dripping furnace

[kingsax26]

I just purchased a used LEE 10lb casting furnace....however when i cast the bottom pour spout constantly drips...anyone got any info on how i stop it? I expect a few drips ....however, in a casting session tonight i easily dripoped over a pound of lead...any info would be great!

this is all the lead the dripped while I was casting the bullets at left...maybe 45 minutes total

 

[silly goose]

Have you tried the simple things like turning the slot on the top to help seat the little plunger that stops the flow? I find that if I operate the handle smartly that it works better than using it gently.

I set the whole unit in a large cake pan, just in case some crud gets caught and it leaks a little more profusely (which hasn't happened yet). I get the occasional drip, but nothing I can't live with.

You can find threads where folks lap the spout with the plunger and some grinding compound to get the perfect fit, I haven't found it necessary for my use.

And yeah, I have bottom pour and a dipping pot. I like them both, fiddle with it, it'll come around.

 

[Dphar]

Take it apart and clean it up. The shaft that seals the hole is likely coated with crud.
Bottom pours are not the best option.
Never had one that was good for more than a year or that cast uniform bullets.

Dan

 

[ohio ramrod]

I have found that the bottom pour pots are very sensitive to "crud" build up at the spout. While most dross will float to the top some will "cling" to the iron liner and stop rod. Making sure the rod tip is clean and properly alighned is important. Also if you leave the lead in the pot the rod will tend to "float up" as the lead cools; when you heat up the next time the lead in the bottom will melt first and run out while the solid lead in the top hold the rod up. While the bottom pour pots are sensitive they are nice to use once you get the "bugs" worked out.Just remember to keep them clean. :hmm:

 

[mike3132]

My Lee Production pot did the same thing. I clean and lapped the rod to no avail, finally order a new rod from Lee and that solved the problem. Lee sells all the parts for your pot on their website. Mike

 

[jamesthomas]

Send it back and get a regular pot an a ladle. I would get the 20lb Magnum Melter, its what I have and its great! No fiddling around with it. Bottom pours are to much of a hassle.

 

[bpd303]

Looks like from the photo (which by the way should be re-sized smaller) your pot is used. Probably not taken care of by the previous owner. I have been using bottom pour pots for over 50 years (1 lee 10lb and 1 Lyman 20lb) and when they begin to drip all I do is lap the rod and it fixes the problem. To lap it you take it out and chuck it in a drill, put some valve grinding compound on the point then insert it back into the pot and spin it till the seat & rod are shiny and clean. Should be good to go. I have only had to lap mine several times in all that time. Then make sure when done casting empty the pot or tilt the pot so your remaining lead is away from the spout and when hard clean the area of any dross.

 

[mooman76]

I've never had one or wanted to deal with it. I have read what some people do though to fix the problem. Allot of people rather than fix it, just put something under it to catch the drips and leave it at that.
Already mentioned is to make sure the lead is very clean otherwise crud builds up and you have your leaks. You can plug the hole and make a dipper out of it. Someone close by cam over to cast with me. He had the 10# dripper. He couldn't believe how much I cast with a ladle compared to what he did. Of coarse I didn't spend half my time fiddling with the pot either.
Another option is to add some weight to the arm that closes the pot. I have heard of someone that clamped a pair of vise grips to it and problem was solved. Also keep the lead level high so it keeps any crud in the pot up away from your works.

 

[pa woods roamer]

Finally got fed up with mine. My Son works in a Machine Shop and I got them to Weld the Spout shut!! Works great now!!!!

