Trying to find the cheap way

[Lead melter]

Will a 750 watt single-burner hotplate have the juice to use with a dutch oven for smelting? Provided that the oven has a lid of course. I have a hotplate, and am now smelting on a Coleman camp stove which takes forever. The propane turkey cooker would be a blessing, but I just can't drop the jack for one right now.

[imashooter2]

I doubt that the hot plate makes even close to what the Coleman is putting out.

[Ghugly]

Agreed. The Coleman will put out far more than the hot plate. You might try working the top of the lead over with a propane torch. Always leave a little lead in the smelting pot for the next load. Even if it's cold, the fact that it's making solid contact with the pot will speed things up a bunch with the next batch.

[454PB]

I've used a 750 watt hotplate and my old 10 pound Lyman cast iron pot, but it's slow going. If you are smelting a small amount, it will work. If you want to do a 5 gallon bucket full of wheelweights, you need something bigger.

[725]

Seems to me I got a burner from "Sportsman's Guide" that wasn't too costly. Using a burner / dipper has been light years ahead for me over a bottom pour Lee pot. Still like the Lee, but find myself using the dipper more and more.

[MT Gianni]

Average range burner on a kitchen range is 9,000 btu per hour. 1KW=3413 btu. 3/4 of that is 2560 btuhr or about 1/4th of your coleman burner. You won't be happy if you do this. Gianni

[yeahbub]

I bought one of those $40 Sportsman's Guide turkey fryer burners for my smelting pot (10gal end cut from a 30gal SAE air compressor tank from a junk yard) and was very disappointed. Replaced it with a $26 Harbor Freight propane weed burner w/piezo-elec. start button and gosh-amighty! Hot, fast and roars like a Saturn V at lift-off. It will maintain melting temps at approx. 20% throttle and never mind the "turbo" lever. I use that when I'm impatient to get that first melt liquified. It still needs a heat shield to help keep heat in around the sides (1/4 of a 55gal drum?) and a lid for the pot, but I have heat galore now.

[Springfield]

Turkey fryers seem to vary from 25,000 to 70,000 BTU's. Makes a big difference. A Coleman stove is about 12-15,000.

[RU shooter]

The only way your going to get an electric burner to work for smelting is to step up to 220V Thats what I use now and have no need for open flame ever again!