Adios, Lee-dripper!

[Jtarm]

https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20211021/dd2b6b1ce35b2e5a269dfc579bd8d708.jpg

Optics Planet has them on sale for under $300.

[Winger Ed.]

Very good. I sure like mine.

Be advised: WHEN the nozzle gets a little crud on it, they drip too.:bigsmyl2:

[Jtarm]

Very good. I sure like mine.

Be advised: WHEN the nozzle gets a little crud on it, they drip too.:bigsmyl2:

I think that’s to be expected.

But NOT constantly dripping!

[Winger Ed.]

I think that’s to be expected.But NOT constantly dripping!

True. I just had to chuckle though.
No matter what brand, you'll often see, "My pot drips, I hate it. It's the worst one ever".
And the only problem was that the needle & seat clogged with a little speck of dirt and dripped.

[Jtarm]

True. I just had to chuckle though.
No matter what brand, you'll often see, "My pot drips, I hate it. It's the worst one ever".
And the only problem was that the needle & seat clogged with a little speck of dirt and dripped.

This isn’t my first rodeo. My Lyman Mould Master used to clog/drip on occasion . But it didn’t constantly form lead stalagmites that had to be cleared every few pours.

[Froogal]

I keep a small diameter wire (paper clip) next to my LEE 10 pound pot. When it starts dripping, I insert that wire up into the nozzle and wiggle it a bit. The drip will stop. At least for awhile.

[Green Frog]

I have had similar experiences with Lee 20 pounders, a Lyman 10 and a 20 pounder, and to the least degree with a very clean RCBS 20 ponder belonging to a friend. Currently, I use 2 Lee 20 pounders and as long as I keep them clean (especially the nozzle) the drips are minimal. I only get stalagmites in my catch basin when I let the nozzle get dirty.

[Petander]

Looking good,congrats!

I have constant nightmares about my old Pro Melt breaking. It will be some big yoga to get a new one up here in nowhere... I personally only know about one other finnish person who casts bullets.

[Sasquatch-1]

I bought one a couple years ago. It works great. Biggest problem I have with it is the cool down period because of the electronics. It takes about an hour or more to get down to the recommended 160 degrees F. before you can unplug it. I will not leave it unattended during the cool down period.

I also have an old Lee 10 pounder but will not get rid of it. I use it for the dead soft lead.

[jsizemore]

You might try adding an external fan to your whole setup at shutdown to cool it faster. To keep the PID operating correctly, RCBS most likely added a lot more insulation that keeps it from cooling faster too. More directed air movement is more better.

[Targa]

Very nice on the RCBS. I have thought about getting one for a while but am to far along in my casting to justify it.

[lightman]

It looks like a nice pot. Please post something about how you like it after you have used it some.

[Jtarm]

It looks like a nice pot. Please post something about how you like it after you have used it some.

I spent a few hours this morning casting with an Accurate 40-224H 5-cavity.

Works great at keeping a constant temp and getting back up to temp when adding a 2.5 lb ingot.

A couple issues: the lever stop screw needs to be a bit longer. Cranked all the way down (minimum flow) the alloy stream was still too heavy for my taste. It worked best with the pot half-full. So I’ll be shopping for a new screw later today.

I don’t trust the thermostat. Not the set temperature, but the actual pot temp. When I added an ingot it would show the temp dropping only a few degrees. I know from experience it should drop 30-50. Sure enough, that’s what my NOE thermometer said. But it came back up quickly and I didn’t have to pause casting like with my Lee.

The shelf is nice, but I wish the guide collars were smoother and chromed for a slicker surface. I didn’t like the feel of my aluminum mould blocks rubbing them. I’ll probably give them a good going-over with some wet-or-dry.

My alloy is COWW+2. Setting the PID at 725 gave me a nice pile of shiny bullets.

Oh, yeah, only two-drips the whole time. We’ll see if that keeps up once it’s seen more use.

A minor annoyance is having to keep 3 or 4 metric hex keys on hand to make adjustments. I’ll be on the lookout for metric thumb screws while shopping hardware.

