Hot Plate is a Friend Indeed

[38SuperAuto]

It's been said here and elsewhere many times. A hot plate companion to your casting pot does, indeed make your job more productive. Cast up a couple thousand 40 cal boolits yesterday with my new used hotplate. In addition to preheating your mold, you can use it to preheat your ingots to keep production flow moving. Found when I took a break after reloading the cast pot, with the mold idling on the hot plate, there was no restart glitches in bullet quality.

A small expenditure that made a real difference.

[Conditor22]

I agree 100%

I set my hotplate at 400°, turning on the hotplate at the same time I turn on the PID for my pot. Most of the time my first cast is good.

[slim1836]

^^^DITTO^^^

Slim

[farmerjim]

Me too.

[toallmy]

Yes indeed they make the whole casting season pleasurable .

[Taterhead]

I was late to that wisdom and kicked myself for not listening sooner. Mine is a double hotplate with the flat surfaces. Heck yeah it makes life easier.

[Tazman1602]

I agree 100%

I set my hotplate at 400°, turning on the hotplate at the same time I turn on the PID for my pot. Most of the time my first cast is good.

BINGO! This works every time. They are only like 10$ for a single burner at Walgreens...yes Walgreens....

Art

[Hossfly]

I found an old hot plate, 2 burner unit in an old camper I was selling. Put it up in the shop for safe keeping for about 10 years.

Got into casting, read about heating your molds to get quick start up with little to no wait to get to temp. Worked very well, so set 1/2’’ aluminum plate across both burners, loaded up with 2# ingots. Didn’t realize the thing would melt alloy. Needless to say, now I keep eye on that temp.

Been using that old hot plate now for about 3-4 years. Like Conditor22 does, set mold on plate and turn on PID to pot, very few throw backs, just start dropping good boolits.

[lightman]

My first casting pot was a Lyman with the cast iron liner and it had a pretty good lip that worked well for preheating a mold. My newer Promelt has a stainless liner with a much smaller lip that doesn't preheat a mold as well. Enter the $12 hot plate from Walmart! Yes, good bullets on the first or second cast.

I also preheat ingots with it to speed up the next melt.

[bangerjim]

I & others have been preaching the pre-heating ( not just warming on the side of the pot) of molds for several years now. Glad so many are now trying it! It works GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And..........I heat all my feed ingots of 10-15°F below liquidous temp of the alloy for a smooth casting session!

Happy Casting.

banger

[zarrinvz24]

The hot plate is amazing, the other game changer for me was the discovery of VCI paper. Wrap the mold in VCI paper instead of coating it with mineral oil, and then place in an air tight container. Next time you want to cast all you need to do is put handles on it, set sprue tension and off you go!

[porthos]

i keep my molds wrapped in VCI paper only. stored in a 50 cal. ammo can. 30 years and they are perfect.

[zarrinvz24]

i keep my molds wrapped in VCI paper only. stored in a 50 cal. ammo can. 30 years and they are perfect.

That’s exactly what I was alluding to. I’ve seen equipment that was preserved in similar fashion in the ‘70’s. Take it out of the wrapper and it’s perfect.

[bubbau]

I agree 100%!

[badwolf]

Where do you get vci paper?

[zarrinvz24]

Brownells, McMaster carr, grainger, I’ll bet you can even order it on Amazon. Mil-Prf-3420 class 2 or 3. I prefer class 2, because it’s thicker.

[wc870]

BINGO! This works every time. They are only like 10$ for a single burner at Walgreens...yes Walgreens....

Art

I just bought two new ones on sale at walgreens they were 3.95 each!