Where do you cast in the winter ( northern guys)

[Boolseye]

Well this gives me plenty of good answers and options...no more setting of smoke alarms!
Do most of you smelt in a different pot and cast in another? Is it a bad idea to smelt in the casting pot?

Smelting and casting are completely different operations for me. Smelting is always outdoors (with a respirator!)
in a big steel pot, a 20# propane tank cut in half, on a big propane burner. There are plenty of variations on this, but the idea is strong and big. There's dirt, rocks, tar, all kinds of **** that can find its way in there when you're melting down range lead and roof flashing. Casting is refined in comparison, with a bunch of pretty ingots free of impurities. All that's left is a little light fluxing and you're good to go.
-jp

[Boolseye]

shoot, I'd fire up the pot tonight if I didn't have such a bad cold

[JWFilips]

I hate to ask another question with out starting another thread..... but since you are all being so helpful here
Does a fella need a Lead thermometer to start out smelting & casting?

[Boolseye]

Not a bad idea. Rotometals sells the same one as RCBS but without a brand on it for about $30 less.
I use mine every time I cast, just keep it in there. I think there's another place you can get a good one even cheaper.

[jonk]

I melt and blend lead in the garage, temperature not withstanding. I just turned 50 lb of dead soft lead sheeting with glued on paper backing into ingots- would have smoked the house up something awful. However for casting, always in the basement; I have a window above me that I set a high velocity fan in front of to suck up any smoke from flux.

[bobthenailer]

IMO yes to a thermomter , even when smelting you can keep the temp at the correct temp ( 600/650) degrees so those EVIL ZINC WW dont get into your alloy

[dragon813gt]

Weekend before Christmas at around 25 degrees.




That's only for processing into ingots. I can't do it as long due to the tank freezing up.

For casting bullets I do it in my unconditioned garage year round. Use a fan in the summer if it's to hot. And a torpedo heater this time of year to keep it just above bearable. I can't put in all day sessions due to the exhaust from the heater. One day I'll fix the water/mold issues in the garage basement so I can build a 14'x24' conditioned reloading room

[Boris]

hmm, I don't get it ... outside of course! ... unless it's snowing or raining. The difference in temp is insignificant, i.e. human body goes bonkers over a few degrees but it's fine for lead. Just dress warm and get the fire going hot.

[Jal5]

Melting ww and range scrap outside, early spring and fall activity for me.
Casting boolits, inside in the garage anytime except summer! I can raise the garage door an inch in the winter and use some fans to keep the air blowing out. I plan to set up a hood and fix one of the garage door windows so that I can attach a vent hose to it. Joe

[mongo]

I cast outside on days that are above freezing and not too windy. The one thing that I use is a hotplate. I got one at Walgreens for under $10. Really makes a world of difference, especially in the colder months..

[Lizard333]

Guess I have it tough, in the winter I turn on the heater in the shop, summer requires the A/C be turned on. I have enough ventilation that when I flux it sucks all heated air out of the shop so once finished fluxing I have to turn down the vents. It's tough.

Rick

I am with you Rick. It does get a little dicey when walking to my shop there is snow or ice on the ground. I usually get the wife to put down some salt do I don't slip!!

My shop has a 240 volt heater and a swamp cooler for the summer months, it's a dry heat.

A hood vent from a range stove is wired into the outlet so when my pot gets turned on, so does the vent/light.

I cast year round.

[cbrick]

I keep the shop heater on 24/7 this time of year though turned way down. It's raining today, 48 degrees outside (dang global warming) and the humidity is 98%. In the shop right now it's 50 degrees and the humidity is 37%. Guess if I were to cast today I'd have to go out and turn up the heat & wait for the shop to warm up to a sensible temp, life is tough this time of year.

Rick

[JWFilips]

Now agin not to start another Thread somewhere else: I'm smelting wheel weights/ I need to flux; Some good old" Dry" sawdust.... the stuff lead melts.... Then The hand full of sawdust goes in.... I guess I stir the mix? Then how long of this stirring! Then after flux how long do I start ladeling into my muffin tins to make ingots.
Is there some magical point?

[runfiverun]

let the sawdust turn to charcoal.
i turn the heat up when i am going to start fluxing.
this gets the heat currents going and bring as much gunk to the top as possible.
once the sawdust turns to grey/black ash.
it's then carbon stir the carbon into the alloy
this starts a process called carbourization which helps the mix in the alloy bind together better.
once you have stirred this all in for a bit you'll see a bunch of black and silver stuff swirling around in the middle.
i spread this out on top.
this is when i turn the heat back down.
then add some wax and let it melt on top and swirl it out to cover the whole pot, then light it on fire.
this makes an oxygen free barrier on top of the alloy which will allow all those silver /grey oxides return to the melt.
scrape all the black and other gunk off the top...done.
start making ingots.
the oxidization will come back as you go.
just push it to the side untill it builds up, then burn it down again.

[JWFilips]

let the sawdust turn to charcoal.
i turn the heat up when i am going to start fluxing.
this gets the heat currents going and bring as much gunk to the top as possible.
once the sawdust turns to grey/black ash.
it's then carbon stir the carbon into the alloy
this starts a process called carbourization which helps the mix in the alloy bind together better.
once you have stirred this all in for a bit you'll see a bunch of black and silver stuff swirling around in the middle.
i spread this out on top.
this is when i turn the heat back down.
then add some wax and let it melt on top and swirl it out to cover the whole pot, then light it on fire.
this makes an oxygen free barrier on top of the alloy which will allow all those silver /grey oxides return to the melt.
scrape all the black and other gunk off the top...done.
start making ingots.
the oxidization will come back as you go.
just push it to the side untill it builds up, then burn it down again.

