Mr. Always drip aka Lee Pro 4-20 pot handle to stop dripping

[elRonaldo2]

I'm sure many here in this forum are using the Lee Pro 4-20 pot. And we all know, there is a problem with dripping. My bucket knows 3 states. Clogged, light dripping and heavy dripping.
The official solution with turnig the screw to stop it from dripping is not really a solution for me. I'm wearing heavy leather gloves to protect my hands from the molten lead. And every time I need to turn the screw I had to take off my gloves first to take a screwdriver to turn the screw. And after that off course had to put the gloves on again.

Now I constructed a handle I can use with the gloves on. It is not solving the real issue, but it helps. It is not perfect, but perhaps it gives some of you new ideas.

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Detail view:

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I took a piece of wood. The wood is not getting hot, so I can also use it with bare hands if needed. In the wood i pressed a screw nut (not sure if this is the correct word) and a second screw nut is used to counter-fix. On the pictures you can only see the screw nut for counter-fixing, the other one is completly in the wood. The visible nut has been ground narrower to take up less space. This way I can fix the handle without using too much lenght of the screw.

Unfortunatly the screw is not very long, so it was tricky to make it hold, without using too much space. If you use too much space of the screw for the handle, then you can't screw it down enough. (I hope it is more or less understandable ;) )

[RKJ]

It looks like you did a good job and solved your problem.

[dannyd]

used a spring on mine; that handle would definitely help seating the flow pin by turning it.

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[405grain]

I installed a spring on mine (just like the picture above). It worked at first, but the 4-20 is driptastic by design, and started dripping again after about two melts. I've got another problem now: the screw that guides the "lifting arm" on the bottom of the pot has stripped out. I'll enlarge the hole in the arm and install a fatter screw. The way I see it the drippyness of these pots is a design problem with the end of that pointed rod and the way it seals the port in the bottom of the pot. In theory the cone shaped tip of the rod should seal as it sits in the hole of the port, but in practice any piece of debris, or any slight defect in either the cone on the end of the rod or in the edge of the port hole and that heavy liquid lead is going to find a way to squeeze by.

I've tried attaching a wire (from a paperclip) to the end of a piece of wooden dowel, and use this to clean out the port hole from underneath (kinda like using the cleaner tool to clear out the tip of an ox-acetylene torch). The problems with this is that you've got to have the "valve" all the way open so it's draining lead while you're doing this, so you have to be especially careful not to get burned. Cleaning out the hole usually keeps the pot from dripping for the next 10 or 12 boolits, then it resorts back to it's bad habits.

Way, way back in the day, when I was young and broke, I used to do my casting by dipping out of a small cast iron skillet on top of a Coleman 502 white gas stove. Now I use that cast iron skillet as a catch pan under Mr. Drippy. I sure wish there was a better fix for the Lee pots, but in the long run I think that the solution might be to either A: design and build your own industrial level casting pot with nuclear quality drain valve system that never clogs or drips, and is easily disassembled and cleaned. (I'll get on this right after I win the lottery.) Or B: start stashing away some nickles and dimes for a better pot. I'm not talking about an RCBS or Lyman, or even an old Saeco pot (these are good pots) but I'm talking about something more "industrial". Something like that will be spendy; but pay once, cry once. Any suggestions on a pot like this?

[PJEagle]

That looks like a good solution. Several years ago I was facing the same problem. I added a wing nut to the top of the flow rod so I could twist it with my gloves on.

[John Guedry]

It seems like the simple things are usually the best.

[LarryM]

I got tired of futzing with it and sealed the hole and took the mechanism out converting it to a dipper pot.

[kevin c]

I decided to “go with the flow” (sorry) and let it drip.

My 4-20 is mounted over a ProMelt as a feeder pot so whether I lift the handle deliberately or let the constant drizzle alone the result’s the same: alloy added to the casting pot. All good now and no aggro.

[gunther]

Would it be too much to ask; a picture of one of those screw nuts before it is installed in the wooden handle? I need to be better informed before terrorizing the hardware store.

[elRonaldo2]

No problem gunther

I first apologise to all carpenters, joiners and other wood specialists. Please read no further...

I used two normal screw nuts in inches. Don't ask me the dimensions, I'm living in a metric world and tried until I found the size that fits on the Lee screw.
Then I drilled a hole in the wood, 10mm (about 0.4 inch) wide and 5mm (about 0.2 inch) deep. After that I pressed the nut into the wood with the help of a vice. Not elegant, but it works.
I know, there exist Drive-in nuts. But to get them in inches in Europe :-(

My nuts:
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Drive-in nuts:
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[slim1836]

I just clamped a vice grip on top.

Slim

[gunther]

Mine's an older one, with a screw slot rather than threads. Looks like the vice grip method will be my fix.

[Mal Paso]

I've got another problem now: the screw that guides the "lifting arm" on the bottom of the pot has stripped out. I'll enlarge the hole in the arm and install a fatter screw.

That screw goes into a hole with an slot in the edge of an aluminum extrusion. If you take the pot apart you can squeeze the screw slot closed a little and the screw will fit. You will need to remove the pot's bottom cover do do this.

Fine Copper wire strands inserted length wise into the hole before you replace the screw will also work.