Small ingot mold?

[squidtamer]

Looking for a new ingot mold. Something smallish to make no more than ~2lb ingot? Something to fit into an RCBS size pot. Used is fine. (wouldn't mind pics to make sure things are cracked/etc) Just came into a couple of buckets of WW so it's finally time to get off the bench and smelt my own ingots rather than buying them.

I think new Lee molds are like $12 on amazon. They worth it?
Not sure if an Aluminum ingot mold is any better/worse than cast iron, /shrug I cast with both now as I suspect do many of us.

edit: fix spelling

[deltaenterprizes]

LEE ingot molds are fine, I have a couple that are 25 years old!
I like the 1/2 pound ingots for solder and Linotype.

[CastingFool]

One mold is not enough. I have one lee mold, and I like it, just wish I had a couple more. Just having one mold slows down the smelting process.

[Springfield]

If you don't care if you ingots stack, just go to Goodwill and get some cast iron Gingerbread house molds, or sometimes animal shapes. I have a few I would sell but shipping can be steep, about 18.00 for a large Flat Rate. I have some rusty cornbread moulds also. I really like the way they fall out, but they don't stack nicely.

[squidtamer]

Hmm off to check out my local thrift and Goodwill stores I guess. I'd LIKE them to stack, but it's not yet a requirement. Don't have to start sorting quite yet. was thinking small milk crates and sort COWW, Stick ons,and some pure lead I have, as that's all I've really got at the moment. No flux/tin/etc yet.

[farmerjim]

I have 3 lee, 1 lyman, and 1 Saeco, and 1 cornbread. With these I can continuously ladle lead from my 200 pound alloy pot into the molds dumping the oldest as they fill. I use up the cornbread first because they do not stack well. I have no problems with the Lee mold, but they only hold 3 pounds of lead while the lyman and Saeco hold 4.

[Iron369]

I have a couple lee ingot moulds. In retrospect, I should have spent a little more for the Lyman moulds. The Lee makes two one pound and two half pound. I don’t use the half pound. The Lyman has 4 one pound ingot sections. I spend too much time waiting for two Lee ingots to cool when the Lyman would double production.

[deltaenterprizes]

Muffin tins work well also, I got small bread pans from Big Lots , the grey silicone coated ones, some of the silver colored ones are tin plated and the ingots got soldered to the pan!

[toallmy]

A cheap muffin pan that holds a dozen full sized muffins will holds 24 pounds of lead . This can get you going cheap and fast .

[Walks]

Check your local Kroeger. They sell LODGE here, the cornbread pan makes GREAT ingots, $19 on sale here

[Traffer]

I have several types of molds that I never use. The only thing I need are Muffin Tins. I use the 6 cavity muffin tins from Dollar Tree, where everything is ....you guessed it... one dollar. These tins are zinc plated so the lead STICKS TO THEM unless you smoke them. I smoked my tins and when I pour molds. I have a couple of tins so I can pour 12 at a time. They make roughly 1.5lb ingots. Those fit nicely into my little 4lb Lee pot.

[jeepyj]

All in photos from a antique store. Mostly corn bread muffin pans. They are pretty hard to beat for on the cheap
232086

[HangFireW8]

Those corn bread muffin pans look awesome... I've never seen any at flea markets or yard sales. But I am doing OK with my collection of mini muffin pans. Except for the dollar store zinc plated ones. I destroyed them getting the first batch out of them.

[Anyracoon]

Picked up some cheap cast iron mini muffin pans and one regular cast iron muffin tin several years back at Walmart along with a set of metal stamps from Harbor Freight. I stamp all my meltdown ingots with; LL for lead, RL for range lead, L2 for bullet lead, WW for wheel weights, etc. I built small wood boxes the size of USPS med flat rate box to store lead in.

[Rich/WIS]

I have several of the SAECO mold and a Lee but have found muffin tins work best. Have both the regular and mini aluminum pans and a cast iron full size. Depending on how much lead you pour in big ones run about 1 1/4 lbs, minis about 1/2 lb. Got them at yard sales and thrift shops. If you get any make sure they are solid aluminum, not the type where the cup is a press fit into the tray.

[Ohiopatriot]

Muffin tins work well they make1.5-2lb round ignots perfect for the pot.

