Tin is Tough Stuff!

[WRideout]

I had accumulated a quantity of old pewter from thrift stores which I have been steadily melting down. Usually, I put a small amount into muffin tins,to make small ingots for casting. They are still too big, and it's hard to measure for additions to a pot of Pb.

So I had a brainstorm; what if I used a boolit mold to cast up a bunch of pewter boolits. That way I could always use the same amount, and be at least a little more consistent. Next casting session I poured a few pure pewter into a Lee 100 gr mold, and whacked the sprue plate. It was hard, but did cut. I poured a couple more, and it was even harder to cut. Then I poured a couple with a large puddle on the sprue cutter. Whacked with stick, nothing happened. Whacked again, still nothing. I pounded on it for a minute or so, and still nothing moved. I resolved that I would have to melt it out with the torch (hopefully without ruining the mold) and give up this dream.

I still need some way to make chunks of pewter into manageable size.

Wayne

[Dusty Bannister]

If you have a small casting ladle locate a flat metal plate. Clean and set it level and use the casting ladle to pour long ribbons of your tin. You are not looking for pretty, just long continuous strips to cut with side cutters or small bolt cutters to random sizes. Once you find the correct speed to move the bowl across the plate, and how much to turn the bowl to allow the tin to flow, it should go pretty quickly. Just make a convenient length piece to store.

I forgot to mention that with these slender sticks of tin, you can mark a line on the ingot, dip in the lead to that point and it will melt off at that point. Since most of the blends are not all that critical, one would not even need to make little pieces.

[DerekP Houston]

My method, for what it is worth. either a bunch of coke/beer cans upside down with a laddle to fill the hollow bottom cavity or a regular ingot mold. I used my same lee mold for ingots, I melted it all together in my bottom pour and just partially filled all the cavities ~1/2" deep. If they felt too heavy or I messed up and quick bend with the pliers while they are still hot will snap them in half. Not precise but it worked for my purposes.

Dusty's idea sounds better if you have a larger volume than I did or want to speed it up.

[WRideout]

If you have a small casting ladle locate a flat metal plate. Clean and set it level and use the casting ladle to pour long ribbons of your tin. You are not looking for pretty, just long continuous strips to cut with side cutters or small bolt cutters to random sizes. Once you find the correct speed to move the bowl across the plate, and how much to turn the bowl to allow the tin to flow, it should go pretty quickly. Just make a convenient length piece to store.

I forgot to mention that with these slender sticks of tin, you can mark a line on the ingot, dip in the lead to that point and it will melt off at that point. Since most of the blends are not all that critical, one would not even need to make little pieces.

Thanks, Dusty. I will try that. I had thought about drilling beveled holes in a wooden board, but your idea sounds easier.
Wayne

[country gent]

If you can find a piece of brass steel or aluminum 1/2" thick X 2" wide X 4" long clamp 2 pieces together with a piece of construction paper between them. then drill a couple holes thru them side ways and fasten ends on them this makes a simple small ingot mould for tin or pewter. A 3/8" -1/2' drill should be about right for what you want. I would go with steel as its cheaper and works fairly easily. this will make 2 ingot moulds with 3-6 cavities depending on how you drill them.

[runfiverun]

if you get that mold hotter it'll work better.
a 45-70 mold that normally pours out 450 gr boolits will hold about 1 oz of tin and makes measuring pretty easy.
you just have to keep the tin melted long enough to cut it while it's still liquid.

[OS OK]

Thanks Dusty...duh! I feel pretty stupid not coming up with that idea...KISS, it really works!

[Mica_Hiebert]

Use a ladle to trickle it into a coffee can of water with a long drop and make tin shot.

[toallmy]

If you cut it 50/50 with soft lead will it help ?

[C. Latch]

With a ladle like the Lyman with a pour hole in it, could you just pour it out on a cold day and have it harden before it hit the ground, forming a long wire?

eta: or pour it into a bucket full of water?

[JSnover]

All pewter is not created equal. The pewter alloys I've run across were anywhere from 9 to 22 bhn but I've never had that much trouble opening the sprue plate when casting "pot sweeteners." You may have gotten a batch of a much harder non-ferrous alloy.
I don't want to sound like a casting snob but after a couple of bad batches I gave up on unidentified "pewter" and bought enough tin Babbitt to last a while. The price was right and the alloy was known.
Did this pewter seem harder or shinier than normal?

