Is the RCBS Pro Melt worth the money

[oneMOA]

The RCBS Pro Melt is the most expensive of the "Big Three" melt furnaces. Street price is about $365 more or less. If you look at the components of a melt furnace you will see: one heating element, one bi-metal thermostat, one 22 lb pot (bottom pour) one on/off switch, sheet metal to enclose it all. Finding prices online for RCBS furnace parts are non-existant. Prices for Lee products are available and a search will find heating elements (700 watts) lead pot (20 lbs) bi-metal thermostat and pin rod shut-off rod all for less than $85. Then add some extra for sheet metal enclosure and insulation, lets say brings the cost up to about $100.

The new melt pots only have a two year warranty according to their website, the lifetime warranty is a thing of the past. In my experience their customer service leaves something to be desired, so "Where is the beef." Much of the online chatter on this forum and others expound on the quality of RCBS and the resultant Customer Service to justify the higher price. I will admit that over 10 years ago I called RCBS for an issue with a primer pocket swager and they sent a replacement part free of charge.

Recently I experienced a problem with my new (two months) RCBS Pro Melt furnace after attempting to drain the pot to chage the alloy. As per their instructions, "always keep about 1.5 inches of alloy in the pot and I suspect this has to do with overheating the heating element with no load on it. As I drained down the pot into my ingot molds using the bottom pour spout, when I reached the 1.5 mark, I shut off the power to the pot and contunued to drain the pot. All but a small amount drained out but enough remained once it solidified to capture the the lift pin valve and it could not be removed. I used a propane hand held torch to melt and free the pin and clear the nozzle of the pot.

Once I reloaded the pot with the new alloy the nozzle leaked one drip about every four seconds where it did not leak before. At this point I suspected I had warped the pin or the bottom of the pot and caused an alignment problem. I decided to call RCBS to see what they suggested.

When I called Customer Service I was referred over to the correct department and no one answered but I was was promised a call back within 24 hours. When the next day arrived and no call back I call again and left another message with a promise to call back within 24 hours. When the third day arrives i am pretty irrate and after complaining to the only live person I could get on the line, and threatening to phone the CEO of the parent company of RCBS, I was refered to a so called tech support person who claimed to be knowledegable of the Pro Melt Furnace. After a brief conversation I realized she new nothing about the Pro Melt. She did agree to send a new pin rod to see if that helped.

Once the new pin rod arrives I'll install it and if the pot still leaks I'll send it back to RCBS for warranty repair. It will go up on ebay after the leaking issue has been resolved.

I have since purchased a Lee Magum Melter for $65 and at 700 watts is equal to the Pro Melter in that reguard. I have also purchased a laddle and will cast by boolits by ladle. My molds are all large boolits in the 535 gr .45 cal, so ladle pouring will be better in the long run. I regret the day I purchased the RCBS Pro Melt pot.

[VHoward]

Really? You damage the pot, They send you a new part free of charge and if that doesn't fix it, your going to send it back to RCBS for "warranty" repair, and then not use it?
You damage the pot through no fault of theirs and your p***ed at them?
Granted they dropped the ball phone call wise but they are sending you a part fee of charge. I think they should charge you for the part.

[M-Tecs]

I waited for a sale and rebates. I have about $240 in mine. It's worth every penny. I have a PID Magma Cast Master 90 pounder http://www.magmaengineering.com/products/cast-master/, the ProMelt, two waage 22 pounders and an old Saeco from the late 60's. Tried the Lee route but they would burn out every couple of years.

Like the Cast Master best but it's 240 so I only can use it in one spot. The ProMelt sees a lot of use on the patio.

Interesting read http://castboolits.gunloads.com/show...-RCBS-Pro-Melt

[chloe123]

I've had a Pro Melt for about 5 years. I used it as a casual shooter for about 2 to 3 years. In my experience, no dripping issues. Apart from the few times I had contaminants.

Since there's a mixed theme of "is the RCBS Pro Melt worth the $" and "has RCBS Customer Service deteriorated", I think it's good to get others input.

RCBS sent me 2 parts (one for their Lubrisizer and the other for their bullet feeder), for free. Sure, it took a while to reach them over the phone but they were courteous and attentive to the issue.