[SciFiJim]

Hmm off to check out my local thrift and Goodwill stores I guess. I'd LIKE them to stack, but it's not yet a requirement. Don't have to start sorting quite yet. was thinking small milk crates and sort COWW, Stick ons,and some pure lead I have, as that's all I've really got at the moment. No flux/tin/etc yet.

Be careful with loading the milk crates. I did that and the sides gave way after about a year of storage. I didn't stack the milk crates, but I did fill them with ingots. The outward pressure from the piled ingots added up after a while. Made quite a mess of mixed ingots when I finally noticed. I had them labeled, but still....

[nylocmik]

I also love to fish and I saw this cast iron cornbread pan for $16 and had to have it! They fit in my Lee 10lb pot too.232152

[Bazoo]

I am not sure the size of the RCBS pot, but I've got a whole stack of muffin tins, both large ones, and those mini ones, all of them the 1 piece variety that I got for .25 each from the local church thrift store. Church thrift stores are the beesknees.

[Jeffrey]

I bought ingot moulds from D Crockett, a vendor sponsor here, and was very satisfied. He makes them using angle iron. Check him out. http://castboolits.gunloads.com/forumdisplay.php?271-Ingot-Moulds-amp-Smelting-Pots

[lightman]

When I smelt scrap I'll run 7 or 8 of the Lyman style molds. If the right friend is over I'll include his Lee mold into the lineup. It works fine. I really don't care for the 1/2 pound ingots and just use the 1 pound side. They come out smoother than the ones in my older cast iron molds. You will quickly discover that you need several, not just one. Personally, I would shop around for the best price and just order 4 or more cast iron ones. They will last forever. Four pounds in a mold is a good compromise between production and being easy to handle. Some of the homemade angle iron molds work well but can get heavy during a long casting session.

[alamogunr]

These are the best I've found. https://shop.lodgemfg.com/bakeware/cast-iron-muffin-pan.asp
I have 6 that I found at a Cabela's outlet in Nebraska. I think I paid $5 or $6 a piece. We were on our way from Tennessee to Yellowstone and stopped to get a couple of jackets. These were on a sale table.

I also have both RCBS and SAECO. I bought these on Ebay many years ago(before Flat Rate Boxes). Actually, I only did that once. Shipping cost almost as much as the molds. I don't clean up WW anymore but I do some alloying and different mold shapes come in handy.

[Traffer]

I just bought some very small loaf pans for use as ingot molds. Haven't tried them yet...
232196 232197 232198
They look like they will make about 3.5# ingots. 2 1/4" x 4" on the top of the ingot and 1 3/4"x 3 1/2" on the bottom of the ingot.
I think that will make a nice size for stacking and possibly shipping.

[William Yanda]

Aluminum muffin pan from the thrift store, usually available in 6 or 12 cavity versions. Check to be sure cavities are not dented as that will hamper release.

[lead-1]

Here is a thread on those stainless steel condiment cups from Walmart, cheap too, like a buck for 4 of them. I put a sheet metal screw thru the bottom to hold them to a board so I have a handle to dump four at a time.
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?120435-Stainless-Condiment-cups-ROCK!!!

[kevin c]

I've got several Lyman and a couple of Lee ingot molds. Both styles work, but I'm thinking that the volume casting I want to do with the equipment I have (ProMelt with a Lee 4-20 feeder) may need a bigger ingot, something that will stack well in storage (so not a muffin or corncob style), and has a more slender profile than the chunky 3# mini loaf ingots I have now. I've got 1 1/2# pound angle iron molds from D Crockett that are very good, and also span the top of the pot for preheating and are sized for shipping, though I'm considering a bigger mold in rectangular bar form like the one being discussed in the group buy sub forum.

[OS OK]

One of the observations I've noticed is that it is nice to empty that smelt pot as soon as possible and get another batch going. Lot's of waiting time waiting on the new loaded pot to come up to temperature so it can be skimmed and fluxed...I like gang moulds that hold a lot of lead.


https://i.imgur.com/EO5CU3q.jpg?1

Also, I like to load a casting pot as full as possible so I can reduce the time I'm waiting on the Pb to melt as I feed that pot...that means I need to weigh the ingots so I can get approximately 18 lbs. in a 20 lb. pot because there's generally one or two pounds of pistol or rifle lead in the pot...it's easier for me to weigh and stamp weights on ingot day, you have the time to do this as you wait on each batch to melt. Call it 'OCD' or what you like but it is convenient.


