Minie ball fill out

[hawkeye2]

If you are casting minies get the absolute largest pot you can afford or allow time for the pot to come back up to temp after adding lead during your casting sessions. A pound doesn't go far. My wife and I use a vintage Lyman dipper, the old "egg", but I drilled out the spout to get a faster pour. Actually I had drilled it out 40 or so years back when I started casting for my Brown Bess. You might think about opening up the sprue plate slightly too, use a countersink and dress the bottom side on a stone to remove any burrs. If it doesn't work all the mold parts are available from Lee and aren't expensive. I have never checked but wouldn't be surprised to find they use the same plate for all their molds.

 

[LawrenceA]

I'm thinking a larger ladle would help for sure of course I'm working with a relatively small amount of lead right now...... If I had lead to fill it up I'd say I'd get better results as well...... May have to order five or ten pounds on Friday cause it's hard to find suitable lead around here.... I can get wheel weights but that doesn't help

Roofing lead or plumbers lead will do

 

[ZUG]

Minie balls require a faster hotter pour than the average round ball. I also leave a larger puddle on the top of the sprue plate for extra head pressure. Sounds to me that you are trying to make minies with inferior equipment you need a hotter & bigger lead pot, bigger ladle and more lead in the pot to pour better minies.

 

[bang]

The lead was clean in ingot form when I got it..... Rainbow surface quickly forms an ever so slight golden film on it (gets thicker) doesn't stay in liquid form on the ladle and I can skim it off and it comes right back...... I'm sure the lead is too hot and it's oxidizing like mad but I'm worried about using my camp stove cause I do cook with it and melting pot money isn't in the works right now. Was going to get a little lee pot of amazon cause they had it for $35 but by the time I talked to the wife it was sold out and the price went back up

Get an electric hot plate. I used one and a souvenir cast iron skillet ash tray with added wood handle for years. The lead will stay hotter and you can file a pour trough to help pour fast. Don't sweat the coloring. It floats away from pour as long as you keep enough lead in the pan. Use a pinch of pariffin to clean the lead. It most likely will flame. Just let it burn off then skim.

 

[ord sgt]

About your concern about the temperature of the lead, you could add a thermometer. Then you will know when you find the correct temperature.
I never had any problems casting minies. I had to try several moulds before finding the proper mould. I still don't know the makers name but my Enfield likes the minies.

 

[CapPopper]

I'm using a hot plate and iron small iron skillet but I wired the hot plate to run full tilt cause it wasn't getting hot enough when it cycled before..... I need a real lead pot but it's going to be a while before I can get one

 

[CapPopper]

Minie balls require a faster hotter pour than the average round ball. I also leave a larger puddle on the top of the sprue plate for extra head pressure. Sounds to me that you are trying to make minies with inferior equipment you need a hotter & bigger lead pot, bigger ladle and more lead in the pot to pour better minies.

Pot gets so hot I can't skim the oxide off the surface as fast as it forms (probably not helping) and I can get 20 pounds of lead in the pot I use but more lead and a bigger ladle would help I'm sure...... But I have so much dross (the lead is clean that's not the problem) that I have trouble pouring around it (sticks to the too small hard to pour from ladle) the first time I cast with this mold I don't remember having any of these issues

 

[Carbon 6]

Lead temp isn't the issue, mold temp is.
You need a bottom pour pot so you can pour faster to heat up and maintain mold temperature.
You could preheat the mold by dipping the corner in the lead pot but this isn't possible if your hollow base plug that forms the skirt has a wooden handle.

Just buy yourself a Lee bottom pour pot. You'll never look back. You can drop a ball about every 5 seconds, eventually you'll start frosting balls, because you can pour them so fast.

Dross isn't an issue with bottom pour pots either. Just don't run the pot empty.

 

[bang]

Ditto on bottom pour and open spout to #40.

 

[CapPopper]

Would be nice but I simply cannot afford that right now..... Kids have to eat and the wife sure is partial to having running water..... I can overheat all my other molds with a ladle so I don't see how that's really the issue I really do think it's that my ladle is too small...... If I just try to pound the lead in there and it doesn't go where I want it too I do not have enough lead left to fill the mold..... And my ladle is hard to pour with even when the lead is behaved..... A very kind forum member offered to send me a lyman ladle that should be both big enough and pour well enough for me to get some decent results (hopefully)

 

[LawrenceA]

Pot gets so hot I can't skim the oxide off the surface as fast as it forms (probably not helping) and I can get 20 pounds of lead in the pot I use but more lead and a bigger ladle would help I'm sure...... But I have so much dross (the lead is clean that's not the problem) that I have trouble pouring around it (sticks to the too small hard to pour from ladle) the first time I cast with this mold I don't remember having any of these issues

Let the lead cool a little then pour but find a better ladle.

 

[mooman76]

I don't remove the oxide all the time. I scrape the surface and push it to the side. Then remove it when I get a ladle full. You should probably turn your pot down some. I start hot and gradually turn it down until it gets to the right temp. It should take about 3 or 4 seconds to cool enough to drop. Watch the lead on the sprue as it changes contrast.

 

[sussexmuzllodr]

Tilt the mold slightly as you fill.

 

[CapPopper]

I don't remove the oxide all the time. I scrape the surface and push it to the side. Then remove it when I get a ladle full. You should probably turn your pot down some. I start hot and gradually turn it down until it gets to the right temp. It should take about 3 or 4 seconds to cool enough to drop. Watch the lead on the sprue as it changes contrast.

I'm going to have to figure something out as far as temp cause I only have one heat lol I'll have to pay with that and see if I can either find a way to shed some heat or I may have to try the camp stove

 

[smo]

The camp stove would be better in my opinion than a hot plate..

It does sound as if you’re a little too hot..

 

[LawrenceA]

You can fill it.
Take to bit too hot.
Unplug anf cast till too cool then redo

 

[Musketeer]

The lead was clean in ingot form when I got it..... Rainbow surface quickly forms an ever so slight golden film on it (gets thicker) doesn't stay in liquid form on the ladle and I can skim it off and it comes right back...... I'm sure the lead is too hot and it's oxidizing like mad...

Yep, too toasty. Colors and frosting are signs of this. I had the coloring issue when I first started using my Lee pot. I was cranking it up too hot initially, and once I started leaving it around 5 or 6 on the dial (instead of 8 or 9) the rainbow disappeared.

 

[Moiecol]

I have a lee 360gr improved minie ball mold and no matter what I do I can't get it to fill out without wrinkles or other imperfections especially inside the base...... I don't have any issue with other mold when I'm not working with pure lead but I'm running it was hot as I can (drosses horribly) and I don't know what else to do...... Casting with a ladle. Any new ideas would be appreciated. Thanks

I started awhile using a toaster oven to keep the mold hot. I just leave the oven set on 400° and in the event I stop for a reason I know the is still hot.