What IS this stuff?

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The trick is to cast large/heavy conicals is to slightly enlarge the spout. I forget what size Idaholewis drill his out with but I’m sure he’ll comment on that later.
I did that. I don’t remember the size either, but it does pour fast now. I’ll see if I can find the size.
 
I read up on a ton of stuff this afternoon, everything I’ve been watching/reading points to purifying your melt in a different pot, then adding that to your bottom-pour. I do dump my sprues and culls back in as I go, as well as adding sheet lead to fill the pot.get the ratio right. Gonna try some, home cleaned, only lead ingots in there and see if that makes a difference, as soon as I get some time that is..
 
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I read up on a ton of stuff this afternoon, everything I’ve been watching/reading points to purifying you’re melt in a different pot, then adding that to your bottom-pour. I do dump my sprues and culls back in as I go, as well as adding sheet lead to film the pot.get the ratio right. Gonna try some, home cleaned, only lead ingots in there and see if that makes a difference, as soon as I get some time that is..
Youll figure this out . Got faith in ya and besides theres a REAL DESIRE there for just That.......
 
So I already know a few of you are gonna tell me to just buy certified alloy. I have been ok much free stuff floating around. Here’s what I did today...
 
Looks good but I'd say you could use a ladle like I used when doing lead joints in cast iron pipe plumbing back in the day.
 
Adding way too much junk for flux. Not sure what your lead looked like before you started, Did you have any zinc wheel weights? Your ingots should have been cleaner than that. Impurities are coming from something you added. I clean pure sheet lead and never get junk in my ingots and my lead has glue, sheetrock and who knows what. Impurities will burn off but I've heard the new zinc will totally mess up your mix. It has to be something like that. ??
 
Is that the same pot you always use? You have a lot of fishing weight material there. Does that pot have a Teflon coating?
 
I think I'd re-think using that grill top to set the pot on, especially one as large as you were using in the video. Lead can create tremendous weight in a very small package. If the legs on that burner or the grill should collapse with the pot full of liquefied lead everything within several feet would be in harms way.....and I am speaking from experience here as a long-time jig, sinker and tackle maker. I use sheet lead in what I do along with plumber's ingots and do all my cleaning in a two quart cast iron pot anymore. That pot is approaching 90 pounds when full to within an inch of the top so I can't begin to imagine what your soup stock pot weighed with all that lead in it. I was making ingots one day and somehow hooked the handle of that pot of mine with a pants leg and flipped it. I had good boots on. That molten lead went everywhere including all over the foot of the offending leg....including well up on the lacing making it literally impossible to get the boot off quickly. First, second and ,yes, third degree burns on that foot along with about a two month-long recovery. I have since sawed the handle off that pot, but in your case I would urge you to do your smelting on a small basis and get rid of that big pot. That's a serious accident waiting to happen.
 
Looks good but I'd say you could use a ladle like I used when doing lead joints in cast iron pipe plumbing back in the day.
Was it a bottom pour ladle? I’m using a ladle, but it’s a soup lqdle.
Adding way too much junk for flux. Not sure what your lead looked like before you started, Did you have any zinc wheel weights? Your ingots should have been cleaner than that. Impurities are coming from something you added. I clean pure sheet lead and never get junk in my ingots and my lead has glue, sheetrock and who knows what. Impurities will burn off but I've heard the new zinc will totally mess up your mix. It has to be something like that. ??
that batch was primarily sheet lead as you just described. Is the flux maybe causing stuff to stay in the melt instead of bringing it to the top? I thought it did both, mixed the metals and floated the junk...
 
Is that the same pot you always use? You have a lot of fishing weight material there. Does that pot have a Teflon coating?
No I just bought that one at a thrift store for $5. The Teflon coating, if it had it, is gone.
 
I think I'd re-think using that grill top to set the pot on, especially one as large as you were using in the video. Lead can create tremendous weight in a very small package. If the legs on that burner or the grill should collapse with the pot full of liquefied lead everything within several feet would be in harms way.....and I am speaking from experience here as a long-time jig, sinker and tackle maker. I use sheet lead in what I do along with plumber's ingots and do all my cleaning in a two quart cast iron pot anymore. That pot is approaching 90 pounds when full to within an inch of the top so I can't begin to imagine what your soup stock pot weighed with all that lead in it. I was making ingots one day and somehow hooked the handle of that pot of mine with a pants leg and flipped it. I had good boots on. That molten lead went everywhere including all over the foot of the offending leg....including well up on the lacing making it literally impossible to get the boot off quickly. First, second and ,yes, third degree burns on that foot along with about a two month-long recovery. I have since sawed the handle off that pot, but in your case I would urge you to do your smelting on a small basis and get rid of that big pot. That's a serious accident waiting to happen.
It weighs 160 lbs and it seems very stable. I tried rocking and moving it with it loaded before I started melting because I was nervous of that very thing. I can remake the stand pretty easily so that will never happen. Point taken though, thank you.
 
The ones I used were approx. 1/8" thick steel with a lip type pour spout on either side for left or right pour. Handle and all about 16" long and the ladle held about 2 1/2 lbs of lead. Melting old dirty lead is ok for plumbing joints but still have to skim the heavy dross. New lead would be optimal for bullets but what you are doing is cleaning out the garbage. Would be nice if you had some type of pre-heated screen to pour the lead through to catch the bulk of what has not floated.
 
I don't know if that is how you first did it but sit back and watch your own vid. your adding way to much junk to your pot . I have never used any thing that you added for flux and I'm guessing that may be part of your problem. .I use sheet lead , lead pipe, lead sheathing and even medical lead. All which is supposed to be pure. I never mix them just so I don't cross the types I'm casting. . I first burn off the contaminates , ( paint or what ever) . When the dross is skimmed then I flux with bees wax, It don't take much. I have a piece about as big as a bar of motel soap, I just dunk it in lightly and pull it back. I stir it in, don't have to light it. Scrape the pot as you do and skim the dross again and its done. I use a cast Iron pot and a plumbers ladle. I pour my ingots as you do with muffin tins. Here is my set up. IMG_0048.JPG
 
Your lead may have other contaminates in it from something previous . Start out making smaller batch's, say 50 lbs.
 
I don't know if that is how you first did it but sit back and watch your own vid. your adding way to much junk to your pot . I have never used any thing that you added for flux and I'm guessing that may be part of your problem. .I use sheet lead , lead pipe, lead sheathing and even medical lead. All which is supposed to be pure. I never mix them just so I don't cross the types I'm casting. . I first burn off the contaminates , ( paint or what ever) . When the dross is skimmed then I flux with bees wax, It don't take much. I have a piece about as big as a bar of motel soap, I just dunk it in lightly and pull it back. I stir it in, don't have to light it. Scrape the pot as you do and skim the dross again and its done. I use a cast Iron pot and a plumbers ladle. I pour my ingots as you do with muffin tins. Here is my set up. View attachment 7840
I’m just trying everything I’ve EVER read to get contaminates out.
 
You might take 20 or less lbs of your contaminated ingots and try to clean them up. If it doesn't clean up using a proven method then you may just have fishing weight material. It is frustrating but it may just be that it is cross contaminated with something that wont flux out. . If that's the case then fishing weights and decoy weights are another option for it. just keep it seperate
 

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