Gettin' Started Lead Pouring :D

[TommySkarlis]

Thanks for the safety information and tips. I will definitely take all the precautions.

That's a great tip with the ingot mold Tommy S! I hadn't even thought of that. Now I have to find something to put under it to catch the drips and toss sprues in. Thanks for that awesome tip

Josh

You are welcome Josh! Again - something that Jerry V taught me in the "Yankees" basement!  Start saving coffee cans for your lead - I prefer the metal ones with lids.

[jl3140]

I got my first mold in the mail today. I tried pouring some jigs up and I could not get the 1/8 oz jig to pour. I tried upping the temp, using other sized hooks, pouring faster, etc. but I still could not get the jig to pour. I had ordered a mold release spray (it's graphite spray) but it hadn't shown up yet. Well that showed up about 3 hours after the mold and hooks.

I sprayed the mold and added a bit more heat... Boom perfect 1/8 oz jigs! Since then, I've poured 19 perfect ones with only 2 duds. 1 1/2 oz, a couple 3/8 oz, a few 1/4 oz, and the rest 1/8 oz. Now all I have to do is get a larger air pump for the fluid bed.

I have a question for all you lead pourers, how do you paint a jig that has had a weed guard poured into it? Is it even possible?

Josh

[Muskygary]

There's some heat resistant tubing (Do-it catalog page 88) that you can use to cover the weedguard.

[jl3140]

There's some heat resistant tubing (Do-it catalog page 88) that you can use to cover the weedguard.

What about baking the paint on though? Is that still possible? I should have phrased my question better since that is what I was getting at.

[2XL]

Sometimes holding the mold closer to the spout (If you have the Lee bottom pour pot) helps when pouring smaller jig sizes. Sometimes I will stick the spout right in the hole on the mold and pour.
 
You may already know this or it's been covered already but,
Are you using soft lead ? You can check the softness with your thumbnail. If your thumbnail leaves a mark in the lead then you're in business. Heating your mold before pouring? Sometimes I will pour jigs without the hooks to heat the mold up in addition to letting the mold warm up sitting on top of the pot waiting for the lead to melt.

How are your jigs turning out ? Smooth = good. Wrinkled = turn the heat up a tad. My LEE pot is set at 7.

Good luck, making your own stuff is a blast not to mention addicting.

[jl3140]

2XL: I found out that holding the mold closer helps a lot, I just forgot to mention that in the post    I had heard to use good soft lead, a good family friend does stained glass windows and he had about 30 lbs of scrap lead he had accumulated that he gave me. That stuff is super soft.

My jigs have been turning out fairly smooth, I was getting some wrinkling when I was first starting. I ended up having to set my LEE pot at around 5.5-6 to get good pours without flashing. I also noticed that my jigs were looking a little better as the mold warmed up more and more. Thanks for the tips

[2XL]

Right On!  30 Pounds of that stuff = Jackpot!

Wrinkling usually means your mold or lead is not hot enough. When you think your lead is warm enough, pour a few jigs without hooks to make sure your mold is up to temp. You won't have to waste time trying to get your hook back that way.  No worries. You are on the right track and will have this down pat in no time.

As an aside, I have never used any mold release type agent, candeling etc  on my molds. Never had the need to.

[jl3140]

As an aside, I have never used any mold release type agent, candeling etc  on my molds. Never had the need to.

I had tried candling, but that wasn't quite doing the trick for me. I got it workin' now and that's the main thing  haha

[Fatman]

I know some of the guys use base pins http://www.barlowstackle.com/Base-Hole-Pins--P368C63.aspx they say you can leave them in, powder paint, cure and then you pull them out and glue your weed guard in. 

I'm another one who has never sprayed any release agent or sooted them and never had any problems.  I run a mix of 2 parts tire weight/ 1 part pure and my pot is usually set at 7. 

Now that you're pouring lets see some of your pours. 

[Justin9j]

Teflon pins are the way to go for the guards

[jl3140]

Here's the first 39 good jigs I poured. Sorry about the blurriness of the pictures



Now they just need some paint and weed guards glued in.

Josh

[Muskygary]

Looks very good!!

[smalljaw]

What about baking the paint on though? Is that still possible? I should have phrased my question better since that is what I was getting at.

To cure jigs that you painted with the weed guard in you have to use a lower temp setting for a longer period of time. I tried the tubes and the longer cures and it just didn't work for me. I did manage to find that if you put the tubes on the weed guards when curing, you can go about 275 for 45 minutes and the cure will be awesome. If you want to cure with out the tubes then 225 for 1 hour seemed to work good with very little if any weed guard curling. The best way I found is to use the Teflon pins and then paint with those in the weed guard holes, some guys even cure them like that but I pull the pins and then cure and they come out great.

[CrabbyBass]

I buy 1/8" x 48" wood dowels for around $0.50. I mark it in 1" increments and cut them down. After pouring the lead and removing the base pins, I replace the pins with the wood dowels. You can then powder paint the heads. Be sure to use pliers and pull out the wood pins before the paint dries otherwise the paint may crack off around the hole. You can save the wood pins to use again to paint the same color or throw them away as they are cheap. I hope this helps!

[Lamar]

  I use the pins that come with the mold and bought some extras. Pour the lead and then pull them out. Powder paint and cure the head and then take a 1/8 drill bit on a cordless drill and clean the hole out. I think it's much easier that way and gives you a cleaner hole to stick the weed guard in. I glue the weed guards in with super glue gel. Never had one pull out yet.