Lyman Lead dipper vs Rowell #1 ladel

[7-30 Waters]

Can anyone give me the pros and cons of each lead ladel? Both are around the same price so it is personel preference or does one have the advantage over the other?

I will be casting 58 caliber 500 grain mini's

[Dan Cash]

I have heard great things about the Rowell ladles but do not own one. I am a ladle caster and use eithr a Lyman or RCBS (mostly the same as far as I can tell) with complete satisfaction. For big bullets, I have reamed the pour hole on one ladle to 3/16 inch which greatly improved the bullet fill.

[jmort]

I have a Rowell #1 and it works well. I believe it is significantly larger than the Lyman ladle. The Rowell holds one pound of lead. I want to add a Lyman Ladle as it will fit my small melter better.

[Le Loup Solitaire]

I do not own a Rowell, have never casted with one, but have heard good things about them for many years from different people. I have used mainly RCBS and Lyman successfully and an open soup ladle type for four and six cavity molds. Somewhat sloppy going, but resulting bullets are good. Even when using my pro-melt or my Saeco both the Lyman and the RCBS are handy for the fluxing, stirring and skimming and for filling ingots when smelting. One or both are useful in any casting setup and I believe that a Rowell would do just as well. LLS

[country gent]

I use a lyman ladle with good results I have made a longer handle up for it. I like having my fingers / hand as far away as posible. The rowel is bottom pour and does hold more making a diffrence when "force" casting with a mold. I dont care for the lee dipper its more a spoon than a dipper. I have used bottom pour pots ( lee) and ladles and for big bullets I perfer the ladle, I believe I get a better "swirl" of molten metal with the ladle. As far as I know the rowels are an industry standard in casting shops.

[gmsharps]

I have both ladels. I have used the Lyman for many years with good results. I like the Rowell and with a larger than 10 pound pot it works great. In a 10 lb pot it's a bit tight but still works well. I still have hte Lyman and use it occasionally. The Rowell is great where it is a bottom pour and allows fewer contaminants where as the Lyman seems to allow some contaminants if your alloy is not perfectly clean.

gmsharps

[detox]

Both the Lyman and RCBS are designed to fit into sprue plate opening. Holding these types of ladles against sprue plate will pressurize mould for better fill and less sprue spill.

[jmort]

"Holding these types of ladles against sprue plate will pressurize mould for better fill and less sprue spill."

Lee Precision does not recommend that "technique" with their molds for what it is worth.

[SteveM]

I bought a Rowell ladle about 10-12 years ago, I have not used my dipper since. It's that good! Here is a side by side.
http://i692.photobucket.com/albums/vv282/stevemikel/100_2204_zps2d5ab385.jpg

[jmort]

Great picture to demonstrate size difference, but is your Rowell a #1 or a #2. It looks like a #2. As you can see, the Lyman will work better with a smaller pot, I have a 20 lb and a 4 lb and want to get the Lyman for the 4 lb.

[SteveM]

It could very well be a #2, there are no markings on it. I've used it with the lyman starter kit pot, it is big but it worked fine.

[bangerjim]

I regularly use (and like very much) the Lyman ladle, as it was on the shelf at Sportsman's Warehouse for immediate usage!!!!! It holds enough lead for most 2 banger molds and even some small cal 6 bangers.

Being cast iron, both brands hold the heat very well and allow for excellent castings, as opposed to using a common spoon or water/soup serving utencils as some "cost-effective" users describe here. "Ya gets what 'ya pay fer".

Bottom-side pour ladels eliminate the dross floaters when pouring. Again........... forget the spoons! Leave them for the kitchen help.

I just hate waiting for days and weeks and paying redikilus shipping/handling charges! Besides, I like keeping the money in my own state. I own and run a business here also.

bangerjim.

[Larry Gibson]

Had a Rowell #2 and it worked fine. Just didn't fit my casting method so I sold it. I have 3 Lyman's and use them as I use the Lyman technique as per their manuals. I cast 500 gr bullets (45 & 50 cal) with the Lyman. The newer Lyman ladle has a larger pour hole and works quite well. I also have a smaller homemade Rowell type that I use occasionally but prefer the Lyman for most of my dipper casting.

BTW; the Lyman casting technique works excellently with aluminum moulds including Lee's.

Larry Gibson

[ColColt]

Much said about the Lyman but little about the RCBS ladle...any reasons?

[7-30 Waters]

"Holding these types of ladles against sprue plate will pressurize mould for better fill and less sprue spill."

Lee Precision does not recommend that "technique" with their molds for what it is worth.

Both my 58 caliber molds are LEE molds. What's different about a LEE mold compared to a RCBS or LYMAN other than its made of aluminum?

[Idaho Sharpshooter]

quality...

that said, none of them compare to the fifteen or so NOE moulds I have for consistency in bullet weight and dimensions.

[carbine]

I have cast 30,000 Minies using the RCBS ladle. All 500 trainers. No problem

[Bent Ramrod]

The one pictured looks like a Rowell #1 to me. I have two of them. They are great for making ingots, since they hold the dross back as they pour, and each ladle full is one 1-lb Lyman/Saeco ingot's worth of lead. Using them on moulds is a little more problematic. A gang mould, with at least four, or better, eight or ten pistol boolit cavities, with a trough on the sprue plate to direct the lead into the cavities, would be a good match for a Rowell #1, in the absence of a bottom pour furnace. A one or two cavity is probably better served with a Lyman or RCBS with a spout.

The Lee dipper has no enclosed spout, just little lips so you can pour from the sides. This works great for round ball casting, and will work for more complex boolits if the mould is very hot, but I find I get fewer keepers by the side technique. A ladle with a spout can be used from the side or vertically and is thus more versatile.

