Thank God embarrassment is all I'm suffering

[FN in MT]

Was out in NJ a few yeasr ago...My Mom lives 1 mile from the Atlantic. Drove out from MT, brought some shotguns and all my old saltwater fishing gear. Had a great month of clays shooting and fishing. Drove home in two days with a chest full of bluefish and a few stripers.

One day decided to give my cats and the huskies a treat so figured I'd cook up one of those big bluefish for them. Had an old microwave , placed it on the workbench in the GARAGE , set it for 5 minutes and stuck a big Pyrex pan in there with a big hunk of bluefish in it.

Then the UPS guy shows up minutes after I started it with a 2 1/2" M-19 that I'd bought online a few days earlier. So I go in the house start playiing with the new gun, get on line, go to the S&W Forum......etc.

About an HOUR later I look at my garage from the living room window and theres smoke coming out the entrance door!! The microwave was on fire as well as a few items on my bench. Grab the five pound dry chemical extinguisher I have mounted by the door and put the fire out. Grab the garden hose from the side of the house, open the door, pull the circuit breaker for the garage....and sparingly water down the bench and the microwave.

Apparently the TIMER never shut the oven OFF. The fish was basically nothing but CARBON, the Pyrex dish was in ten pieces and the heat from the microwave metal was still quite amazing. You have not lived until you smell what carbonized bluefish smells like. Coated the walls, the Tahoe, and Two motorcycles with a greasy, smelly coating that was a bitch to clean away.

MY "almost burnt the garage down" story.

FN in MT

[Heavy lead]

I use galvanized as a bench top for mine, real easy cleanup. I have a 250 cfm exhaust fan that sits 10" above Lee 20# pot (bottom pour obviously) don't seem to have a problem with it coming to temp. As a side note I have the fan on a switch/recepticle combo so when the fan gets shut off the pot has to be off, just a thought. Nice clean setup, glad nothing bad happened.

[Old Ironsights]

Not to read all of the responses (because I'm in a hurry) but my Pot plugs into a switched outlet that is connected to the exhaust fan. Pot is not on if fan is not on.

[NHlever]

When I built my small workshop in the end of the garage, I wired all my power tool outlets to a main switch. I leave a light on that is built into one machine, so I know if there is power to any of my power tools when I leave the shop. It worked so well, especially when there were kids around that I did the same kind of thing for my melting pot. I put that on the same circut as a light in my garage that I can see from the house, or obviously see on the way out of the garage. If I shut that light out, all power to my melting pot, and vent fan is off. Works pretty well though sometimes if feels like a pain to have to go turn that light on to cast, or run my lube sizer which uses the same outlet for the lube heater.

[725]

Wow. Neat and organized. Admirable. As far as the heat build up concerns, it seems to me that the vented stove hood would eliminate any heat along with the fumes. I have a similar set up with a stove hood except mine looks like a child designed it and not a finish carpenter. Well done.

[Patrick L]

Thank you 725. I'm actually a high school music teacher by trade, but the son of a carpenter. Apparently I paid attention to Dad at least some of the time

[Ricochet]

I'm too embarrassed to show anyone my casting and loading area. I'm not neat and organized.

Man, Grumble really did a number on his arm! I hadn't read that story.

[buck1]

I forgot mine once, FOR TWO WEEKS!! RCBS pot and the good lord watching out for me. It broke me from sucking eggs! ....Buck

[Bret4207]

Jeeze, that's about as safe as you can get. The heat isn't going to build up and neither are the fumes. Common sense needs to come into play here guys. I've seen pic of guys clad from head to toe in protective gear and wearing a MASK when they're OUTSIDE in the open air smelting! Safety is fine, but there are limits to everything.

I left a Palmer hot pot on once and set it on my bench and walked away for a minute. Still have that nice burnt spot to remind me I'm stoopit.

[bullshot]

Could I build a casting area like this. You bet! It would never look like that after the first casting session. There would be crap everywhere. Little pieces of sprue that can't be picked up with glove. Splatters, drips ,whoops's. My cabinet would be protected with an uneven layer of lead.

