cmayes Posted October 2, 2012 Report Share Posted October 2, 2012 I ran into a problem Saturday night pouring. I was pouring football jigs in the Do It Molds with the 1/8, 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 sizes. Everything was going fine until I got to the 1/2. I had been pouring them with the Mustad 3/0 32798, but I finally got some 4/0. The 1/2 oz can use the 4/0, that's what it says. The lead would not pour all the way for the 4/0, but works fine for the 3/0. If you were giving advice, would you all make the hook slot bigger or do I have another problem I'm not seeing. My pot is on the 8 slot when I pour, so my lead is hot enough. Thanks for any inight. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smalljaw Posted October 2, 2012 Report Share Posted October 2, 2012 I pour the 1/2oz with a 5/0 in that hook style and have no problem, sometimes I have a problem with putting a 4/0 in the 1/8oz cavity but that is even rare, it is a mold that usually pours well. What is happening? Is it not filling the collar? One thing you can do is crack the mold, take a 2"X2" piece of aluminum foil and fold it in half and pit it in the mold so it lays on the top part of the mold in between cavities, you don't want it in the gates, you just want it on the flat surface. Once you lay that down put your hook in the mold and your pin or weedguard and close the mold and pour, the foil you put in there will only keep the mold open a slight crack that will allow air to escape as that could be your problem. This may sound stupid but if you were pouring and it was raining or the humidity was high, that could make things bad, I had it happen and I have more problems in the summer when the humidity is high and on rainy days. There are a lot of variables here and what is happening to you is tough to diagnose since the 3/0 hook was working but not the 4/0. Like I said, try the 4/0 in another cavity, if it doesn't work it could be an issue with the hooks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadman Posted October 3, 2012 Report Share Posted October 3, 2012 The only thing I could add to what Smalljaw said is the last resort is to modify the mold. I will tell you that if you open the hook slot at the bottom that will definitely help. However with doing that, when you put your 3/0 back in there you will get excess lead at the bottom of your collar. Now I will also say, that I would rather have excess lead and trim that off on the bottom of the collar than getting frustrated with bad pours. So gap the mold like Smalljaw mentioned. Also get some mold release it is worth its weight in gold. You can also many times solve your problem, by dipping a small ladle in your pot and pouring with the ladle. Again like mentioned there are so many variables, that I couldn't cover them here, and would probably miss some. Let us know how it goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dutchman Posted October 3, 2012 Report Share Posted October 3, 2012 OK! Cadman, you have said several times in past threads to pour with a small ladle rather than a pot. However, I have never seen the reason given for this. Can you elaborate. Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WidowMaker Posted October 3, 2012 Report Share Posted October 3, 2012 You might want to concider the distance or measurement of space you are maintaining between the bottom opening of the lead pot discharge barrel and the mold cavity gate where the lead material enters into the mold. That distance is where the molten lead is exposed to the cooler air which means the lead is already cooling off before it enters into the gate of the mold cavity. You can have everything set up perfectly and have your pouring down to a well practiced art but if you dont take this into consideration this can prove to be a persistent and troublesome cause of short pours. Another thing is to make sure your pot remains no less than 3/4 full at all times you are pouring. A pot that is 3/4 of the way (or more) full contains a considerable amount of weight more than a pot that is 1/4 full meaning the the pot that is 3/4 (or more) full will pour more quickly and with more force than a pot that is 1/8 of the way full. This faster pour rate reduces the time the molten lead is exposed to the air prior to entering the mold cavity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smalljaw Posted October 3, 2012 Report Share Posted October 3, 2012 OK! Cadman, you have said several times in past threads to pour with a small ladle rather than a pot. However, I have never seen the reason given for this. Can you elaborate. Thanks. The reason for using the ladle is you can get the lead in faster than the bottom pour pot. Once you use a ladle enough you can basically hold the ladle over the gate and with a quick turn of the wrist the entire contents of the ladle is in the mold. I know it doesn't make sense to you but trust me, you can pour faster with a ladle. The downside to it is if you want to pour 100 jigs or more you wrist will get tired and about half way through you'll start getting inconsistant pours as you slow down but for a few pieces or is the mold is difficult the ladle works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadman Posted October 3, 2012 Report Share Posted October 3, 2012 (edited) OK! Cadman, you have said several times in past threads to pour with a small ladle rather than a pot. However, I have never