My Lee pot shocked me

[Boolit_Head]

Pulled out the old Production pot I have not used in 20 years or so and got a tingle from it. From my quick searches it seems the heating element commonly breaks down with age? I checked it with a multimeter and could not get any continuity from either terminal to any part of the case or outer shell of the element. Can't see anything near the rheostat that is shorted. I'm about stumped.

I'll probably just order a rheostat and element since Midway has them pretty cheap.

[1johnlb]

It may be a higher resistance than your meter will read.

[SSGOldfart]

It may be a higher resistance than your meter will read.
Yep or a short to the casing these pots get HOT

[bangerjim]

Wiring or more than likely leakage in the elememt. That is an old pot!

To find out just how much leakage, take a couple test leads (or just wire if you do not have any), connect one end to the pot and then to a 7 watt 120 v bulb. (even a 5w Christmas bulb!) Connect the other wire end to the bulb and then to good earth ground (water pipe). Plug in the pot and see how bright the bulb is! If that old pot does not have a grounded or keyed plug, reverse it in the wall outlet.

It is probably just a small amount of leakage. It may even be from moisture intrusion (do not know where you are at!) over all those years of sitting around.

If you see ANY illumination, you have a major short to the case simewhere inside! Either see if you can buy a new element from Lee or just buy a new pot. Check Amazon for some good prices.

A digital muntimeter will NOT read correctly for leakage current because the impeadance is so high with those meters. You can read 120v thru a 10 megohm resistor! Hardly any current, but voltage is there. Ohm's law anyone? The old analog meters were much more useful for things like this. I still have 3 old Simson meters around for things like this.

Good luck.

bnagerjim

[daniel lawecki]

Time for a new element

[ColColt]

Yep, I bought this one many moons ago.

http://i180.photobucket.com/albums/x220/ColColt/Misc%20Stuff/Simpson_260-xpi-e_zps357849c0.jpg (http://s180.photobucket.com/user/ColColt/media/Misc%20Stuff/Simpson_260-xpi-e_zps357849c0.jpg.html)

[bdbruce]

I purchased my Lee Pro 4-20 pot from MidwayUSA about 10 months ago and have cast thousands of boolits with it. Yesterday is was skimming the pot with a old S.S. spoon dedicated for this purpose, and touched my cast iron bench vise close by and noticed a tingling.

I got my voltmeter out and checked the pot to the vise, I got 120 VAC, I don't have a meter that will measure AC current. This pot came with a 2 prong plug. My bench vise is bolted to a welded steel frame bench, the bench sits on my garage concrete floor, the only possible "ground". This is the first time I may of ever contacted Ground while touching the pot with anything metal, also I usually wear leather gloves when casting.
The Drip-o-matic feature is not to difficult to deal with, I've been thinking that the main problem is the light weight of the "Valve rod" and the valve lift C shaped sheet metal piece. If I had access to a metal lathe I would make a custom "Valve rod", original dimensions at the top and bottom of the rod, but make the center part larger in diameter/heaver. My other thought would be that because the valve rod is in a pot of molten lead alloy, would increasing the mass of the steel valve rod make it more apt to "Float" in molten, heaver lead? maybe the extra weight on the valve rod should be outside/above the molten lead.

Just some of my insights and thoughts.... Big Daddy Bruce

[pretzelxx]

I wonder! I had my pot plugged in a while back and thought it was my toaster oven but i may have had the two touching. Interesting! But it was brand new at the time

[bangerjim]

"Leakage" current has always been a problem with electrical appliances ever since they were invented! That is why the grounded plugs on most quality items. Double Inslulated drills and hand tools are just that, but the amature and field coil can still leak to the chuck! Some have a plastic gear in there somewhere to break the circuit path (and wear out).

The keyed 2 prong plugs on most light duity cords (you know, that fatter prong that will never go into the Christmas lights when you are balancing on the ladder 16 feet in the air!!!) is coded for hot and neutral. But does NOT have a case grounded as with a 3 prong.

I have seen leakage currents from a "tingle" to just bearly enough to light a 5 watt bulb to full brightness on a 40 W!!!!!! That was a goos short!

Tinglies went away with the advance in consumer electronics safety, but many still have only 2 prong plugs. Sad. The Lee pot should be a 3 wire product with the case fully grounded. If you blow a fuse or GFI, so much better than blowing your life.

banger

[1johnlb]

Banger, why not just use a volt or amp meter to test. The volt setting will tell you if it's leaking and the amp setting will tell you how much. Just test from the case to the ground plug on your duplex. The op already tested with the most sure technique, his finger. If it tingles, it's broke! With a high impedence meter you should be able to ohm it out.

[SSGOldfart]

Remember those old pots don't have a ground on the plug so you become the ground when you touch it

[ColColt]

Isolation Transformer. I used one every time I worked on old tube radios...especially the "AC/DC" variety.

[dikman]

Bd, I sort of agree with you about the Lee pot. The needle valve is fine, it's the way the lift part operates that is the main issue. The weight is off to the side of the rod, so the force applied to the rod is sideways, not vertical, which creates friction when the rod slides. Since modding mine to operate like the RCBS it hasn't caused any problems.

Replacing the power cord with a 3-wire grounded one is easy, but unless you have grounded power outlets it won't do much good.

[Idz]

A gfci outlet will protect you from harmful shocks. It doesn't require a 3-wire plug to function. The gfci works by measuring the difference in current in the hot and neutral lines.

[SSGOldfart]

My pot has gotten me a couple times now it's about 20years old but it only does it when I have it on a medal surface if it's on wood I have no problem from this pot,I'm holding out until the new Lyman pots are ready to ship.

[SSGOldfart]

My pot has gotten me a couple times now it's about 20years old but it only does it when I have it on a medal surface if it's on wood I have no problem from this pot,I'm holding out until the new Lyman pots are ready to ship.

[30Carbine]

Mine did that replaced the cord with a 3 prong to the outlet. then put an eye let on the ground side to the base of the pot no more shock.. lamp cords work great and the other half has not even tried the lamp it came from yet..

[dikman]

SSG, it's already been a loonnnggg wait for that Lyman [smilie=1:.

[Garyshome]

I've had that happen...but I was standing in water at the time.

[bdbruce]

Hi dikman,

So how did you modify your Lee pot so that its valve is like a RCBS?, I do have grounded outlets in my home, I checked my pot to my grounded vise voltage again yesterday, it was only a few volts AC,
It may have something to do with the amount of moisture in my concrete floor, maybe how I plug it in, the plug is not "polarized" (both plug blades are the same width).

Thanks, Big Daddy Bruce, keep them boolits going down range..

[bdbruce]

Banger,

Do you or anybody notice if Lee Lead pots are Underwriters Laboratories ( UL ) approved?

[Rich/WIS]

Was trying to revive my old SAECO 24 this AM, noticed it heated too well when I got done. Expect the pot to heat but not the legs and base so decided to check. Sure enough get 120V AC from pot casing to ground. I see that a member here has started a repair service, perfect timing. It's nice when the stars and planets align.