shotmake dripper nozzle sizes

[robbor]

Anyone have a list of the nozzle sizes for shot.
I have made 2 sets of nozzles .020 and .040 and im wondering approximately what size shot the .040 should make?

[Sitsinhedges]

Anyone have a list of the nozzle sizes for shot.
I have made 2 sets of nozzles .020 and .040 and im wondering approximately what size shot the .040 should make?

.40" (1MM) will make around 5s or 4s, .20" (0.5MM) will make around 8s. The larger sizes are harder to make round.

[Russel Nash]

fiddle'ing around with the head pressure and/or the temperature of the melt can affect the size of the shot too.

From what I recall in the mother of all shotmaking threads over at the shotgun world forums, the ASSumption is an orifice to be a third of the size of the shot you are trying to make.

(using the rule of 17) #8 shot (17- 8 = 9) is 0.090", or 90 thousandths. so I am guessing an orifice size of 0.030" could get you a #8 size shot.

In reality, I am using Twecco brand wire welding tips that are 0.024" for an orifice size. Maybe I have too much head pressure.... or maybe I am running too hot... but my shotmaker is spitting out shot that is closer to #7's, and at times even closer to #6.5's . :???:

So I think some experimentation is in order with mine both in terms of head pressure and temperature.

[robbor]

Thanks. I had heard that #9 should be about .024" and i wanted about #11 shot someone else recomended .020. What a pain to drill:veryconfu. I decided to just run a set of .040 nozzles because I knew they'd be easy to drill .I was hoping with a smaller hole(.020) pressure would not be a problem and i could just run fuller and faster. Im planning on using wheel weights. Has anyone tried just running their shotmaker into water from a higher distance, like a ladder or rooftop instead of off the slickplate? Im planning on trying get a small piece of glass to try as my slick plate if i cant get the shot to form nicely from 6-7' high. I was even thinking of looking for a small bridge:mrgreen:

[Pipejaw]

I have been using a littleton shotmaker with nozzles to make # 8 shot and have miked them @.018 thou. if this helps!

[Russel Nash]

I am trying to wrap my mind around the notion of using a "mike" to get an inside dimension of an orifice.

:???:

Robbor wrote:


Has anyone tried just running their shotmaker into water from a higher distance, like a ladder or rooftop instead of off the slickplate?

You can watch my homemade birdshot maker in action here at this YouTube site (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zahDLTdfPME)

I have a plastic rubber maid tub that is my overflow "tank". It is under the big green ammo can that you see.

Yes, just once I dropped shot into that rubber maid tub. It was at least a 3 foot drop, maybe more like 4 foot.

The molten lead would "pancake out" when it hit the water from that high up.

Over on the shotgun world forums in the mother of all shotmaking threads, at least one guy had researched shot towers, or did the math to figure out the heat exchange rate of lead falling through air, IIRC, it is at least 120 feet to get a lead sphere to form hard enough while falling through the air that it doesn't flatten out once it hits the surface of the water.

[Russel Nash]

I am thinking that glass isn't going to be able to take the heat. I have made my own stained glass windows before. Basically, you are making a jigsaw puzzle out of glass and lead "came" (or sometimes copper tape). Anywhoooo.... just one little blob of solder coming off the soldering iron by accident and that piece of glass would go CRACK! just from the heat.

at PipeJaw.... don't take my confusion over the mike thing as bad.

I just can't quite figure out how that is done. :confused:

Welcome to the forums! Nice first post! Thanks!

[Russel Nash]

@ Robbor... yeah, I do just drop into plain ol' water. I have at least two reasons for it (versus using something else like fabric softener, brake fluid, diesel fuel, antifreeze, corn syrup, metal cutting fluid, etc.)

1. I am cheap

2. I am lazy. There I said it. Shotmaking just by itself seems to me to be a long kinda drawn out protracted process. I would just rather skip the step of trying to wash off whatever liquid is covering the shot, AND get right on with the drying, the rolling, and the graphiting

okay....

3. some of that other stuff is flammable, even moreso if it becomes aerosolized.

No thanks, I would rather not burn my house down or set myself on fire.

[robbor]

I was thinking the same thing about miking the nozzle hole:mrgreen:. I grabbed a bunch of sweing pins and started miking them and trying them a few days ago and i know my nozzles are right at .020-.021.
I like your adjustable nozzles.
I figured the glass wouldnt work but ill give it a try. Im thinking ill look for some SS for my lip at school tomorrow. I already have a stainless pan as the main container and im thinking ill just use a propane burner and torch for the first time. Im kind of expecting to have trouble with the nozzles plugging up also, Ill probably remelt my ingots and try and get every bit of slag off them before it goes in the shotmaker.