Melting lead

[Rifleman1776]

What is the most inexpensive fluxing compound?

Nothing. I gave up using smoky, smelly stuff as a flux decades ago. Since then I just stir occasionally and remove scum that rises to the top. Clean lead, good results.

 

[clarksvillejoe]

Enfield58, thank you for the info, I have a beekeeping friend with endless supply.

 

[Crow-Feather]

I use a Sawzall to cut the lead into smaller pieces. It seems to go a bit faster melting the lead. I put a newspaper below the lead being cut and add that also to the pot. Small pieces of lead melt faster and will apply more heat to the larger pieces.

 

[olfuzzy]

I found this tucked away in my files.

 

[sawyer04]

What are some heating methods for melting down large quantities of lead

I have had good luck with Coleman liquid. Before we knew any better we used to melt our bullets on a wood cook stove, but the corn crib of house we lived in provided plenty of ventilation, I wouldn't think of it now.

 

[Scott]

I used to work in a foundry. We would plunge our flux to the bottom of the pot to clean our material.

 

[pooch156]

What is the most inexpensive fluxing compound?

Candle Wax. Cheap and works fine. Been using it for years.

 

[pooch156]

I started out on a Coleman stove and did it for many years. Are you talking propane or gas? Mine was coleman fuel. A small cast iron pot is ideal.

Started out with a Lyman 10 lb. cast iron lead pot and a propane torch. Now use a 20 lb. Lee casting furnace(pot).(

 

[toot]

Toot, can beeswax be used for fluxing?

yes it can. any wax can be used, as I said. even canning wax. just cut a piece the size of a pea.

 

[toot]

Toot, can beeswax be used for fluxing?

yes it can.

 

[toot]

Toot, can beeswax be used for fluxing?

yes it can, with no problem. wax is wax. hope this helps?

 

[Frontier's]

best $22 you can spend

Bought one the other week and it melts my bulk lead QUICK! I use an aluminum pot to melt in and it'll hold close to 100lbs.

 

[Enfield58]

best $22 you can spend

Bought one the other week and it melts my bulk lead QUICK! I use an aluminum pot to melt in and it'll hold close to 100lbs.
View attachment 45831

Mine say RCBS. Anyway, I've been thinking about using a Dremel tool to grind off the lettering in the ingot molds. Then cast a bunch of ingots and spray paint them gold after they cool.

There is a practical joke waiting somewhere with gold painted lead bars.

 

[Griz44Mag]

best $22 you can spend

Bought one the other week and it melts my bulk lead QUICK! I use an aluminum pot to melt in and it'll hold close to 100lbs.
View attachment 45831

Might want to re-think using an aluminum pot.
Do some history and research on using aluminum pots for smelting....

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/sho...lting-lead&s=5764110fa548311fa1f0340a3324b6c7

 

[Frontier's]

this is a thick aluminum pot, nothing cheap. No issues yet and will do for now until i find some cast iron to hold the heat longer. Thats about the only draw back it currently has.

 

[Griz44Mag]

this is a thick aluminum pot, nothing cheap. No issues yet and will do for now until i find some cast iron to hold the heat longer. Thats about the only draw back it currently has.

Try and envision a hundred pounds of molten lead cascading onto your feet..............
I have seen 2 aluminum pressure cookers with the bottoms fallen out.
One was my grandfathers the other belonged to a plumber melting lead for sewer pipe joints on a construction job.
The one on the jobsite resulted in a loss of several toes and some skin grafts on what was left.

 

[Griz44Mag]

Another warning from very experienced casters......
https://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=314567
Aluminum will break down at 1300 degrees.
Pure lead at working temp is 750-800 degrees.
To get it that hot the vessel will need to be even hotter.
The margin of safety is not enough to prevent an accident.
Gas or propane fire can reach temps well over 2,000.
You get by with cooking in aluminum because nobody cooks at temps over 500 degreees.
Boiling water will keep the temp at 215-260 degrees in a pressure cooker.
Frying in oil will keep the vessel temp at less than 500 degrees.
Lead will not smoke or boil until it reaches temps far in excess of the aluminum pot failure point.
PLEASE don't use that for your lead.

 

[RjSixgun]

Mine say RCBS. Anyway, I've been thinking about using a Dremel tool to grind off the lettering in the ingot molds. Then cast a bunch of ingots and spray paint them gold after they cool.

There is a practical joke waiting somewhere with gold painted lead bars.

I paint my hard lead ingots so they dont get mixed up with the soft lead.

 

[olfuzzy]

Mine say RCBS. Anyway, I've been thinking about using a Dremel tool to grind off the lettering in the ingot molds. Then cast a bunch of ingots and spray paint them gold after they cool.

There is a practical joke waiting somewhere with gold painted lead bars.

I have a friend that keeps saying that lead will be more valuable than gold when bad things happen. I ran across these on another site and ordered one for him as a joke, (got one for myself too). I'm not going to melt down my Lee ingots just too re-mold, but I'm ready for the next batch of raw lead.

 

[Enfield58]

I have a friend that keeps saying that lead will be more valuable than gold when bad things happen. I ran across these on another site and ordered one for him as a joke, (got one for myself too). I'm not going to melt down my Lee ingots just too re-mold, but I'm ready for the next batch of raw lead.

Got a link?