# Melting Equipment



## reecemurg (Oct 9, 2011)

hi guys,
just wondering what you lot use to melt your lead ,
i am currently using a small portable gas stove and a cast iron pan ,
is it me or does melting use up gas awful quickly and also it takes an age for my lead to start melting ??? is that because of the cast iron pan ?
any help greatly appreciated !!

cheers,

Reece


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## smitty (Dec 17, 2009)

I like to melt a small amount at a time. I'm sure the mass of the object being heated vs. the BTU's of the heat source are directly related to the amount of time it takes to cast. Increase BTU's of heat source or melt smaller amounts in a smaller container. Oh, I use a propane torch heater/stove, so it is probably about the same as what you are using.


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## reecemurg (Oct 9, 2011)

would a ally pan heat up quicker and transfer more heat energy quicker than a cast iron pan ??


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## smitty (Dec 17, 2009)

Yes, it will heat up quicker because of it's smaller mass, but I would be concerned about the lower melting point of aluminum than iron. Very easy to over-heat I would think.


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## reecemurg (Oct 9, 2011)

ok ,, i tried melting some today on my mates gas bbq but it didnt even start to melt the lead , even the small cuttings ??
i would have thought a gas bbq would be plenty hot ? maybe not


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## Charles (Aug 26, 2010)

I use a small propane camping stove to melt lead. I have used those electric melting pots, both with a pour spout and the bottom and without the spout, both by Lee. For me, the electric pots are a pain to use, and certainly no faster than the propane stove. I use a small but thick walled aluminum pan that I got from a second hand store. Actually, I have two of them. They work really well, and I have seen no sign of damage after several years of use. But I do monitor them very closely. I have tried cast iron pots, but do not like them as well as the aluminum. They do take a long time to heat up, and a long time to cool down. Here is my current setup:










Description may be found here:

http://slingshotforum.com/topic/13778-cast-hunting-ammo-with-simple-wooden-mold/

You just need to find what works best for you.

Cheers .... Charles


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## reecemurg (Oct 9, 2011)

thanks charles great help !
i think im going to try and find a aluminium pan ,, because it takes so long for my cast pan to heat up i am using up the gas bottles too quickly for my money budget








also i have a mould that is very simple , but it takes a while to cut each ball out ,, is there a mould that does this for you ? so that you get the ball straight away without doing any fiddly snipping ??


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## funk3ymunky (May 14, 2012)

I have one of those type of camping stoves that Charles has Reece, maybe we could use that tomorrow if you wanna come round mine, and then we can hunt







(I forgot about the stove lol but Charles has just reminded me). Maybe we didn't have a direct enough heat source whereas on a stove you can actually see the flame and it almost touches the pan. Im not sure what we could use for a pan though, unless we go to Broadstone quickly and find a ally pan in a charity shop.


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## reecemurg (Oct 9, 2011)

you douche andy !!!
yeh i'll come round tomoz ,, do you have any gas for it though ??
i'll just use my normal pan , you can get one if ya want


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## treefork (Feb 1, 2010)

I experienced the same problem at first. I finally took a propane torch and applied fame directly to lead while heating on top of stove. Finally meltdown. Once I got a pool of melted lead additional lead would melt easy.


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## funk3ymunky (May 14, 2012)

umm ye i have gas for it


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## Hrawk (Oct 25, 2010)

reecemurg said:


> Is there a mould that does this for you ? so that you get the ball straight away without doing any fiddly snipping ??


All Lee molds have a built in sprue cutter which greatly speeds up the process.


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## MAV (Mar 18, 2012)

I have a stainless steel pot (Revere Ware) that I picked up at a second hand store, works good but the plastic handles deteriorate. I would just bust the plastic handle off first thing next time. I also took my letter punches and punched LEAD USE on it, maybe over kill but I don't want it to ever wind up in someones kitchen some how.

Mark


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## Btoon84 (Nov 22, 2011)

hey mav, that was nice of ya


MAV said:


> I also took my letter punches and punched LEAD USE on it, maybe over kill but I don't want it to ever wind up in someones kitchen some how.
> Mark


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## Northerner (Nov 9, 2010)

LEE production Pot 4

http://slingshotforum.com/gallery/image/423-more-casting/


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## Hrawk (Oct 25, 2010)

Same here, the Lee production pots are great.

