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Thread: electric casting furnace with removeable pot

  1. #1
    Boolit Bub Steelpounder's Avatar
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    electric casting furnace with removeable pot

    Hello All. I am just wondering if there would be any interest in a electronically controlled lead furnace that will heat to 1500 degrees. this unit wil have a removeable pot that will hold up to 80 lbs lead alloy. it can also be ordered with out a pot so you can use whatever you wish or purchase your own. they will be manufactured by a ceramic kiln manufacture.
    projected retail price would be about 1375.00

  2. #2
    Boolit Master
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    just an observation from someone who is not an expert, seems its like way too hot for melting bullet casting alloys and not hot enough for blacksmithing or metal forging. plus the price is pretty darn high. a magma master caster furnace holds 90 pounds and cost is $900

  3. #3
    Boolit Master

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    Been casting 33 years over 200,000 bullets never have had a need for more than a 20 lb. pot. Not that it says there are not guys that would use it just have not run into any. 80 lbs is a lot of weight for the age grouping of most caster's.

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    Boolit Bub Steelpounder's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by farmbif View Post
    just an observation from someone who is not an expert, seems its like way too hot for melting bullet casting alloys and not hot enough for blacksmithing or metal forging. plus the price is pretty darn high. a magma master caster furnace holds 90 pounds and cost is $900
    the master caster I saw new online was considerably more than $900. Also this is digitally controlled up to 1500 degrees in one degree increments and will hold the set temp within 5 degrees of set point.
    Quote Originally Posted by dannyd View Post
    Been casting 33 years over 200,000 bullets never have had a need for more than a 20 lb. pot. Not that it says there are not guys that would use it just have not run into any. 80 lbs is a lot of weight for the age grouping of most caster's.
    yeah I wouldnt want to try and work with 80 lbs of lead, that is why this one has a removeable pot that can be interchanged for a smaller size. I cast 540 grain bullets and like to cast one or twice per year, so when I do cast I do 4-500 at a time, thats 38 lbs of lead. I also buy pure lead and tin from roto metals and like to be able to alloy it all together then cast that into 5 lb ingots. this might be silly and unnecessary but it does insure I have the same alloy for everything.

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    Winger Ed.'s Avatar
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    It might be a little ahead of its time.

    When casting boolits with Zinc wheel weights starts getting more common,
    and since most of our old school Lead pots don't get hot enough- I can sure see a market for it.
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  6. #6
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    A High Quality 25 pound bottom pour is sorely needed and you could replace Lyman and RCBS's Chinese quality pots over time if you wanted a long term business.

    As far as a pot with no bottom pour spout most of us have a propane burner and 1-200 pound capacity pot for blending. $55 for a 50,000 BTU burner, a free cut off propane cylinder for a pot and a sheet metal wind screen.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Alloy07.jpg   windgrd.jpg   windgrd01.jpg  
    Last edited by Mal Paso; 05-05-2022 at 11:35 PM.
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  7. #7
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    You’ve been on this board since 2013 and you still think there might be a broad market for a casting or smelting pot that costs over $1,300?
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  8. #8
    Boolit Master

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    yeah I wouldnt want to try and work with 80 lbs of lead, that is why this one has a removeable pot that can be interchanged for a smaller size. I cast 540 grain bullets and like to cast one or twice per year, so when I do cast I do 4-500 at a time, thats 38 lbs of lead. I also buy pure lead and tin from roto metals and like to be able to alloy it all together then cast that into 5 lb ingots. this might be silly and unnecessary but it does insure I have the same alloy for everything.[/QUOTE]

    I would cast everyday if primers were more abundant; Have casted up 24,000 bullets in a year, so the 20 lb pot serve's me well.

  9. #9
    Boolit Bub Steelpounder's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by imashooter2 View Post
    You’ve been on this board since 2013 and you still think there might be a broad market for a casting or smelting pot that costs over $1,300?
    nope i dont think that at all and i dont want to make a 100 or a thousand of these. I just wondered if folks would be interested in them if they were available. I think a digitally controlled electric furnace with programable temperature from 70 to 1500 degrees sounds like a great thing to have.

  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steelpounder View Post
    nope i dont think that at all and i dont want to make a 100 or a thousand of these. I just wondered if folks would be interested in them if they were available. I think a digitally controlled electric furnace with programable temperature from 70 to 1500 degrees sounds like a great thing to have.

