Homemade Plaster or Paris Lead Mould?

[Jeremy Bays]

I have hear of the old timers using soapstone and wood to make their own lead round ball moulds (Foxfire books #5), and it got me thinking. Do you think you could make a mould from Plaster of Paris? I am not sure if it would hold up or not. As an alternative, I wound if clay would work? Any ideas or experience ?
Thanks

 

[1950DAVE]

The tiniest amount of moisture in plaster will turn the mold into a bomb. I wouldn't use it. I recently used soapstone. Here is my mold.
Dave

 

[Jeremy Bays]

The tiniest amount of moisture in plaster will turn the mold into a bomb. I wouldn't use it. I recently used soapstone. Here is my mold.
Dave

THANK YOU Dave. You may have just saved my fingers
So is it possible to purchase soapstone?

 

[kje54]

THANK YOU Dave. You may have just saved my fingers
So is it possible to purchase soapstone?

Sculpture House - Soapstone

 

[Eddie2002]

I used to use plaster of Paris to mold little lead solders when I was a kid with no problems and never had one blow up on me. If you are going to give it a try dry the mold out in an oven at a low heat for about 3-4 hours which is what I did. The biggest problem with plaster is that it's soft and after only a few castings a lot of imperfections will occur mainly along the seam of the 2 part mold. I like the idea of using soapstone because it's a lot more durable but still easy to shape.

 

[eggwelder]

used clay mold to make model cannons from lead for ship models when i was younger- 10-12 or so. Never a problem.
made a plaster of Paris mold to cast pot metal- got about 4 castings from it before it “wore out”
Made a soap stone mold for my .32, quite successful

 

[William Lincoln]

Isn't this kind of what they do to make investment castings.? Ruger had a
castings plant near his gun-making plant that finished out the castings. By
using special alloys and casting them he cut machining costs way down.
Don't recall exactly, but was it a sand mold he made or was it plaster?

 

[Musketeer]

At Ruger they dip the wax parts in some kind of plaster, then into zircon sand. They repeat the process multiple times until a sufficient shell is formed. Once the shell hardens they melt out the wax. I believe mixing in the sand adds some refractory properties for the casting process.

 

[eggwelder]

The plaster used in casting steel is a much different plaster- ceramic is generally used. Saw it done in Dubai, wax, slurry, sand,slurry and so on till its thick enough. Then the melting of wax and pouring metal.

 

[Rudyard]

Soap Stone works and is delightfully low teck .Making the cherry cutter is the only tricky bit.
Rudyard

 

[Col. Batguano]

Fired clay tiles seem to have some latent moisture in them, or maybe they absorb it through the atmosphere. I was trying to weld on some brass to other brass edge to edge and laid it on the tile and started up the torch. About 3 minutes in to the deal a Big Bang happened. The tile blew up! Maybe it was moisture in the medium and maybe it was just the tile expanding disproportionately. Don't know. No puppies were hurt in the exercise so it's one more example of learning things the hard way.

 

[tenngun]

Sculpture House - Soapstone

Just a word of caution. Soap stone can have asbestos in it, wear mask and gloves when working it. It’s safe to handle, even pipes can safe, but the dust from working it can be dangerous

 

[1950DAVE]

Just a word of caution. Soap stone can have asbestos in it, wear mask and gloves when working it. It’s safe to handle, even pipes can safe, but the dust from working it can be dangerous

Especially if you breathe it daily for ten or fifteen years.
Dave