Dink Master Posted January 4, 2023 Report Share Posted January 4, 2023 I would not warm my mold with the teflon pins installed. The reason you pour blanks (no hooks) with the pin installed, is because a lot of lead will stream out of the pin opening on some molds. You might end up with a lot lead on your table and a incomplete pour. There is no set time on how long you keep your mold on top of your pot, also there no set number of how many blank pours you do. The goal is to warm(hot)the mold, and to get good complete pours. Some people warm their hooks in a tin, in a toaster oven. Too hard to place hooks in molds with gloves on for me, that is why I use a propane torch with cold hooks in the narrow parts of molds. Good Luck. I know you are a Delta Guy but lets hope Clear Lake(all California lakes) fills up with all this rain! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Epp Posted January 4, 2023 Report Share Posted January 4, 2023 @21xdc and @Kasilofchrisn, you both shared some really helpful info, and i appreciate your experience and willingness to share. Please take this with a grain of salt, coming from someone who has a lee pot and a mold inventory that puts BOTH of yours to shame (literally 2 from Do-It), I don't think we need to spend too much time figuring out who has the biggest lead pot on this thread Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kasilofchrisn Posted January 4, 2023 Report Share Posted January 4, 2023 5 hours ago, 21xdc said: Lots of assuming.... I graduated from a lee pot 20 years ago. I have a $4,500.00 vent system. My molds differ from yours, But I still have hundreds of them. I don't think a lee pot could ever get to 930*..... So no harm possible. Have a nice day. Yes lots of assuming! I've actually tested a lee 4-20 pots temperature. Here's a picture of a lee 4-20 pot on a setting of 8. As you can clearly see the temp is nearly 900° f at this setting. So just over 8 would surpass your assumption of 930°f I'm guessing at a setting of 10 you'd easily be upwards of 1,100°f or higher. So yes you could definitely be putting your health and safety at risk running at a setting of 10 on a lee 4-20 pot and I wouldn't recommend people run that hot. The reason I tested the temperature of my pot was because the mold manufacturer of a recent CNC mold I purchased claimed that other buyers of the mold we're having to use their lee pots at a setting of 10 to get the mold to work properly. But I proved them wrong and my mold works great at 7 and lower. Anyway you have a good day! Hopefully people reading this realize how hot a lee pot that most of us are using can get. And they figure out their casting issues without unnecessary health and safety risks. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kasilofchrisn Posted January 4, 2023 Report Share Posted January 4, 2023 4 hours ago, Big Epp said: @21xdc and @Kasilofchrisn, you both shared some really helpful info, and i appreciate your experience and willingness to share. Please take this with a grain of salt, coming from someone who has a lee pot and a mold inventory that puts BOTH of yours to shame (literally 2 from Do-It), I don't think we need to spend too much time figuring out who has the biggest lead pot on this thread No we do not. I'm merely attempting to point out that one need not run their pots at the highest settings to get them to work properly. And that doing so is an unnecessary health and safety risk. Don't worry your mold collection will eventually grow bigger than you thought it would! Good luck and happy casting to you! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Epp Posted January 5, 2023 Report Share Posted January 5, 2023 Alright, I preheated my mold (do-it poison tail) on the lead pot as it melted the lead, did several empty pours, had the lead pot set at 7/8, put in the hooks, hit the base of the mold with a heat gun, and got good looking jig tops. When I took the hooks out and poured again I got great fill. Should I try heating the hooks more? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arne Posted January 5, 2023 Report Share Posted January 5, 2023 Looks like you need a bit more heat somewhere. Think I would heat the hooks. As for how high you leave the setting on the pot, bet each pot is different. Maybe not by much, but a thermometer will tell the tail.. Arne. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jigmeister Posted January 5, 2023 Report Share Posted January 5, 2023 (edited) Big Epp looks like either lead is too cold or low flow out of the bottom spout . I always try to pour will the pot full of lead as this creates more pressure = faster flow (better stream )out of the spout due to higher static pressure . A test I do as the pot is just about up to temp is to turn the mold sideways and level under the spout and pour lead onto the side of Do-it mold in the depression with the mold name and model info just using quick spurts of lead to gauge how well it is flowing it also helps heat the mold up . After using your pot it will become second nature what a good normal flow looks like coming out of the spout . Another suggestion would be to fill the sprue for each mold cavity to the very top when pouring don't try to skimp on lead . Edited January 5, 2023 by jigmeister 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kasilofchrisn Posted January 5, 2023 Report Share Posted January 5, 2023 Another thing you could try is putting the spout directly into the gate. Use the pressure of full pot to force the lead into the mold. Sometimes that works well for me with molds that don't want to completely fill out. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dink Master Posted January 5, 2023 Report Share Posted January 5, 2023 3 hours ago, jigmeister said: Big Epp looks like either lead is too cold or low flow out of the bottom spout . I always try to pour will the pot full of lead as this creates more pressure = faster flow (better stream )out of the spout due to higher static pressure . A test I do as the pot is just about up to temp is to turn the mold sideways and level under the spout and pour lead onto the side of Do-it mold in the depression with the mold name and model info just using quick spurts of lead to gauge how well it is flowing it also helps heat the mold up . After using your pot it will become second nature what a good normal flow looks like coming out of the spout . Another suggestion would be to fill the sprue for each mold cavity to the very top when pouring don't try to skimp on lead . jigmeister - Hit the nail on the head! Even if you do have a strong fast flow, I would(I Do) hit my hook, metal pin and narrow part of the mold with a blast from my propane torch. 1-2 seconds. I live in Southern California and blast my molds/hooks on the first 5 or 6 pours and when I start getting bad pours. (even in the Summer) A Propane Torch also works great for melting the lead off hooks on bad pours. Hold your bad jigs by the hook with pliers over your pot and melt the lead off with the torch. Yes you can dip your bad jigs into the pot, but I think you get cleaner results with the torch. Good Luck 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jig Man Posted January 5, 2023 Report Share Posted January 5, 2023 When I had a poison tail mold I had a lot of trouble getting it to pour well. I polished some of the cavities and added Frankfort Arsenal Drop out. I only poured one cavity at a time. On the half ounce I had to “crack” the mold. I used a penny wrapper from the bank. I got some flash but did get complete pours. Someone else owns it now. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jigmeister Posted January 5, 2023 Report Share Posted January 5, 2023 I just looked at the picture again Big Epp attached and zoomed in close . The hook in the left cavity looks dirty like it was dipped to remove lead after a previous bad pour ? and possibly not cleaned off good enough. I also noticed it looks like the lead cooled and blocked the cavity where the head tapers down to form the bait keeper of the cavity . The hook is not positioned centered inline with the sprue so as the stream of molten lead is flowing into the cavity it is going to have to deflect off the hook and head recess before having to splash into the narrower hook keeper part of the cavity . Tilting the mold slightly like M.T. Pockets suggested would make it more of a straight shot for the lead stream filling the bait keeper area first before the head of the cavity . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 7, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 7, 2023 On 1/5/2023 at 11:51 AM, Dink Master said: jigmeister - Hit the nail on the head! Even if you do have a strong fast flow, I would(I Do) hit my hook, metal pin and narrow part of the mold with a blast from my propane torch. 1-2 seconds. I live in Southern California and blast my molds/hooks on the first 5 or 6 pours and when I start getting bad pours. (even in the Summer) A Propane Torch also works great for melting the lead off hooks on bad pours. Hold your bad jigs by the hook with pliers over your pot and melt the lead off with the torch. Yes you can dip your bad jigs into the pot, but I think you get cleaner results with the torch. Good Luck Dink, Does the torch affect the strength or temper of the hooks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dink Master Posted January 7, 2023 Report Share Posted January 7, 2023 2 hours ago, mark poulson said: Dink, Does the torch affect the strength or temper of the hooks? It can, that is why I only do a quick blast. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dink Master Posted January 7, 2023 Report Share Posted January 7, 2023 What does 900 degree lead do to your hooks? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jigmeister Posted January 7, 2023 Report Share Posted January 7, 2023 Aluminum is an excellent conductor of heat so it is used in high performance engine blocks and cylinder heads . It pulls the heat out of the molten lead fast so the hook is not exposed to those high lead temps for very long . Think about how fast the molten lead solidifies in the cavity it's almost instantaneous . 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Epp Posted January 9, 2023 Report Share Posted January 9, 2023 Great points! My pot was only half full (or a little less). I only had 1 extra pound of lead, so I'll need to pick up some more lead and maybe pick a warmer day to pour. It's been pretty cold here (20s and 30s). Do the molds also lose heat quickly? I noticed I had much better luck this time, but the middle cavity (1/4oz) poured well while the end cavity (3/8oz) did not do great. I figured this is because of how cold it was, that the ends of the mold were cooling faster than the middle. I placed all my hooks on top of a toasterover and they (as well as the pins) were hot to touch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Jig Is Up Posted January 9, 2023 Report Share Posted January 9, 2023 I literally just had problems with incomplete pours over the weekend. I typically get lead from LPO and Barlow's, but a friend had some free lead from an old muzzle loader ball kit. Even after fluxing that lead, I could not get a complete pour to save my life! The melted lead seemed a lot thicker than what I typically use...even with my Lee Pot at level 10. Anyway, I ended up emptying most of my pot and refilling it with good lead from LPO. After that, I was back in business. Moral of the story (at least for me) - free lead is worth it until it isn't. -Blaine 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 10, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2023 Pouring update: I cleaned out the pot, removed the spout closure bar, and cleaned out the spout. There was a ton of crud in it, and in the bottom of the pot. I sanded the inside of the pot with 400grit wet and dry, and then sprayed WD 40 into the pot, and on the closure bar. Then I sprayed isopropyl alcohol into the pot, and wiped the closure bar with alcohol. I blew out the alcohol with my compressor, and heat dried everything with my hair dryer. I sprayed Drop Out into the pot and spout. I sprayed Drop Out on the closure bar, too. I let everything dry for several days, and then reassembled. In between steps on the pot, I fluxed 9lbs of lead with paraffin and burned it off with a lit paper towel. I skimmed all the crap (dross/) off the lead, and poured it into 1/2lb and 1lb ingots. Today, I heated the pot on 7, and melted 5lbs of lead ingots. I put my mold on top of the pot while it heated. While the lead was melting, I put a teflon bowl under the spout to catch any drips. There were none. Once the lead was melted, I lifted the spout closure rod to see how it poured. Holy crap! The lead flowed in a beautiful steady stream into the teflon bowl, and shut off, with no drips, when I released the handle. I did one pour with no hooks, and everything filled completely, so I loaded my hooks and weed guard pins. I put the mold in my metal working vice, and gave it a good squeeze, to make sure it closed completely with the hooks in place, and then I poured my first batch. They came out perfect! I wound up pouring 10 each of 1/4oz, 3/8oz, and 1/2oz weedless arkie jigs. Thank you all so much for all your help! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 10, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2023 (edited) Post script: I used a modified pair of side cutters to remove the sprues. but I still had to carve away some lead. Can someone here tell me where I can buy some flush cutters (I think they are called gate shears)? Thanks in advance. Edited January 10, 2023 by mark poulson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arne Posted January 10, 2023 Report Share Posted January 10, 2023 Harbor freight has them. Think they were $4 last fall. Arne. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arne Posted January 10, 2023 Report Share Posted January 10, 2023 BTW bought a pair and they work great. Arne. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jigmeister Posted January 10, 2023 Report Share Posted January 10, 2023 Mark typically with Do-it molds if you grab the finished poured baits by the molded attached sprue with pliers and move the bait back and forth by the hook the bait will separate and break off very cleanly from the sprue at it's thinnest point . A couple of swipes with a file is all it takes to smooth the head where the sprue was attached . 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark poulson Posted January 10, 2023 Author Report Share Posted January 10, 2023 Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