Just plug them in, drop in the lead, pour when ready. Sure beats messing around with propane and a stove.

I think they are much safer too as there is no open flame and no scooping of molten lead to your mold.

Biggest benefit, you never run out of gas!


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## Charles (Aug 26, 2010)

Just another point of view. I have the Lee production pot and do not like it as well as a pot on a camp stove.

After a bit of use, the spout becomes fiddly, does not always shut off, and leaks molten lead. The spout is very small diameter and pours slowly. It takes a long time to heat up and melt lead.

Using my set up, I can melt lead faster, and pour faster, than with the Lee ... and it does not leak. And I do not require electricity, so I can melt lead where ever I feel like working ... at my cottage, when out camping in the bush, etc.

Cheers ..... Charles


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## Dayhiker (Mar 13, 2010)

Well, Charles, I just ordered one of these anyway.








http://www.jannsnetcraft.com/lead-melters-tools/010774018064.aspx


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## MAV (Mar 18, 2012)

Charles said:


> Just another point of view. I have the Lee production pot and do not like it as well as a pot on a camp stove.
> 
> After a bit of use, the spout becomes fiddly, does not always shut off, and leaks molten lead. The spout is very small diameter and pours slowly. It takes a long time to heat up and melt lead.
> 
> ...


I'm with Charles, I had a old propane burner and several tanks already, picked up a pot at 2nd hand store, I have very little investment and it works great. I bought 2nd hand a small stainless gravy ladle and a big stock spoon. the spoon removes the dross and the gravy ladle was bent and wood handles added to pour. I'm set for hardly any out lay of cash. If I thought something else was better I would get it, but this works no problems.


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## Beanflip (Sep 11, 2010)

A friend gave me one of his lee pots after I worked on one for him. I actually spent four hours casting 44 cal balls this morning. I find the elec. heat convenient. I did have to clean the spout occasionally. When it's full and the spout is clean, the flow is pretty fast.


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## Blue Danube (Sep 24, 2011)

Throughly flux your lead and most of the spout problems go away, learned that when I used to cast coffee cans full of #68 H&G's at a time...

Marvalux worked extremely well for me and the can outlasted my casting


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## Northerner (Nov 9, 2010)

I had three of the LEE Production Pot 4s and one of them seemed to leak constantly. It didn't matter how many times I cleaned it or fluxed, the thing eventually started dripping again. The other two pots were fine. The LEE pot that I'm currently using hasn't leaked at all and I have casted several thousand balls with it.

The bottom pour LEE pots usually function quite well. At one time I would have two 10-lb pots going with three 4-cavity molds at a time. Production was around 850 bullets per hour (.38 cal). If I remember correctly, it takes around 20-25 minutes to turn a cold pot into a full pot of hot lead. The trick is to never let your pot get below 2/3 full. Keep adding lead as you cast. Store it full.

Cheers,
Northerner


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## Charles (Aug 26, 2010)

That's what this forum is all about! It is great to get all the different points of view. Everyone has to find what works best for them. I am really pleased to see such a broad range of experience.

Cheers .... Charles


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## reecemurg (Oct 9, 2011)

cheers for all the input guys !!! 
its much appreciated,
i think i will invest in a lee precision mould








if anyone knows where i can get a 10mm one for a good price , please let me know








cheers,

Reece


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## Hrawk (Oct 25, 2010)

reecemurg said:


> if anyone knows where i can get a 10mm one for a good price , please let me know


They are sold by calibre not in mm.

The closest size to 10mm is the .395 (10.033mm) http://leeprecision.com/mold-dc-ball-395.html

May I recommend the #000 buckshot mold, .36 cal (9.144mm) and does 18 in a single pour. http://leeprecision.com/000-buckshot-18-mold.html


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## MAV (Mar 18, 2012)

Hrawk,
I was looking at that Lee mold. Sprue cutter on top, but the lower balls? Do you have to cut them or do they twist apart by hand? Looks promising! I wish they had larger cal. in that set up.


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## Hrawk (Oct 25, 2010)

You can break them apart fairly easy by hand. I just snip them with a pair of sidecutters so I don't have to handle the lead too much.