https://i.imgur.com/sjomoql.jpg?1

Here's a pile of pure lead I bought from someone who likes the cornbread muffin ingots...they're cute to look at but they don't fill the pour pot very well...yeah, you can pile them to some extent but I've had them slump and fall out if I don't keep an eye on them...these need a crate to store them, they don't stack.


https://i.imgur.com/DrsNayD.jpg

These longer ingots in this shape stack close side by side in the limited space we have in those small round pots...they'll stand there for a while until they have sucked up enough heat to start slumping straight down into the pot.


https://i.imgur.com/sbyscNw.jpg?1

Another plus is that you can see that these triangular shaped ingots will stack well and stay put.
Now the only time I pull one of the small 4 gang Lyman/Lee aluminum ingot molds out is to just drain a pot for a Pb change...

[lightman]

Nice set up, OS. I also try to have enough molds so that when I start pouring I don't have to stop and wait for them to cool. I run 7 or 8 of the Lyman style molds and even then I may have to pause for a minute or two after 5 or 6 cycles. By then the ladle guy probably needs to stretch his back for a minute or two.

I have 2 barrels that I put a length of 2X6 across with a piece of 1/2 X 6 inch steel on top of it for a landing zone. I'll sit on a stool behind them to dump while a buddy works the ladle. 8 molds spreads out about as far as I can reach from a sitting position and that number also keeps the ladle guy from having to take more than a few steps. Its a pretty good system all in all.

[Traffer]

Nice set up, OS. I also try to have enough molds so that when I start pouring I don't have to stop and wait for them to cool. I run 7 or 8 of the Lyman style molds and even then I may have to pause for a minute or two after 5 or 6 cycles. By then the ladle guy probably needs to stretch his back for a minute or two.

I have 2 barrels that I put a length of 2X6 across with a piece of 1/2 X 6 inch steel on top of it for a landing zone. I'll sit on a stool behind them to dump while a buddy works the ladle. 8 molds spreads out about as far as I can reach from a sitting position and that number also keeps the ladle guy from having to take more than a few steps. Its a pretty good system all in all.
That would make a cool video...just a thought!

[OS OK]

Nice set up, OS. I also try to have enough molds so that when I start pouring I don't have to stop and wait for them to cool. I run 7 or 8 of the Lyman style molds and even then I may have to pause for a minute or two after 5 or 6 cycles. By then the ladle guy probably needs to stretch his back for a minute or two.

I have 2 barrels that I put a length of 2X6 across with a piece of 1/2 X 6 inch steel on top of it for a landing zone. I'll sit on a stool behind them to dump while a buddy works the ladle. 8 molds spreads out about as far as I can reach from a sitting position and that number also keeps the ladle guy from having to take more than a few steps. Its a pretty good system all in all.

My meager little smelt pot and turkey fryer will hold about 45 pounds of lead...I don't trust that 'Chineee' fryer to hold any more than that & I'm nervous standing along side as I flux and mess with the pot scum...


https://i.imgur.com/A7VISZR.jpg?1

It works out on several angles though...for one, that's enough lead for two sets of pours with these new long triangle bar moulds (16 bars/pot) with some Pb, prolly 1/2" left in the bottom of the pot for the next incoming batch or I'll leave it in the pot to cool for the next single pot-O-lead I process.


https://i.imgur.com/8wHOmei.jpg?1

Another angle is that I don't have the back strength anymore to be bending over the pot and moulds with my large heavy ladle...(got a failed back fusion 25 years back, gotta be careful of that) so...these small batches work out just fine. I keep track of the lead bucket behind the trap and when it feels like 50 pounds of lead I'll process that because it's easy...doesn't take a lot of time, the results are encouraging and I'm not down in the back the next couple of days. Here's the first time I processed lead from this new backstop...such a relief not to have to deal with those jacketed rounds...they are already shredded and in this pot, their jackets and the plating comes out with the pot scum.


https://i.imgur.com/zoo411I.jpg?1

Just a thought but, I wonder if some of the Cu. from the thin plating might stir into the pot and improve the blend? I've heard of guys stirring in Cu. using very thin Cu. wire?