seen the reason given for this. Can you elaborate. Thanks. Here are the scenarios I would use a ladle. #1. When absolutely nothing works, and I cannot get good pours. As you know every mold has its own unique characteristics and every day pouring is a different day with possibly different problems. I usually pour every week, and have over 100 molds and I know that at one point of pouring each mold, there will be a day when something won't work correctly. I do know which molds pour better with a ladle and which ones pour with my pot. I wish I could give you exacts, but I can't because again I can be pouring a mold one day and then pour the same mold another day and have problems. Some of the reasons I believe I have issues sometimes is, humidity and lead composition. Some guys say that humidity doesn't affect pouring but I disagree ( to each his own). I have poured here in (Illinois) for over 10 years. On some of the most humid days in summer, there are days ( these days are far and few) that when the ladle (my last resort) doesn't work, I will walk away and pour another day. Also I like my lead composition on the hard side, so that may cause some problems as well. With that said. I have found that when I pour with a small ladle, I have had 99% complete pours when my pots for some reason aren't doing their job that day. What I believe is happening when pouring with a ladle, is that you are not forcing a lot of lead in at one time, and the air has a chance to escape at the top of the sprue hole, thus giving complete pours. This is just my opinion, as I have no other technical source of information other than my own experience. As far as I know my answer may be incorrect, but it does work and I continue to use it when these bad pouring days arise. #2. When I pour my spinnerbaits, it is always a 50/50 chance that I will eventually pour with a ladle. I start out pouring with a bottom pour pot. If everything is going well, than I usually finish pouring with my pot. However many times, probably because of the harder lead, I end up using my ladle, and just as I'm writing this, I know for a fact that I will get perfect pours with the ladle, and it has proven to be true every time. Now here is a scenario that I think I've answered my own question to. I will be pouring a regular mold that always pours well for me. I'm using my bottom pour pot. After about 150 jigs of pouring in the same cavity, my mold does not want to give me complete pours????? So what's the deal. Here is my answer. I do believe that at some point of continuous pouring the same mold, it gets too hot and may have a tendency to expand. So what do I do. I either let the mold cool (which I don't) because I want to finish the job, or use the ladle. Again the ladle has many, many, many times saved the day for me. Now so you all know, these are my criteria for pouring. This does not mean that my way is the correct way. We all do things that work for us. #1 always a full pot of lead #2 bottom pour pot, set on #7- #8 #3 always a hot mold, with blank pours to see how the cavity fills #4 always mold release on mold halves #5 naturally flux lead at the beginning of each start-up the day of the pour #6 keep hooks warm to hot, to get better pours (essential when pouring in winter in Illinois) #7 mold gapping when needed #8 ladle when needed That's about it in a nutshell. Sorry for the long post, but this may help others. The thing about the ladle is that it is just another tool to help you when all else fails. I like everyone else don't want bad pours because it is a waste of time, and when you consistently get them it is very frustrating. Edited October 3, 2012 by cadman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadman Posted October 3, 2012 Report Share Posted October 3, 2012 The reason for using the ladle is you can get the lead in faster than the bottom pour pot. Once you use a ladle enough you can basically hold the ladle over the gate and with a quick turn of the wrist the entire contents of the ladle is in the mold. I know it doesn't make sense to you but trust me, you can pour faster with a ladle. The downside to it is if you want to pour 100 jigs or more you wrist will get tired and about half way through you'll start getting inconsistant pours as you slow down but for a few pieces or is the mold is difficult the ladle works. x2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmayes Posted October 3, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 3, 2012 All of these were great responses, and I give many thanks to you all. The main problem I guess I didn't mention were the collars were not pouring. It was a great pour on the head, but the collar was not filling up. I did have my mold to the pour spout...but the pot was not very full. That was a tip I didn't think about. I'll do some experimenting this weekend and will give the results. Thanks everybody. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dutchman Posted October 4, 2012 Report Share Posted October 4, 2012 Ask and ye shall receive. Great responses. I now know a lot more than I did before - just by asking a question.Thanks tons! Joe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cmayes Posted October 18, 2012 Author Report Share Posted October 18, 2012 I got to work on my 4/0 hook problems over fall break. Turns out I needed a full pot of lead. Thanks for all your alls help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
