Ye Powder-coaters... HELP!!!!

[Jevyod]

I just got everything set up to pc. Went and did a batch. Everything was fine, until I baked them. I got a brand new toaster oven, set at 400, and in they go. After 7 min, went to check on them, AND THEY WERE IN A PUDDLE[smilie=b: So it seems like they obviously got too hot. Maybe it was my mistake, not sure. I did have the rack in the top position, which did put them pretty close to the top burner. My thought was that with them being up there, and maybe temp sensor on the bottom, it didn't allow for good air flow and the top got way too hot. That sound about right?

[Echd]

Probably just your oven. Those toaster ovens sometimes aren't too accurate.

Have a thermometer? Check it. You can also, as you considered, try putting them in a different rack of the oven. If not, raid Goodwill for a new oven.

I've never had a batch turn into a puddle, but I did have one tray lean over and start melting.

[3006mv]

Happened to my. .224, didn't puddle but they had a nice unusable warp to them.
Dropped my temp down to 350 and 15 min cook time.
Maybe you had it on broil? Or it is a defective oven

[Jevyod]

No, it wasn't on Broil. I will put my rcbs thermometer in and try it. I did wash the boolits off with laquer thinner first,,, that shouldn't cause it should it?

[xacex]

Lucky you didn't blow the door off with lacquer thinner still on them. I had a little left in the bottom of my broiler pan once when I tried something other than ES/P/C, blew the door off of mine when it flashed off. Fortunately, my door just rocks in on the hinge so no damage done and no one hurt.
You need to keep the boolits away from the heating element, and check the temperature of you oven with an oven thermometer. If you put in on bake put your tray on the top position. I don't broil my boolits, so the direct heat may also be a problem, but it sounds like yo have that figured out. Good luck!

[Smoke4320]

the cheap ovens do not read correctly
I would try putting a few bullets .. (just testers ) uncoated at 350 and see what happens
if they melt drop down to 300 ..
Thats were I have to run mine and not melt and they cure just fine

[500MAG]

I use one of those wired electronic thermometers so I can close the door and monitor the temp while they are in there.

[freebullet]

You guys with the defective toasters aren't looking at the bright side. You can premelt lead in there to feed your casting pot if ya want.

[bangerjim]

The best ovens to use are convection ones with the forced air blowers in them. They heat much better and uniformly. I have a standard cal-rod style and it melts boolits on the edges and not in the middle. Especailly on the bottom rack. I rarely use it anymore except for preheating stuff.

You got to spend the money for quality equipment if you want quality products. Most of those crappy ovens you find at junk stores are there for a reason.....they do not work. Buy a good NEW one and have at it. You will not regret it.

Unless you want to spend every minute monitoring the temps of your cheeeeeep oven with an IR thermometer. My high-end convection oven is dead on at 400F on the dial....and maintains that temp.

banger

[el34]

My oven came from Walmart, $39.95. Black&Decker convection, can hold 2 racks but only comes with 1. Its thermostat is spot on as confirmed by a smelting thermometer.

Now I wish I had spent another $10 for an Oster unit they have, it's considerably larger. But the B&D is serving me well.

[Beagle333]

I got the $14.99 B&D model from Kroger, and it works very well. I have to keep it on 475 by the dial to actually get 400 inside, but it will make very nice coated boolits. 'Just only 60 at a time though.

My friend got the same one and got a puddle of lead in his pan too. Some of em apparently will get really hot. Be sure to pre-heat it before loading boolits too. Mine will ramp up well over 400 the first time, then smooth out and keep even temp (according to my casting thermometer.)

(I still hit the Thrift store a few times a week..... one day, I'll catch a nice convection unit in there!)

[w0fms]

I had the same thing happen to me with my non-convection toaster oven twice.. It us the $14 unit from wally... Don't use the bottom rack and eyeball or use an IR therometer for the cure. These quartz element units generate most of their heat via IR. If you use black HF PC then set the thermostat to well under 300 F. And watch it. If you use yelliw or white you can set it for 400F. Still, watch it. If you do, once the boolits "glaze" keeping them at about that temp until they dull out or about 10 min works fine. Or after about 5 mins of no smoke/vapors from the PC. At least for the HF stuff. Yellow seems to work the best for me in the cheapo oven, but most here don't like it...

[Jevyod]

Mine was also the EL-cheapo model from Wally World. I put in my thermometer and found out the problem. Set at 300, in 5 minutes, it was up to 500. So basically I guess just disregard the thermostat! I found that if I set it on bake (no temp settings in that mode) and leave them in for 10 minutes, it seems to work fine. I was watching them, and waited until they no longer looked all shiny like the did in the beginning, waited about 2 more minutes and took them out. Seemed like it worked fine.

[500MAG]

The best ovens to use are convection ones with the forced air blowers in them. They heat much better and uniformly. I have a standard cal-rod style and it melts boolits on the edges and not in the middle. Especailly on the bottom rack. I rarely use it anymore except for preheating stuff.

You got to spend the money for quality equipment if you want quality products. Most of those crappy ovens you find at junk stores are there for a reason.....they do not work. Buy a good NEW one and have at it. You will not regret it.

Unless you want to spend every minute monitoring the temps of your cheeeeeep oven with an IR thermometer. My high-end convection oven is dead on at 400F on the dial....and maintains that temp.

banger
Alright, I'm going out to buy the bigger better one. Needed a bigger one anyway.

[Echd]

You know, I felt really stupid when I realized I had a much nicer brand new toaster oven sitting out in my garage for baking bullets than I do in my house.

[MacFan]

Get a cheap oven thermometer and... let the oven run for 20 or 30 minutes to stabilize the temp before you use it. I have an Oster that really works well but when I initially fire it up it'll go way over the setting until it settles down. Let it settle, then put your bullets in.