BobFuller Posted May 22, 2012 Report Share Posted May 22, 2012 Ok so today I was pouring a bunch of heads. Lead was flowing smoothly, then began its irritating clogging. I went to push a piece of wire through the bottom, it didn't help. I flux my lead whenever I add a significant amount of lead to it. Today it got clogged and nothing would come out at all. So I put a small pot (enough to capture all the lead in the pot) under it if it were to begin to start flowing, and removed the shaft and handle to try and work out my problem. I tried to push a piece of wire into the hole from the top of the pot, and it would not budge. So I dumped all the lead out very carefully into the pot, let it cool, came back an hr later with the drill and made my problem WAY worse. I snapped the drill bit off inside the spout.... I think a small piece of hard metal somehow got into my pot W/O my knowing. I tried to drill out the original bit, and ended up breaking 2 more bits... How do I fix this problem????????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadman Posted May 22, 2012 Report Share Posted May 22, 2012 (edited) Bob, What I would have done originally was take a propane torch and heat it hot around the nozzel, then take whatever was inside out, with a pair of forceps or needle nose pliers. I don't know the status of the pot now, but if you drilled a hole in the nozzle, you trashed your pot in my opinion. Guys do this all the time, to make the lead come out better. You can do this but you have to go with small drill bits first. The problem with that is , if you make the hole too big, the plunger will not seat correctly and now the lead will always drip if not come out at a flow. My suggestion is send it back to Lee, and they will fix it for half the cost. I am going to say it will be about $10-$20 to fix. They will replace the tub (the nozzle is fused into the tub) and the plunger with a new one. At this point I think you have done enough damage, not to sound like a smart a$$. I don't think you will be able to fix it in perfect working order again. JMHO. Edited May 22, 2012 by cadman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobFuller Posted May 22, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 22, 2012 I started with a 1/16" bit/ I was just trying to free it up. I actually did hit it with a torch and I got nothing with it. The hole right now is only a tad bigger than what it was. I tried to break the clogging out with .051 wire originally.. I'll monkey with it some more, if I can't get it fixed I'l send it out to get it fixed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkvnmtr Posted May 23, 2012 Report Share Posted May 23, 2012 The valve is in the pot with a nut. It is no problem to take the pot out and remove the valve. Then you can get to it with a drill press. If that does not fix it you should be able to order another valve and reassemble. I know this because the new pot I bought was loose and I did not realize it. It leaked lead and it ran everywhere. Since I am in Mexico I thought it would cost more in shipping to send it back and pay to have it returned than just to buy another one. Little time and I had it fixed. After having it apart twice I probably would not send it back for any part. It is easy to work on, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jig Man Posted May 23, 2012 Report Share Posted May 23, 2012 Parts of the pots are cheap. I wore the whole inside out of mine and replaced it at a very reasonable cost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobFuller Posted May 23, 2012 Author Report Share Posted May 23, 2012 Well I very carefully drilled out the broken bit last night. All the clogged garbage came out as well. But, when I put her back together the hole is now a tad too big, and it drips like crazy when the handle is down. I think I'm gonna just buy a 20lb bottom pour pot, it's a little bigger and would probably be easier to clean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldfart9999 Posted May 24, 2012 Report Share Posted May 24, 2012 The reservoir is relatively cheap to buy, so I would do that and change it out. Cheaper than a new pot. Rodney Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