It's amazing how this backstop has changed my shooting/practice & casting...I like Sn rich practice lead because it fills the various mould cavities so well and the casts look so good but I wouldn't want to shoot them somewhere that I can't get that lead back. As far as the shooting/practicing goes, I'm able to come up with all kinds of fun targets to practice with...for double tap + one in the noggin & working with the shot timer I like this style target, hung single or in pairs.


https://i.imgur.com/7MUIlKN.jpg?1

Just when I get to feeling good about my practice, I'll shoot a hostage target against the timer...this one makes you pay attention..."Save the hostage and your the Hero...nick or outright shoot the hostage and your the ZERO!"


https://i.imgur.com/CaG40l9.jpg?1

I keep an eye open for large boxes that I can run across the table saw to uniform all the target blanks and use a routed out template and a rattle can-O-black paint for the lines.
Had no idea how a simple backstop would change so many things I do in the shop...

[lightman]

Be careful with loading the milk crates. I did that and the sides gave way after about a year of storage. I didn't stack the milk crates, but I did fill them with ingots. The outward pressure from the piled ingots added up after a while. Made quite a mess of mixed ingots when I finally noticed. I had them labeled, but still....

I stack my ingots in plastic milk crates so that the sides do not have much strain on them. The only thing about this is that they will hold about 700# so don't load them until they are where you want them to stay! I have had 5 gallon plastic buckets split after a few years.

[lightman]

That would make a cool video...just a thought!

I'm planning to fire the smelter up before spring gets here. I'll try my hand at the video thing.

[Drew P]

I got a pair of Noe dual 2lb molds. They are pretty nice because they cast in markings that you can use for identification.

[Echo]

I have a couple lee ingot moulds. In retrospect, I should have spent a little more for the Lyman moulds. The Lee makes two one pound and two half pound. I don’t use the half pound. The Lyman has 4 one pound ingot sections. I spend too much time waiting for two Lee ingots to cool when the Lyman would double production.

You might try water-cooling the ingot molds. Use an available cookie sheet, put a towel (doubled) in it, sop with water, and set the ingot molds on there. As you pour, they will sizzle, but the ingots will cool a lot faster and production will go up.

[Echo]

Also, when I smelt, I usually use Lyman/RCBS type 4-cavity ingot molds, but flood them, making ~5-lb ingots. When I want to use them, with gloves on, I take one ingot in my left hand, flat side up, and another in my right hand, and swat the left one about on the dividing line between individual cavities, a couple of swats, and a 1 1/4 lb ingot is ready for the pot. And I store my stuff out on my covered patio, and do all my casting and loob-sizing out there. Possible in AZ.
And I store my ingots in a couple of old bookcases I bought from my neighbor who was selling them in a garage sale. AZ benign wx allows this. The coke-cans on the bottom are what I use for pure Pb. WW+2%Sn goes into angle-iron ingot molds bought here on this forum. Other alloys are marked, usually, 'A', 'B', 'C', 'D', and I know what those are.
232766Oh, and the cupcake ingots are ww's or range, so marked.

[GregLaROCHE]

I made some molds out of angle iron. Mine are a bit shorter than the others shown here. Their length is about the depth of my casting pot. I’m planning to make some more and this time I will try putting a slot between each ingot, so I can pour into one and the lead can overflow into the next ones. Not sure how it will work, but it’s worth a try.

[sniper]

Careful using anything aluminum...it loses its "SOLIDUS" at about the melting temperature of lead. At least that's what I read once upon a time.

[kevin c]

Hmm. I thought the four cavity Lee and Lyman molds I have are aluminum. Maybe some Al alloys are more heat resistant than others?

[country gent]

I made my alloy ingot mould from 1/4 X2 X 2 angle iron 10" long 5 to a mould and 5 of them. For the alloy moulds the angle is 1/8 X 1 X 1 10 long and 2 of them. ends if angle were cut on 10* angle for easy release. The 1 X 1 are for alloy pewter tin antimony its easy to cut off just what is needed from a bar. I stamp alloys with mix/blend, pot number In this way I can add x number of ingots from each pot batch and remain very consistent over a large amount of lead. Alloys are stamped with alloy material and pot number also. I tape the stamps together and use key stock for spaces. IE WW 1, RL 1, PL 1, 96 2 2 1. I use 3/8 stamps and a 4lb hammer to drive them.


Find a system that works for you and stick to it

[Springfield]

Aluminum melts around 1200 deg, lead at 620. Aluminum ingot moulds work fine.

