smelting question

[XWrench3]

i just bought a turkey cooker to smelt with, and i still have to find something decent to "cook" in. my question is when using a big pot, how are you guys filling your ingot molds? are you tipping the pot somehow, or using a BIG ladel?

[257 Shooter]

I use a ladle. You can get one from one of our sponsors Rotometals.

[high standard 40]

I use a large ladle. Tipping the pot is a bad idea unless you have a pot and burner arrangement designed to operate that way. A large pot with a load of molten lead on a turkey burner can shift it's weight on you rather quickly and it's easy to lose control. Bad things follow.

[Hardcast416taylor]

Ladle only!!! If you try to tip the lead melting pot you might wind up wearing lead sneakers! You can find heavy duty ladles at cooking stores or I found mine at an auction for a restaurant supply store. Beware of the wally mart type ladles, made cheeeeeepo and can melt or fall apart at the worst time. In a worst case scenario use a small vegetable can and a pair of vise-grip pliars as a dipper.Robert

[Shiloh]

I use a large ladle. Tipping the pot is a bad idea unless you have a pot and burner arrangement designed to operate that way. A large pot with a load of molten lead on a turkey burner can shift it's weight on you rather quickly and it's easy to lose control. Bad things follow.

DON'T tip the pot.

It is heavier than you think! it is also full of molten liquid that will shift balance points as it is moved. Unless it is anchored at strong pivot mounts, DON'T do it.

SHiloh

[WILCO]

I leave the lead in the cast iron pan to cool and then flip it over.
This leaves me with a pan sized ingot to work with. I'm just a small time operator in a even smaller bullet casting operation.........:roll:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v693/jato321/IMG00005.jpg

[sqlbullet]

I melt down 60-90 lbs of lead in a dutch oven. Ladle out all but the last two or three pounds.

I have a set of mittens that are designed for bronze casters to use when handling the hot molds, which are 1400°-1500°. I put those one and pour the last two-three lbs into ingot molds.

Never handle a pot with more than a couple pounds of lead, with very deep sides. The ability to slop or spill is too high.

[Bill*]

I use a SS ladle till the last pound or two. It's a real nice ladle (holds better than 2 lbs.) from Walgreens with an insulated handle that was on sale for $4.99. I love it.

[Echo]

'Something to cook in' could be a dutch oven (like I use), or maybe a stainless pot from HF for $20. I can do about 60-70 lbs of WW's in my rig, and use a big ladle to fill the ingot molds. A friend who taught me a LOT used a tin soup can with a pair of vise-grips for a handle, in place of a ladle. Worked for him - lighter than a ladle.

[fredj338]

SS ladle, I think 4oz, about 1# worth of lead. You can get them @ any rest. supply cheap in diff. sizes. I leave the last 2# or so to help my next melt go faster.

[Cherokee]

What fredj338 said. Been using an old SS ladle from my wife for 20+ years to fill the ingot molds.

[zuke]

I just go to the dollar store and get me a soup ladle and one of those big strainer spoon's.
The strainer spoon get's the clip's out and 2 1/2 soup ladle's fill's my LEE ingot mold's nicely.

[bigboredad]

+1 on the stainless ladles i got mine from kmart qnd some small loaf pans for ingots ladle gets about 2 pounds worth and the small loaves weigh about 10 pounds. cst iron pots seem to work the best I have a frying pan that will hold forty+ pounds

[Ken O]

I made the bottom pour smelter out of a dollar store stock pot from the sticky in the "casting equipment" section of this forum. I set it on a turkey frier, and bottom pour so there is no crap in the ingots. I don't know if the sticky is still there, but it cost almost nothing to build.

[lylejb]

In addition to being heavy, that pot is ALOT HOTTER THAN YOU THINK.:shock:

the first time i smelted, i picked up my pot to pour out the last ingot i couldn't get with the ladle....AND GOT BURNT BEFORE I COULD POUR EVEN ONE INGOT.

i was wearing single layer leather gloves, admittedly cheeper ones.

i won't be trying that again

[evan price]

I melt in a stainless 12-qt stock pot on a turkey fryer burner and dip with a stainless-steel soup ladle with a wood handle I got at the Goodwill for fifty cents. My ingot molds are 4" tart pans 6 for $5, makes a roughly 4# hockey-puck ingot. 3 ladles fills 1 tart pan about. The last 4-5 pounds I pour out of the pot because the ladle won't dip it out.

[qajaq59]

I use a ladle. It's just easier and safer.

[XWrench3]

OK, it looks like ladel dipping is definitly the way to go! now, anybody have an idea how big of a ladel is needed to make a one pound ingot without double or triple diping? two cups? i dont know how they sell ladels, if it is measured in ounces, cups, etc.?