 

[kingsax26]

i think i will try n clean it ...its pretty cruddy. then if that doesnt work well i guess ill "fix" it

 

[Bob E]

Byron, I have 2 of the Lee 20lb bottom pour pots. One for soft lead and one for alloy. I have been using them for over ten years. Before that I was ladeling metal out of an old iron pot on a Coleman stove. Ill never go back!
The drip is corrected by turning the slotted rod. It doesnt need much of a turn. That usually will work for a while and then you may need another turn. Also, as previously stated, Use a brisk snapping technique when closing the valve. That helps a lot but practice will eventually make the experience less frustrating. As for consistency, the bullets I cast from the bottom pours perform much better than I do!! Cheers, Bob E

 

[Bill Hall]

Finally got fed up with mine. My Son works in a Machine Shop and I got them to Weld the Spout shut!! Works great now!!!!

:rotf: :rotf: :rotf: :rotf:

 

[George T.]

I have had to put a screwdriver in the slot and pushed in while turning the rod back and forth. I love mine by the way. For the price they can not be beat. Fluxing it always helped with mine. I would scrape the rod while it was smokeing. Good Luck!
Geo. T.

 

[AZbpBurner]

I've used mine for over 36 years & found that occasional cleaning to remove accumulated dross is all it takes to stop the drip.

Before the bottom pour, I used an iron pot & gas fire + ladle - the bottom pour is quicker & I get better quality results than with the ladle.

 

[kingsax26]

i tend to agrree....it seems as if the bullets i cast with the bottom pour are much more uniform than the ones i cast with a ladle...If cleaning it doesnt work then ill just set in a deep cake pan and put up with the dripping ...

 

[mike3132]

One other thing Ive done was to turn down the temp on the pot. Sine I replaced the rod on mine its worked flawless. I think the rod cost me like $6. Mike

 

[Billnpatti]

Been there and done that. What happens is that you get some slag or other foreign material in the valve. The valve on a bottom pour furnace is a simple device. it is just a rod with a reduced section on the end that sticks into the hole where the lead comes out (pour spout). On the top end of the rod is a slot. With the pot hot and the lead molten, use a screw driver to twist the rod back and forth to break up the crud sticking in the pour spout. Place something under the spout to catch the lead and quickly open and close the spout to let the loosened crud come out. That will usually fix the problem. If it continues to leak, you will need to empty the pot completely. If you have an ingot mold, drain your pot into your ingot mold until it is completely empty and then disconnect it and let it cool. When the pot is cool, disassemble the rod from the pot and look at the tip that closes off the pour spout for crud or flaws. If you find crud on the tip, carefully remove it with a bit of emery paper being careful not to change the dimensions of the tip. Just clean it off. Then examine the pour spout for any crud that had been caught there. Use a copper wire or a wire made of a soft metal that won't scratch your pour spout and scrape out any crud that you find there. With both the rod and the pour spout clean, your problem should be solved. If this doesn't solve it, you will need to contact Lee and tell them about your problem. They are good about correcting any manufacturing flaws. Your rod or pour spout could have manufacturing flaws if cleaning doesn't solve the problem.

 

[kingsax26]

well iahvnt gotten around to cleaning it yet but i did empty the pot completely.....the thing is filthy! but imn not suprised since it was used when i got it ...so it looks like a little cleaning and im good to go...looking in the pour spout i can see a fair bit of schmuts in the hole ...so ...there we have it

 

[Bob E]

Bryon, If you decide to continue using the bottom pour pot then I have one more caution for you. Stay with the pot while your metal is melting. I have had the dreaded drip rear its ugly head when I wasnt watching and leaked 20lbs of molten metal all over the work bench and the garage floor. I still kick myself for my mental lapse and I am thankful that my gunpowder was no where near. Good luck!! Bob E

 

[Billnpatti]

Been there, done that, too, but I was fortunate in that I had set my pot in a baking pan just in case something like that did happen. All of the molten lead stayed in the pan and none was lost on the bench. However, the molten lead did slightly scorch the top of my bench. Nothing bad and I was able to sand it out. I didn't really need to because it was a work bench. I just wanted to see how deep the scorch went. I didn't leave it unattended again. It's gone now and I have replaced it with another Lee electric pot only this one isn't a bottom pour type. I like it better than the bottom pour.