Lee 10lb vs 20lb pot????

[saz]

Well, I am now looking into getting my first furnace and I will be getting a Lee pot but cant decide on the pro 4-20 or the 10lb production pot. What are the biggest +'s and -'s for each? I am leaning towards the 20lb, but cannot buy one up here locally and shipping usually kills me to AK, but Sportsmans usually has one or two 10lb pots in stock- they are $67 in there. Should I just eat the $25-$30 shipping and get the 20lber' or settle for the 10? I am torn and cant decide as I have never used either one. I would like some opinions from the "people in the know".

[Daddyfixit]

I've used a 10# pot for years. About the time it gets low I'm ready for a break anyway. Refill and get after it again! I got mine in 1983.

[220swiftfn]

Just to be glib, the 20 is twice as big as the 10........

Seriously, if it's worth it depends a bunch on what you're casting. A 130 gr. single cavity mold will take forever to empty a 10 lb pot, but a 45 cal 6 cavity mold or two and you might want more than 20 lbs!!! So the question is, what are you going to be casting for???


Dan

[chris in va]

I bought a used 10lb bottom pour and it works fine. Like 'daddy' said, by the time you run low of alloy, you want a break anyway. Mine gets used for 45 and 9 though, so the larger boolits might need the 20#.

[warf73]

You can get the 20lb pot threw Midwayusa.com for about $15.23 shipping plus $64.99 for the pot. The shipping price was guessed based on Ft. Richardson AK 99505 zip code.

Get the 20lb pot and never look back.

[Shiloh]

As already stated, 200-230 gr .45 boolits wil empty a pot quite fast. Knowing this, I went with the bigger pot. LEE six bangers when you get a rhythm going empty a pot FAST!!

Shiloh

[Shiloh]

As already stated, 200-230 gr .45 boolits wil empty a pot quite fast. Knowing this, I went with the bigger pot. LEE six bangers when you get a rhythm going empty a pot FAST!!

Shiloh

[Bret4207]

The question might also be, "Do I want 10 lbs leaking out onto the bench or 20 lbs leaking out onto the bench?"......

[7of7]

The question might also be, "Do I want 10 lbs leaking out onto the bench or 20 lbs leaking out onto the bench?"......

You are supposed to put an ingot mold under the pot so it doesn't get all over the bench.....otherwise it will leak onto the bench...
I have found that it really won't leak and run all over, more so to make little stelagmites and if not removed, will go all the way up to the spout,...

It is a very good question,... I chose the 20 lb potential myself...

[dragonrider]

You will get the 20 eventually, might as well do it now.

[mike in co]

20...20...20

look for a used lyman or rcbs for a while,,if all else fails get the lee

mike in co

[DLCTEX]

If you don't use six cavity moulds and don't cast more than a couple hundred or so boolits in a session the ten pounder will do fine. I do not own a mould with more than two cavaties and rarely cast more than 500 boolits at a time so I almost never use my 20# pot. With my son living next door now, he's more trigger happy than I am, I may have to get a six cavity 45 mould.

[HeavyMetal]

220swiftfn had the right question: what are your intentions?

I have a 20 pound Lyman dipping pot to do my HP and rifle molds in, never have emptied the thing before I was beat and stopped.

I also have a small collection of Lee 6 bangers, I use two at a time when casting for auto pistols, and have cobbled together two 10 pound pots, one over the other as a supply tank, a Lyman Mold master, the base unit, and a Lee old style 10 pounder as the supply tank.

With this set up I can make a bunch of boolits before I get beat and stop.

So I will say for general casting and for the small difference in price I'd go for the 20 pound pot.

Be aware this hobby is very contagious! You may only have one mold today next month you may have 30!

[Jon]

I bought a 10lb pot and wish I had bought the 20lb. The 20lb has a larger heater element.

Like others have said, a 6 cavity mold empties the pot pretty fast. You will also have better recovery with the 20lb.

All that being said, the 10lb is fine, but not quite as nice. I bought it because it was cheaper.

[Doc Highwall]

I say go with the 20 lb pot, even with my two cavity saeco when the rhythm is going good the pot goes down fast enough and the larger pot will hold the temperature more steady as it goes down in volume. Good boolits require a steady temperature of the alloy and a casting rate the will keep the mould in a working range by noticing the time it takes for the sprew to harden.

[Springfield]

Another thing to consider is if you EVER plan on adding ingots to the pot to keep casting the 10 lb pot won't tolerate much of that, while the 20 will being as it is twice as big. I cast with mostly LEE 6 cavity moulds and I like to do lots at a time so I ended up witha Magma 40 lb'er. Just for fun I modified one of my LEE 20's and put in another element to make it a 1400 watt machine. It will melt like right now and never runs out. Unfortunately the LEE thermostat won't keep it at an even temp, so I mostly use it for melting things down like scrap 50/50 and making standard ingots out of them so I can keep track of things.

