My 1st smelting/casting tonight!

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

So, I decided tonight to bite the boolit!

I had some scrounged range lead, and tried to smelt it down, and then cast some boolits for my first time!

I used a Coleman propane camp stove, and a old cast aluminum pressure cooker pot (no lid - $0.25 at yard sale!)

I skimmed off the jackets, and most of the dross, I used part of a crayon . . . then skimmed again and again, and again! I cast a bunch just to get the Lee TL358 SWC up to temp, and played around with it trying to get the hang of pouring from a spoon . . . I also applied Bullshops Spue lube, then I dumped everything back in the pot and here is what I made . . . I threw some back in the pot, as they were obvious rejects . . .the four on the back row are ones I was trying to make bigger to be used for slugging my barrels . . .If I have to use them, I'll just trim off the "ears" or whatever they are "officially" called!


My "keepers" Do you think they look OK? Or should I practice more?


My rejects, mostly to cold . . .


Here are my "left overs" am I skimming off too much dross? Near the end I was getting the gold ayer on top, which I now understand was that the pot was too hot! Next time I'll turn it down some . . . I only noticed the gold color after I transfered to a stainless steel pan, so I thought that had something to do with it, but it was a lot smaller pan, with the same fire under it!


I started out with 7lbs 2.5oz of jacketed bullets, and ended up with 5lbs 0.5oz of lead . . .is that about right?

[carpetman]

123dieselbenz--Looks to me like you are skimming too much,,make shallower scoops and stir more. Using a spoon for a ladle? Get a bullet casting ladle and things should be much easier and improved.

[jdgabbard]

Yeah you could use a real ladle, even my lee ladle is horrible. Thankfully I mostly use a bottom pour... Most of your keepers look decent, but I think I would try to cast a little faster. They look a little shiny for my taste...

[randyrat]

Be sure to heat your slotted spoon in the melt or you'll drag a bunch of lead with the dross out of the pot. Boolits are looking good! Saw dust will work (as good as anything) for fluxing and stir with a dry wooden stick. Watch out for metal jackets "POPPING" in the hot melt.
Your right! the first few are from a cold mold. One more....Don't trust Aluminum for long.

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

Be sure to heat your slotted spoon in the melt or you'll drag a bunch of lead with the dross out of the pot. Boolits are looking good! Saw dust will work (as good as anything) for fluxing and stir with a dry wooden stick. Watch out for metal jackets "POPPING" in the hot melt.
Your right! the first few are from a cold mold. One more....Don't trust Aluminum for long.

Yes I left my slotted spoon (actually has holes in it) in the mix for awhile to heat up.

While they were melting I had a "lid" laying on top, I had put my tray I dumped the jackets in on top, It almost covered it . . . I then went a made dinner . . . came back and it was all done . . .

Why not aluminum?

I had some were frosting up so I let the mold cool a bit, on some of them one side is frosted and not the other, I figured that came from when I dipped the lower corner of the mold in the pot for a bit to get it hot . . . but I was going quite slow . . .

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

123dieselbenz--Looks to me like you are skimming too much,,make shallower scoops and stir more. Using a spoon for a ladle? Get a bullet casting ladle and things should be much easier and improved.

I started to use a big serving spoon, but then tried using a ladle, but still kinda messy . . . they are both big!

Should I dump some of my "skimmings" back in, and re-melt?

[bedwards]

Looks like you need to run your mould hotter/faster to get rid of the wrinkles. Less's like to run hot. You are getting there.

be

[blackthorn]

The melting point of Aluminum is 1,218°, which is why you do not want to use an aluminum pot to smelt lead! Almost any heat source that will melt lead will produce enough heat to melt aluminum. Further, an aluminum pot can fail without any warning whatsoever, spilling molten alloy all over whatever is within range! Cast iron, on the other hand holds heat very well and a steel pot (such as can be made from an old propane tank) both work well and are safe from failure.

[carpetman]

123dieselbenz----Your answer makes me think when I am saying CASTING ladle you are thinking like a soup ladle. Not the same at all. A casting ladle has a nipple on the side that fits into your sprue hole. I started out using a ladle but seldom do anymore after getting a bottom pour. Mine goes back to 1967 and is still kicking. It's a Lyman. I imagine they still make them--shouldn't be too high priced.

[snaggdit]

Nice first effort. I too began by smelting in a cast aluminum pressure cooker. The folks here told me how dangerous this could be. 5-25 lbs of molten lead pouring out around my feet would have been bad. I went back to the thrift store and found an enameled steel pan and it works great.

[Wayne Smith]

When thinking about alumunium and lead don't think about melting points. Look up the slump point of alunimum and you won't use it to melt lead once you realize the slump point is when your pot begins to loose shape. When it looses shape it gets holes in it. It is hottest at the bottom, so guess where it will begin to slump? At the very least don't cast barefoot!!

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

OK guys, I get the drift, no alum pot . . . I have a nice cast iron dutch oven, but my wife would not be too happy, I'll look for another pot to smelt in. . .

I was using a kitchen ladle about 2.5" across . . . BIG! and hard to pour accurately! I was covering the spue plate!

And Before I forget AGAIN . . . THANK YOU ALL for your help, and direction!!!

[carpetman]

dieselbenz--I would have bet heavily you were talking a regular ladle--not a casting ladle.

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

dieselbenz--I would have bet heavily you were talking a regular ladle--not a casting ladle.

Yeah, I was trying to get started on the cheap . . .looking for a real casting ladle now!

[HORNET]

I recommend against the Lee ladle. It's cheap but not any better than a tablespoon, not big enough and it doesn't have a spout to connect for pressure casting. The Lyman & RCBS are much better, could be a little better if they were bigger to handle 6 cavity molds. Still work, you just have to refill it for some of the heavies.

[SP101GUY]

+1 Against the Lee ladle for casting, it just isn't big enough. I just use mine to scrape and clean. The bottom pour does the rest. Keep and eye out for a 20# Lee pot on Fleabay. I love mine, I will never cast from a pot on a stove again.

AJ

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

I recommend against the Lee ladle. It's cheap but not any better than a tablespoon, not big enough and it doesn't have a spout to connect for pressure casting. The Lyman & RCBS are much better, could be a little better if they were bigger to handle 6 cavity molds. Still work, you just have to refill it for some of the heavies.

Thanks! I'm looking at a RCBS online now . . .