makin ingots

[ihuntbuck]

am going to make ingots for the first time. approx how long from the time you pour till you dump going to be usin a 4 slot lyman mold. also how many ingot molds should a guy try to have going for smelting 30 pound batches??

[grumpy one]

You dump out the ingots when they've solidified. This means when a pipe cavity has formed on the top, and the top surface has dulled.

How long that takes depends on how hot the metal is and, more importantly, how hot the mould is. Just watch for the signs that it's solidified. After you reach a steady cadence you'll be able to see what the time interval is - but it's way too long, if you have a big pot and only four moulds.

[ihuntbuck]

i was afraid one mold would not be enough so i went ahead and ordered one more for now that will at least get me cooling 8 pounds at a time.

[wills]

You might want to consider muffin pans, or mini loaf pans, or cast iron cornbread pans, all of which may be readilly available

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=2809&highlight=leave+rain

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showpost.php?p=31181&postcount=7

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showpost.php?p=31186&postcount=9

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showpost.php?p=31388&postcount=14

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=6344&highlight=rusty+muffin

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showpost.php?p=29467&postcount=20

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=2051&highlight=rusty+muffin

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showpost.php?p=15158&postcount=10

[xr650]

I have 3 Lyman ingot molds. The pot I use for smelting will hold in excess of 150 lbs.
I have to stop and have a smoke from time to time. :)

[ihuntbuck]

thanks for the advice fellers. i saw a neat looking cast iron pan at rual king last night would have made ingots that look like little ears or corn lol.

[e15cap]

Whats funny about that? I bought two of those corn muffin pans and they turn out 8 at a time. Cost - .50, look on peoples faces when they see them - priceless. Roger

[carpetman]

Was wondering with ingot mold prices going through the ceiling,are there possibly any alternatives? Has anybody tried something other than an ingot mold for making ingots?

[cohutt]

Was wondering with ingot mold prices going through the ceiling,are there possibly any alternatives? Has anybody tried something other than an ingot mold for making ingots?

muffin tins cheapest way to multiply your ingot molds.

empty Diet Coke cans work in a pinch too if your pot can stand them, just peel of fthe aluminum with a pair of pliers when it cools:

http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m284/cohutt/bermining033.jpg

[Baron von Trollwhack]

The best solution I've found is to have sort of a moulder's "tupperware" party wherein everyone attending brings all their favorite ingot moulds, cornbread moulds, muffin pans, cupcake tins, bundt pans, etc., raw materials, jokes, stories, swop stuff, and it works like a clandestine ingot co-op run by Larry. BvT

[Wicky]

I, being a little tight with the dollars make mine from 1.5" angle iron about 6" long. I use a piece of angle at each end as feet and weld her up. I only have two but 4 would be better, once the get a bit of heat in them it takes a while for the lead to harden. :drinks:

[waksupi]

If you have a mill available, you can take a piece of 2X6 or such, and mill grooves in it. Lasts quite awhile, before the wood burns out too much. Cools fast, too. This was how much of the frontier lead was sold.

[DeanoBeanCounter]

I'm getting ready to cut up an old bed frame made from angle iron. It's measures something like 2"x2"x1/8" or so. Make the peaces about 6 1/2" long and I think I will have 1# ingots, I've got to recalculate to make sure. The cutting and welding will burn off most of the paint. Weld them up to look like a wash board and I'll have it made. I am on the look out for one of those pans that make little cobs of corn. Cool.
Does anyone know off hand any volume to weight of lead?
Deano

[454PB]

if you use 2" angle iron, the ingots will weigh about four pounds. Here is one I built recently:


http://www.castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=5060&d=1191949259

[felix]

This one you can drag across the grass without hangup. You need a flat plate under yours above. ... felix

[Goatlips]

Some guys got too much time on their hands... [smilie=1:

Goatlips

[mtgrs737]

I have five Lyman 4 cavity ingot mouds and one of the lee hybred ingot moulds that I use to smelt and make ingots with. My cast iron pot holds about 100 lbs. of lead and I am slow enough that the first mould is ready to dump and refill by the time I get the last one filled. After a few fillings the ingot moulds get hot enough that I have to wait a few minutes for them to cool before I dump them and refill. The picture doesn't show the cast iron Lyman mould without the handle which I have to use a large pair of pliers to dump.