[Rapier]

You can rebuild the RCBS, yourself, and the rack adjusts for height of molds. If the paint falls off, apply some heat resistive grill paint, mine is now 30 years old, it does not need to be green. They are really good production pots.

[bowfin]

When my Lee pot starts to drip, I clean it.

Problem solved.

[dimaprok]

I bought one a couple years ago. It works great. Biggest problem I have with it is the cool down period because of the electronics. It takes about an hour or more to get down to the recommended 160 degrees F. before you can unplug it. I will not leave it unattended during the cool down period.

I also have an old Lee 10 pounder but will not get rid of it. I use it for the dead soft lead.Why do you need to watch it while its cooling down?

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[Sasquatch-1]

Why do you need to watch it while its cooling down?

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I just don't feel comfortable leaving something that gets that hot plugged in unattended. I also do not leave my washer and dryer running when I leave the house.

I should probably get a count down timer to plug into.

I usually spend the time sorting through the bullets and reshaping in a swaging die.

[dimaprok]

When I got my Lee 4-20 it dripped some so I took valve rod chucked it in drill and ground some and drips were minimized. When I got a chance to snag RCBS Pro melt I was shocked how much it dripped, worse than my Lee! I gave it a thorough cleaning including nozzle and still. I took the rod oit and ground it at angle and it only made things worse. It was unbearable, i finally ground it flat 2nd time, tied an ingot to the arm and it pretty much doesn't drip anymore.

What's worse though is that nozzle constantly gets clogged! That happened rarely with Lee. Its frasturating at times.

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[kevin c]

I just mounted my drippy 4-20 over my ProMelt as a feeder; now it doesn't matter that it drools alloy. AAMOF, it's a plus that it doesn't drip when the alloy is cold (ingots, sprues and rejects just added) but does when the alloy is up to casting temp and ready to add to the ProMelt.

And, yes, if dirty the ProMelt drools too.

[Super Sneaky Steve]

Dripping pots are distant memory. I bought a good ladle and never looked back.

[Wally]

I do the same and seldom will it drip. Good idea to remove the rod after a 2 potfulls and clean/polish the tip with steel wool.



When my Lee pot starts to drip, I clean it.

Problem solved.

[oley55]

I do the same and seldom will it drip. Good idea to remove the rod after a 2 potfulls and clean/polish the tip with steel wool.

sounds like a good tip. When I got my 4/20 new I seated the stem with some valve seating compound it didn't drip at all and I wondered why folks were having problems, but of late I have been experiencing a wee bit of dripping. I'll hit it with some 0000 steel wool next time.

[Brokenbear]

Would you like my mailing address for that krappy old Lee you want out of you sight!
Congratulations by the way

Bear :-):-)

[Wally]

I cast up 300, 500, & 100 bullets with my Lee Production pot in 3 sessions this past week. The lead was coated thinly with fine sand. I stirred & fluxed it then skimmed off the slag....never had any drips becuase after each session I carefully cleaned the valve stem with steel wool, If you have one that leaks, that is all you need do...preventative maintenance.



sounds like a good tip. When I got my 4/20 new I seated the stem with some valve seating compound it didn't drip at all and I wondered why folks were having problems, but of late I have been experiencing a wee bit of dripping. I'll hit it with some 0000 steel wool next time.

[mmb617]

Guys I'm new to casting doing round balls using the Lee bottom pour but I'm having a problem getting it to flow. I take a paper clip and wiggle it around in the spout and I might get one or two balls before it clogs again. The manual says the lead isn't hot enough but even with it set on the highest setting for an hour the problem still persists. A drip I can live with, this is much worse. Any help will be appreciated.

I pulled the rod that controls flow out and will examine it's relationship with the seat once everything cools enough.

I thought the bottom pour pot would be easier than ladling but now I'm wondering if I should go that route instead.

[oley55]

Guys I'm new to casting doing round balls using the Lee bottom pour but I'm having a problem getting it to flow. I take a paper clip and wiggle it around in the spout and I might get one or two balls before it clogs again. The manual says the lead isn't hot enough but even with it set on the highest setting for an hour the problem still persists. A drip I can live with, this is much worse. Any help will be appreciated.