[lightman]

Aluminum is fine for ingot molds and bullet molds. It not fine for the sustained heat and the weight when smelting.

[squidtamer]

These longer ingots in this shape stack close side by side in the limited space we have in those small round pots...they'll stand there for a while until they have sucked up enough heat to start slumping straight down into the pot.


https://i.imgur.com/sbyscNw.jpg?1

Another plus is that you can see that these triangular shaped ingots will stack well and stay put.
Now the only time I pull one of the small 4 gang Lyman/Lee aluminum ingot molds out is to just drain a pot for a Pb change...


I gotta say, I really like your mold pre-heating setup on the left there. I need to go find a coffee can now...


So many ideas! I love this place.

I want to thank everyone for chiming in. I'd searched the 6 or 8 thrift and second hand stores near me for gear (and pewter but someone else here must be buying it up) found a couple of .50 cent muffin tins but no cast iron anywhere.
I'm tempted by the way those small muffin tin ingots look, but I'm thinking the longer triangular ones make more sense for stacking.
Might have to bum some welder time from a friend and build my own angle iron molds. Not sure I have the spare $ laying around to buy pre-mades, might have to sell a few things I don't use as I need to get some smelting gear together anyway.

And I guess I need to go look up the mold group buy mentioned somewhere in here. I have this amusing thought that knowing this board the molds will be inset with sexy, scantily clad, silver boolits in various calibers. :-P

ST

[Conditor22]

https://i.imgur.com/EO5CU3q.jpg?1 ...

I made 10 5-cavity ingot molds like these (don't forget to cut a slight angle on the ends of the angle iron for easier ingot removal.
Easy to stack, empty the pot quickly.

[Liberty1776]

Amazon offers a cast iron 6-cav muffin pan for $11.71. Lead "muffins" measure 2-1/2" round x 1-1/2" tall.

https://www.amazon.com/Lodge-L5P3-Cookware-Cornbread-Pre-Seasoned/dp/B00063RX60/ref=sr_1_4?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1547672660&sr=1-4&keywords=cast+iron+muffin+pan

234077

[alamogunr]

Amazon offers a cast iron 6-cav muffin pan for $11.71. Lead "muffins" measure 2-1/2" round x 1-1/2" tall.

https://www.amazon.com/Lodge-L5P3-Cookware-Cornbread-Pre-Seasoned/dp/B00063RX60/ref=sr_1_4?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1547672660&sr=1-4&keywords=cast+iron+muffin+pan

234077

I've got 6 of those muffin pans that I bought many years ago at a Cabela's outlet somewhere in Nebraska. We stopped on our way to Yellowstone and I recognized that they would be ideal ingot molds. I think that I paid about $5 or $6 each. My wife was not happy to haul around several pounds of cast iron for the next thousand or so miles until we got back home.

[William Yanda]

a local Good Will had a stack of 4 4cavity muffin tins, the ones that resemble an ear of corn without the kernels. I passed them by for 2-3 $. Keep looking. There are deals.

[rcslotcar]

On Ebay I bought an aluminum bread stick mold that is about 9'' long. It makes ingots that weigh about 2# each. I keep about 4 on top of my RCBS to warm the up before using them in the pot. This way I can drop one or two into the pot with very little heat loss. They also stack nicely on my home made shelving unit.

[squidtamer]

I bought ingot moulds from D Crockett, a vendor sponsor here, and was very satisfied. He makes them using angle iron. Check him out. http://castboolits.gunloads.com/forumdisplay.php?271-Ingot-Moulds-amp-Smelting-Pots

Mr. Crockett seems to be MIA at the moment. A couple of other threads mention this as well. I was looking into a new smelting setup when I discovered this. Might try out my own angle iron attempt soon.

edit: learn to spell.

[Omega]

Or you can get in on this:
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?375184-ACTIVE-4-cavity-Ingot-molds
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20190122/3579bbcc9c35bc6202e55d83a06264ba.jpg

[squidtamer]

I signed up for 2 of those. But I'm still searching 2nd hand stores as I'm looking for a new smelting setup to replace the garbage I use now. And if I happen upon some pewter or a nice cast iron mold, well... ;)

edit: grammer-o ? hmm ;)

[Barr]

Used aluminum muffin tins from Goodwill are fantastic 2 lb chunks.

[Patrick L]

I use a plethora, but none were designed as ingot molds! I'm too cheap.

