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Bman
11-07-2005, 07:43 PM
I could not afford the pro 20 4" so I'm not really griping!

Doesn't hold enough lead!!!!!!!!!!!

So it showed up today and since I've been ladle casting these last four years this was a big and nice step up for me. Discovered two things.

1. Even a 2 cavity mould will crank out a pile of boolits in a hurry with a bottom pour pot.
2. I reject more bullets. Some is because of learning curve and the new pot. But mostly I can afford to be more critical when it's this easy to make good boolits!

Seriously I enjoyed casting before but this is a whole new dimention.

B.

yammerschooner
11-08-2005, 01:54 PM
I like mine, but I was surprised how easy it was to outrun with only one 6 cavity mold.

I get particularly cull happy when I start resizing, but it doesn't seem like I have a whole lot of rejects when I consider how many I have dropped from the mold.

Bodydoc447
11-08-2005, 02:49 PM
Just keep those ingots on the rim to preheat so you don't drop your temp as much. It really helps to keep up with the preheated ingots. I finally bought a Wally World hotplate just to preheat my molds and ingots. Works really well. Adding in an ingot or two that is really warmed up doesn't drop the temp much and you can just keep on casting.

Doc

Oldfeller
11-08-2005, 07:35 PM
Bodydoc's got the ticket, park your next ingots on the rim to pre-warm and use a quarter inch of kitty litter on top of the melt to help insulate your molten pool from casual heat loss.

A big six banger mold is a "capacity issue" with a 20 pound LEE pot only if you want to let it be one.

Oldfeller

yammerschooner
11-08-2005, 07:58 PM
Looks like a hotplate is on the list of things to get. Thanks for the kitty litter suggestion. Any specific kind, or will the clumping stuff sitting in a bucket downstairs work? (sams special)

On a related note, I just converted an old propane tank into a bottom pour ingot maker. I have a few more bolts to add, but I should be able to get it fired up soon. If it works like it is supposed to I will post some pics. It looks like it should hold about 3/4 of a 5gal bucket at a time, but I will know more when I start throwing in the WW.

waksupi
11-08-2005, 08:20 PM
Just get the cheapest plain kitty litter. The clumping stuff may have chemicals in it that wouldn't be good for you. Carpetman likes to use recycled kitty litter. He says the cat poop gives it a delightful aroma.

Oldfeller
11-08-2005, 10:35 PM
In truth, I don't think it matters very much. I have used all sorts over the years (whatever SWMBO had for her kitty monster) it all works for me.

Haywire Haywood
11-08-2005, 10:45 PM
I started with the Lee 10lb bottom pour, upgraded to the 20lb-er because I heard the stouter stream made it work better with big heavy boolits but continued to have problems till I switched to casting with a 1lb Rowell ladel. I gave the 10lb-er away, bought a regular 20lb pot without the bottom pour valve, and yanked the valve mechanism out of the the 20lb pot I had. I keep roofing lead in one pot and WW in the other. :smile:

Ian

edit: grammar correction

yammerschooner
11-08-2005, 10:51 PM
Ahhh! The things you can do with kitty litter.

Another tangent that may be of interest to you gentlemen-I seem to be predisposed to wandering off topic today:

I use the white bead kind of kitty litter as dessicant. When in my safe, I just throw it in the oven every 5 months or so at @175 for a couple of hours to dry it back out. It works great if you are going to throw something into an old ammo box for an indefinite period. I put it in paper bags to keep it contained, but exposed to the air. Make sure you don't get the stuff with the blue crystals. It even says silica on the side of the bag. (it doesn't work worth a poop in the litter box though).

B-man, Sorry about diverting your Lee Production Pot post.

Bman
11-09-2005, 10:49 AM
Scooter no sweat!

And thanks guys my first biggest problem is recasting all my ingots. The ingots I made from my last melt won't go into the pot without chopping them in half. Too lazy. Upside don't have many left.

Guess I'll have to make the trip to wally world for a hot plate.

Bman

Newtire
12-09-2005, 02:20 AM
Threw the first Lee Pot I bought at a garage sale away because it leaked & used a coleman stove/frying pan/big spoon method for longest time up until about last year. Bought a 20 lb. Lee bottom pour, fixed the leak, dump in a couple of muffins of wheelweight about whenever I please & really not much time & it's melted.warming em up first is a good idea anyway. Gets rid of any malicious dampness that boils & sputters dangerously.

boogerred
12-10-2005, 03:12 AM
i use mini-muffin pans to make ingots.they come out about 3/4"x2".go right in a 10# lee.melt quick if you dont run it way low and doesnt seem to cool the melt very much.

Bman
12-10-2005, 05:58 AM
I remelted all my old alloy and some new into a 24 cavity mini muffin pan and two corn bread cast iron pans. One does the corn on the cob shape and the other makes 8 pie piece wedges. It all goes into the pot much easier now! Having too much fun casting...it's cutting into my range time!

Pawpaw
12-23-2005, 07:17 PM
I use cornbread stick pans for WW alloy and a square ingot mold for pure lead. It is easy to keep the two separated when they are molded into differenct shapes. If I worked with another alloy, I'd get another mold pan.