 auto. 25lbs of lead is about 1750 100gr Boolits which is probably more than I will shoot in a year by past consumption.

If you can pick-up an old coleman white gas stove that would be enough heat to melt lead for both ingots and dipping.

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Originally Posted by kmw1954

Thanks for the thought, this hot plate already has a shiny chrome cover under the burner. Today I may take the small sauce and and give that a try and also try putting in less lead to start with.

Not sure how accurate my scale is but it is showing I netted about 10 lbs. of muffins.

Next question is after it was all melted and I had removed the clips I took a pcs of candle to try and flux it. It melted quickly but did not flame and then left an oily substance on the surface. Was that the wax of the temp not being hot enough?

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Candle wax or sawdust. Either will get the job done, but sometimes you need to light it with a match. Wait for the smoke, and then light it.

I found if you put a lid on it the lead will melt a lot quicker and stay liquid longer.

Just came in from melting some more COWW only this time I used the small sauce pan and it made a world of difference. Did about the same amount and it took half the time and everything stayed liquid. Looks to me as though this pot will hold about 15lbs. when 3/4 full. I think I can live with that.

With a turkey frying rig when Thanksgiving comes around you can deep fry a turkey...and a deep fried cajun injected turkey is something every one should try at least once in their life !
Gary

Sorry to hear your hot plate experiment didn't work. I have an alternative method I use quite often; a single burner Coleman propane stove. https://www.amazon.com/Coleman-Bottl...53187805&psc=1

I have been using mine for some years with no problems. I have a "custom "pot" that is 1/4" steel about 8" diameter and 4" deep. I can fill it and have about close to 20 pounds of lead melted in about 10 minutes. I mainly use this set up for small batches and/or mixing a small batch of an alloy. My casting is done with my bottom pour pot. The main thing to be aware of is the pot sits pretty high and may be tipped over, although this has never happened to me in the many years I have been using it...

mdi, thanks.
The iron skillet didn't work so well but the stainless sauce pan is working much better. Once I have a nice puddle in the bottom I've found if I don't load it too fast it melts OK. Not a speed demon but it gets the job done for now. I think I will be looking for an alternative method down the road.. Melting more right now and I am enjoying it I guess as much as one can, watching lead melt.

How tall are the sides of that sauce pan? Maybe it'd be possible to wrap the sides with a layer or two of rock wool or fiberglass insulation. It's not a long term solution, but it might cut down on the melt time.

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Originally Posted by Walks

Well, you've had lots of good advice.

A LOT of people will say this is excessive. But I haven't burned any part of my body in 30 years.
Once HOT Lead touches your skin, you will Never forget it.

Good Luck

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Agreed on the advice received.

I have worked my entire life around industrial machines and processes. Starting from Farm machinery, to foundry and chemicals to the food industry. Not going to try and say I have never been hurt because that would be a lie. Though anyone that has been exposed like I have will tell you it is inevitable. At some point it will happen. I've been burned, shocked, cut and crushed in my lifetime. Some were my fault, others were someone else's fault.

At one time I took a temp job for a chemical company, I was canning, 55gal barrels, of hot resin. It was coming out of the reactors at 750*F. Yes it is good to remind people of the dangers or inform the uneducated. In my case I have years of experiences and hundreds of hours of safety classes and lectures behind me. Also one of my first jobs out of high school way back when was an Aluminum Die Cast shop. Those jobs are all but gone today!

Yes, stay safe!