Ordered a mold

[Mr.P]

I was able to use that ladle much more effectively after reading a description of how to use it and seeing someone in some YouTube video demonstrating.

There is a rhythm… you dip the ladle and tip the mold towards the ladle, set the spout in the sprue hole (won’t spill if mold top is tipped towards it) and then tip the mold plus the ladle as one unit back to the vertical position.   Then tip to the side, hop to the next sprue hole, rotate back to vertical and so on.  It’s kind of fun when you get in the groove it becomes kind of mindless and pretty relaxing.

[Spacebus]

I was able to use that ladle much more effectively after reading a description of how to use it and seeing someone in some YouTube video demonstrating.

There is a rhythm… you dip the ladle and tip the mold towards the ladle, set the spout in the sprue hole (won’t spill if mold top is tipped towards it) and then tip the mold plus the ladle as one unit back to the vertical position.   Then tip to the side, hop to the next sprue hole, rotate back to vertical and so on.  It’s kind of fun when you get in the groove it becomes kind of mindless and pretty relaxing.

Casting is definitely a meditation for me.

[Insanity]

I use the ladle that came with my big dipper kit it works great but lacks volume to make ingots nicely.

[scion19801]

I just saw the mold drops at .249 which is too small for my Eagle Claw. Will NOE modify the mold to drop at least .252"?

NO. I asked NOE this as well. As I feel the mold would be better in the .251 drop variant. He told me he was way too busy to do the modification. I took the green Dremel abrasive points and slowly and carefully worked and polished my mold open to get my drop diameter where I like them so when I resize them through the sizing die it's all even and nice and round and where my guns like them. I get the slightest deformation on my bases when I cut my sprues. polishing them open has been a huge help.

[Spacebus]

I just saw the mold drops at .249 which is too small for my Eagle Claw. Will NOE modify the mold to drop at least .252"?

NO. I asked NOE this as well. As I feel the mold would be better in the .251 drop variant. He told me he was way too busy to do the modification. I took the green Dremel abrasive points and slowly and carefully worked and polished my mold open to get my drop diameter where I like them so when I resize them through the sizing die it's all even and nice and round and where my guns like them. I get the slightest deformation on my bases when I cut my sprues. polishing them open has been a huge help.

Is that something a machine shop could handle? I already have the BBT mold, but I like the look of the .249.

[EdinGa]

I just saw the mold drops at .249 which is too small for my Eagle Claw. Will NOE modify the mold to drop at least .252"?

NO. I asked NOE this as well. As I feel the mold would be better in the .251 drop variant. He told me he was way too busy to do the modification. I took the green Dremel abrasive points and slowly and carefully worked and polished my mold open to get my drop diameter where I like them so when I resize them through the sizing die it's all even and nice and round and where my guns like them. I get the slightest deformation on my bases when I cut my sprues. polishing them open has been a huge help.

Mine drops .249 and my Flashpup likes .250 so I powder coat them and they shoot great. It would be hard to get them to .252 with powder coat though.

[Spacebus]

My 'Claw shoots .250" NSA slugs very accurately, but I want to be able to size the slug rather than shoot as cast. I have a .251" sizer that I think will be the best sizing based on testing with .250 and .252" slugs from the same mold.

[Insanity]

Looks like my split pig weighs 57.5 pounds and is 9997 pure. The mild handle looks like someone took a pair of pliers to it and a junk wrench to one of the jamb nuts.

[Wayne52]

Matt that's exactly why I recently bought my 10lb & big bottom pour ladle for casting up ingots, I even bought an air chisel for whacking off hunks of lead from the pig ingots as well but I only used it on what was left of my last pig ingot, I have a pig ingot still in the box yet but still have a lot of cut up lead pipe chunks left to melt and pour yet but really no need for them now because I've got all kinds of 1lb ingots already cast and ready to be used for casting.  What I do is cast a pound of pellets/slugs at a time then add another pound to my casting ladle then shut it off.  The bottom pour ladle holds enough to cast about 2 1lb ingots per pour.





I still have a big pile of lead pipe outside that hasn't been cut up yet

[EdinGa]

I usually lay my split pigs on an old baking sheet and cut them with my reciprocating saw and a metal blade. That works pretty good for me.

[Greg_E]

You could sell pipe if you have too much, 20 pounds seems to work in the flat rate USPS boxes without too much trouble. Not sure how heavy they will let them get.

[Spacebus]

You could sell pipe if you have too much, 20 pounds seems to work in the flat rate USPS boxes without too much trouble. Not sure how heavy they will let them get.

Rotometals shipped me a 26lb lead brick in a flat rate box for free.

[Mr.P]

Just wondering why one would make ingots of lead they are going to use for casting pellets anyway.  Is it just for easy storage, or is there some other reason to cast ingots before you cast bullets… ?

[Spacebus]

Just wondering why one would make ingots of lead they are going to use for casting pellets anyway.  Is it just for easy storage, or is there some other reason to cast ingots before you cast bullets… ?

I think it depends on what form your lead is in. Since I got a brick, I cut off chunks with my hydraulic wood splitter. If I had a bunch of small pieces of lead casting them into ingots is certainly more convenient. If I had an ingot mold I would melt my brick down into ingots so I don't have to fire up the splitter to cut off some chips.

[Insanity]

Just wondering why one would make ingots of lead they are going to use for casting pellets anyway.  Is it just for easy storage, or is there some other reason to cast ingots before you cast bullets… ?

For easy of added lead to the pot as it depletes.

[Insanity]

Wayne dose your ladle have 2 small holes in the spout?

[Wayne52]

Matt if you're referring to the bottom pour ladle, yes there's two small holes towards the bottom of the bowl, that's the one that I use for casting ingots.  1lb ingots fit perfectly in the 4lb caster with the Lyman mini dipper in there, when the ladle is resting on the bottom of the caster it's time for a pound of lead.  1lb ingots are the perfect size for replenishing the pot I use for casting.

[Insanity]

Thanks it looked like they are supposed to be there but my ladle isn't exactly the nicest looking and also looked like it could have been a defect.

[Firewalker]

Just wondering why one would make ingots of lead they are going to use for casting pellets anyway.  Is it just for easy storage, or is there some other reason to cast ingots before you cast bullets… ?

A bunch of reasons but I will only address the reasons why I cast ingots instead of casting right from the pig, COWW or other sources but in any case, you have to draw off any/all the dross first and that is best performed en-mass.

• Lead gets a soluble white lead carbonate on the surface when stored in sheds, garages, outside etc., it also turns grey with a thin layer of tarnish. These have to be removed from the lead before you cast slugs or you will get voids and variations in weight. The lead we use is often in smaller pieces with a much larger surface than an ingot so there will be a lot more garbage to clean out of the lead before casting slugs. Ingots=less surface/less junk. 
• Consistency of hardness, i.e. alloys, like the Lyman #2 or variation found in plumbers lead from pipe to pipe, wheel weights (COWW), sinkers etc. Once the ingot is cast, I wait 3 weeks for the ingot to reach its hardest state then I use a LEE Hardness Tester to measure the hardness and mark my ingots with the appropriate Brinell Hardness (BHN).   

Once an ingot is cast, aged and marked, alloys can be made readily by combining ingots from different batches and alloy content such as a 50/50 Lead/Tin Ingot.

[Mr.P]

That was very interesting, thanks for the detailed answers - makes a lot of sense especially given the forms of lead you are using.

interesting about the hardness changing over three weeks… is there a noticeable difference for example between freshly cast projectiles vs. those that sat around for a while?