[Lead Fred]

I went from a 10lb gas to a 20lb electric Lee.

Get the Lee 20lb

[Frozone]

I think the 10# is more prone to drips than the 20#, but it's also easier to add a weight to it to stop the leaks . The 10# is a little harder to stir when fluxing because of the angled spout rod.

As said, Large molds drain the pot fast. While you can always run a 20# with only 10# in it, it's a little harder to run a 10# pot with 20# in it.

Add 5# of fresh alloy to a 10# pot that was half full, and it'll take a while to come up to temp. The same thing in a 20# and your back casting much sooner.

If you use the pot to smelt WW ( and I really don't like to do that, it tends to cause drips) I think it's easier to skim the clips off in the 20#. It just has more working room.

As a + for the 10#er: It's easier to change out the alloy in the 10# pot. You don't make as many ingots.

The price difference is small compared to the advantages of the 20#.

[JesseCJC]

I have yet to have an issue with dripping in my 20#

[saz]

Well, so far all I have for molds are a double .562 roundball, 2 cavity 255gr 45, and 2 cavity 300gr 45. I plan on adding a couple of 44 molds and a couple more blackpowder molds. I am still pretty green so far and looking for as much advice as I can get.

[jbrown]

I cast 180 gr 40S&W in volume (two lee 6 bangers), and I run low pretty fast even with the 20 lb bottom pour. I tried ladle pouring out of a 10lb pot, and it was no fun at all.

As a side note, pick up yourself a little click button plumbers propane torch. When you add an ingot I just melt it down in ~ 30 seconds with the torch. A small bottle lasts a long time, and it means no waiting for things to warm up again. It also means it takes ~ 5 minutes to start from a cold start instead of half an hour.

I also have a lead thermometer, so it makes it pretty easy to get things just right.

[mooman76]

I'd get the 20. Most get smaller pots to start out only t latter move up to the big pot. That and the lead keeps at a more constant temp with a bigger pot when adding more lead because you have more hot lead to start with. I have the little 4# pot and use it for soft lead only because I don't cast as much with it and the bigger 20# for regular work.

[Cowboy T]

I initially bought the 20 lb pot, and I'm glad I did. The majority of my moulds are Lee six-cavity models. Did a casting run last month with the 200gr .45 cal, and man, that pot emptied so fast. Even the 105gr .358" six-cavity will drain that pot faster than you think.

You mention that you have some two-cavity moulds. Nothing wrong with that at all. That said, when you get your .44 mould (I'm assuming .430" actual for .44 Special/Magnum here), do consider one of the 6-cavity models. They let you turn out a lot of very good boolits very quickly.

Here's how fast you can drain a melting pot. 120 boolits in 8 and a half minutes. The example mould is the aforementioned 200gr, .45 cal model.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=blk6dKNinlo

[DLCTEX]

By the way SAZ, thanks for your service and stay safe. Keep in touch.

[mcdonl]

You will get the 20 eventually, might as well do it now.

Thats the gospel truth there.

I have been spending every penny I have on equipment... lol... I got into this to be able to shoot more, and spend less on ammo. SUCCESS!! I spend less on ammo, good thing too because I spend more on molds and other equipment!!

The good thing is I now have a mold for every caliper, a sizer die for each, plenty of lube and yesterday I got one of those fish fryers for $30 bucks from Cabelas... someone returned it mad that it wouldn't fit a turkey... lol...

I have been smelting on a single burner with propane bottles. I will use the last two bottles I have, as I cannot afford to fill my big bottle yet but soon I can start smelting in style!

I am not sure if I need the 20#, but eventually I will run out of things to buy :)

[Master Mariner]

I am new to casting and have the 10 pound model. Dripping ?
Just a few twists of the screw on top and the drip is gone.
The spout is at the front and that makes it easy to use.
Smelting is a bit harder because of the smaller pot, but not really a problem.
I let the pot get nearly empty and then, with gloves, pour out the residue and dispose of it. That keeps the whole system working nicely.
I am satisfied with the pot and would but it again. I got mine from, good old , Midway.

[atr]

my casting is with a 10 lb pot....I cast for boolits from 85 gr to 210 grs and this pot works great for that....
if I were casting for heavier boolits I would probably recommend the larger pot

[EDK]

You might check out GRAFS...they quote free shipping on a lot of items!

I have a 20 pound LYMAN that needs re-building and a 20 pound LEE MAGNUM MELTER that is excellent...especially for 1/4th the price of the higher end pots. The sister-in-law lives about 30 miles past GRAFS' and the wife always has a list when she drives past...two weeks from now is the next visit.

