HeavyMetal with ladle pouring making better bullets!
With a bottom pour, you can “pressure pour” Hold the mold up to the spout and do as good if not better than ladle pouring until the mold is up to it’s optimum operating temperature [ this is something you need to find out for each mold, mold temp in relation to alloy temp for type of alloy and rate of casting] then you can pour/drop the lead normally.
With ladle pour you always have the same lead pressure for every pour, but I find with bottom pour if you don’t let the pot get to low it doesn’t matter.
I also started with a Ladle then quickly went to bottom pour because bottom pour eliminates having to worry about any dross. I actually like to leave a layer of pine sawdust dross on top of my pot (some use clay kitty litter) to help prevent oxidation and prevent splashing when returning your sprues and really ugly boolits to the pot.
" have arthritis in my hands"
With arthritis bottom pour has less movement you may want to look at this for your sprue opening
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/show...e-opening-jigs
"There is no wrong answer. There is only what works for you."
It’s like the “great debate between Chevy/Ford/Dodge--- developed personal preferance
I've used a Lee 4-20 for many years, we've become intimately acquainted. It works well enough for me with a PID that I have not felt the need to "upgrade?" to a more expensive pot.