Hmm, looks like I will get into this game

[armoredman]

after all. A guy on another board is selling me a Lee C358-158 double mold cheap. What common household items can I use to cast with, or are there specific things I must have before melting down some old wheelweights? Is it safer to cast outside, or can I use the stove? Newbie of newbies here.
Thank you.

[montana_charlie]

Is it safer to cast outside, or can I use the stove?
If you are referrring to the kitchen stove, forget it. It is a bad idea for too many reasons to even list them.

Electric hot plate, gasoline camp stove, propane fired burner...these are the 'everyday' kinds of heat sources that are most commonly used, and a four quart cast iron pot is good for starters.
Electric casting furnaces are more convenient, take up less room, and are designed to keep you in the right temperature range. But you can always graduate up to that kind after you find out if casting is something you want to stay with.

The burner/iron pot combination will always be useful for smelting...even if you do go for a furnace eventually.
CM

[jonk]

Ditto, don't use the kitchen stove. Lead residue where you eat is a bad idea. MAYBE if you have a major exhaust hood, and no wife to complain, but even then....

I do occasionally smelt on a kitchen stove, but it is an extra in a basement, and there is an exhaust fan right above it.

[LarryM]

I use an old Coleman stove hooked to a 20lb propane bottle. I melt my alloy in a smallish cast iron pot that holds about 15 lbs of lead and cast with a Lyman dipper. It don't get much simpler than that. I've got my set up out in my 1500 sqft pole building shop with plenty of ventilation, don't think I would even consider casting in the house when cleaning wheelweights in my very open shop stinks it up.

[Leftoverdj]

Fertile women and very small children are ten times more vulnerable to lead than adult males. I live alone and have neither to worry about so I happily cast indoors. If you have either, take it outdoors or at least to a garage or basement.

You'll want to do the initial cleanup of wheelweights outside in any case. It's a dirty stinking job. Do NOT use an aluminum pot. It must be cast iron or steel. A proper casting ladle from RCBS or Lyman makes the casting much easier. Other than that, you can improvise.

[armoredman]

OK, clean them with what? Or would buying lead ingots be better? I have a wife and young child, so I guess the back porch will be my friend. the neighbors are gonna freak...good.
I'll see about a cast iron pot, I have a single burner propane camp stove I can use.
Ladle? Has to be a specialty item? I understand the mold gets knocked open, and the boolits dropped into a bucket of water, right? So I probably should get a clean new bucket...
With the difficulty of finding reloading componenets, I think it's high time I tried this route.
Another question - how hard is it to cast hollowpoints?

[TAWILDCATT]

FORGET ABOUT THE WATER!!your shooting 38s from your post.pistols don't need hardning.
get some manuals.Lee has book so has Lyman.I buy from [midsouthshooters.com]
best is to get Lee 20lb meltin pot. learn about the casting game,read the posts on this site.there is alot to learn but its basic.

[cattleskinner]

If you do decide to water drop, you don't need a new bucket, I just use any old plastic one I can find. Once the boolits are cooled, you can rinse any dirt off of them in the sink. I water drop mainly because I like to cool my boolits quick so that I don't ding them up, or have to keep moving a towel around to make a soft spot for new ones to land.

Personally, I wouldn't buy ignots as that usually will add more cost to an already "cheap" hobby. I use a one burner colman propane stove outside when smelting. Wheel weights STINK when smelting. All the road grime, grease, dirt, etc.... will definately make you feel like crap the next day if you breath it in. You can use crayons, candles, bullet lube, etc.. for flux.

A lead dipper definately makes pouring boolits easier. I spent most of my first year casting using a old kitchen spoon that I had bent on one side so that it would pour easier. Any more questions, just ask, the fellas on here can fill libraries with their knowledge.

-Amos

[tommag]

OK, clean them with what? Or would buying lead ingots be better? I have a wife and young child, so I guess the back porch will be my friend. the neighbors are gonna freak...good.
I'll see about a cast iron pot, I have a single burner propane camp stove I can use.
Ladle? Has to be a specialty item? I understand the mold gets knocked open, and the boolits dropped into a bucket of water, right? So I probably should get a clean new bucket...
With the difficulty of finding reloading componenets, I think it's high time I tried this route.
Another question - how hard is it to cast hollowpoints?