All aluminum mini muffin tins (can't remember for the life of me where I got them. All 1 piece, never seen those again anywhere.) Cast iron cornbread molds from flea markets (the ones shaped like ears of corn!!) Also some home made ones. Best ones were made from Walmart condiment cups (little stainless cups made for holding ketchup, etc.) affixed to a handle.

I'm not home now, I'll try to remember to post a few pics tonight

[Patrick L]

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?165301-Made-ANOTHER-ingot-mold&highlight=

Actually just searched the archives, found my old thread from when I made them. Not sure if pics will worked since that was back when I used photobucket

[Patrick L]

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?161513-Made-two-ingot-molds&highlight=

I also made these before I made the cup type ones. These were very involved, but I had the time and wanted to see if it would work. It did, splendidly! And they stack very well.

Pictures seem to still work.

[44magLeo]

Omega, that's not the final design. At least the ones I got don't look like that.
Mine the boolits on each side of the logo are more of a flat round nose boolit and the tips point at the logo.
The lettering underneath is different. The letters start on the B in boolits side with PB, then LN, WW, OT.
I know that's nit picking. Just like to see thing said right.
Had mine for a few days, just need to fire up the pot and make some ingots, just to see how they look.
I also have a Lyman and Lee ingot molds.
I have thought about making some molds but I think I would rather make them with channel iron or weld two strips of angle together to make channel. Use something with about 2 inch wide, an inch deep and 8 inches long.
Maybe make some smaller ones for tin. So they weight about 1 lb.
Leo

[RogerDat]

I have:
Angle Iron molds such as pictured above. Have 4 at 3 cavity each. Length to fit in SFRB long way. Box well, only stack so-so. Stack has to taper toward the center on each layer. In a box I can turn one flat side out to fill the box square.

Muffin tins - assorted from candy size to large muffins. All thrift, garage or estate sale. I use the pucks these produce for finished mixed alloy OR tin rich sources which I pour thinner than pucks as thick "coins" which get the Sn percentage marked on them after testing.

Regular Bread Loaf pans - these are great for making 10 - 12 pound "slabs" from scrap for later mixing into proper sized ingots. Stack really well and not that many to label even in a really large batch. These work well for bulk storage. For really large multiple pot batches I can cross mix by taking one slab from batch "A" and one from batch "B" etc. Matters for print spacers or other scrap items that may look alike but can vary as to alloy content. Since each batch may be a little different using a slab from each batch to mix final alloy keeps the final product consistent. I have been told that ISO containers can be different and would think range lead would also fall into this category of large batches that can vary. These were also all purchased used.

Small loaf pans - These stack nice and are good for premium alloys. Run about 2 lbs. each so easy to mix with plain or COWW's into a pot for casting. Have some near linotype alloy from spacers in these ingots. Some ready to cast alloys too. Also all purchased used.

A small duck decoy body weight mold. Copy of a "Potter" mold so each ingot has a "P" in it. This mold is exclusively used for pewter. Ingots run 4 or 5 to the pound in pewter.

Some of the cast boolit molds from the group buy shown above. So dang sweet they hurt your teeth to hold them. Going forward I expect almost all of my ready to cast alloys will be in these ingots. I'm also figuring the Pb and COWW lead will be in this form in the future. Running about 2.5 lb ingots, stack well and designed to exactly fill a SFRB so the amount of lead that will fit for given shipping is maximized.

Not yet decided on the tin alloys that are currently cast into the muffin tin coins. Those run around .6 pounds each down to less than .25 pound for the smaller diameter ones from candy molds. Those might be worth combining into larger batch done as cast boolit ingots that I sweeten with pewter or cut with lead to get a good tin percentage such as 40 or 50 percent for the entire batch. Coins run 23 to 63 percent with a range of percentages in between.

I have thought about using small channel to make up my own solder bar mold. Something that would be the right length for USPS flat rate shipping but hold about 1 lb. of solder with about 40% tin. My thinking is having consistent size would make storage easier, a large batch would provide a consistent tin alloy. Shipping sized would allow for better value if/when I sell some. I could probably do this with my existing angle iron molds and a 1# ladle but a squared shape would stack better.

