Printable View
Always wondered why guys were looking for muffin pans or such for ingot moulds. Probably had my 4 Ohaus and Saeco ones for 35 years so obviously didn't need more. Just happened to look at the price of them the other day on line. NOW I understand the why of muffin pans!
Saeco used to give one away free as part of a pot purchase. Don't remember if RCBS did that too or Lyman for that matter. A Lee you had to buy. I agree that nowadays prices for ingot molds have gone crazy along with everything else. Folks make very good ones out of angle iron, but it takes some welding. Muffin pans and the likes of such make good ingot molds; the lead muffins are a bit heavy, but you don't have to fill each cavity all the way to the top. Those made by Griswold and Wagner are in most cases considered collectible and the prices on some of them can be sky high unless you come across one at a yard sale/garage sale, etc. The ones to look for are those marked "made in Taiwan" or those having no markings at all...they have little value. If you cannot find a cast iron muffin or bread stick pan you can use those stainless steel condiment cups sold by Walmart. A set of 4 sells for around 90 cents and with a couple of sets you can make ingots all day and night long. Nothing sticks to them and all you need is a set of pliers to turn them over when hardened. LLS
I picked up a small aluminum muffin pan at a garage sale for $0.25. It's for the bucket of 70-30 solder that was given to me.But my problem is that the solder was dripped into the bucket while still molten! Look's like I'll have to melt it all by putting the bucket into my rendering pot.
Since I'm new to casting and don't have a collection of all that is needed for smelting, I have called on a friend for help. I too have checked on ebay for any type of cast iron pan to be used for smelting, and some think this stuff is antique and theerefore valuable. Muffin pans for $25....... give me a break. These cast iron pans don't wear out when used for smelting, so look around for a fellow caster to lend you his pans. This is not the kind of thing a caster uses every day. Today at the range, a friend delivered 8 or 9 of the cornbread stick type pans on loan for my needs. I plan to start smelting in the morning and for the 150 plus lbs of lead that I have this should go pretty fast. Once I'm done I return the pans no worse for the ware.
One thing guys, the aluminum pans cool way faster than cast iron or steel. So if you are running a 100 pound alloy pot as I do, standing around waiting for your muffins to set up is a PITA. I think I have 9 muffin pans of two sizes to increase my pour amount while reducing my setup time after the pour. I use wood Coke cases to hold my muffins, they are stout and stack well.
Ed
I pour mine on a concrete pad, and i keep it pretty wet where my ingot mold is. It reduces my set time to seconds. I sometimes use an old rug that I keep soaked. It really speeds things up
I have three cast iron corn bread molds and two rcbs ingot molds. Between these molds and keeping wet towels under the pans to cool, I can empty my cut off propane tank without any real down time.
Yeah, I smelt using 6 of the Lyman/RCBS/Saeco type molds and I paid $2 each for 4 of them at a gun show a few years ago. Its hard to see $11 for a Lee or over $20 for a cast iron mold. I have 2 cornbread molds that I hardly ever use anymore, mostly because the ingots don't stack well. If I did not have these, I would build several from small channel.
Milk gave me sticker shock.
Wally-Mart has the one piece aluminum Wilton mini-muffin pan, 12 count, for $7.44. This size works best , the 24 count ones are too bulky, and cost $21.99....two 12's are a better buy.
Don't forget they are in the special decorative cake baking section, not with the standard baking pans. Don't have a clue as to why!
Everything gives me sticker shock now days. I can't make enough money to save any for retirement. My plan is the DAD Plan .....die at desk!
Gary
Also look in the Wal-Mart kitchen section for ss condiment cups. 4 for a dollar. Stock up before they are replaced with the plastic ones.
Lucky to have a wife who yard sales for me
Angle iron + welder + time = ingot molds.
I have actually broken the handle and part of the side out of one of the wedge shaped cast iron cornbread molds while trying to empty it. Now I just let the old ladies (who are never going to use them anyway), try to outbid each other at auctions for cast iron.
Robert
I have used cast iron muffin pans for over twenty five years for smelting. I had two to start with, but broke one trying to dump the ingots. I then used a Dremmel to grind the cavities smooth. I found another at a local department store for $4.95 and gave it the dremmel treatment. No more sticking! The broken one still has five good cavities, so my normal run is twenty seven ingots. Just right for my plumbers pot. The ingots are exactly one kilo (2.2 pounds), perfect for my RCBS ten kilo pots!
I also have eight one pound molds from Lyman, RCBS and Saeco. I turn these upside down and rest my moulds on them when casting and for linotype ingots.