Cleaning them is done when they melt. The clips and other debris will float to the top. A spoon (tblsn or larger ) with holes in it does a good job of skimming off the junk. After skimming off the debris, flux and stir. Use a small peice of wax for fluxing(the size of a couple of peas) it will smoke and ignite, so watch out for that. The fluxing and stirring helps to re-mix the metals in the ww's and also helps with bringing more junk to the top to skim off. Discard any ww's with riveted on clips or those that are marked zn, as they will screw up the alloy if melted into the mix. Any ww's that don't want to melt are most likely zinc or steel. discard those.
If you are using tape on ww's, you can put them in a container with enough gasoline to cover them and let them sit for a day to dissolve the sticky-tape. Be careful, here, for obvious reasons. Cover the container to prevent evaporation and accidental combustion. rinse them with a little water after removing from the gas. PLACE THE CONTAINER AWAY FROM STRUCTURES, preferably in a shady spot. Diesel fuel may work, and if so would be a lot safer.
Do not add cold or wet metals to already melted metal, as they may (will) carry moisture into the mix and will blow up, spreading hot metal all over the place.
Wear glasses and gloves are a good idea, as well.
Dropping into a bucket of water hardens them a lot. If you are not loading magnum levels, this may contribute to leading more than softer boolits. To air-cool, use several layers of cotton or other non-synthetic cloth in a shallow box to drop them on. (this cushions their fall, preventing deformation, as they are very soft when still hot)
You can use the search button to find lots of info here, but I would strongly recommend the Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook for a start. All the basics are covered with good pictures. PM me with your address and I'll send you one, as I have an extra copy.
Good Luck!
Tom
P.S. I also have a spare Lyman ladle I can send you with the book.

[montana_charlie]

Ladle? Has to be a specialty item? I understand the mold gets knocked open, and the boolits dropped into a bucket of water, right? So I probably should get a clean new bucket...
If you look at a Lyman or RCBS ladle, (dipper is the more correct term) you will see the advantage of using such a 'specialty item'. Neither is a high cost item, and you can save money in other areas.

For instance, you don't need a clean new bucket. Clean new water should suffice if you even need water. I doubt that you do.

And finally...
If you are determined to save money where ever possible, you may as well get rid of the idea of 'knocking open' a mould.
The more gently you treat your moulds the longer they will give you good service...and mould buying is one of the places where you can spend the most money.
CM

[Leftoverdj]

Hollow points are a pain in the butt to cast with removable pin moulds. They aqre easier if you come across one of the discontinued Lee HP moulds, but getting bullets hard enough not to lead and soft enough to expand at pistol velocities is an iffie proposition.

Wheel weight cleanup is not too bad because you don't have to do it often. Most of us use turkey friers and a dutch oven and do 100 pounds or so at a time. You can do three batches in a morning while mowing the lawn and be set for a year. You don't have to do it that way, but it's easier in the long run than doing small batches. Turkey friers are common enough so you should be able to borrow one for a day a year. If you have to buy one, they are only about $20 when Walmart closes out summer merchandise. Get the short legged one if you buy. 100 pounds of molten lead three feet in the air makes me nervous.

[jdhenry]

And Above All HAVE FUN!!!!!:)

[Goatlips]

Armoredman,

Every couple of weeks I get to post directions to my site that I think might be helpful to new casters, so here it is:

http://goatlipstips.cas-town.com/smelting.html

It has some pictures. Much more detailed and useful information is in the posts above, and similar ones on this site. The books suggested are a great start. Welcome to our parlour. [smilie=1:

Goatlips

[wills]

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=6774

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=6520

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=6203

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=6108

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=6059

[Bad Ass Wallace]

Some useful links from the Aussies also;

http://www.australianhunting.net/index.php?topic=12632.0

[LarryM]

And the very next thing you need to do is go out and buy a copy of Lymans Cast Bullet handbook. It may not be the best book on the subject but it is probably the easiest to find and will show you step by step what is involved.

[armoredman]

Thank you, will go looking. An officer on Graveyard shift told me last night he knows a guy who has cheap lead right near where I live...will find out more Sunday.
goatlips, love the Christmas lead!:-D

[Wayne Smith]

About the only two things I would recommend you buy for specific use would be a ladel and a lead thermometer. I got an electronic one from Harbor Freight locally after it was recommended on this board and it works well. I use the Lyman Ladel, if I were buying again I'd buy the RCBS because of the flat fin on the bottom. That would make moving scum aside easier. After that, the welding gloves I wear would be the next thing. I can easily finger open my sprue plates on all my molds and even cup the mold in my palm when so doing if necessary. I got mine from NHNothern, again a mail order company with a local outlet.

Finally, I got a 2'x4' piece of 3/4" ply and finished it good (3 coats poly) to place under everything. You will spill, and the splashes won't go where you want them. Oh, and I drop on an old damp towel.