I may be wrong but I think the Pro Melt is popular, and speaks to their price point. The alternative is the Lyman. Is their price that much less?

[barkerwc4362]

I have three Pro Melts. I have used Lee's 10 lb pots in the past and bought a 20 lb pot, but never used it after getting the first of my Pro Melts. The first Pro Melt almost 25 years old and has never missed a beat. With the Lee 10 lb pots I had to change the heating elements and run them wide open to get good fill. They also leaked like a sieve. The oldest Pro Melt has my pistol alloy only now and has cast unknown tens of thousands of bullets. They are worth every penny I paid for them. All of mine have been modified to use the Lyman mold guide. It makes casting with four cavity molds a breeze. I have never had any problem with RCBS customer service. If anything they are too generous with their free parts. If it sound like I am a loyal RCBS customer you are right. I also have three piggyback progressive systems that run like sewing machines because I take the time to adjust them. If you don't want that Pro Melt send it my way, I know some one who would love to have it.

Bill

[oneMOA]

While I had the "Tech Support" person on the phone I asked if there was a procedure suggested by RCBS to drain the pot for cleaning or changing alloy. She said no. So it's up to the end user to figure out the best way without damaging the pot. The user Manual as I have previously stated, says don't let the alloy get below 1.5 inches from the bottom of the pot. Failing instructions from the manufacture the end user is on his own.

My comments have been a rebutal to the glowing reviews of RCBS's great customer service from across this forum and across the web in general. It may be that in the past they were great..............today my experience has been not so much. Is one to assume that RCBS feels the melt pot would never need cleaning or draining of the pot for any reason? Apparently so since they provide no instructions in doing so either on their website or their user manual.

Asside from the poor customer service I experienced, I made the decision to buy this RCBS pot based on the positive comments I found across the web. Now that I have experienced a problem, I have had cause to make a detailed comparison of the competitors pots. The pin rods look very nearly the same from the top three manufacturers, meaning there is no superior engineering with the RCBS valve over the competitors. The heating element could be compared to an ordinary electric stove......does one brand have a higher failure rate of heating elements over others? All the top brand melt pots use a bi-metal thermostat and while I have no experience with the others, my Rcbs Pro Melt had a 50 degree temp swing from low to high as the control cycled. Thats why I went to a PID control.

As I have said in my previous post the RCBS pot is not superior engineered or does it use superior parts in the construction, just premium pricing which should include a "No BS warranty" which the cunsumer pays dearly for.

Yes once I get this pot working properly with no leaks, I plan to sell it and recover as much of my money back as I can and chalk it up to a learning experience. Anyone interested in purchasing this pot, send me a PM and lets make a deal.

[500MAG]

Love my Pro-Melt. Never have drained it completely to change alloys, I just drain it down to about an inch & a half and start the new alloy. I keep a separate lee 20 pounder for anything special.

[Ole]

I paid a little under $300 for mine and you can't have it at that price unless you stick a gun in my face.

[cheese1566]

I have a friend who is a customer service tech at rcbs. He was emailing me last weekend. I asked why he was working on Saturday when he usually had Fridays off...
He said the call system failed and the entire staff had to work the entire weekend on a days notice doing call backs to customers because of the glitch.

I have a nice rebuilt promelt from.him because someone complained about it repeatedly and the issue couldn't get resolved over the phone. It was sent to them and rcbs techs deemed it perfectly fine. I have used it for 3years and no issues.
Please send your stuff back to them! Others can get good deals on their refurbs!


I know of their lifetime warranty, I don't think it ever covered electrical, electronics, motors, or elements.

[wv109323]

I have a Lyman 20 lb. bottom that I have had for 30 years. I had to re wire it two or three times and replace the fiber board where the cord plugged into the furnace twice. Last time I went with a PID control to eliminate the wiring in close proximaty to the heating coil.
My complaint is that I don't think any of the name brands are worth the selling price. A melting pot is not a complicated device. There is no rocket science involved, no R&D, no expensive materials needed, minimum manufacturing machinery needed to make the parts or skilled labor for assembly. The only thing that would drive the cost up is low volume.
Think about it, you can almost buy a cheap kitchen stove for what you pay for a melting pot. If I had a lathe I would built my own.