[mike in co]

while water is not fun if mixed with lead...it does have its use...

have not read bruce's wet towel method of casting, but i pour from a ladle,
into mini bread loaf tins, and muffin tins.
i pour just over a pound in the muffins and 8-9lbs in the loaf tins

the tins/muffin pans are placed on small double overed towels.....soaking wet towels.

water added while cooling.

one word of caution the rising steam can condense in a nearby "tin".....this will invite the tinsel fairy to show up, so always pour small and slow when starting on a new tin.

i do aprox 64 lbs (8x 8lb bricks)from a 120lb pot, and then refill/smelt more......the hot lead in the pot cuts the smelting time.

the bricks are for storage/retail sales; the muffins are for refilling the rcbs and lee pots.

mike in co
THE COLORADO BRASS COMPANY

[Buckshot]

...............I water cool the ingots. See below:

http://www.fototime.com/4F0787827D40539/standard.jpg

The 12 holer muffin tin is sitting in an cheap aluminum turkey roaster pan that has about an inch of water in it. By the time it's filled and you lay down the ladle the lead is set up and ready to be dumped. Yup, it steams and rumbles and boils :-) Any lead dribbles off the ladle just go 'Pssst' when they hit the water .

The 6 holer is sitting in a round metal lid that came with a tin of cookies or something at Christmas. It's kind of a pian as it only holds about a half inch of water and the rim is so shallow it's only good for maybe 2 fills before you have to add water.

...................Buckshot

[imashooter2]

Very similar to mtgrs737, I use 5 Lyman molds and the 2 large slots in a Lee. By the time I fill the last, the first is ready to dump. My pot melts about 150 pounds at a time and I can cast ingots straight through until it's gone. You can see the burn marks from the molds on the plywood in the picture below.

http://mywebpages.comcast.net/imashooter2/pictures/smelt1.jpg

I used to use old muffin tins and corn stick pans, but put them away when I bought more commercial molds. I just like the nice uniform bricks and the way they stack, store and balance on the rim of my pot for preheat. If I could weld, then a gang mold of angle iron would be great too. But I'd want it about the same length as a Lyman brick. Every one I've seen offered for sale here has made ingots 6 inches long or more.

[Woodwrkr]

If you're going to use muffin pans, beware the ones with a nice new shiny coating of tin on the surface of the steel pan. The lead you pour into the muffin pan will be permanently soldered in the muffin pan and the only way I found to get the lead out of that muffin pan was to melt it out.

[MT Gianni]

I use a LY a RCBS and Lee as well as muffiin tins and corn loaf muffins. One thing I do is scratch the alloy in the back of each ingot every session. I use a screwdriver and write WW, 2/6/92, LY 2, PB or LINO. No other method of storage has been as effective as marking each one.
Also the old plumbers adage we should all remember is "Lead into water, never water into lead". Gianni

[buckndee]

I use four different ingot moulds acquired over time. The Lee and Lyman drop ingots right now, RCBS drops OK but the Saeco is a PITA* to release. Have to bang the heck out of it to release ingots. Currently making up a dozen bed frame angle iron gang moulds, almost done welding the end plates. Making the angle iron moulds sized to fit the RCBS and Lee pots. When it stops raining hear, smelting time!!!!!:castmine:

[cohutt]

while i use muffin tins along with a lyman and a couple of lee molds, i have recently been given a couple nice jumbo ones. after 1 casting session, I'm liking the size vs multiple pours/dumps with the smaller ones. I plan on getting some scrap angle iron and having the local tech school welding class make me some more-

with a lyman ingot in it for scale:

http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m284/cohutt/misc021.jpg


and some stacks of lymans and the new bigger ingots, ww on the left and poop pipe on the right:

http://i107.photobucket.com/albums/m284/cohutt/misc028.jpg

[carpetman]

Wow,you can use Coke cans and muffin pans and make round ingots. Wonder if it makes for better bullets where they start out round and you don't have to work the molecules so much? I think that is why hay is now round bales instead of the old rectangular ones---cows can pass them easier.

[ANeat]

I have enough molds to ingot out the whole pot. These plus a few more made from scrap channel iron. They stack real nice, about 5lbs each

http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h165/aneat/Image033.jpg


http://i64.photobucket.com/albums/h165/aneat/Lead/ton.jpg