I pulled the rod that controls flow out and will examine it's relationship with the seat once everything cools enough.

I thought the bottom pour pot would be easier than ladling but now I'm wondering if I should go that route instead.

If you have a fan blowing on you it will also cool that nozzle.
Are you getting a full throw/motion when you lift the knob? Is the rod adjusted so the knob assembly has some room to move?
Have you run some lead through it once it flows a little, i.e. run a ladle or ingot full through it to make sure there isn't some trash in there. this will also get the nozzle nice n hot.
Take a propane torch to the nozzle for 20 seconds to melt any cool lead in there.

[mmb617]

If you have a fan blowing on you it will also cool that nozzle.
Are you getting a full throw/motion when you lift the knob? Is the rod adjusted so the knob assembly has some room to move?
Have you run some lead through it once it flows a little, i.e. run a ladle or ingot full through it to make sure there isn't some trash in there. this will also get the nozzle nice n hot.
Take a propane torch to the nozzle for 20 seconds to melt any cool lead in there.

Thanks for taking time to reply. I don't have a fan blowing near the pot.

The rod assembly doesn't move the rod very much but I take it the molten lead doesn't need much of an opening as evidenced by how small the hole is at the top of the mold. I thought that might be the problem but when I pulled the rod out completely while the pot still had molten lead in it the lead flowed out for a couple seconds then tapered off and stopped with the rod completely out.

I'm planning on using my propane torch tomorrow to get the rest of the lead out of the pot so I can examine the nozzle and seat and see how the fit is between the seat and rod. Hopefully I'll find some trash in there that my paper clip wasn't clearing out. That's pretty much the only thing I can think of that would cause my problem.

[Sasquatch-1]

Is this a new pot and is it the 10 or 20 pounder?

If you are letting the lead heat up thoroughly, which it sounds like you are, you may have a connection problem in the pot or a bad rheostat. Get a high temp thermometer and see how hot your lead is getting. I would say this should be a submersible style not an infrared. Check it at the bottom and the top of the pot.

[mmb617]

It was new a couple weeks ago and is a 10 pounder. It worked for the first couple hundred balls I did in two sessions but ran into the no flow problem yesterday.

The lead in the pot seems to be well melted and the heat coil is around the bottom of the pot so I'd think it would be hot enough at the spout, but I don't have a thermometer capable of checking it.

I'll play with it some more today and let you know what I find out.

[FISH4BUGS]

When my Lee pot starts to drip, I clean it.
Problem solved.
My 30+ year old 20 lb Lee has worked wonderfully all that time.
When it drips, a screwdriver turn or two in the depth adjustment screw back and forth stops it.
It just becomes part of the casting sequence.

[FISH4BUGS]

It was new a couple weeks ago and is a 10 pounder. It worked for the first couple hundred balls I did in two sessions but ran into the no flow problem yesterday.

The lead in the pot seems to be well melted and the heat coil is around the bottom of the pot so I'd think it would be hot enough at the spout, but I don't have a thermometer capable of checking it.

I'll play with it some more today and let you know what I find out.

Take a propane torch and heat the spout. That will free it up.

[ourway77]

Stove Cast Iron Pot and Ladle have used for years

[MT Gianni]

Put a screw in my lee 20 [17 actual] lb'er years ago. A rowell ladle works better for me than bottom pour did.

[gambler2200]

Bought the RCBS pro melt 2 from Optic Planet Memorial Weekend got extra 11% off got mind for under $285 thought that was a great deal!


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[SteveM54]

Novice here.
Clean it as in: Take the whole thing apart?
I scored a 20+ year old pot cheap (4-20) but it always drips or won't pour steady ect.
The pour spout has screw threads on it but really doesn't do anything??????

[Sasquatch-1]

First remove the piece that goes to the spout. Make sure it is clean then make sure the spout is clear. A small drill bit the size of the hole should work. If full of lead you may have to use a propane torch to melt it out. Try and remove as much scale as possible from the inside of the pot. This should help, but most Lee pots are destined to drip.

I keep a paper clip handy to run up the spout every so often while casting. Also keep a screwdriver handy to twist the rod that goes into the spout occasionally.