The main difference between the Lyman and the RCBS is size. Somewhere in my old references there is an article by Paul Mathews, explaining how he calculated and figured and tried and erred and finally got to a lead ladle that is the perfect size for casting large boolits for BPCR shooting. He had a welder make one up to his specs and it's worked perfectly ever since. Weirdly, just by coincidence, the capacity and size of his ladle looked to be just about exactly like that of the RCBS.

So it is a tradeoff. I use the Lyman when the boolits are small, and I want to do a minimum of lifting. I use the RCBS when I need to cast those 550-gr slugs for the big bores. I use the Rowells for ingots, but I might try one with one of those six cavity Lees next time I use it.

[Spruce]

I started out casting, with a friends help, using a Lyman, and RCBS ladle on 45/ 405, and 500 grainers. He showed me several methods of casting with ladles. After reading an article on casting with a Rowell bottom pour, I bought a #1 with a short handle and have never used my RCBS since.

I like the short handle in both my 20# pot and my 40# plumbers pot when using propane. I think the short handle is just a easy to use as a Lyman or RCBS ladle.

[ColColt]

i was very pleased with the RCBS ladle and the Hoch .38-55 310 gr mould. Prior to the ladle method I was getting about 4-5 gr variation. With the ladle they averaged 1.5 gr picking out 10 random bullets and weighing them.

[preachinpilot]

I hand cast commercially and use the Rowell #1 exclusively for casting 4 cavity moulds from lbt. pick up the lead, place next to sprue plate, gently slide the lead into each cavity. No casting fins, much more consistent because of less turbulance in the lead. Every now and then dip the whole ladel in a bucket of lard and then stir into pot. Lard fluxes the lead , cleans the ladel. I get mine from Car Movers. I just ordered their 60lb ladel which is about 9" across to serve as my smelting pot that I use to take 63lb pigs down to 1 lb ingots.

[bhn22]

I use an RCBS ladle for almost everything. I do have a #1 Rowell, but have only used it for ingots so far.

[Newtire]

With all this talk of dippers, does anyone make one with an aluminum bowl that all the lead won' t stick to?

[Oreo]

Lead doesn't stick to the iron ones. The iron does need to be kept hot enough though or the lead will freeze to it.

[GLL]

I use both the RCBS and Rowell ladles but do prefer the RCBS.
Even though the Rowell holds more alloy I can cast just as fast with the RCBS even “double-dipping” for 5-6-cavity molds.

I love the big 6” and 8” Rowells for mixing alloys and casting ingots.

The RCBS does work much better for me after shortening the handle and boring out the spout.
I also find the Rowell #1 easier to use with a short handle.

http://www.fototime.com/4680BB60E874411/large.jpg

http://www.fototime.com/6975B55F1030024/large.jpg

This chart has been posted before but I find it very useful !
http://www.fototime.com/A95A73191DFB8AB/orig.png

Jerry

[Wayne Smith]

The primary functional difference between the Lyman/RCBS and the Rowell is that you CANNOT pressure cast with the Rowell. That is the one significant advantage of the Lyman/RCBS ladels. I have one mold that demands pressure casting and several that do better that way. I have both the Lyman and the Rowell, a #1.

[Newtire]

I bought the smallest Rowell but it's still too big for the 20 pound Lee bottom pour. Nice ladle, just too big for me.

[obssd1958]

Sorry to interrupt this thread -

Calvin, clear some space in your PM folder!!

We now return you to your regularly scheduled topic!!!

[Newtire]

Sorry to interrupt this thread -

Calvin, clear some space in your PM folder!!

We now return you to your regularly scheduled topic!!!
It's just that I'm such a popular guy! OK, All clear now,,,,

[Tackleberry41]

The Rowell looks a bit big, doubt it would fit in my basic lyman pot along w the thermometer. And if it wont do 'pressure' filling like the lyman then I probably wouldn't have a use for it. And another issue I see with the Rowell, Im a lefty, it cant be switched like the lyman. I have 2 of the lyman, one for me to use, and then one for all the backwards people. Doubt it would be easy to swap it back and forth once its been used.

[imashooter2]

Both my 58 caliber molds are LEE molds. What's different about a LEE mold compared to a RCBS or LYMAN other than its made of aluminum?

I suspect the recommendation has more to do with the fact you can't use the technique with equipment that Lee sells.

[country gent]

Im kicking around making a bottom pour ladle thats a cross betweel the lyman, RCBS, and rowels. Bowl will be 1 1/2" dia about 7/8 deep. a 1/4 piece of bowl welded to make 3/4s ball shape. I may flatten the back edge similar to the rcbs desighn. A piece of 1/4" id tubing for the spout bent and ran to just short of the mid point of bowl. welded construction here. Tube would be set into bowl and lightly welded at bottom and top edges. bent to 90* of bowlthen the cover welded on and seam around spout welded to seal. Material will be 1/8" X 2" cold rolled steel ladle will be around 9"-10" long . This should hold around 3/8 - 1/2 lb of lead when full the 1/4" bore spout should provide a good flow of lead and with the top cover (3/4 ball) allow for pressure pouring if needed. I think with a ring and ball of correct size I can form the 1/8" CR in the hydrolic press easily. the tubing I can cut heat and form to bowls lower 1/2 heat and bend spout to 75*-90*. cut second bowl in half form 3/8 concave radious for spout and weld together. This shold make a very solid ladle bottom pour and capable of pressure pours or regular pouring. It should hold enough material for 550 grn 2 cavity moulds plus a little extra. I may look for some brass flat stock and tubing for the heat holding qualities and easier forming. Would have to high temp braze it together though. But an all brass ladle would look neat.