Session 5, still learning.

[Bazoo]

Sounds like you're just into the edge of good casting temperature range with your hot plate. I've cast a lot setting down. It's just as tiring to me. I like casting standing up and then setting down a few minutes when the pot needs more. Course youre still figuring out what works best for you.

[samari46]

Get another hot plate and keep that one on while casting with the other. When the first pot is down as low as you want start casting from #2 and reload #1. And if you are worried about hot lead spills look for a all leather welders apron and get a pair of welders gloves to open and close the sprue plate. Never take the gloves off until the pots are off and molds are cool. Frank

[Burnt Fingers]

I can't stand for very long so I cast while sitting. I use a good office chair. I also wear an apron that covers me from neck to ankle. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I'm 6'3" and it's plenty big. If I need to get away I just need to push away from the bench. However! If I'm adding lead to the pot I do it standing up. I preheat my lead so there's no moisture to worry about.

If you're serious about casting get a bottom pour pot. If you insist on using a ladle then get a Waage pot. Search here for info on ordering one.

I've got an RCBS PM-2, PM-1, Saeco, an old Lyman and a couple of Lee pots around here. I also cast fishing tackle sometimes. If I can cast four ounce fishing tackle with a bottom pour I can do the same with bullets.

[waksupi]

An electric bottom pour pot surely helps. Once I have the lead molten, I put a couple ingots on the edge of the pot to pre-heat, and use some channel locks to slip them into the pot as the level drops. Put another ingot on the edge, and keep going. You can keep up a pretty good pace this way. I also suggest using kitty litter on top of the melt to avoid oxidation, and stirring with a stick rather than using wax. There is no way the specific gravity of wax will let it go completely through your alloy. A stick will.

[kmw1954]

I keep a few round ingots around the bottom of the pot preheating and that helps. Still it's taking about 75minutes to get 15lbs of lead up to temp. and that's with the outside temps at 70+*, don't know if this will work when it gets into the 50's. Would be nice if I could cut this time in half.

Well between the last two sessions I have about 200 of these little bullets saved that all look pretty good. a few are a bit frosted but I can live with those. Also last night I went and weigh checked what I had done yesterday and amazingly they were all within 1 grain from high to low. They were all dropping at about 104.5gr with just a couple that were 105gr and a few that were 104gr.. So I know I'm making progress.

Nice outside again today with the sun shinning and little wind so I'm going to give'r another go!

[popper]

Just get the Lee dripper don't look back and get to casting. I can only do about 1/2 hr then refill the pot while resting. Get a sonogram of my leg this afternoon. maybe get a replacement artery. Frosted bullets aren't bad, just slow the pace a bit. Getting old sucks but casting is fun.

[gwpercle]

50 + Years experience casting ... I wish someone had told me .

1.) You do not need a bottom pour pot to cast excellent boolits . The ladle works great .
2.) A big electric melter makes things go much faster .
3.) A Lee Magnum Melter (20# capacity , 20 min. melt time )
4.) New Lyman Ladle with longer handle , side spout for pressure casting .
5.) Two cavity are ok , but three and four cavity moulds are best for pressure casting . They start getting heavy as you get older .
6.) Slightly frosty is good , you get good fill out , nothing wrong with them .
7.) Flux the pot often with both beeswax and pencil sharpener shavings .
8.) Preheat your mould (hot plate or top of pot) keep dipper in the melt/pot to keep it hot .

The only way to learn is to cast...the above are things I learned the hard way. I'm a dipper caster and it cost me a lot of money to learn that lesson ... Dip them if it suits you .
Gary

[Bazoo]

I prefer dipper casting but I've done both. I enjoy dipper casting better regardless of the speed of a bottom pour pot.

[kmw1954]

Much better results to day. Still took over an hour to get the lead melted but then I did give it a little extra time to heat with the pot covered. I did relocate where I was dropping the bullets to a bit closer and much higher than where it was and that seemed to help. Tried slowing the tempo down which also help with the fatigue! Might need a little more tweaking as I seen a few wrinkled and some frosting but nowhere near what I seen yesterday. Still looks like all should be usable.

From the time I started set-up to the time I turned off the hotplate was about 2hrs, 15 min.. In that time I was able to drop 260 of these little pills. Now it also looks like we might get one more nice day so I may try to do more tomorrow. For now I'm excited to get to the bench and weigh check these to see how consistent I'm getting.

If I can get another 250 tomorrow I should be set until spring with what I have already loaded and what I have in plated. So now I may have to start watching for a 45acp mold and thenwork on my lead scavenging.