Pinsnscrews
10-29-2014, 01:27 AM
Finally had a chance to set up the pot...or so I thought. I have a 4lb minimag that I intend to use just for pure. I needed to cast up a round for doing a pound cast. I figured a good way to break in the mold, break in the pot etc. Sadly, the outlet I had intended on using...failed.
Not to be denied, I broke out the cast iron pot I had gotten for smelting and threw it on the propane burner. I don't have a thermometer for it yet. So this was in essence a practice run.
(had just set the ladle in the melt to finish heating it up for stirring. The ladle had been situated like the mold to make sure it was dry)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/wyckedflesh/Mobile%20Uploads/A41816C1-BD71-49EF-B8D3-BEDFB466DF4E_zpscris5iif.jpg
Yes, that is correct, I dove into casting using a Lee Bator .225-55 mold as my first one...
I think they came out very well!
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/wyckedflesh/Mobile%20Uploads/C334F602-AAD5-4CD9-9564-927D5E42C198_zpsqtxop0en.jpg
Until I put them under 10x magnification :lol:
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/wyckedflesh/Mobile%20Uploads/8A8E4540-8DDB-4DD0-AD7D-3C0F2DBCFB5A_zpspmjknd3b.jpg
Each one has a wrinkle in the finish. I wasn't sure if that burner was going to be able to put out enough heat to get the job done.
I will say though, after being here as long as I have before casting, reading what people have to say about mold prep, cleaning from brand new for casting, lubing the sprue plate, etc...DOING what they said to do, I had enough confidence to proceed. The mold prep was spot on. Washed with brake clean the day it arrived, washed with Dawn before using the first time. Set it near the flame to completely dry out. Put LLA on a q-tip, and dabbed it around the sprue plate screw. Made sure to keep it from falling into the cavities. Not smoking the mold. Setting the mold to heat up, and make sure it was hot before casting. Heating up the ladle to make sure it didn't have any water before putting it in the melt. Mixing the flux (ground walnut shells as I was not sure how clean & pure the lead really was), and then WALKING AWAY for 20 mins. Skimming the melt. It worked. I was able to get into a good rhythm. Took very little effort to open the sprue. No effort to get the bullets to drop from the mold. For pure, it looks like I got good fill out, even though "I" think the melt was a little low on temp.
Now to the question that is plaguing me...
About 3/4 of the way through the session, I started getting crustiness on top of the melt. In a last ditch effort, I fluxed again. What I got is this...
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/wyckedflesh/Mobile%20Uploads/C26966B1-72A9-4CE3-A83D-66E132731142_zpsa5mlrkei.jpg
The "Greenish" powder is what came out. I mixed the walnut shells into the melt, and walked away for a few minutes. When I came back, rather than the dark black burnt crust I got the first time I put in flux, I had that Greenish powder with the flecks of walnut shells. I realised then, my burner was getting cooler, and the melt temp was really starting to drop, so I tried to cast a couple more, but the ladle was sticking to the sprue plate on the second cavity. So I shut it down for the night until I get a new bottle of propane, and look to see if I can up the temp on the burner. But what I am confused about is the Greenish shade to the scum I skimmed off the top of the melt. The grey skim was from earlier when I first fluxed.
Edit: My son took video of me casting; my wrinkles are from the mold being too cold, I see from the video, I needed to stick to a solid 10 count. The mold was cooling off to much between pours.
Not to be denied, I broke out the cast iron pot I had gotten for smelting and threw it on the propane burner. I don't have a thermometer for it yet. So this was in essence a practice run.
(had just set the ladle in the melt to finish heating it up for stirring. The ladle had been situated like the mold to make sure it was dry)
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/wyckedflesh/Mobile%20Uploads/A41816C1-BD71-49EF-B8D3-BEDFB466DF4E_zpscris5iif.jpg
Yes, that is correct, I dove into casting using a Lee Bator .225-55 mold as my first one...
I think they came out very well!
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/wyckedflesh/Mobile%20Uploads/C334F602-AAD5-4CD9-9564-927D5E42C198_zpsqtxop0en.jpg
Until I put them under 10x magnification :lol:
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/wyckedflesh/Mobile%20Uploads/8A8E4540-8DDB-4DD0-AD7D-3C0F2DBCFB5A_zpspmjknd3b.jpg
Each one has a wrinkle in the finish. I wasn't sure if that burner was going to be able to put out enough heat to get the job done.
I will say though, after being here as long as I have before casting, reading what people have to say about mold prep, cleaning from brand new for casting, lubing the sprue plate, etc...DOING what they said to do, I had enough confidence to proceed. The mold prep was spot on. Washed with brake clean the day it arrived, washed with Dawn before using the first time. Set it near the flame to completely dry out. Put LLA on a q-tip, and dabbed it around the sprue plate screw. Made sure to keep it from falling into the cavities. Not smoking the mold. Setting the mold to heat up, and make sure it was hot before casting. Heating up the ladle to make sure it didn't have any water before putting it in the melt. Mixing the flux (ground walnut shells as I was not sure how clean & pure the lead really was), and then WALKING AWAY for 20 mins. Skimming the melt. It worked. I was able to get into a good rhythm. Took very little effort to open the sprue. No effort to get the bullets to drop from the mold. For pure, it looks like I got good fill out, even though "I" think the melt was a little low on temp.
Now to the question that is plaguing me...
About 3/4 of the way through the session, I started getting crustiness on top of the melt. In a last ditch effort, I fluxed again. What I got is this...
http://i27.photobucket.com/albums/c167/wyckedflesh/Mobile%20Uploads/C26966B1-72A9-4CE3-A83D-66E132731142_zpsa5mlrkei.jpg
The "Greenish" powder is what came out. I mixed the walnut shells into the melt, and walked away for a few minutes. When I came back, rather than the dark black burnt crust I got the first time I put in flux, I had that Greenish powder with the flecks of walnut shells. I realised then, my burner was getting cooler, and the melt temp was really starting to drop, so I tried to cast a couple more, but the ladle was sticking to the sprue plate on the second cavity. So I shut it down for the night until I get a new bottle of propane, and look to see if I can up the temp on the burner. But what I am confused about is the Greenish shade to the scum I skimmed off the top of the melt. The grey skim was from earlier when I first fluxed.
Edit: My son took video of me casting; my wrinkles are from the mold being too cold, I see from the video, I needed to stick to a solid 10 count. The mold was cooling off to much between pours.