First off, I don`t cast often.
When I do, I cast a lot of bullets.
I drain my pot every time that I finish a run of a particular bullet.
If I know that I am going to cast with the same alloy within the next day or two I leave some in the pot.
Otherwise I drain it every time.
I have several alloy specific pots. Normally I don't drain until I want to do a deep cleaning.
This is my strategy too. Got the composition and liquidus temp (according to my PID) written on the front. Got a few more for special situations.Quote:
Originally Posted by M-Tecs
Dom, thank you for your insights on REAL bullets. The rifle incoming is a Pedersoli Kodiak double rifle, 1:48 twist barrels. I will definitely cast some with my current range scrap alloy before draining or other drastic disturbances in the force.
Your results speak for themselve with the hardcast bullet, of course, but the 1:60 twist is basically for roundballs.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dom
I am surprised. Few seem to have more than one pot. Lead or mix will melt faster if you start with a full pot. The last time my pots were empty when they were new. I have three. One with coww the next with half coww and the other pure lead and the third pure lead. When someday I run out of coww down to around 500 pounds I will go to the 500 or so pounds of lanatype.
dittoQuote:
Originally Posted by RogerDat
Quote:
Originally Posted by Abert Rim
I'm cast the 320 grain REAL bullet for a 50 cal Hawken rifle with a 1:48 barrel and for my rifle I have to cast them dead soft. The Lee bullets are tapered so you can push most of the bullet in with your thumb but the front driving band is oversized and with a harder alloy I can't start many of them with a standard ball starter. I have to bring a piece of 2x4 to give the bullet a good wack to get it in. With soft bullets I can seat them easier but even then there is occasional one that is difficult so I measure and sort my hunting bullets.
In a 1-48 barrel the accuracy is good at 100 yards and is mostly limited by the large round front post I have been meaning to replace for decades. These bullets are also great for deer and wack them hard with a clean cut entrance hole and a slightly larger exit. I have only recovered one of the bullets and that was from a button buck that was facing me and I hit on the breast plate. The deer dropped in its tracks and when I was skinning it I found the bullet under the hide after it went thru the ham. With four to five feet of penetration you can be confident these bullets work.
I pour out my lead at the end of every session into an ingot mold and then stamp it afterwards, depending on the alloy.
At the moment I use just one alloy, so no need to empty the pots (one feeds the other).
That’s because at the moment I cast just one bullet.
I have three pots. My original Lyman furnace that is over 50 years old, a gently used Master Caster and a NIB Lee 20 lb.
I have never emptied the Lyman and currently is about 2/3 full. The Master Caster is about 1/3 full and you never want to start it full unless you want a mess.
I liked kevin's response...I also KISS. But that is not for everyone. If you hunt with lead bullets, shoot BP, want to go 2500 fps with some guns and just plink with others, one alloy is likely not going to work. IMO pots are cheap. If you need multiple alloys, separate pots make sense. I do not see the need to empty them regularly but I do not use mystery alloys. There is not much crud with commercial alloy. Most of my casting has been with the Lyman furnace and ladle casting and that will be more forgiving than a bottom pour.
I clean each of my pots when I see more crud buildup than I'm comfortable with. I drain the pot and take out the valve rod. I scrub the inside of the pot with a wet scotchbrite pad and completely clean the pour spout. Then clean and polish the valve rod and reassemble. It then runs like a brand new pot. I just can't abide a crusty pot.
I seldom drain my pot. I tend to try to cast up what I need over the Winter in batches of the same alloy and only then drain the pot to change alloys. I have two pots but keep one back more for a spare rather than try to keep it set up and running. If I had a longer loading bench I'd like to have two set up full time. Currently am working with a 10 foot bench though and that gets used up quickly.
I don't know how many real bullets you will cast. I made a mini pot when I was playing with soft noses. Take a 2"x5" pipe nipple and weld a 1/2" piece of angle iron on it so that it overlaps the edge of your pot and allows the pipe to set in the melt. Pound the nipple flat on the bottom and weld it shut. This allows you to have a useable amount of pure and not mess with your alloy. It is easy to dispense with a 44 mag case wired like a ladle.
There is no correct answer to this question. I say that mostly, because I differ from almost everyone else in this thread, LOL :mrgreen:
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I drain the Lee pot after every casting session ...unless I plan to continue with the same batch and same alloy the next day.
I like to tailor a alloy for each specific batch of boolits.
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I do have a second pot, which is dedicated to near pure Lead (I usually add 0.5% Tin for a alloy of 200:1)
I never leave mine empty. I will refill it while hot after a casting session. In Florida where I'm at everything exposed gets a covering of rust due to the salt air. The less of it exposed the better for me, I cast at a pole barn and it is not exactly climate controlled.
[Only empty pot if I'm changing alloy and that is easy with my dipper pot for the ladle, just use welding gloves pick it up carefully (very carefully) and dump out the lead after using a ladle to get it mostly empty. Bottom pour I drain most of the way and do the same dump the rest.]
[ditto]
+1
When the inside wall of the pot get crusty and I feel like cleaning it all out ...
Dip out all I can and pour out the remaining alloy ... use gloves / oven mitts when doing it !
Gary
Fastest start up is a pot half 1/2-3/4 full. Then you can add warmed ingots as needed.Quote:
Originally Posted by gunseller
This is why you dont drain it. Leave it full or near full, the walls never get crusty.Quote:
Originally Posted by gwpercle