my first smelt

[mebe007]

Well I got a hair up my butt today after work and started smelting my first bucket of wheel weights. I hit all the clips and zinc and steel weights out that slipped past my wire cutters. It was pretty fun.* I constantly stirred with a wooden spoon. Then I fluxed it with saw dust stirred vigorously. Skimmed the ash and dross then fluxed with parafin skimmed the dross and started pouring muffin ingots. Not too bad for my first time u suppose. I need to turn a handle for my ladle from rayinnh. Even with thick welding gloves it gets hot

Don't mind my roommate. He was brave wearing shorts. I was covered head to toe.
http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e322/mebe007/IMAG0546.jpg

[imashooter2]

Welcome to the game!

Get some plywood under that pot. Lead on concrete is there for life...

[mebe007]

Thanks for the tip. I'll get on that

[jmsj]

mebe007,
And so it begins, welcome to our addiction. Other than your buddy in shorts, your set up looks great.
Good luck, jmsj

[Longwood]

Thanks for the tip. I'll get on that
If concrete is even slightly moist it can pop pretty violently when hot stuff spilled on it. Plus,,, it does a lot of damage to the slab.

[mebe007]

Thanks guys. The burner did great. No flexing with the reinforcements I welded to the base. I think I need to get the muffin pans up in the air. Got hard on the back after a while bending over to pour the lead. Yeah I kinda rushed into it tonight before I got my wood. Felt I had to melt dome lead before I went crazy with anticipation.

Does my fluxing method sound adequate?

[imashooter2]

You did just fine. No need to stir constantly though. Stir well when you flux and flux 2 or 3 times so the lead is very clean before you pour.

I place my fryer on cement blocks on top of plywood. My pouring table is a sheet of plywood on top of a couple of 2X6's straddling a couple saw horses with a few drywall screws for reinforcement. I move my lead buckets around in a child's little red wagon, turn the lead out of the buckets into a wheelbarrow and load the pot with a garden shovel. As I get older, I find the less I have to stoop and carry, the better...

[Huntducks]

Mebe007 depending on the thickness of your ladle handel slip a peice of rubber dishwasher hose over it works great mine has been on my laddle for 20 years.

I smelt on concrete all the time when i'm done I sweep the drips up or use my hose to wash it down lead does not stick to concrete or the wood table I use to pour on.

[imashooter2]

Mebe007 depending on the thickness of your ladle handel slip a peice of rubber dishwasher hose over it works great mine has been on my laddle for 20 years.

I smelt on concrete all the time when i'm done I sweep the drips up or use my hose to wash it down lead does not stick to concrete or the wood table I use to pour on.

That is some remarkable concrete...

[fredj338]

Welcome to the game!

Get some plywood under that pot. Lead on concrete is there for life...
SOme alum foil works great too. FWIW, lead comes right off smooth concrete.

[Suo Gan]

Good, now your getting closer to having something to shoot!

[mebe007]

Smelted 2 more 5 gallon buckets of wheel.weights this evening. I fluxed the pot 4 times thus go around. Still have 1 more 5 gallon bucket of clip ons, 1 5 gallon bucket of stickies, and a small box of alluminum sheeting to go. I know where there are 4 more 5 gallon buckets of wheel weights but the managers don't know how much they want for them blah. Everything so far has been free. But I seem to.be tapping out everything local