Lead melting to run balls

[buck]

I have been thinking of molding my own balls and have been looking at different melting pots. I noticed some of the electric ones had a adjustable temp. Does the temp of the molten lead really matter? Can you get it too hot? Does it work best at a certain temp? How do you tell how hot it is if you mold primitive style over a open fire? These questions probably seem silly, but I want to do it correctly and not damage any eqiuptment or myself. Thanks to all who reply.

 

[AZ-Robert]

These questions probably seem silly...

Not to me! One of the things I really like about this forum is learning from the answers posted to questions I wouldn't have known to ask. This is one of the them! :hatsoff:

 

The children of bygone days cast lead toy soldiers, therefore as a 21st century adult you should be able to master casting ball.

Running ball is not rocket science so do not let the process intimidate you. Do not worry about fluxing, scraping, stiring, adding this-or-that and being at a certain number of degrees tempature for "perfect" balls made from "perfect" lead. Only people that do not shoot too much can be that concerned with perfection, weighing every ball and developing the perfect casting ritual.

Lead too cold will give wrinkled balls or bullets. Throw them back in the pot.

Too hot will have a frosted appearance, but be smooth and usable. Do not throw them back, they are not ruined, just frosted.

Perfect temp will be bright and shiney without wrinkles or frosted appearance.

What the thermostat on your pot says is irrivelant, you look for the finished product and adjust up or down on the dial to get the "perfect temp".

Same with running ball over the fire. You have to have a good bed of coals. Good for demos, though dangerous for visitors (they like to snatch and grab), but better balls will be produced using the uniform temp of your electric pot.

I prefer the Lee production pot. Mine is 30 years old(?). During the 80s I was shooting competitive combat pistol and casting 1000 rounds a week from '84-'88. You do the math. The pot is still casting ball.

I started out using a Coleman stove and cast iron skillet with an old tablespoon stuck in a wooden handle as a dipper. It made bullets that were just as good as the fancy gear I now use.

For round ball the Lee blocks are as good as any and half the price of most. I own Seco, Lyman, RCBS, Hinsley and Gibbs, Rapine, Dixie blocks and two origionals, but cast more from my Lee RB molds than all of the others combined.

:front:

 

[Gordon Horn]

Pouring your own roundball is not all that difficult and after you've done it a couple of times you'll get the hang of it pretty well. I use the Lee production pot as well and have good success with it.

You'll want a good pair of heavy leather gloves and a long sleeve shirt does'nt hurt any either. You should do the pouring in a well ventilated area and have a solid bench or table to use.

I srart by putting the lead in the pot and turning it up all the way on the dial. You can add more lead after it starts melting if necessary, and give the lead a few minutes after it looks melted just to make sure. Then I do mix in flux and stir with an old teaspoon I use only for this job. After stirring a little, I drag the dross off the top and remove it with the same spoon and put in a tin can. Be careful where you sit this can because it is HOT.

I have a square of 2X6 pine that I put under the pot spout just because I like this spacer. I take some buckskin and fold it once to give me a place to drop the ball from the mold and another one for a place to put all the ball. I use Lyman steel molds because I like the way they retain heat. Have'nt tried any of the others much so I can't comment on them.

I put the mold under the spout at a slight angle so the lead does'nt pour directly into the bottom of the cavity and kinda swirls in. I have better results this way. The first few balls are not any good till the mold gets good and hot. I put them back in the pot using the teaspoon. Use a little overpour when pouring and give it a second or two to cool (you'll notice the change from a liquid lead look to a slight grey color as it cools) this lets the cooling lead in the mold draw in a bit more lead and helps prevent wrinkles.

Using the sprue cutter, cut the overpour and sprue from the mold and put it back in the pot. Open the mold upside down and inspect your product. If the lead ball starts getting the frosted look I turn the pot dial down about one fourth of the dial or so and let the mold cool for a few seconds also between pours. You also might want to have something t use as a 'tappin stick' I use an old wooden chair spoke. I use this to tap on the mold handles right behind the mold to dislodge the ball. Don't tap on the mold itself.