[bangerjim]

I use Lee ingot molds for Sn....the 1/2# cavities. Fill them half full and then it is easy to just stick one in the pot (held by pliers or tongs) for a fraction of an inch and the Sn melts right off. That way you do not get your Sn boolits mixed up with normal lead ones.

I cannot find pewter stuff to melt down around here. What I do find is either antique or highly collectable and I keep it! And it does vary a LOT. I stick with pure Sn.....I have a LOT of it in ingot form! Analyzed by an x-ray gun as pure Sn when I bought it (for Pb prices).

[Beagle333]

You can make pewter boolits. Just experiment with the temp and when to cut the sprue. I got em out of .730 round balls and also long skinny rifle boolits. Also.... you don't "have" to use the sprue plate. Just don't pour a continuous sprue puddle. Then just rap the handle bolt and dump em out. You'll also never get em confused with your real boolits, thanks to the oddly shaped base. ;)

[10 ga]

I happened onto a minimuffin pan and use it to mold and just pour small "coins" from that. About the size of a quarter. Have also used brass candle stick and pour small FN "boolit" shaped tin ingots with that. 10

[montanamike]

I used a Lee 1oz slug mold and if I remember right they came out right around 3/4 oz. Worked great, sprue wasn't any harder to cut.

[WRideout]

Thanks, everybody. There are a lot of ideas to try out here. I like Beagles, because it is so simple.

Wayne

[bdicki]

Why not just leave the sprue plate open and just pour into the cavities?

[MaryB]

Beat me to it! Take the sprue plate off and just barely fill the cavities to the top. You should be able to drop pretty consistent weights after awhile.

[popper]

I just pour super hard into a worn out Lee mould, don't use the sprue plate. Don't care what they look like, just weight them - I do know addition tables. Same with shot that I use - for As.

[Retumbo]

I took to pieces of 1/2"x3" aluminum bar. Clamped and pinned them. Took a half inch drill and made several holes right where the bars meet. Easy peasy

[pjames32]

I make pewter bullets regularly. That's how I break in new molds. Get a hotter temp, heat up the molds and cast away. Don't wait too long on the sprue!

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I've cast up alot of pure tin boolits, I use a Lee "REAL" 50 cal mold, as I have found no other use for it :razz:
Just pre-heat the mold to normal casting temps before, and it's just like casting with COWW alloy, no pounding of sprue plates, I use a gloved hand to open the sprue. Also, I poured them with varying size sprue puddles as well, that way I have different weights as well as the REAL boolits which are consistent weights.

[Drm50]

I took a less technical approach, pour my tin in a sinker mold. Sinker mold has weights impressed
into it- not true weight but close enough for uniformity.

[Horace]

Get a piece of small angle iron or channel at ACE use vice grips to hold in place you now have a small tin mold.

Horace

[Fishman]

I took a less technical approach, pour my tin in a sinker mold. Sinker mold has weights impressed
into it- not true weight but close enough for uniformity.

+1 here. This works great and the sprue can be cu t off if desired with side cutters.

[Hanzy4200]

Instead of a muffin tin, I found a Twinkie tin. Same deal, different shape. For pewter and solder scrap, I just pour enough to fill the bottom. Nice little 3-4 oz even bars. Simply dip as much in as needed.

[Smoke4320]

Lee Ingot molds .. the 4Oz side will give 2 oz tin ingots and the 1/2 lb sides will give 4 oz ingots
at least in my HSB tin
They are easy to break in smaller pieces if needed
Easy to figure additions to the pot that way

[edler7]

I took a less technical approach, pour my tin in a sinker mold. Sinker mold has weights impressed
into it- not true weight but close enough for uniformity.


Works well. Weigh up a few and figure out how many to make a pound- write that on the container.

[Ohio Rusty]

You can also use a teaspoon or table spoon to make little ingots you can weigh ...
Ohio Rusty ><>

[mold maker]

I drilled an old book binders clamp, drilled with several different sizes. Easy release and equal weights that look like boolits.