Which Lee pot

[59sharps]

I have both the RCBS mag and the Lee 4-20 Pro like them both equaly. For the $$ go for the 4-20. The 10# is to small, at least for me. most of my casting is 58 and 69 ca. had a 10# pot it was Just ok for 44 cal 2 cav. mold but runs out to fast on others. Just as you get going its time to refill it.

[Leftoverdj]

Bigger is better.

Ladle vs downpour is a matter of opinion. You can probably cast better bullets with a ladle, but you'll cast them a lot faster with a downpour pot. In either case, a larger pot will hold a more stable temperature and let you cast a lot more bullets.

If you only need a couple of hundred bullets at time, sure, you can get by with a small pot. Even for that, you'd be better off with a larger pot. If you are an avid shooter of pistol or rattle guns, you'll need thousands of bullets. I cast from a Lee 20-4 and use a Lee 10-4 while the bigger pot is coming to temperature. The 10-4 is not even really big enough for that. When I run into a deal, I'll add another 20-4 so I can cast continuously with six cavity moulds.

[acl864]

I'm a newbie and based on advice I received here bought the 20 lbs. Lee pot. No regrets. I'm sure the 10 lbs. will work, but for less than $20 more, get the big one.

[fredj338]

I ladle cast for years before buying the Lee Pro 4-20 5 years ago. I'll never go back.
I cast with Lee 6 cavities (9mm) or a Lyman 4 cavity 200gr SWC and, with the Pro 4-20, I can get a lot of good bullets quickly. I'd also recommend a hot plate to pre-warm molds and to pre-melt lead to pour in the 4-20. This really speeds things up and will eliminate the "spout freeze" that you can get when adding ingots directly into the 4-20. A small vice grip clamped on the top of the needle valve will help eliminate "drip".

I found just placing the mold on top of the pot easily keeps it hot. I often cast w/ two molds & alternate them to keep the mold temp constant. I don't know how anyone that has used a 20# BP pot can go back to ladle casting.

[13Echo]

For me at least casting the large bullets for BPCR is best done with the ladle. For smaller bullets and gang moulds a bottompour pot seems preferable. So it turns out I have two pots.

Jerry Liles

[papa bear]

Buy the larger pot. If you are going to keep using a ladle then buy a Rowell ladel from The antimony man.

[XWrench3]

my vote is for the lee 4-20 bottom pour as well. trust me, you will soon find out that 10 pounds just does not cut it. especially if you ever get a lee six hole pistol mold. personally, i wish all molds came in six hole configuration. i get tired of flipping those little two hole molds.

[RoyRogers]

For what a newbie's advice is worth I'll pile on with the Pro4-20 crowd. I've only had mine a short time and it’s the only pot I've owned but so far I'm quite pleased and really glad I went with the 20 pounder. Even as a greenhorn I'm already casting very nice bullets - which surprises me somewhat. I'll attribute my success to the helpful folks here sharing knowledge, the Lee pot, and my insatiable desire for reading. My pot has been quite stable at holding temp and aside from one runaway dripping episode shortly after first firing it up it has performed flawlessly. I'm cheap by necessity but must admit that Midway's Nov sales price makes me covet another one to keep full of a different alloy. Speaking of price, for anyone interested Kittery trading post has free shipping and runs short duration 10% off orders over $100 fairly often. Thanks to their offer, I got my Lee pot, a Dillon 550 conversion, and a crimp die to my front door for < $100 (after the 10% discount) recently. Their customer service seems top notch as well.

[wellfedirishman]

I recently started casting, using the Lee 10 lb bottom pour. It is a great pot, but if you start casting lots of heavy bullets (45-70s) you run out of lead very fast.

If you are just going to cast a few bullets at a time, the 10 lb is fine. If you want to cast a lot in one sitting, get the 20.

Either way, make sure you get the bottom pour. For all the reasons mentioned above, it is MUCH better than ladle pouring.

[awaveritt]

Just wanted to thank all who replied on my Lee Pot question. On the advice of most posters I've ordered the 20lb bottom pour model. I really like how helpful this site is.

[TAWILDCATT]

I started with ladle as that was all there was.then I looked at my toy soldier Gilbert pot and read Phil Sharps book and saw a picture of the Miller pot.it looked like my Gilbert so I added a spout.yrs later lyman came out with their pot.when it burnt out I got a lee 10,they did not have a 20 then.when you ladle cast you dip hold mold with left hand and ladle with right,pour lay ladle down knock the plate dump pick up ladle. theres no way you can keep up with a bottom pour.
I have a Lee 20 and Saeco 10 plus my Gilbert and a Potter.

[HORNET]

I really like how helpful this site is.

Just wait, there's LOTS of enablers on here.....Always willing to sink the hook deeper

[canebreaker]

I got my pot from fmreloading.com . Saved about 10.00 on the 10# pot.

[John Guedry]

I've got the Lee 10#er given to me by afriend 15 years ago . It's been dropped a time or two so it's not pretty anymore but still works fine. If and when it quits I'll probably get a Lee 20#er.

[paul edward]

Get the biggest bottom pour pot you can afford. The cost differential is only $20 or $30. If necessary skip a couple lunches or beers. The sacrifice will be forgotten in a week. The bigger pot will satisfy for a long time.

PED

[big dale]

My advice would be to get at least a 20 pound bottom pour pot. I started with one in the mid 60's and was very happy with it till I added a 4 cavety H&G 68 mold in the late 80's. Then I found it much more convenient to add a RCBS 20 pound furnace as well so that one could be coming up to casting temp while I was casting from the other. That way I could cast up about 80 pounds of boolits in a day, but I must say that then it was a whole lot more like work instead of being fun.

Big Dale

[stephen perry]

I have a LEE 10 and a LEE 4. Both work great. I use the LEE 4 for singles cavity molds and the LEE 10 for 2, 4, and 6 cavity. Have my LEE 10 plugged now to cast a 2 cavity mold.

I have SAECO 14 lb and have had the same in Lyman. Anymore I use the SAECO to melt ww and make bars. I do plan on buying a LEE 20 to ladle from.

Stephen Perry
Angeles BR

[geezer56]

Buy the 20 lb'er. The 10 is tooooo small. By the time you get the mold hot with a 10 pounder, it is time to add lead ingots, then you get to restart the process.

[stephen perry]

The LEE 10 is fine. Really depends on what bullet weights you are casting. If you are casting 500 grn bullets maybe a larger pot is desireable. But like most that are casting 200 grn and less the 10 lb is fine. So what if you have to throw in a couple bars once in awhile.

Why lead a new guy to a 20 lb pot if he is a occasional caster makes no sense. That's why small pots are made for the part time Caster.

Stephen Perry
Angeles BR

[skeet1]

Lee Pro 4-20, the best for the money.

Skeet1