:redneck::castmine::Fire:

[LEADHOPPER]

I started out with 10lb pot for casting fishing sinkers. When I started casting 300gr 45cal bullets that didn't last long. I would start with the 20lb pot, like others have said you will probably end up getting one anyway. Might as well, spend the extra money up front instead of having to buy another pot later. If you do cast larger boolits, you can open up the hole in the spout to somewhere in the neighborhood of .156 will out it leaking any more then normal. If you attach a small eye bolt to the base and a spring to the handle it will stop dripping.

[John Guedry]

I have a 10#er that a friend gave me about 15 yrs. ago soon as it gives up I'm gonna' get a 20#er.

[Hansj]

If you have a problem with "dripping" you can "doctor" it by lapping in the shutoff valve, can't you? Get a small tube of lapping compound at the local auto parts store and you should be drip-free in no time!

[GP100man]

I cast for the 357 & 44 Mag with 2 holers & the 10#er will hold enuff for a good castin session , then put in an ingot & take a break !

I can certainly see where the 6 bangers would lean to the 20#er though !!

[Ekalb2000]

20 pounder.
That big 300gr mold will suck the lead out of a pot real quick.

[sheepdog]

I got a well used 10 pounder and a new in box 20 pounder. The 10 pounder works so well I can't bring myself to take the 20 out of the box! Even though I use 6 bangers almost exclusively.

[Frozone]

I got a well used 10 pounder and a new in box 20 pounder. The 10 pounder works so well I can't bring myself to take the 20 out of the box! Even though I use 6 bangers almost exclusively.

And that sums it up.

If you already own a 10#er, you need a good reason to buy the 20#.
But if you are buying one anyway get the 20#er.

[Cherokee]

Go for 20# pot, you'll use it.

[Master Mariner]

My 10 pound Lee at a setting of 2 varied from 600 to over 1000 degrees. A thermometer was a good investment. Midway is replacing the defective unit. I f the next one fails I will have to spring for a Lyman or RCBS.
Any opinions as to the two more expensive units ?

[Cowboy T]

You have a defective unit. That can happen with any brand. My Pro 4-20 pot is very consistent, according to my thermometer.

[HORNET]

You could get the Lee 4-20 and hook it to a PID controller for less than either the Lyman or RCBS with better actual temperature control. Lots of info on it on other threads.

[Mk42gunner]

If you think you will ever even think about ladle casting, get the 20 pounder; it is a lot easier to dip with a ladle from the 20 pound pot versus the 10 ponder. Plus it holds more alloy.


Robert

[45knut]

I just said screw it, for the extra $15 I ordered the 4-20
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productNumber=645810

Best move I `ve ever made, easy to pour holds all you need, plus some. And yes consistant temps
You won`t regret it

[hamour]

45Knut, I have used the 10lb pot and the 20lb pot. The 20lb pot is a better casting machine. I find that the larger pot holds a more consistant temperature until 3/4 empty. The 10lb pot never held as stable a temperature. Also the 20 lb pot has no drip to speak of.
I bought two pots, one filled with soft alloy for slow bullets and one for harder alloy for the magnums. It has worked out great for me and I think you made the correct choice and will be satisfied with the 20lber

[fredj338]

The 10# works fine for small runs, but big bullets or mutli cav molds suck the 10# out pretty quick. You'll eventually go to the 20# so start there. I still use my 10# but it only gets 25-1 alloy for LHP. They are so slow to cast, pretty easy to keepo the pot full & alloy hot. When it burns out, I'll replace it w/ another 20#.

[saz]

Thanks to a good guy on here (Thanks again Mntngoat!) I now have a new Lee pro 4-20!!!! I used it yesterday just to smelt down some pure lead (scrap roof flashing) and what a nice piece of equipemnt to use. I just have to learn how to keep a constant temp. I have yet to cast any boolits or round balls yet- that is next. I still have 180lbs of wheelweights to smelt down. Thanks to everyone for all the advice given on here. This site is a wealth of information that is absolutely invalueable! Without it I'd still be wondering how you even cast boolits......

[PDshooter]

My Lee #10 that I bought USED in 88 just crapped-out! today.....Bought a Lee pro 4-20 on line from midway $77 shipped.:D
The Lee #10 was a "Drip-o-matic":hijack:

[Bkid]

Good info , I just purchased a 20 and with good reason behind it. I do not want to be casting for hours and hours on end. I want to fill up 6 cavity 45 cal molds quickly. Not sure how long a 20 pot will take to use up?

[TCLouis]

I started with the 10 pounder mainly because they did not have the 20 pounder then. I mostly use the 20 pounder today as most of my molds are 4-6 cavity.

I still cast Round Balls out of the 10 pounder.

Get the 20 pounder.