My son brought me an ingot (well, a bar) or lead about 100 lbs. It's around 3" X 3" by 18". I really didn't feel like farggin' around cutting it with the hacksaw and whatnot, so I put it on my workbench with about 6" sticking out. I put my lead pot under it and went to town with my propane torch. Once it started to melt, it went fairly fast. I got about 20 lbs into the pot in about 20 minutes or so.
Working with large ingots
- Thread starter Papaclaude
- Start date
leebuilder
Regular
- Location
- Nova Scotia
Axe and hammer. Sounds like alot of work but once you are on to it it parts easily. You get to a point were it can be broken with a few blows of a hammer. Less mess and a work out.
Be well.
Be well.
I picked up 2 60# pigs today, and am now scratching my head as to how to reduce them to 10# pot size chunks 
The guy that sold them to me suggested a reciprocating saw?
I'm thinking a broad masonry chisel and a BFH.
Anyone try either of these ideas?
M
The guy that sold them to me suggested a reciprocating saw?
I'm thinking a broad masonry chisel and a BFH.
Anyone try either of these ideas?
M
When I was a kid and melting misc lead to sell for scrap we would throw the big piece's in a wood fire and leave it overnight. Come morning when it was cold we'd dig around and find the rivlet's of lead and toss them into bucket's
leebuilder
Regular
- Location
- Nova Scotia
123
I picked up 2 60# pigs today, and am now scratching my head as to how to reduce them to 10# pot size chunks
The guy that sold them to me suggested a reciprocating saw?
I'm thinking a broad masonry chisel and a BFH.
Anyone try either of these ideas?
The axe has a broader cutting edge unlike a chisel, chisel has precsion that can help. Recip saws are good but you need a coarse blade your gonna get a gummy mess if you push it hard, you will need lube, bar soap works very good just rub it into the saw teeth. Skill saws are good, dont be greedy, friggen hear me now and listen to me later, dont be greedy!. Chain saw is fast!!! It is dangerous lots of high velocity swarf flying! Be aware.
But like i said axe and hammer work best. It is a bit of a learnig curve but once you get on it it is very easy and safe and next to no mess.
have cut down many pigs, ingots and such.
Ps an electric power planer will work too if a bit of clearence will make it happen.
even put large ingots on an old flat type roaster over a fire or propane burner and let the alloy flow into muffin tins and trimmed beer cans.
Mind over matter, in you dont mind,, it dont matter.
be safe!!!
M
I have tried the axe, the bow saw and the sawzall (although without soap and water), and to date, I found the torch melting it into my casting pot the best. I also looked all over town for an ingot mould, and couldn't find one, so I went to Dollarama and bought a Betty Crocker muffin tray (the reason I specify Betty Crocker is that it's fairly thick). It makes ingots about 2 lbs, and they fit just right in the lee Lead pot. BTW, a betty Crocker stainless ladle was used to scoop the lead, one scoop exactly fills a mould. Gotta love Betty Crocker. I don't move the tray until the lead has solidified, and the way it is set up on the bench, even if the trays were to rupture, I would not get burned.
I picked up 2 60# pigs today, and am now scratching my head as to how to reduce them to 10# pot size chunks
The guy that sold them to me suggested a reciprocating saw?
I'm thinking a broad masonry chisel and a BFH.
Anyone try either of these ideas?
M
I used to buy a lot of 60 lb ingots. I used a Sawzall with a really coarse blade to cut them. You'll want to clamp the ingot down as you cut it, and put a big rubbermaid bin or something similar underneath to catch the chips. I tried other techniques but the Sawzall worked best for me.
Chris.
I use mini muffin trays. They throw ingots about 1/2 pound each which melt a lot faster in my Lee 20 pound pot. Less down time than waiting for the large 'muffins' to melt.
Good to know. I wasn't sure if the muffin trays pans would hold up, or if the lead would "eat" through them. It's why I opted for the dollar store ones. Good idea, though. I still have a final fluxing to do, so I may get a mini pan and do that.
X2. I use a bow saw to cut 60 lb ingots in half so they will fit into my melting pot.
Regular wood blade. Bone blade didn't work well, too fine.
Yup....you get your exercise too. Works better with a couple beers and a friend
I had bubbly bottomed muffin ingots for the first couple runs
