Lead Cleaning Pot ? ... Do you Treat ?

[nun2kute]

I just got done melting all the crud out of a couple of buckets of WW's, and decided my pot needs modification. Let me explain.

I salvaged a cast iron Dutch oven type pot and attached a SS handle from a soup pot on the side opposite the pour spout, and a propane burner with two burners from the Salvage yard. Got several muffin tins from the D.I. for "cakes". The Problem is the cast iron pot has no real "Pour" spout, just a wider lip in the middle of that side of the pot. It's kinda difficult to hit the little muffin bowls without making a big mess. So I left about an inch of lead in the bottom of the pot to cool thinking I would remove the lead and then grind a spout to accompany the wide lip.

My dilemma, this pot is really Fuggly. It looks like someone built a fire in the bottom of it. It is thick with ash and black crudd. I understand this is probably normal, given the purpose it's being used for. It just got me to wondering if anyone has ever "Seasoned" their cast iron pot for smelting lead. Just wondering if something like that would help the scrud at the bottom, I plan on wire wheeling it before I put'er back into service. Then maybe WD-40, or PB Blaster ?????

If nothing else I learn that ... nuts, bolts, slag, tire valves, cigarette butts, plastic WW, zinc WW, metal wire and some other un-recognizable things, just don't cook very well.

Sorry, no pictures yet. I just got a new phone and my computer won't recognize it yet, so I can't download pic's.

[Mk42gunner]

Anything you use for seasoning cast iron will burn off at the temperatures lead melts, so it is a waste of time and money trying it.

Instead of tipping your dutch oven and making a mess pouring from it, get a dipper such as a soup ladle to fill your muffin tins with. Get one that is either made from one piece of steel or has the bowl riveted to the handle. You do not want two to three pounds of molten lead free falling.

Robert

[RogerDat]

Rowel ladles. Or as suggested a rivet attached soup ladle with the handle bent 90* from thrift or Salvation Army store will work for very little money. The plastic handle at the end is not your friend. Will melt if it gets too hot. I scrape my Dutch oven once in awhile, and have heard of people boiling soapy water in them to get them clean, a spritz with WD-40 after to prevent rust won't hurt. Will as said burn right off, and probably smoke a little next time you use it.

Rowell makes regular casting ladles and bottom pour. For making ingots a bottom pour is not required but is superior (little pricey however) By pouring from a baffle that gets lead from the bottom of the ladle it avoids any impurities that will float getting poured. Rotometals site sponsor link at top of the page has them, Amazon, or just Google Rowell ladle.

You might also post in swapping and selling wanted to buy. There was a guy here that made ladles and skimmers that were supposed to be pretty nice at a good price. Ask and maybe someone will have his contact info or a used ladle to sell. I got 3 from scrap yards at different times. Donuts and the occasional pizza means the guys look out for me :-)

Probably a bad idea to run a wire brush on a drill or anything like that inside a lead pot. Making lead dust is generally not a good idea.

[reddog81]

I use a cheap small pot purchased at a thrift store to laddle out molten lead to be poured into the muffin pan. The small pot holds more lead than your average laddle and is easy to use.

Avoiding lifting the 50 pounds, extremely hot, and hard to pour cast iron pot full of molten lead is the way to go.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I've seen cast iron ladles at antique shops. I've bought a couple, usually $5 or $10. I like one that has a 2 lb capacity (about 1 cup). For the pot, I have only used stainless steel. No crud accumulates on the bottom. Size-wise, I use a 4 qt soup pot on a coleman gasoline stove. If I fill the pot full of COWW (cold), Then once melted/fluxed/clips removed...I'll get about 25 lbs of ingots. It's kind of a slow process, but it's one I'm comfortable with. A gallon of gas will last all afternoon and will melt 150 to 200 lbs of alloy.

[nun2kute]

Gunner ! "Get one that is either made from one piece of steel or has the bowl riveted to the handle". It's awfully funny you should mention that. It was just a really big spoon, not a ladle. But I didn't realize it was soldered together until the scoop part just stay'd in the pot. (I said "Ooops").

Roger ! I have been trying to come up with a way to make a lead spout to pour ingots, but I didn't know someone made one. Thank's for the Direction, I'm always looking for new sources for a lot of things.

Red, the D.I. is always a good place to look, I just haven't been on that side of town for a while.
John, I probably would have never thought to look a an Antique Store on my own, thanks for the Idea tho, there is a bunch around here.

I'm still kick'n ideas around, they don't all turn out. Thanks Guys !!!

[runfiverun]

stainless soup ladle.
they generally hold about 2 lbs of alloy with room to not slop it all over the place.

oh and a FYI.
there is probably like 6 of us on the site that know what a D.I. is.
they all think it's a drill instructor.

[Grmps]

I use a cheap small pot purchased at a thrift store to laddle out molten lead to be poured into the muffin pan. The small pot holds more lead than your average laddle and is easy to use.

Avoiding lifting the 50 pounds, extremely hot, and hard to pour cast iron pot full of molten lead is the way to go.

Be careful if your pot has a round handle, mine slipped/spun on me and spilled lead all over

[Czech_too]

Find a long handled stainless steel ladle. I found mine at a $ store.
Leave the remaining lead that you melted in the pot for the next melt.