[qajaq59]

I think Midway sells them for casters. Just be sure whatever you get has a handle that cannot break or bend. If you can bend it with your hands go find a different one.

[Bill*]

xwrench3: I think even a 1 cup ladle will easily fill a 1 lb ingot mold. My ladle looks like it holds about one of those heavy white coffee cups used in truck stops, and that will fill 2 ingots+. You could just "eyeball" it.

[fredj338]

OK, it looks like ladel dipping is definitly the way to go! now, anybody have an idea how big of a ladel is needed to make a one pound ingot without double or triple diping? two cups? i dont know how they sell ladels, if it is measured in ounces, cups, etc.?

I checked mine, it's marked 3oz & if not quite full, pours right at 1# ingot. Full it pours about 1 1/3#, so two in my larger ingot mould is almost 3# ingot. Just do the math for larger ladles.

[evan price]

My generic "soup ladle" pours a 4# ingot with three pours, so that means it holds over a pound.

[Hardcast416taylor]

The ladle I got at a supply house for restaurants is a large soup SS model that will fill 3 and part of the fourth cavity of my Lyman ingot molds at 1 time dip. I have a smaller SS ladle to finish the bottom of my melt pot. All ladles are full length steel handles with riveted wood handles at the end.Robert

[bigboredad]

I have 2 long handled stainless ladles from the 2 big mart stores each will hold 2 pounds

[Cadillo]

'Something to cook in' could be a dutch oven (like I use), or maybe a stainless pot from HF for $20. I can do about 60-70 lbs of WW's in my rig, and use a big ladle to fill the ingot molds. A friend who taught me a LOT used a tin soup can with a pair of vise-grips for a handle, in place of a ladle. Worked for him - lighter than a ladle.


I'll bite. What's an HF?

[Oldtimer]

I guess it depends on what kind of pot you have. I bought a cast iron pot from Buffalo Arms Co. a while back. It is made for melting lead. It has a very tall, heavy duty bail that does not get very hot, a pouring spout, and a big tab opposite the spout that I use vise grips to tilt it with. It is supposed to have a 50 lb capacity. I fill it completly full of WW, and after skimming, and removing the clips, I have enough lead to pour 22 to 24 1 lb ingots. Pot is balanced very well with the tall bail. I have probably poured over a thousand ingots, and have never had any problems at all. I feel very comfortable using it in this manner. Saves a lot of time. Think they go for about $26. Bob

[evan price]

"HF" = Harbor Freight (a tool and supply store, mostly Chinese stuff, homeowner quality stuff, but there are some good deals)

[Ken O]

I built Kenjudo's bottom pour smelter link (http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=707) its simpler than it looks. The first post has all the details, my post 7 shows my version using the dollar store stock pot.

[XWrench3]

well, ill equiped or not, i had my first experience with big time smelting last night. i had an old teflon coated aluminum stock pot out in the garage that i used. threw in 6 pounds of already smelted lead just to get something in there to help dispurse the heat (so the bottom didn't melt out). i LEARNED from this! now, i know why you guys sort the wheel wheights first! it is amazingly hard to keep all of that stirred up to keep from getting hot spots, and melting zinc weights in the process!. i think i did a decent job of it, but by the time i was done, i was SORE! i pulled out 4 weights, including 2 strips of stick ons, that did not melt rightaway when the pot turned into slush, and then started to smooth into a liquid. i didn't know they made zinc stick ons. maybe they are not, but when they didn't melt right away, i pulled them. no sense in ruining a pot full of lead. in any case, i did not try to pour ingots, as i still do not have a ladel. i will probably keep this stuff seperate, and try to cast some boolits from it, just to make sure there is no zinc. if there is, it is better to throw out 20 pounds of mix, than contaminate who knows how many potential boolits. so, now, i have to get a ladel, sort about 4 and 1/2 gallons of weights, and try again. i am going to pour out the hardened chunk, to see if the teflon had any issues or not. if it did, i may have more trouble that i thought. i guess i will have to see. i may still end up with an iron pot, as this only measures about 11 inches across the top. it looks like 15-18" across would make better use of the heat. it is one thing to try something and waste some energy, but it is another to continually waste it because i am to cheap to buy a different pot. i just had to try it out, like a kid with a new toy! LOL!

[archmaker]

I use a ladle, a Herters ladle that hold 3#, that belonged to my Great-Grandfather, we believed he used it to pour lead around the old time pipes.

He worked for the "Texas Company (Texaco)" retiring in 1956, after 40+ years with them.