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## Btoon84 (Nov 22, 2011)

"store it full"? Northerner, you leave a full pot of lead in there to harden and then put away till next time? What is the purpose of this? Thanks


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## Hrawk (Oct 25, 2010)

Btoon84 said:


> "store it full"? Northerner, you leave a full pot of lead in there to harden and then put away till next time? What is the purpose of this? Thanks


It melt's quicker next time due to the increased contact area, less chance of contaminates getting in, less equipment needed and well, it's just easier.


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## pop shot (Sep 29, 2011)

And it protects the element from salt air for me.


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## Pawpawsailor (Jun 8, 2012)

I use a Lee electric lead pot. My version has a four pound capacity and a controlled bottom mounted spout. It takes about 20 minutes to melt the lead and I'm ready to go. Using the Lee double ball .380 or .500 moulds, I can knock off more tan 100 in about an hour without rushing.


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## Pawpawsailor (Jun 8, 2012)

This is like the one I have. I bought mine on eBay used for about $50.00.


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## jskeen (Feb 7, 2011)

I'm gonna jump in here with a couple of facts and one opinion, and hope it helps somebody out.

Fact. Overheating lead alloy = BAD! Several reasons. The biggest is that the hotter the alloy is, the more lead molecules manage to hitch a ride up out of the container on stray smoke particles, air currents ect, and find their way into the most efficient air filtration system nearby. Namely, your LUNGS! Lead in Lungs = REALLY BAD! keep at the minimum temp that will cast properly, and use a fan to blow the air over the top of the pot AWAY from you, and OUTSIDE. Circulating it around a closed room don't really help much. Even if you are casting outside, a fan is a good investment in your retirement.

Second, overheat it by very much and you will cause the tin and other alloying elements to separate out and oxidize, leaving you with softer balls. Soft balls = less good than hard ones.

third, you will have to flux more skim more and generally futz around with it instead of making balls, which is what we are usually trying for.

Ok, Opinion. I use and like the rcbs promelt better than the lee or the open pot method. It's a little pricier, but worth it IMHO. (if anybody has or knows where to get a thermostat for one, I could be using two of them again) I got the one with the bad thermostat for free, mostly for parts in case something happens to another part of my good one, which I literally inherited from my grandpa, which is one reason I tend to prefer them to other models.

If you mess about with lead, you need a good thermometer! See primary reason above. If you don't have one, GET ONE. This guy sells the good ones reasonable, along with lots of other fun stuff.
http://theantimonyman.com/thermometry.htm#p5
If you have an electric pot that doesn't have a thermostat, you might want to look into an external thermal controller that plugs into the wall, and has a socket for the pot. It will read a remote thermocouple in the lead and shut off the element when it's at the temp you set. Just be sure to get one that will work with thermocouples rated up to at least 750f or more and will handle the max current of your pot. (If anybody has gone this route, please pm me 

James


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## Blue Danube (Sep 24, 2011)

Master Skeen, why do you blow air across melting pot, sounds counter productive to maintaining stabil temps, would it not be better to place fan behind pot and draw it away?


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## MAV (Mar 18, 2012)

Jskeen,
Yes precautions and good judgement should be used casting lead. 
I was wondering about what you wrote. 
"Soft balls = less good then hard ones".
What is the reasoning behind that?


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## reecemurg (Oct 9, 2011)

im thinking of getting a .440 cal lee mould ,, good choice ??
also what mm is that ?


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## jskeen (Feb 7, 2011)

Blue Danube said:


> Jskeen,
> Yes precautions and good judgement should be used casting lead.
> I was wondering about what you wrote.
> "Soft balls = less good then hard ones".
> What is the reasoning behind that?


Well, in a ballistic sense, not very much, but from a practical standpoint, soft lead deforms more when hitting a target, and therefore needs to be recast more often, also, soft lead is more likely to deposit itself on a users hands and then to make it's way into the body. While the probable amounts are small, ALL lead exposure is cumulative for life, so any means to minimize it is prudent.


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## Northerner (Nov 9, 2010)

Another good tip is to take advantage of any natural wind currents. Position yourself so the wind blows the fumes away from you. A large box fan set on "low" will often be enough to push the smoke away. The slight cooling effect of the fan is nothing compared to the cooling effect when you slide an ingot into the pot. When casting high volume you will be sliding ingots into the pot often.

Cheers,
Northerner


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