[44magLeo]

I like the squared shape. makes nice stack.
When stacking in a milk crate, criss cross them. One layer east-west, next north-south. This way you get less push out sideways. Won't damage the crates.
Would be nice to find some of the old steel milk crates. I used to have some. Both square for 4 gallon jugs, and rectangular for 6 gallons.
Built a cart out of one of the 6 gallon crates to pull behind my bicycle. I hauled quite a few wheels weights home with that rig.
Leo

[Conditor22]

Mine don't make as long an ingot as OS OK they are sized to fit the width of an SFRB
https://i.imgur.com/ZxFNWTl.jpg

they are similar to what crocket makes

[Iron369]

Wow. I’m really impressed with ingot molds in this thread. I just have a couple Lee molds. They serve me well since I don’t get a whole lot of “smelting “ time. I would have liked a few more so I don’t have to wait for my lead to solidify before pouring more. I usually only get a couple hours after work to do what I need to do, so waiting for lead to cool sucks.

[RogerDat]

Wow. I’m really impressed with ingot molds in this thread. I just have a couple Lee molds. They serve me well since I don’t get a whole lot of “smelting “ time. I would have liked a few more so I don’t have to wait for my lead to solidify before pouring more. I usually only get a couple hours after work to do what I need to do, so waiting for lead to cool sucks.

For home use and to provide a good amount of capacity for little money I think the muffin tin "pucks" are a good choice. The muffin tins are often to be had for $1 at garage sales, salvation army, or estate sales. Stack ok, they having curved sides do waste some space but that really only matters if you have a lot of lead and a little space for it.

From the standpoint of casting a batch with not much time I think 2 pucks are equal to a whole Lee mold. So a 6 muffin tin is three Lee molds, a 12 is like having 6 Lee molds. Lot more production in that little bit of evening free time.

The ones with non-stick surface will work but at first the non-stick stuff will boil off and make bubbles all along the surface of the puck ingots. Stops doing it in time. Then these work really well. Especially if the metal is heavy enough to remain stiff when being flipped over full of lead.

6 cavity tend to be stronger than 12 cavity but there are some pretty solid 12 cavity out there.

One important caution. Always try the new muffin tin with just a couple of cavities filled to make sure the lead won't stick. Some of the tin coated steel ones the lead just solders itself to the pan. Pounding a couple out and throwing away the pan is a disappointment, pounding 12 of them out and throwing the mangled pan away after is a lot of work and a PITA so test a couple first. Don't really want to talk about how I know this, just take my word for it.

The other caution would be these thinner metal molds deliver the full temperature of the lead to the table they sit on. They will burn the snot out of anything wood they sit on. The thicker aluminum molds transfer heat too but I think the steel muffin tins do it more.

[pcolapaddler]

"...Some of the tin coated steel ones the lead just solders itself to the pan. Pounding a couple out and throwing away the pan is a disappointment..."

Been there. Done this. Cutting the muffin tin from the ingot "muffin" is a pain. They dont give up easily.

Sent from the largest mountain range in Florida.

[Retumbo]

"...Some of the tin coated steel ones the lead just solders itself to the pan. Pounding a couple out and throwing away the pan is a disappointment..."

Been there. Done this. Cutting the muffin tin from the ingot "muffin" is a pain. They dont give up easily.

Sent from the largest mountain range in Florida.

Rust is your friend...i throw new pans in the wood stove then outside gor a few friends

[15meter]

Another vote for old muffin pans, have 2, 12 muffin pans. My sister wanted new and used my need for muffin pans as an excuse to get new. Mine, filled level full weigh right at 2 lbs. They stack well and 24 lead "muffins"
is 48 lbs. Usually don't smelt that much at one time. If I did, I'd just get a couple more muffin pans.

[Walks]

I've been collecting Factory ingot molds for over 40yrs.
Got 20+ and a Lodge Cast Iron Scone Pan for unknown, until I can figure out how hard that alloy is.

I use the different ingot molds to seperate alloys.
OHAUS for Linotype
LYMAN #2 of course.
Lee one lb ingots for Pure Lead.
Lee 1/2 lb ingots for Foundry Type

And so on for RCBS, SAECO & Blank ( old RCBS )

Makes life allot easier once you have every thing alloyed out.

Except I've buying COWW's from Jetsfan-24, here.
His ingots are 2 - 2.2lbs in nice squares. So I just weigh them out and mark the weight on each with a felt marker.
A scale is a Tremendous help in maintaining your alloy integrity, batch to batch.

Jetsfan-24 alloys are the best and VERY, VERY clean.