Least Expensive Way To Get started Casting

[trickg]

Hey folks. I wanted to ask the question of how to get involved in casting without a lot of outlay of cash up front, if in fact that can be done.

I decided after loading up most of the .45 ACP 200 gr lead SWC that I bought that I I would rather cast my own. My dad was a caster, but I didn't wind up with any of his equipment so although I kind of know what I need and how to do it, I don't yet even have a bullet mold.

I looked at the Lyman Master Caster set which includes a small furnace, the luber/sizer, a dipper and the ingot mold, and that seems to be about the best deal going from what I can tell - it's certainly less than if I try to buy those components new.

I was just wondering if there is any way to get going without dumping several hundred dollars up front. I'm pretty sure I can find myself a source or two of WW and if I could, I'd like to stick with Lyman molds - it's what Dad used, I casted with them under his direction, and it's what I would be comfortable with.

Also, if anyone has some stuff lying around that they aren't using because they have upgraded or whatever, send me a PM and maybe we can work something out.

All suggestions are welcome - thanks in advance!

[trickg]

Wow - no one has any ideas about how to get started without spending a lot of dough?

[scb]

I would NOT recommend that anyone start with LEE. They are the least expensive but you get what you pay for. Starting with cheap "equipment" that produces less than acceptable results is not the way to start, it only leads to frustration which may turn the beginner off to casting all together. Start with good stuff and if after you get proficient with it you want to take on the "challenge" of Lee's products at least you'll have the knowledge that casting isn't a "black art". All one has to do is look at the "space" dedicated on this forum to fixing these things (ie leeminging as well as countless others) to see what I mean. I will say however that Lee's bullet sizing system works fairly well. I am not however sold on their tumble lube, too messy for me. Steve

[MtGun44]

One hole Lee mold, propane stove or gas camp stove, cut down #10 coffee can
for melting lead and Lee ladle WILL work - I started this way. It is FAR from
optimum but will cost under $40 if you have the stove. You will quickly tire of
this slow system, but you can get good boolits. I started with the Lee cake
cutter lube system (pan to melt Alox lube onto boolits standing on their bases,
cut out with a tube just larger than the boolit) but these aren't sold by Lee any
more. They included a hammer driven sizer, tube with a ram, very simple and
slow, but worked fine. Lee's current sizer uses a std press, but I don't particularly
like their LLA "mule snot" lube, but others love it.

This is pretty much the cheapest possible with new stuff, sometimes finding used
is the best deal, but hard to plan on.

Use a two hole Lee and a better ladle and you'll get much more production. A used
Lyman or RCBS luberisizer can sometimes be had for $50 used, and will
increase lube rate a lot. I was a very poor college student when I started, so
anyone can do this, add new stuff as you can afford if you are still enjoying
the hobby.

Welcome and good luck.
Bill

[trickg]

Thanks guys - I appreciate the feedback.

I cast bullets with my Dad and he had a pretty basic but thorough setup. He ladle casted out of a cast iron pot over a propane stove, and almost all of his molds were lyman - I know he had one RCBS mold, but for most of what he did, he used Lyman 2-cavity molds.

I don't really know what he lubed/sized with - he had one lube setup that he used for years, and then later he got a hot lube setup. I think back to all of that stuff that he had, and I almost want to cry because he had a lot of molds - everything from 38 caliber round ball to 400+ grain .45 caliber bullets for 45-70/90.

I just know that I could shoot even more on my budget if I would invest in a casting setup, and I'd want to get started by spending as little as possible.

[scb]

MtGun44 has a good point. A lot of my equipment is used. As long as you can check it out and it looks ok. Most casting stuff can't be "worn out". The most common malady is rust. I wouldn't buy anything that obviously looks abused (beat on).

[Bret4207]

Pot, ladle, heat source, Mule Snot and shoot. I started out about that way with a Lee 405 gr 45/70 mould, hand lubed, cast with a ladle from an old pot and learned a lot. Start simple and cheap and go from there.

[mooman76]

Get a 1 qt cast iron pot from a thrift store or garage sale. Just a couple bucks. A cheap lee ladle is like $3. I wouldn't mess with a one hole mould if I could help especially when you can get a 2 holer for like 2 dollars more. That will get you started except for the safety gear which I'm sure you have stuff laying around. You cans use a kitchen stove with good ventelation but better of outside with a camp stove.

[longbow]

As said above, you can get started fairly inexpensively and in my case, after about 40 years of casting not much has changed for me. I still cast on a budget and have the same equipment I started with - other than the stove.

I started with an old cast iron plumber's pot my grandfather had along with a ladle that holds about a pound of lead. I used the pot on a natural gas hotplate in my parents basement at the time. When I moved out I got a Coleman stove the after that died I got a propane stove.

I still cast with the same pot and ladle. Mostly I have two cavity moulds except for the big round balls and slugs (12 ga.) which are single cavity. I prefer iron moulds and have Lyman, Ohaus and RCBS. I have used Lee moulds and have no complaint except that you have to be a little more careful with them but you shouldn't be beating up your mould blocks anyway.

At one point I bought an electric bottom pour pot but didn't like it and went back to the ladle.

I don't cast in the volume some here do but this set up suits me fine. It was and is inexpensive and trouble free.