[M-Tecs]

Never heard of anyone going from a ProMelt to a Lee and being happy. Lots went from a Lee to a ProMelt and are very happy. I wouldn't sell the ProMelt until I have experience with something else. As to heating elements Lee does have a very high failure rate in my experience.

[williamwaco]

I don't know about their phone system.
The last two times I wanted something, I just emailed them.

The first time was a broken part. The second time was a part I lost. Didn't break it. It didn't fail. This was in no way a warranty part but they sent it for free in less than 24 hours.

RCBS ROCKS!

[cheese1566]

I put my Lee 20 off to the side to try my promelt. I ended up putting it in the attic just in case my promelt gives up. I guess if that happens, I will have my promelt rebuilt rather than use the Lee. I do resort to y Lee 10 pounder for y decoy weight mold, but just hate using it now compared to the promelt.

[VHoward]

And I never put dirty lead in my casting pot anyway. And no need to completely drain it ever because of the no dirty lead rule. I have had mine for 5 years and have not drained it yet. And I don't plan to.

[nhrifle]

I am not a diehard RCBS fanatic, but one situation I had showed me how they value their customers. Some years ago I bought their Rangemaster 750 electronic scale. It served me well for quite awhile. Life's changes came my way, and after two moves in about 6 months I started getting my equipment set up again. I found the scale, but the calibration weights were lost. I couldn't find them for sale on the RCBS website. I called them and asked about purchasing a replacement set as it was my fault, and the warranty was long since expired. I received a new set in the mail three days later. No charge, no questions asked.

[Mk42gunner]

Number one, how did you not get the liquid lead alloy out of your Promelt before it refroze?

I will admit that the cost of a new Promelt threw me off for several years. I bought a Lee 4-20 brand new, then the next week I bought a production pot four from a pawn shop (missing valve rod) for ten bucks as a back up. Fixed the ten pounder and haven't heated it up since, (in fact I think about two puppys ago the cord got chewed). I used the 4-20 for a few years with okay results.

I bought my Promelt well used, at an estate auction for $80.00; and haven't cast a boolit with the Lee since then. I have no earthly idea how old it is, but it still works fine.

The only reason I don't always recommend the Promelt to new casters is the cost.

If I lost it tomorrow, could I go back to using the 4-20? Sure, but I would not be happy.

Robert

[rockrat]

I have two. One I bought new about 8 years ago, and another I found at a garage sale. Its 18 years old. Both work great!! I only use my Lee to anneal brass

[.22-10-45]

Never owned the RCBS Pro-Melt..have Lyman Mag Dipper. I'm curious about the warning of not letting alloy drop below 1.5"? whats the difference when first using furnace when you fill it with ingots? There sure isn't anything insulating the heating element except air!

[oldfart1956]

Never owned the RCBS Pro-Melt..have Lyman Mag Dipper. I'm curious about the warning of not letting alloy drop below 1.5"? whats the difference when first using furnace when you fill it with ingots? There sure isn't anything insulating the heating element except air!

Now there's an interesting conundrum. I'll piggyback on this post because I have an RCBS that is nearly full of linotype that I need to get out. Actually cast a few boolits with that stuff...as per Mike V. and that'll never happen again. So should I bring it up to temp and quickly drain into ingots after turning off the power and then melt alloy in another pot to pour into the RCBS?? Or melt and drain to the 1 1/2 inch level and fill it to the brim with soft lead? Audie...the pondering Oldfart..

[dikman]

Might as well add my bit. I bought a ProMelt first, and paid a LOT more than you guys do! I consider it quite well made and the stock thermostat works quite well, although I now run a PID. It strikes me as being a good solid bit of gear. I've since bought a Lee Pro4, and it now works very well - but only because I modded it heavily. I consider the Lee handle/needle lifter to be its weak point, a cheap-to-make item, whereas the RCBS handle is infinitely superior in design and operation.

Is it worth the money? I guess that's up to the individual. If you're capable of modifying the Lee, you can turn it into a "mini-RCBS" and it will function just as well, for a fraction of the price. If you can't do it, and have to use the pot as it comes, then the RCBS is the much better pot to use.

I can, however, understand your frustration at dealing with them. Such treatment is unacceptable, and if they were having difficulties with their system then they should have said so.