Lee 4 20 ..what should i mod ?

[Anthony333]

Hi Folks, just got my first bottom pour pot , the Lee 4 20 ... i would like to know the essential modifications i should do straight up to ensure i get the most from this pot ;-)
I have put washers on the lift knob, and thats it so far.. i know its all in here somewhere, i just thought you guys could share all your tips.. thanks in advance :-)

I also have 3 molds coming from MP .. how excited am i ! :bigsmyl2:

[stubshaft]

I would put a bit of valve grinding compound on the tip and lightly lap the bar and the inside of the spout.

[WD2A7X3]

Good idea, I just got mine this weekend also, time to get out the lapping compound and make a steel handle for it.

[docone31]

The only issues I had with mine is the screw on top of the pot. It kept backing out and the lever got harder and harder to use. Other than that, no other issues.
I do not "smelt" lead in the pot. I do that seperately. I also put Kitty Litter on top of the melt. That helps keep the oxides from making a film on top of the melt.
At night, when I shut it down, I turn the valve several times around to clear anything that got on the seat. I then start it again, but, I keep a catch under the valve just in case.
So far so good.
Keep it clean, turn the valve stem when shutting down, and watch the guide screw on top of the pot. Other than that, I keep mine hot when I cast and it works well for me.
The washers won't hurt, but if you turn the stem, it seals well.

[Shiloh]

I weighted my lift handle. Cuts down on lead dripping.

Shiloh

[Freightman]

Keep it clean, mine drips very little and stops when I turn the stem a turn or two nothing else to do on mine.

[geargnasher]

Lap the pintle and keep clean lead in it. Lubricate the moving contact points of the valve handle assembly with high-temp oil like synthetic two-cycle premix or brake caliper slide grease. DO NOT put dirty alloy into the pot, or scrape the bottom with a stick, as doing so will invite trash to get trapped under the melt and it will migrate to the valve and cause drips. Watch the "shoulder bolts" that guide the valve handle assembly at the top and bottom of the pot, they cand work loose while you're casting and are VERY easy to strip out if you over tighten them. Heat cycling and aggressive working of the linkage can work them loose.

Other than that, you should have no problems other than keeping the alloy temp from climbing as your lead level falls during use. I recommend a casting thermometer to avoid this, so you can keep turning the temp knob down. I have a 110 volt unit, I assume that down/under you use 220, so I don't know how those pots hold temperature with different amounts of lead in them, but mine holds steady as long as the lead level is steady. But from full up to the last 1/8 pot of lead, the temperature will swing 250 degrees.

Gear