Also, I shoot mostly as cast. I have sized but find if I don't have to why bother. Dip lubing, pan lubing and tumble lube all work reasonably well and again no real cost for equipment. If you need to size a Lee sizer works fine and is inexpensive.

You can certainly spend a pile of money on reloading rquipment if you want to but you don't have too.

Longbow

[725]

Unlike advise from others, don't be afraid of Lee. A $20 Lee mould can make alot of nice boolits.

[trickg]

Some folks have said that I could use a camp stove, but I have a burner on one side of my gas grill that I could probably use as a heat source to start with. That would keep my casting operation outside and ventilated although I would be a tad leery of putting lead near where we cook our other food, although I would certainly keep the main grill lid down if I did decide to do that. But, that would pretty good with a cast iron pot and a ladle, and I could set up my Black & Decker Workmate bench to use as a table off to the side.

[MT Gianni]

Cover your deck with cardboard or plywood under these and any spills will be easier to pick up and not burned into your deck. Don't ask me how I know this. Gianni

[cajun shooter]

A good source for equipment is Mid-South Shooters supply. I've found that some of the bidders on e- bay are nuts. They pay $ 60 for a dble cavity plus shipping that can be purchased from Mid- South new for 46.55. Don't know if you know about Marvelux for fluxing but its great. No smoke, smell or fumes nor do you light it. Just stir in and scoop out the dross. I would also advise that you find, borrow or buy the Lyman Cast Bullet handbook. It's available for 13.00 from you know where and no I don't receive anthing from them.

[trickg]

I'll look into MS - looks to be pretty decent, and I'll also get the Lyman manual.

There are a lot of folks who like and swear by Lee stuff, but again, I want to get started with what I know, and that's dipper casting with Lyman molds.

Keep the suggestions coming!

[Naphtali]

Hey folks. I wanted to ask the question of how to get involved in casting without a lot of outlay of cash up front, if in fact that can be done.

. . .

All suggestions are welcome - thanks in advance!

Your most teething-pain-free thing to do is to locate one pleasant person within easy driving distance who casts and reloads regularly. One or two sessions with this mentor will be invaluable. Not only can you learn what and how to do what you want to do. You can learn why the mentor does what he does. Once you are no longer completely at sea, you will have a better idea what you need to acquire, and what is strictly overkill for what you want to do.

On these forums, there are probably several such people. All you need do is ask.

Just some thoughts.

[runfiveslittlegirl]

most definately start with a good mold..
handles for it.
get a lee 20# pot.
you really don,t want to smelt with the pot you are gonna cast in but to get ya started
you can do it.
a bit of solder some ww's and a way to get the clips outta the pot.
melt the ww's in the pot pick out the clips ,flux, add a bit of tin and pour some bullets.
in your cleaned mold.
buy a few sticks of lube, melt them in a coffee cup in the microwave.
pan lube and size in a lee push-through.
you can move up as you go, but this equipment will still be with you as you go along.

[KCSO]

Gee am I the only one here who started on a wood stove????

I got a lead pot and dipper for free from a friend and I bought a round ball mould used from a gun shop. I put the pot on Mom's stove and cast balls for a year before I spilled lead on a burner and was banished. The i had to go to Grampa's and cast on his wood stove.

[trickg]

Naphtali - thanks. As weird as this sounds, even though I have no equipment of my own, at one point I was pretty adept at casting thanks to having done it with my late father. I knew how and why to flux, I knew that in order to get good fill out on the mold and to get smooth, flawless bullets, the mold had to be hot, but not too hot, and I know that for many applications, WW by themselves will work as a source for bullet lead. (Dad used to alloy with linotype at times for certain applications.)

But, all of that said, for me to put together a setup like he had would cost me a fair amount of money, even if I only bought one or two molds. As an example, he had:

a propane stove (very similar to this - Double Burner Stove)
a good sized propane tank - probably about 100 gallons
Multiple cast iron cauldrons (he had a great big one he used for smelting)
Multiple dippers
Well over a dozen Lyman bullet molds (I would say he had at least 20 molds for all different calibers, everything from round balls to shotgun slugs)
Ingot molds
sizer/luber
etc

It was hundreds, if not thousands of dollars worth of gear. I don't need anything quite that fancy, but even to get started, if I get the equipment I'm familiar with, it will be a fair amount of money - I'm just looking to see if there is a way that I can bypass some of that expense.

[TexasJeff]

I would NOT recommend that anyone start with LEE. They are the least expensive but you get what you pay for. Starting with cheap "equipment" that produces less than acceptable results is not the way to start, it only leads to frustration which may turn the beginner off to casting all together.

Yep, know what you mean.

If I'd used a Lyman mould or RCBS pot or Star sizer, maybe these groups wouldn't have been so crappy and unacceptable for my first foray into casting.



Somehow I guess the gods were for me in the black art since I used some Lee equipment. Even loaded the boolits on a Lee press. Maybe I had my eyes closed while I was shooting.

Oh well.

Jeff

[Idaho Sharpshooter]

Go for broke with your melting set up. Cabela's is always having a sale, wait til their turkey fryers come up for $59.95 or so. That cooker comes with an eight quart dutch oven here in Idaho. It will melt down 300lbs of wheel weights at a pop, and you can cast from it if you wish.

Rich