[XWrench3]

wow, he retired the year i was born! i picked up an old ice fishing scoop (used for removing ice chips from a spuded hole) ($0.50) yesterday for removing the clips from the lead. i am going to enlarge the holes a little though. that should work great for that. i hit several yard sales, but no luck on a cast iron pot or a big ladel yet. there is going to be a huge flea market on labor day fairly close to us, if i can not find one between now and then, i should be able to find both a ladel and a cast pot there. as long as they dont want a fortune for the cast iron. the one yard sale had a 14" fry pan for $45.00! he still had it when we left.

[Matt_G]

there is going to be a huge flea market on labor day fairly close to us

Totally off topic:

You aren't supposed to be hitting flea markets on Labor Day!
You're supposed to be out dove hunting! :mrgreen:

[LynxRA]

If anyone is interested I have what is called a "Plumbers Pot" for sale. It is propane fired and holds 30 or more lbs of lead. It works great but I don't need it any more. It is heavy so I don't know what it would cost to ship. I want $50 for it plus shipping. Is there a way to post a picture in this forum? My email is ralynx@q.com if you want to contact me directly.

[sqlbullet]

Archmaker, I too use a ladle that belonged to my great grandfather. It has no distinguishing marks, but holds 3lbs comfortably.

[lylejb]

Harbor freight has a 12" dutch oven pot for $20. I don't know how much shipping would be, but still better than $45 for a frying pan.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=44705

HF does have some brick and morter stores, go to their home page and check if they have one in your area.

At my area HF, this pot is $25, but of course, no shipping.

[snuffy]

Cut out all those cheap sheet metal soup ladles, go directly to Rowell. Get them here;
http://www.advancecarmover.com/listing.php?line=Ladles

Here's a couple pics I took while smelting range scrap.

http://photos.imageevent.com/jptowns/arrow/websize/P4110013.JPG

That's a Rowell #3, the biggest you can use one-handed. Capacity is 4 pounds.

http://photos.imageevent.com/jptowns/arrow/websize/P4110018.JPG

That's a #4 Rowell, capacity is 4 pounds. You see it needs 2 hands to operate. It's much bigger than the #3, the #3's working capacity is actually more like 3 pounds.

These are bottom pour, so any floating trash stays on top, you'll be getting cleaner ingots.

[XWrench3]

lylejb, if the flea market does not have something i like better, i will get one of those next time i go to my brothers. the only thing that i want different, IF i can find it, is a larger bottom. something in the 16" across range. 12" will definitly work, but i think a larger diameter will use the heat more efficently. there is a harbor freight store about 12 miles from his home. snuffy, i LIKE that ladel! i needa-wanta-gotta-have one of those! i can also see from several of your photo's, i am going to need more than one ingot mold. i think i might make one like i have seen here, out of angle iron and flat stock. simple, and easy 2 make. plus, i can get the angle iron 4 free!

[SciFiJim]

i didn't know they made zinc stick ons. maybe they are not, but when they didn't melt right away, i pulled them.

They DO make zinc stick ons. However, pure lead stick ons melt at a high temp than clip on WWs. To test if the stick ons are lead or zinc, try to cut it with a pair of wire cutters. If it is lead it will be easy to cut, if it is zinc you will not be able to cut it with hand held cutters. The mush you saw may have been the beginning melting stage of the WWs. If the mush disappears after a little more heat, then it is not zinc contamination.

Be VERY wary of the aluminum stock pot. Aluminum will get weak at the temps we melt lead at. The LAST thing you want is shoes filled with melted lead.

Your don't have to worry about hot spots melting zinc WWs. They will be floating in liquid lead before they will melt. Scoop them out with the steel clips once the lead has melted from the clips and you will be fine.

Here is a way to test for yourself the different melting points of zinc vs lead wheel weights.

Find a WW marked with Zn - this will be a zinc WW.
Find another WW that is easy to cut with wire cutters. This will be a lead WW.
Clamp them together with a pair of vice grips.
Heat them with a propane torch. Wear gloves the vice grips will get hot as well.
The lead WW will melt first. Continue to heat the zinc WW to see how much more heat must be applied to get it to melt. This was very instructive and reassuring to do when I first started smelting WWs.

[Nora]

After reading this now I feel like an out cast. I pour from the pot. :veryconfu I smelt mine in a cast iron 3 qt sauce pan with a handle. It isn't to bad, the handle is wood covered like a set of mold handles. Full of lead I'd say it's around 20# Huh what an interesting idea, use a ladle. Now why didn't I think of that? :???:

Nora

[SciFiJim]

Actually, Nora, I too pour from the pot. I have a stainless steel sauce pan that I got from Goodwill for $2. The handle burned off long ago, I clamp vice grips on the lip where the handle was attached. A pot filled with WWs will yield about half a pot of liquid lead and that is about as much as I would care to lift at one time. I get 12 to 15 lbs of ingots from each pot full of unmelted WWs.