smelter?

[Tbury]

What do you use to smelt raw lead and wheel wts to alloy. I am just getting back into casting after a 20 yr layoff. The last time I processed raw lead I did it on a gas stove in a cast iron pot. I was single, now I do not believe my wife would appreciate my using her Bosh range to melt lead.:roll:

[eli]

I use a Walmart single burner hot plate and a large stainless pot from the thrift store. Don't try to lift it by the handle while full or half so and you'll be ok.

I use a $20(?) Harbor Freight multi-meter with a temperature probe to keep track of what's what while I'm working. I have found I can use a cover of foil and keep the temperature low enough to melt the lead, without worrying about melting zinc weights into the mix.

I also use steel muffin tins from the thrift shops for molds and I'll fill a bunch of these up, then add more ww to the lead still in the pot for a fast melt.

I use the same hot plate with a couple of small iron casting pots for throwing bullets from cleaned alloy.

Eli

[RU shooter]

I use an old electric range top! I converted into a table top model by making a base for it.Now its the "super smelter 3000"!

:-D5416

[Swamprat1052]

I have an old propane turkey fryer and a cast iron pot. It seems to get the job done. I have a Lyman lead thermometer but I usually start skimming as soon as the ww clips start floating on top and have skimmed a few suspect wheel weights too while doing this. I check the thermometer but so far nothing bad has showed up after I take the clips out.

Swamprat

[hammerhead357]

Tbury, I use 2 different smelters the smaller one is a cast iron dutch oven purchased at Sportsmans Warehouse and it will hold about 350 lbs. of lead. I don't ever fill it that full only about 2/3s. I use a propane turkey frier for heat for this one.
The larger one is an old linotype furnace from an old print shop, it will hold 1000 lbs of linotype. I am in the process of converting it from natural gas to propane since I don't have access to natural gas where I live now.
When I fire the larger one up I have to have at least 10 or more big buckets of WWs to smelt down. The last time I fired it up I didn't have natural gas so I used a propane weed burner and it worked but didn't have the use of the thermostat which is nice ......Wes

[PDshooter]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v292/PDshooter/casting/Lead1.jpg
This is my set -up