Or how about 7500 btu's of propane or 8000 or 10,000? I'm looking at small camp stoves and these are the ratings I am seeing.
Or how about 7500 btu's of propane or 8000 or 10,000? I'm looking at small camp stoves and these are the ratings I am seeing.
Last edited by .41LC; 12-11-2009 at 06:03 PM.
How much lead?
In my experience, a Coleman stove can handle a 2 - 2.5 quart pot (about 40 pounds). Anything more and there just isn't enough heat to melt it in a reasonable time frame.
Then yes, that is plenty of heat. Watch your support structure. Some of those stove types are not very stable. Standing in a 20 pound puddle of molten metal will ruin your day.
Shop around for a turkey fryer or similar burner. I started the same way as you, with a 20,000 btu Coleman. You'll be a lot happier with 50,000 btu and it doesn't have to cost an arm and leg.
Warning: I know Judo. If you force me to prove it I'll shoot you.
IMO, turkey fryers are the hot ticket if you want to smelt 80 - 200 pounds of lead at a time. But 50,000 btu is way overkill for a 20 pound pot and all the heat wasting up from around that tiny pot will make it a PITA to try and cast from.
You can push your luck a little by putting some insulation around the pot when you heat it.
“an armed society is a polite society.”
Robert A. Heinlein
"Idque apud imperitos humanitas vocabatur, cum pars servitutis esset."
Publius Tacitus
Thanks for the replies. I ended up getting a propane camp stove with 10,000btu's that uses the little 16oz cans. I can attach a 20lb can with an adapter hose.
I will be casting again tomorrow and give it a try, but I'm not sure how the cold temperature outside will affect it. It snowed today.
I just want to know where you get butane in a #20 can?
Melting Stuff is FUN!Sent from my PC with a keyboard and camera on it with internet too.
Shooting stuff is even funner
L W Knight
Turkey fryer, large cast iron dutch oven, RCBS or a "Antimony Man" thermometer, 3 or 4 pound ladle, a skimmer, ingot moulds, and a sheet metal wind shield to keep the heat focused. I got one of my ladles from ebay and the skimmer from Sportsmans Warehouse but most big box outdoors stores have them and they work better than the ladle for skimming clips from Wheel Weights.
Last edited by mtgrs737; 05-22-2010 at 11:54 AM.
Mtgrs737
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I'm still under the impression that .41LC wants to dipper cast off this heat source using a 20 pound pot. A turkey fryer is not the best choice for that venture.
I think I know what you mean, and yes that's what I did. I got my lead from a metal distributor because I needed pure lead for my black powder guns and wasn't interested in sifting through alloyed lead at the recycler to find what I need. I am going straight to casting with my setup as my lead is already in ingots that I just cut on my bandsaw to fit into the pot.
My 10,000btu burner worked great. I had it a half turn off high and had lead pooling in 5 minutes. 15 minutes later I was casting. I turned it down a full turn off high and it was still fine. I cast for 2 hours and made 200 boolits. Even worked fine in the winter air.
After a false start with a Walmart hotplate I am very happy.
Last edited by .41LC; 12-12-2009 at 11:02 PM.
Most of the current hot plates won't get much above 400' unless you play with the thermostat.
Probably to keep from burning the teflon pans.
I've melted a lot of lead over a old Colman 2 burner stove using Colman fuel,( that was before the new unleaded gas stoves) in a cast iron 6 qt bean pot.
For that size operation, you'll be happy. For a while.... This time next year, who knows?
Welcome aboard 41LC.
Warning: I know Judo. If you force me to prove it I'll shoot you.
I think that he means propane. I've seen adapters in camping supply places that let you use the gas grill size propane tanks on the little camp stoves that were designed for the small portable cylinders that screw on. I've also seen adapters for refilling the small disposable cylinders that say "do not refill" on them. The adapters were about $20 IIRC. You would need to use up a lot of those little tanks to make that thing pay for itself.
“an armed society is a polite society.”
Robert A. Heinlein
"Idque apud imperitos humanitas vocabatur, cum pars servitutis esset."
Publius Tacitus
My hotplate works pretty well with a small iron skillet. Until I feel like spending $50 on a turkey fryer and another $35 on a big pot, this will do.
Its not to save money on refilling the cylinders its convence. of using a hand held torch.especially if the stores are to far away I have one but I bought it when they were about $6.
WILDCATT
Warning: I know Judo. If you force me to prove it I'll shoot you.
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 |