Report on first time casting with new hot pate

[floydboy]

As I have stated in an earlier post I had always considered a hot plate as a luxury I could live without. After getting a MP 4 cavity brass mold it became apparent I had to try something different. I finally broke down and spent $10 an got a 1000 watt single burner at Wal Mart. Used it for the first time today an man was I pleased. I cast with three different molds today and started getting good boolits after no more than the third pour. I would put the mold on the plate when I turned the lead pot on and by the time I was ready to pour the mold was smoking. I will never be without one again. For those without one I would recommend getting one. You won't be disappointed. I suppose a PID is the next luxury item I will have to have.

Thanks,,,Floyd

[Yodogsandman]

Oh yeah, there's no going back now! A PID will make you wonder why it took you so long. The ease of casting increases ten fold using both.

[bottomline]

Interesting... I too have been in the camp considering a hot plate as a luxury I could live without. I may have to break down and get one. Gee its just another thing to store - wife has hinted at my hoarding things....

[blikseme300]

I am of the biased opinion that more cuss-words have been uttered, more molds damaged & more casting rejects have been caused due to the lack of a hot plate to pre-heat molds.

[tinhorn97062]

As I have stated in an earlier post I had always considered a hot plate as a luxury I could live without. After getting a MP 4 cavity brass mold it became apparent I had to try something different. I finally broke down and spent $10 an got a 1000 watt single burner at Wal Mart. Used it for the first time today an man was I pleased. I cast with three different molds today and started getting good boolits after no more than the third pour. I would put the mold on the plate when I turned the lead pot on and by the time I was ready to pour the mold was smoking. I will never be without one again. For those without one I would recommend getting one. You won't be disappointed. I suppose a PID is the next luxury item I will have to have.

Thanks,,,Floyd

I've got that same single burner and it seems to work just fine for me. Gets lead into a liquid state in a hurry. :castmine:

[bangerjim]

And to think, for only a teeny weeny investment of $10 you put off for so long......you now have eliminated the problems so many have with cold molds and wrinkles!

EVERYBODY should use one. It is as necessary as a mold for casting!

banger

[Elkins45]

I still don't use one. I just set the mold on the lip of the pot while it is heating, then stick the front of the mold and the tang of the sprue plate into the melt for a few seconds to bring it up to final temp.

I've been doing this for 30 years and haven't damaged a mold yet, so it must not be too hard on them.

[John Guedry]

I was also in the group of "I can live without one" till a friend gave me one,new in the box. How did I ever do without one?

[Walter Laich]

I used one until I bought the RCBS lid and shelf that someone advertised here on CB. Does a great job and cut down on one more item I can get burned on.

Before the lid the hot plate was the way to go.

PID came before either the chicken or the egg for me. I cast partly for the fun of it and all these add-ons up the fun factor considerably.

[stubert]

For those using a hot plate with a coil, Get an old circular saw blade and grind off the teeth and set it on the hot plate. It makes a stable base to set the mold on.

[bangerjim]

I still don't use one. I just set the mold on the lip of the pot while it is heating, then stick the front of the mold and the tang of the sprue plate into the melt for a few seconds to bring it up to final temp.

I've been doing this for 30 years and haven't damaged a mold yet, so it must not be too hard on them.

That may work for 1 & 2 cav molds. But not very well or repeatable for 5 & 6 cavity brass and aluminum molds. The plate gets them quickly up to casting temp nice and even and totally controllable.

It's not so much about damaging the mold as getting the ENTIRE mold up to temp in a quicker time frame, heating 2 or 3 molds at a time to have them at the ready, and heating feed ingots to shorten the cycle time when adding more alloy. I have read so many posts talking about starting out casting in one cavity and then moving to 2 and then 3 and then 4 to heat the mold up. What a waste of time and effort. I get perfect boolits on the 1st drop using a plate for all my molds.

Try it, you will be amazed! And they are cheap.

bangerjim

[pretzelxx]

I use lead as a temperature check on my plate. Drop a pistol boolit and wait for it to melt. Good enough temp to keep it on when it's just barely melted all the way flat.

I've done that and it heats up the molds great. As long as the mold is clean, hot and closes all the way you should drop very fast clean perfect boolits. (lead mix, temp and all that factored in too)

[bangerjim]

Very good seat-of-the-pants method of determining plate temp. NO controller or digital t/c stuff needed! Mine is shiny aluminum solid top and the IR will not work. I darkened a 1" spot with AluminumBlack to shoot at to see where my dial needs to be.....6.2. But if your alloy mix boolit starts to melt, that is a good setting.

[edler7]

I have an older coil element type. Put a chunk of flat aluminum stock about 7x5x1/2 on it so the molds would set flat during warming. I can also put 2-3 1 lb ingots on it to preheat before putting them in the pot. That really lessens the temp swings when I add alloy. Just don't leave them on too long, don't ask me how I know...

[bangerjim]

I have an older coil element type. Put a chunk of flat aluminum stock about 7x5x1/2 on it so the molds would set flat during warming. I can also put 2-3 1 lb ingots on it to preheat before putting them in the pot. That really lessens the temp swings when I add alloy. Just don't leave them on too long, don't ask me how I know...

If they melt turn you dial down. That is an excellent indication of plate temp!

[Iowa Fox]

I have an older coil element type. Put a chunk of flat aluminum stock about 7x5x1/2 on it so the molds would set flat during warming. I can also put 2-3 1 lb ingots on it to preheat before putting them in the pot. That really lessens the temp swings when I add alloy. Just don't leave them on too long, don't ask me how I know...

Can't beat a hot plate with a 1/2" thick piece of aluminum on top of the burner. The aluminum really holds the heat well once its up to temp and is soft enough it doesn't scratch up your molds. I went 35 years before I tried one. Now I wouldn't even think about casting with out the hot plate with a piece of aluminum on top of it.

[edler7]

If they melt turn you dial down. That is an excellent indication of plate temp!

They didn't really "melt", but they were like trying to pick up a stick of room temperature butter with pliers. So yeah, it got turned down a tad.