You can master pouring lead ball, its not all that hard. I like doing it, its kinda relaxing. Don't get in a big hurry and remember, hot lead is dangerous. :front:

 

[merdean]

Some good adivice here so I will just toss in :m2c:. I use a Lee electric pot. I keep the temp set a little over half way up. Sometimes I get frosted balls :crackup: or wrinkled balls :crackup:. When I do, I just turn it down or up a notch. I have molds from Lee, Lyman, Saeco and RCBS. I use the Lee molds most because they are lighter weight and there is less fatigue when casting a lot of balls. I usually cast several sizes at once such as .32, .45.54. Then next session will be .36,.44 and .50. This way I can let a mold cool it it gets too hot but a glance will tell me what sizes I am working with even when I have a big pile of balls. Makes it easier to sort them out. Dump the spru into another metal dish til I take a break. Then add spru back to the pot to be remelted. By the time break is over, lead is hot again. Biggest worry is don't let water get any where near the melted lead. A drop of sweat from your chin will cause an explosion of hot lead. Wear long sleaves and leather gloves and leather apron for safety. Melt lead in a well ventilated place. All those other rules for safety do apply. :imo:

 

And don't ferget to wear safety glasses. I use a Lee Pot also . I put a Tuny fishy can under it to catch the dribble. Good thing your balls weren't frosty, and wrinkled at the same time. :crackup: :crackup: :crackup:

Bill

 

[weirdjack]

I started out using a little cast iron pot that held a few pounds of lead, just on top the stove burner. I used that method to cast round balls and lead soldiers for some time.
I currently use the LEE open pot that I've used for years and years. Bought it used at a gun shop back around 1979 or so.
When I'm heating lead up at first, I'll crank the LEE pot up to 9 until the lead melts, then put the knob back to just over halfway. That seems to give nice shiney castings. I use the cheapie stamped LEE ladle and mostly use LEE molds. I have an old Dixie "hair iron" mold for my .69 Charleville. It's been cut, filed, and generally modified on the outside to more closely resemble a pouch mold.
I enjoy casting round balls. It's very relaxing. It's also very economical.
Jack

 

[riarcher]

Always do my casting outdoors. One time I was "moving right along" when I noticed tiny explosions every once in awhile in the top of my pot. Although the sun was out, it was sprinkling ever so slightly.
I may be a slow learner,,, but I do learn. Now my pot sits inside a larger cardboard box turned on end. There are lots of things this helps with like wind, rain, and the infamous bird droppings.

 

[merdean]

I have seen what a rain drop does to molten lead. I don't want to think about bird droppings in my lead. That would shrivel some balls to be sure. :crackup: :crackup: They would look old coming out of the mold. :crackup:

 

[sfruhwirth]

Awsome casting advice!

I would like to add that if you are using scrap lead from plumbers, roofers etc. that I have better luck casting balls from lead that I have melted down and poured into ingets first. I assume that by this method I'm helping get some of the impurities out that may have been collected from its prior use.

Another warning about water! If melting down such lead be vary wary that if any water is in any of this lead. Will cause very excessive lead popping or explosion of hot lead!

FYI:
One of my favorite places to find lead is my dentist and other dental offices in our area. Each time an x-ray is done on your teeth there are two thin strips of lead that are included in the process. Most offices have to pay people to dispose of it properly and will gladly give to shooters such as us if we ask. I collect roughly 70 to 80 pounds a year this way... =)

Happy casting

 

[CrackStock]

I have an inexpensive lead pot with a simple temperature dial. Several companies produce this type of pot. I do not want to go back to a camp stove nor do I want a pour spout. Now that I am shooting some larger bore guns, I use up the contents a bit faster than I did when shooting .40 and .50 balls.

As to the dial, not a big deal, but you do find a sweet spot after a while that does not give you frosted or wrinkled balls. Wrinkled are more of a concern as they do not shoot well at any distance beyond 15 to 20 yards. Frosted are just ugly and I have some pride in my work. They do shoot okay though. (I ran a bunch once when teaching some YHEC kids. They ran out of balls and notified me the night before. I worked for hours casting that night. I threw nothing back. The frosted worked fine. The wrinkled got set aside to be returned to the pot later.

As was said earlier, molding over a fire is a different game. You just need to play the distance and heat game to get it close and adjust as you go based upon the results received. You can set your pot on a base and adjust proximity or height to regulate the pot temp. You can also speed or slow the rate of ball production to repulate the mold temp. I have a larger ladle and some primitive style molds and These can be made to work well enough. Not as convenient, but workable.

CS