finally tested sailboat lead

[mdxdm]

I got my lee tester in the mail so I set out to give it a shot. Man what a pain it is to use. I could not see any of the lines clearly. So I marked the boolit that I made to make my life a little bit easier.

Before

http://i899.photobucket.com/albums/ac198/fishnub/lead%20casting/20131022_175044.jpg

after

http://i899.photobucket.com/albums/ac198/fishnub/lead%20casting/20131022_181501.jpg

the air cooled boolit came in at about 7bhn annd water cooled at 7.4bhn

so its obvious that this is not pure lead but I doubt it has any tin as this lead refuses to fill molds out completely

I plan to experiment this weekend adding tin and antimony to see what I come up with

[bangerjim]

Depends on where you look, but pure lead can be listed for anything betwen 5 and 8. I have seen it listed in several sources at those values. I would classify what you have as pure lead and treat it as such. Find youself some tin for fill and antimony for hardness.

The Lee thingy is not for the weak of heart of eye! I cannot stand looking thru that tiny scope and then trying to even find the dimple!!!!!! I have tested the thing aganinst the Cabine and it is reltaive accurate.

BTW....you do NOT have to hold the pressure for 30 seconds! A "bump-n-go" that brings that supid little plunger even with the top is all it takes to get a pretty accurate dimple. I have tested it on everything from 5 to 22 bhn and the waiting game does not gain anything.

I use a Cabine tester.......costs a lot more but is easy to use, accurate, portable (take-with to the scrap yards!), and repeatable. And you do not have file a flat in the boolit!

bangerjim

[el34]

It's much easier to test an ingot or two than to do boolits. An ingot gives you ample area around the dimple, making it easier to use the scope. It took me a while to program my brain to move the scope the direction I wish the ingot would move but I'm way past it now. I'd still like the cabine tree but the Lee works for me and I'd rather own something more important.

[mdxdm]

next time i plan to use and ingot holding a boolit i wanted to pund my head against a wall. I bought the lee based on reviews and cost. I m now thinking i will get the cabin tree for eaise of use. it took about 30 min to get a good reading and im still not 100% sure i got it right.

once the ole back feels better i am going to mix up 9 lbs of lead, 1/2lb tin and 1/2lb of antimonium and see what it comes up to.