My Big pot.

[Axman]

Tuesday made up some 20-1.
1st pic is 500 lbs of pure in the pot.
2nd pic is 40 min later ready to put in the tin.
500,000 BTU weed burner for heat.
Pot can hold close to 1000lbs.

 

[JWFilips]

Damn big pot! I'm too old to dispense that in one day!

 

[Axman]

Wednesday smelted up 750lbs of bullets.
Took a lot longer to melt but turned out alright.

 

[Ian]

Man, I get wore out just doing 200 lbs in the 30# propane bottle furnace!

 

[Axman]

Oh I was tired after both days.
Goes easier when I have help?

 

[JWFilips]

Ian,
Ah! He is young.....Let him enjoy it now! Won't be the case at age 50 +

 

[Axman]

Lol,
I’m 55
The lead was lighter when I was 45.

 

[Axman]

1.lift 500lbs into pot.
2. Pick up 27 lb ingot mold with 56lbs lead in it.
3. Lift 500 lbs into truck.
4. Lift 500 lbs into garage.
Gotta love the hobbies.

 

[Brad]

Now that is a pot. I could Do 2 full buckets of range scrap at a time.

 

[JustJim]

How about some details on the pot? I've got a line on 3 sailboats alleged to have lead-weighted keels, trying to put together a plan before* I buy them.

*Yes, before. It is a new approach I'm trying to try.

 

[Axman]

Talking to Ross Seyfried years ago he gave me the basic idea.
It’s a 18” OD steel pipe 18” long.
Cut in half lengthwise.
1/4” end plates welded in and 2”x2” angle legs.
Originally I used a 6”OD x 4” high dipper to pour ingots.
What a job, 40lbs or more a pour.
Then I read on the other site about a bottom pour valve.
A tapped rod with taper machined in welded under, matching tapered screw/bolt welded to handle.

Eventually I added scrap plate to 3 sides to contain heat.
Then 4” sideboards for more capacity.
500,000 btu weed burner Red Dragon torch.
When W-WTS were zinc less I could get 5 gal ready to skim in 30 min.
Steel for pot is safer than cast iron as there is a possibly of cracking.
You wouldn’t want 1000lbs dumped all of the sudden.
The pot could be scaled up some for larger melts.
I’d make the ingot molds out of 1/8” instead of 1/4” 2x2 angle.

 

[Axman]

Some pics of empty pot.

 

[Tomme boy]

When I used to be able to mine our public range, I had a trommel I built. Found out real quick I could not lift a full 5 gal bucket. Had to dump out 6 of them one night. Could not move them to the truck to get loaded. Even 1/2 a bucket is pushing it to lift. I thought I would have a lifetime of lead doing this the first year I started casting. But it ran out fast. I guess I should have not gave away a bunch of it to help friends out. But I don't shoot like I used to. I would have to be a millionaire to do that now.

 

[Missionary]

I used to visit a printing shop as a boy 60 years back. In a separate shack they had a large pot melting damaged type. The lead man used a small coal shovel to keep it full. There was a spigot that was slowly filling ingots. He had a good system going.

 

[358156 hp]

Tom Dugas built a monster pot a number of years ago. It was quite a project: https://www.hensleygibbs.com/TCD/articles/castingpot.htm

 

[bruce381]

tom must be retired i just order a new Lee.

 

[JustJim]

Thanks for the pics Axman, that gives me some ideas for a starting point. I keep hoping to run across one of the old propare lino pots, but no luck yet. The pot Tom Dugas came up with is interesting, but propane is faster/more portable (if I wind up buying that row of decrepit sailboats out on the fenceline).

 

[358156 hp]

Well, Tom needs all the help he can get keeping his S&W 27 fed: https://www.hensleygibbs.com/TCD/articles/75000wadcutters.htm

Then comes:
https://www.hensleygibbs.com/TCD/articles/volumecastingwith10cavity.htm

Then to finish the story:
https://www.hensleygibbs.com/TCD/articles/model27reborn.htm