[bcarver]

I was thinking of a timer while reading your post.
I use them on fish tank and case cleaner.
I get the kind with 15 minute settings.
You can set it for say 3 hours at the start of your casting session.
You will still have to unplug at end of session but if you forget it would cut off soon and give you 21 hours to "remember" and go back before it would cut on for another three hours.
I use mine and can set my case cleaner to how long it think they need and leave the house.

[cohutt]

I was thinking of a timer while reading your post.
I use them on fish tank and case cleaner.
I get the kind with 15 minute settings.
You can set it for say 3 hours at the start of your casting session.
You will still have to unplug at end of session but if you forget it would cut off soon and give you 21 hours to "remember" and go back before it would cut on for another three hours.
I use mine and can set my case cleaner to how long it think they need and leave the house.

I use the same sort- it is in 15 minute increments up to 12 hours. I hot wired it into the tumbler cord but don't run it all night or when i'm not going to be around due to the fact that tumbler motors can fail by overheating.

[JohnH]

Jeez, I must be missin' somethin'. I'm still casting in my kitchen after 20+years, I don't have any fancy hoods or vents and I have to unplug the pot so I can move it after each casting session 'cause SWMBO won't go for my leavin' my setup in the way.

We all forget. I've reached the age where it is easier to remember if I double checked something than it is to remember if I did it in the first place. I hate door locks........

[crabo]

I use the same sort- it is in 15 minute increments up to 12 hours. I hot wired it into the tumbler cord but don't run it all night or when i'm not going to be around due to the fact that tumbler motors can fail by overheating.

I took a hole saw and cut a bunch of holes in the bottom of my vibrator base. I then have a small fan blowing through the holes to keep the motor cool. You can clean alot more cases and the motor doesn't overheat.

[PDshooter]

Sounds to me, one thing only.........AGE!
I'm 53 and bigger bo-bo then ever before. I once droped a live primer into my cast pot of molten lead ...........KABOOM! Some how it got in with my junk bullets that would'nt make the grade. Just got alittle burned
Glad everthing turned out OK!

[PatMarlin]

I don't plan to shoot myself, but I did buy this product incase of an accident as we live so far away from help:

http://www.celoxmedical.com/

Nice casting setup. That's the very same vent hood I use. Instead of the duct tape on that front hole I made a nice wood cover. I put a grainger vent booster fan in the duct also for more suction power.

[The Double D]

Gee, Double D you're the first person who ever saw these pictures in over a year that I've posted them that thinks it's dangerous.

I have never noticed any warmth to the wood during a casting session, but I can check next time I cast. If it does seem to be in excess, I guess I can look for something to line the back with to insulate it.

As for the draw being only from the front, that was intentional. That way the air comes from behind me and out the vent. The vent is really there to vent nasty smells and smoke more than dangerous fumes. I thought lead fumes only become a problem around 1200 degrees or so, and we don't cast anywhere near that heat.

Patrick, It's good set up. The points I made are minor. Check the wood temperature behind the pot and up high. I wouldn't do much more than put up some cement board or maybe a piece sheet rock right over what you have. This the only part that I see as a potential fire hazard and needs checked out. I wouldn't line it with sheet metal that get hot also. Just treat it like a free standing wood stove.

I

[Patrick L]

Double D,

I don't know if this makes any difference, but there is clearance between both pots and the rear wall. Its not very apparent from the picture in the original post.

This is how I mounted the top pot





That said, I will give a feel to the wood with an ungloved hand next time I cast.

[jonk]

I like the setup but agree, it's too organized.

So far as 'lead fumes' building up, I don't much worry about lead fumes. I don't run the pot 1000+ degrees. In any case I've often felt that even if there ARE lead fumes in the air, that as soon as they get away from the hot pot they are going to harden back into lead dust and being as lead is dense, fall out of the air. I can't prove this of course, but I've never worried. I mean I DO have a fan but it is a good 2 feet above the bench mounted in a window. The main reason I have an exhaust fan is to suck out the smoke from fluxing.

[Patrick L]

I cast for about an hour and a half tonight. As I was finished, I touched the wood sides of my cabinet with my bare hand, and there was practically NO warmth to the wood. Not even right around the pots. So I guess I don't have to worry about heat buildup.