    The last part of your statement is true just the size and temperature may need to be adjusted. The new rcbs and lyman are controlled by PID's. I have both and like them and would love to see a pot like that make in the United States.

  11. #11
    Boolit Bub Steelpounder's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by dannyd View Post
    The last part of your statement is true just the size and temperature may need to be adjusted.
    I guess I am not understanding what you mean. you can put any size pot you want in the chamber and you can set any temperature you want. that temp will be maintained +/- 5 degrees for as long as you have the pot turned on. so what needs adjusted???

  12. #12
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steelpounder View Post
    so what needs adjusted???
    Possibly your thinking that we need/want 1,500°F 80# capacity pots? Just saying....................my two Lee 4-20 pots + the Lee 10# pot have served me well for many years at ±700°F or so Pb alloy melting and casting ~18# of Pb and feeding ingots in as the level goes down. Unless many on here start messing with Zn casting and get all new molds, I really do not see a thriving need of your potential offering.

    But glad you pointed it out.

    You asked for feedback..............there 'ya go.

    banger

  13. #13
    Boolit Master
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    I had a 90lb Magma Cast Master pot for a while. It would bottom pour but was big enough that you could ladle cast too. I used it to feed some of my 6-10 cavity molds. That was a really long day. It had 3 1000 watt cartridge heaters. Maybe if I cast commercially it would be of some use but not for the hobbyist.

    What kind of circuit would it require?

  14. #14
    Boolit Bub Steelpounder's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by bangerjim View Post
    Possibly your thinking that we need/want 1,500°F 80# capacity pots? Just saying....................my two Lee 4-20 pots + the Lee 10# pot have served me well for many years at ±700°F or so Pb alloy melting and casting ~18# of Pb and feeding ingots in as the level goes down. Unless many on here start messing with Zn casting and get all new molds, I really do not see a thriving need of your potential offering.

    But glad you pointed it out.

    You asked for feedback..............there 'ya go.

    banger
    thank you, for your feedback.

    No I dont think 1500 degrees is needed to make bullets. And I do know that 750 possibly 800 is all the heat that is needed for casting very good bullets. a person could set it for 700 0r whatever favorite temp and just leave it there. even changing to a larger or smaller pot would not change the temp setting.

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    Boolit Bub Steelpounder's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by jsizemore View Post
    I had a 90lb Magma Cast Master pot for a while. It would bottom pour but was big enough that you could ladle cast too. I used it to feed some of my 6-10 cavity molds. That was a really long day. It had 3 1000 watt cartridge heaters. Maybe if I cast commercially it would be of some use but not for the hobbyist.

    What kind of circuit would it require?
    it could be had in either 120 or 220 volts and a 20 amp circuit.

  16. #16
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    You just aren’t going to get past the price tag. I think it would be a wonderful thing to have, but not many on this board would pay that price and the denizens of this board will pretty much be your market.
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  17. #17
    Boolit Bub Steelpounder's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by imashooter2 View Post
    You just aren’t going to get past the price tag. I think it would be a wonderful thing to have, but not many on this board would pay that price and the denizens of this board will pretty much be your market.
    thank you sir. I understand that it is a good chunk of change. I have been reading this board for coming onto ten years and have seen quite a few post lamenting the downside of easily available casting furnaces and all the problems with elements and heat control so I thought there might be some interest in a set it and forget it system. Having the ability to easily change to different size pots also seemed like a great Idea. 1375 is the retail price. if there was enough interest (which I see there is not!) ic ould likely talk the supplier down 2-3 hundred.

    since i see there isnt any interest in this ill just let it drop. thank you to eveyone who took the time to respond to this thread.

  18. #18
    Boolit Master
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    maybe I'm just a frugal old guy, but for $1300, I can get 2 lee pots, a new gun, 1000 pcs brass, a die set, and a real nice mold and maybe still have money left over for powder and some primers.

  19. #19
    Boolit Bub Steelpounder's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by farmbif View Post
    maybe I'm just a frugal old guy, but for $1300, I can get 2 lee pots, a new gun, 1000 pcs brass, a die set, and a real nice mold and maybe still have money left over for powder and some primers.
    nice you need to show me where you shop!

  20. #20
    Boolit Buddy dimaprok's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Winger Ed. View Post
    It might be a little ahead of its time.

    When casting boolits with Zinc wheel weights starts getting more common,
    and since most of our old school Lead pots don't get hot enough- I can sure see a market for it.
    I use Lee 4-20 to cast Zinc at 800F. Takes longer to melt but it works.

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check