Have i got a problem for you!!!!!

[SFB syndrome]

30 years ago I found a Saeco 24 lead pot at a garage sale (near new condition). I've never used it. All I've ever used was a 10lb Lee production pot, never gave me any problems (cast 10's of thousands projectiles) until the other day when it gave up the ghost.

The Saeco pot works flawlessly HOWEVER I suck at lining up the molds with the center pour of the Saeco pot! I've found several references to mold guides and even a few pictures of manafactured guides but none for sale. I have even thought up a few solutions that would make Rube Goldberg proud but nothing really simple. Any ideas?

Also, I have searched almost all of the casting equipment threads looking for a solution. But NADA.

[Winger Ed.]

Welcome aboard.

I don't use any guides on my bottom pour pots.
I Put the sprue plate close to the spout, and just eye ball it.

I do wear the really good and comfortable safety glasses, and long sleeves now.
Later on, I gather up the little splatters when I'm done.

It goes along with my strict obedience of the first rule of 'man law':

"Disconnect, or other wise bypass all safety devices, and throw away the instructions".:bigsmyl2:

[StuBach]

On my Saeco I just built my own. Used a board, attached some angle brackets, than ran some of steel spacers between the brackets with bolts. Wasn’t perfect but it worked pretty decent.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200916/e29245c21b07eeae83d368467b79f9da.jpg

Photo is the early version before I added a second one. Sorry, upgraded a while ago so don’t use this rig anymore.

[country gent]

Maybe a bent wire off to the side and over to moulds where it van be seen easily to show alignment. This could be clamped to the base or one of the rods the end would provide side to side and the wire itself front to back. with the wire mounted down where you van see it it should provide a guide

[largom]

Having a milling machine I made my own out of aluminum for my Lee pots. I suggest that you use wood 2x4 or what fits under your pot to raise your molds to your desired height under the pot spout. Get a piece of 1/2 in. angle [Alum. or steel ] at hardware store or you could use small wooden strips fastened along each side of mold to create a track for mold to slide in. You would need to create a stop [wood screw would work ] in the track that stopped the mold at the right position under the spout. Could reposition the stop for different molds. If you used the metal angle strips you could drill holes thru them to hold a small nail cross-ways for the different stops.
Larry

[NyFirefighter357]

You can also go to the replacement parts page at Lee and get one of every part you need to repair your pot for the cost of shipping. It shows prices but if you add an item to the cart it's free unless you add more than one then the first one is free. I rebuilt both my 10lb pots for about $12ea in shipping costs.

https://leeprecision.com/parts/bullet-casting/electric-melters/production-pot-iv-parts/

NOE sells mold guides but I don't know if they will work for you but may be adaptable.

https://noebulletmolds.com/site/product-category/melting-pots-and-related/lead-pot-mould-guide

[SFB syndrome]

NyFirefighter, Thanks for the links. I had actually ordered the parts to repair the Lee but my youngest son walked off with them, repaired the pot then claimed it as "his"! Oh well. Hope he doesn't burn his house down!

[SFB syndrome]

Stubach, Country Gent and Largom
Thanks for the picture and the great ideas

[gpidaho]

I just use a wooden block cut from a 4X4 to various heights for different moulds. Gp

[dbosman]

I use a piece of 2x4 with one to five pieces of sheet lead to keep my molds near the spout. Add or subtract sheets as needed.

[Walter Laich]

I built a shelf so my pot's spout is at eye level. That way it's much easier to line up everything

[monadnock#5]

My Lyman Mag20 has a guide, but I don't use it for that purpose. I always had a problem slopping lead into the next cavity. So anymore the guide is only adjusted for height for use as a rest. I hold the moulds crosswise, kitty corner, raised on one end, tipped back, forward, whatever it takes to get complete fill out without slopping. It's what works best for me.

[Rich/WIS]

If you can find one the Lyman mold guide for their Model 61 pot fits the SAECO, know because I had a 24 at one time.

[Gone_rabid]

You can also go to the replacement parts page at Lee and get one of every part you need to repair your pot for the cost of shipping. It shows prices but if you add an item to the cart it's free unless you add more than one then the first one is free. I rebuilt both my 10lb pots for about $12ea in shipping costs.

https://leeprecision.com/parts/bullet-casting/electric-melters/production-pot-iv-parts/

NOE sells mold guides but I don't know if they will work for you but may be adaptable.

https://noebulletmolds.com/site/product-category/melting-pots-and-related/lead-pot-mould-guide

Thank you very much for this info.