Thank You that is a great explanation!
Just curious....so it's the carbon from the wood that does the magic so would wood shavings or wood chips do the same?
How about activated charcoal like the stuff I use in my aquariums it is fine granules that I buy in bulk to purify the water ?

[Lance Boyle]

Weekend before Christmas at around 25 degrees.




That's only for processing into ingots. I can't do it as long due to the tank freezing up.

For casting bullets I do it in my unconditioned garage year round. Use a fan in the summer if it's to hot. And a torpedo heater this time of year to keep it just above bearable. I can't put in all day sessions due to the exhaust from the heater. One day I'll fix the water/mold issues in the garage basement so I can build a 14'x24' conditioned reloading room

Duh, just hold the tank over the flame to warm it back up!

[monge]

I do all my heavy melting in summer and flux every bar twice then in the winter i just melt clean lead bars and leave garage door shut, cut down on smoke and fumes long johns and winter jacket !

[Qc pistolero]

I cast in my storage shed, about 12x12 non insulated. I usually don't cast if under 20 degrees.
I use a propane camp stove to cast on, its warm on the knees and chest cold on the back.
I have not mastered casting behind my back yet, to warm the other side- I keep missing the sprue hole!

Try casting with a mirror over your shoulder the way some trick shooters were doing.I'm sure with a little practice,you won't miss the spruehole anymore!

[bart55]

smelt outside in the spring and summer and cast in the basement during the winter with a small exhaust fan over the pot ,seems to work out pretty well ,I do get mesmerized doing it though,sometimes I forget what time it is and its 2am and I have to get up at 5 for work .Gettin old but still kickin

[JWFilips]

let the sawdust turn to charcoal.
i turn the heat up when i am going to start fluxing.
this gets the heat currents going and bring as much gunk to the top as possible.
once the sawdust turns to grey/black ash.
it's then carbon stir the carbon into the alloy
this starts a process called carbourization which helps the mix in the alloy bind together better.
once you have stirred this all in for a bit you'll see a bunch of black and silver stuff swirling around in the middle.
i spread this out on top.
this is when i turn the heat back down.
then add some wax and let it melt on top and swirl it out to cover the whole pot, then light it on fire.
this makes an oxygen free barrier on top of the alloy which will allow all those silver /grey oxides return to the melt.
scrape all the black and other gunk off the top...done.
start making ingots.
the oxidization will come back as you go.
just push it to the side untill it builds up, then burn it down again.

Well I got to do my first wheel weight smelting today outside. It is in the 40's up here so I picked a good day ( however I probably should have gone to the range I probably would have like that better!) Anyway my wife surprised me by picking me up a bargain cast Iron Dutch oven so for my first attempt I felt like I was casting in "Style"

Since my driveway is free of snow I set up there on some cinder blocks I put in about 39 lbs of lead wheel weights ( checked each one individually with cutting pliers just to be sure I only had lead ones for my first attempt) Fired up my "bargin buy" turkey fryer and in about 20 minutes I had molten metal and clips a floatin. Now I was carefully watching my thermometer and I was trying to hold it about 725 deg. I threw in a handful of sawdust & started mixing but it was difficult with all the floating steel clips. So At this point I wanted to run to the computer to reread everything BUT I realized was in over my head. I was attempting to use the above explanation by "runfiverun" since it was very step by step specific....then I realized the clip step wasn't mentioned. So I started rethinking ...do I remove the clips first then flux??? But things were happening so fast. Since I had fluxed I just started removing the clips ( BTW I also threw in a small piece of bee's wax and lit the fumes So here I am skimming off burning globs of steel clips & at that point realized I was over 800 degrees!!! ( glad I checked all those wheel weights individually!) Fumbling with the gas controls I got the flame low....did the whole fluxing again with much stirring then skimmed off the last of the dirt. However the pot started getting thick ....Ugh! Too cool!.... so I bring the heat back up a bit then stabilize it at about 720 deg. I got some gold colored skin on the top so I push it aside & start ladeling it in to my tins ( I was pretty messy)
As the level in the pot dropped I got more & more skinning which was harder & harder to move to the side....by the time I started filling my second muffin pan I was getting that floating crust on my ingots So my second pan ingot tops look "granular" on top So after it was all said & done I ended up with 30 lbs of "muffins" & How do I feel about all this; well I feel like things didn't go right & I hope I didn't wreck my wheel weight lead.
For one : I don't know when to remove the clips Before or after first flux?
For two: I don't know if I stirred all the tin back in! I may have lifted it off with the clips.
for three: I don't think I ever got that oxidation preventing seal thing to happen?
For Four: I got the heat above 800 degrees ! I know I didn't have any zinc wheel weights in the mix so on that I'm not concerned however did it mess with the alloy anyway?

So all in all I'm not thrilled with how my first smelt went. Just don't like when things don't follow the rules. I 'm just not sure how much fudge factor is there before the mix gets ruined? It was a humbling experience I put all my stuff away, my wife told me I smelled funny...so I took a shower at 2 pm on a Saturday ...the sat down and wrote this....now I think it may be time for a pint of ale to forget the experience.