So D.I. is an abbreviation for something other than ...?

[nun2kute]

I can't stop laughing, D.I. is the Deseret Industries, the Utah version of a "Thrift" or "Charity" store. I'll have to stop by after work and see if they got a stainless ladle. :lol:

[Phlier]

I can't stop laughing, D.I. is the Deseret Industries, the Utah version of a "Thrift" or "Charity" store. I'll have to stop by after work and see if they got a stainless ladle. :lol:
Mine didn't, but our DI isn't very big.

I told my wife I needed one and it just magically appeared in my den the next day. Think she got it at Target.

[Doggonekid]

I use a 14" dutch oven to cast my ingots. I started with a coleman stove and used a small pot from RCBS to melt my lead. Now with a camp chef stove and a large dutch oven I use that small melting pot form RCBS as a ladle. I drilled a hole in it and used a lag screw and screwed a broom stick to it. It is a perfect ladle because it holds about 5 LBS of lead per pour. When you are filling 4 mold ingot trays it works just perfect. I got my dutch oven from the DI.

[mold maker]

If your dutch oven has the wire bail for a handle, don't use it to pour into ingot molds. Handling that weight of melted lead isn't safe.
The weight of lead can and will over balance the pot causing it to unintentionally dump.
Allowing the remaining lead to cool in the pot serves to make the next melt faster, is safer, and quicker.

[OS OK]

186147

[country gent]

A ladle makes pouring ingots a lot easier. With my bigger pot I used for smelting I made a ladle from a 4" pipe cap and 3/4 schedule 80 pipe for the hande. I made the handle long enough to use 2 handed and put a piece of pipe around it for the front hand so it could turn with a tight grip still. This allowed me to pour 2-3 of my 3 pound ingots with one ladle full of lead. A bail and handle oposite the spout makes pouring the last little bit easier but I always leave it for a starter in the pot.

[John Boy]

I didn't read in your post that you flux the melt before you pour the ingots. A good fluxing of the melt will eliminate the ash & thick crude into the dross - to be scooped out. As for the pot not having a spout to pour out the melt - dip it out with one of these Chinese wok spoons... https://www.amazon.com/slp/wok-spoon/7yvcgv7orduz8qp You can also buy a wok spoon with holes that allows the melt to drain back into the pot and the dross stays in the spoon

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/31L13cHBAbL._SL500_.jpg

[midnight]

I got my big pot from Davy Crockett here on the forum. I asked him why there was no bail on it. He said it is easy to carry the pot with a bail but very hard to pour. He said to wait till you want to pour the last lead out, then put two C- clamps on it. They will be cool and make good handles to grab on to. Also, always flux really well before pouring ingots, it saves a lot of work later.

Bob

[runfiverun]

I just remembered where my vice grips are. [in my smelting tool bucket]

the boy's owe you a thank you Bob :lol:
I was gonna rip them a new one tomorrow.

[10x]

I cut the bottom off of a 20 pound propane tank and put a 3/4" 12" long pipe nipple in the top for a bottom pour melting pot. I use a bolt (with a long 3/8" rod welded to the head) that just fits inside the pipe to block it until the lead is melted (turkey cooker). The top of the propane tank is kept under the 3/4" pipe nipple to catch the clean molten lead when I pull up the bolt blocking the 3/4" pipe nipple.
Clean lead drops into the catch tank, crud, wheel weight clips, and dirt stay in the upper tank. The little that does fall stays on the surface of the lower catch tank.

The lower catch tank is left to cool, 30 lb ingot is dropped out, brushed off, then the lower tank is used to remelt, flux, and clean the lead. I use lye flakes as a flux. It takes out a small bit of antimony but leaves the lead supper clean.
Then a dollar store soup ladle to fill the 1 lb ingot molds.
The wheel weight clips and dross get dumped out of the upper pot , the small bit of lead that comes out can be brushed off and salvaged in the next melt.

When I went to the 2 melt system with final flux and clean with lye many casting problems went away. The cleaner your alloy, the easier it is to cast as small bullet.

[racinjason]

I cut the bottom off of a 20 pound propane tank and put a 3/4" 12" long pipe nipple in the top for a bottom pour melting pot. I use a bolt (with a long 3/8" rod welded to the head) that just fits inside the pipe to block it until the lead is melted (turkey cooker). The top of the propane tank is kept under the 3/4" pipe nipple to catch the clean molten lead when I pull up the bolt blocking the 3/4" pipe nipple.
Clean lead drops into the catch tank, crud, wheel weight clips, and dirt stay in the upper tank. The little that does fall stays on the surface of the lower catch tank.

The lower catch tank is left to cool, 30 lb ingot is dropped out, brushed off, then the lower tank is used to remelt, flux, and clean the lead. I use lye flakes as a flux. It takes out a small bit of antimony but leaves the lead supper clean.
Then a dollar store soup ladle to fill the 1 lb ingot molds.
The wheel weight clips and dross get dumped out of the upper pot , the small bit of lead that comes out can be brushed off and salvaged in the next melt.

When I went to the 2 melt system with final flux and clean with lye many casting problems went away. The cleaner your alloy, the easier it is to cast as small bullet.

I would love to see pictures of this setup. I'm sure others would as well.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk