Total beginner's question about melting lead

yomomma said:
Outside temp??? Warm enough that the lead will stay liquid.

And just a warning. There is a tinsile fairy. Make sure your lead is dry, water and lead can be dangerous
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lol, yes the lead staying liquid seems like good advice but I'm not familiar how quickly it can cool down once you pull a ladle out of the pot. I believe a cold wind outside can cool things off real quick so I will wait for a still day for my 1st pour.
I have read about the moisture hitting molten lead being a very bad idea so also no precipitation coming down, got it!
Come on Spring!
 
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A drop of water (or sweat!) Coming in contact with the molten surface is no big deal. It evaporates pretty much on contact. Moisture trapped in a clip on a weight dropped into a melt gets very exciting instantly as the moisture gets submerged, boils, expands and explodes outward.

Auggie D.
 
Auggie Doggie said:
A drop of water (or sweat!) Coming in contact with the molten surface is no big deal. It evaporates pretty much on contact. Moisture trapped in a clip on a weight dropped into a melt gets very exciting instantly as the moisture gets submerged, boils, expands and explodes outward.

Auggie D.
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Thanks Auggie.
Lucky for me I don't need to start with a wheel weight melt down as I have managed to acquire a small stack of 1 pound lead ingots so I'm starting with, I think(?), relatively clean material. Hopefully just a bit of skimming impurities off the top of the pot after fluxing and I'm good to go.
 
I splurged and bought a Lyman casting thermometer. Gives me an idea of the temperature of the melted lead - totally amazed to see 100 degrees F or more variation depending what I am doing - especially in a cast iron RCBS pot on a Coleman gas stove. Even on the Lee electric pots, takes a bit of time for the pot to "catch up", even after any added solid pieces have "melted". Got convinced from reading - I am quite convinced now that knowing the temperature of the melt that produces good bullets does work!! I do know that finish / surface features / mould fill of the bullet indicates "too hot" or "too cool", but nice to know the "good" temperature that makes "good" bullets. I also use a cheap single burner electric hot plate with a worn out skil-saw blade laying on it as a "warming plate" to set my moulds on while the lead is coming up to temp.
 
Potashminer said:
I splurged and bought a Lyman casting thermometer. Gives me an idea of the temperature of the melted lead - totally amazed to see 100 degrees F or more variation depending what I am doing - especially in a cast iron RCBS pot on a Coleman gas stove. Even on the Lee electric pots, takes a bit of time for the pot to "catch up", even after any added solid pieces have "melted". Got convinced from reading - I am quite convinced now that knowing the temperature of the melt that produces good bullets does work!! I do know that finish / surface features / mould fill of the bullet indicates "too hot" or "too cool", but nice to know the "good" temperature that makes "good" bullets. I also use a cheap single burner electric hot plate with a worn out skil-saw blade laying on it as a "warming plate" to set my moulds on while the lead is coming up to temp.
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Very interesting, thanks for the info.
Sounds like temperature can be critical hence the reason I'm waiting for a good day outside. I don't have a casting thermometer so will need to wing it but I think with some trial and error I can hopefully produce something acceptable. If it doesn't work out I will just melt it down and try again! :rolleyes:
 
Potashminer said:
I splurged and bought a Lyman casting thermometer. Gives me an idea of the temperature of the melted lead - totally amazed to see 100 degrees F or more variation depending what I am doing - especially in a cast iron RCBS pot on a Coleman gas stove. Even on the Lee electric pots, takes a bit of time for the pot to "catch up", even after any added solid pieces have "melted". Got convinced from reading - I am quite convinced now that knowing the temperature of the melt that produces good bullets does work!! I do know that finish / surface features / mould fill of the bullet indicates "too hot" or "too cool", but nice to know the "good" temperature that makes "good" bullets. I also use a cheap single burner electric hot plate with a worn out skil-saw blade laying on it as a "warming plate" to set my moulds on while the lead is coming up to temp.
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I was using a saw blade too, but I found I had to run the hot plate on high for 15 minutes to get my iron mold hot enough. I now use a thinner piece of steel . It's an electric box cover. Much faster
 
hatman1793 said:
Cooking pasta is like cooking scrap lead. A lid & the right amount of heat will work best.

A lid keeps the heat in, over an open pot. A lid makes the process faster than an open pot too.

A lid keeps sudden & unexpected rain showers from ruining your cooking too.
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If there is a chance of rain don't even start, even with a lid.

I met the tinsel fairy once and you have no idea how bad that is until it happens..

On a side note; if you have damp or wet wheel weights dump them in your pot at start up, the moisture will evaporate off the lead before it melts.
 
bertn said:
If there is a chance of rain don't even start, even with a lid.

I met the tinsel fairy once and you have no idea how bad that is until it happens..

On a side note; if you have damp or wet wheel weights dump them in your pot at start up, the moisture will evaporate off the lead before it melts.
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A very good friend of mine, had been casting a lot of aluminum and brass parts.

He failed, one day, to place the usual tin can over the sprue hole, and he believed that a spider had gotten in to the sand mold cavity. It took him several days to clean up all the material that was scattered about the shop space, and he became even more a believer in wearing one's safety equipment while casting!

Molten Metal burns are a mother-****er! Best to not find that out firsthand!
 
Water increases in volume about 1600 times when it turns to steam at atmosphere pressure. So a water soaked cigarette butt in a bucket of wheelwrights (left outside in the rain), or a drop of water behind a steel clip on a wheel weight, expands 1600 times in size, RIGHT NOW, when dropped into a melt - which is roughly 600 degrees F or so. You will only do that once - as trevj posted, one tends to remember picking congealed lead droplets out of your face and scraping them off your lips - and that is after it has quite burning like you would not believe!! I wear glasses, so had to pick several pieces off the lenses - not wearing glasses, would be digging them out of your eye lids or eye balls.
 
Having asked about using the cast iron thing, I ended up buying an RCBS lead pot, since for one thing it should never in the future be mistake for cookware. My basic reloading plan is to melt down the shot found in cheap skeet shells into slugs or buckshot (already have the molds), that is of course a prepper's tactic for hard times and said to be a good way to balance the lead load vs the powder charge. Having the basic molding stuff however, I'm now wondering where I can get some bulk lead, I mean outside of melting down used wheel weights. This would be for casting for hunting purposes and I have a strong prejudice against the contaminants in the weights I've heard about, plus I'm too lazy to go begging for the cast off stuff. What is another source of lead?
 
If you have concerns about "used" material, pretty much leaves you looking for foundry certified ingots - quick look on google showed several suppliers in Ontario, which I assume is your location. Typically, can order ingots as pure lead or as any particular alloy (such as Lyman #2) that you have in mind. Same places usually also sell ingots of tin and antinomy so you can "cook up" most any recipe that you want. I would have thought after 200 years that the desirable composition of pellets and slugs would be pretty much established - I see places in Ontario selling various grades of shot, including "hardened" shot, as well.
Just keep in mind that whatever you get, not many things in industrial hygiene as "nasty" as lead vapour / lead dust, so since you are going to be handling and melting it, read up on "safe" ways of doing that. Basic precautions like washing hands, establishing ventilation, etc.
 
Big Bad said:
Having asked about using the cast iron thing, I ended up buying an RCBS lead pot, since for one thing it should never in the future be mistake for cookware. My basic reloading plan is to melt down the shot found in cheap skeet shells into slugs or buckshot (already have the molds), that is of course a prepper's tactic for hard times and said to be a good way to balance the lead load vs the powder charge. Having the basic molding stuff however, I'm now wondering where I can get some bulk lead, I mean outside of melting down used wheel weights. This would be for casting for hunting purposes and I have a strong prejudice against the contaminants in the weights I've heard about, plus I'm too lazy to go begging for the cast off stuff. What is another source of lead?
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I was in the same boat as you BB and happened to find a guy in my neck of the woods that had a rather large supply of lead ingots and he kindly parted with 25 pounds. Check around and make some inquires as I'm sure you can track someone down who is over supplied in your area.
 
Big Bad said:
Having asked about using the cast iron thing, I ended up buying an RCBS lead pot, since for one thing it should never in the future be mistake for cookware. My basic reloading plan is to melt down the shot found in cheap skeet shells into slugs or buckshot (already have the molds), that is of course a prepper's tactic for hard times and said to be a good way to balance the lead load vs the powder charge. Having the basic molding stuff however, I'm now wondering where I can get some bulk lead, I mean outside of melting down used wheel weights. This would be for casting for hunting purposes and I have a strong prejudice against the contaminants in the weights I've heard about, plus I'm too lazy to go begging for the cast off stuff. What is another source of lead?
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Most lead wholesellers will make you buy a skid load full. Do you have $500 to $1000 extra for buying lead.
 
Big Bad said:
Having asked about using the cast iron thing, I ended up buying an RCBS lead pot, since for one thing it should never in the future be mistake for cookware. My basic reloading plan is to melt down the shot found in cheap skeet shells into slugs or buckshot (already have the molds), that is of course a prepper's tactic for hard times and said to be a good way to balance the lead load vs the powder charge. Having the basic molding stuff however, I'm now wondering where I can get some bulk lead, I mean outside of melting down used wheel weights. This would be for casting for hunting purposes and I have a strong prejudice against the contaminants in the weights I've heard about, plus I'm too lazy to go begging for the cast off stuff. What is another source of lead?
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I believe Western Metals has some casting alloys made up or will mix to order. Unless it's a bulk order you might find it's cheaper to buy projectiles.
 
I'm also planning on melting some lead to make maxi balls for my muzzleloader. I'm going to be doing it outdoors. Should I be wearing a respirator?
 
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