question about melting lead

[dan2173]

i just started melting down some wheel weights from work.. granted i know its not the "best" lead but i have some questions...
when melting it and i skim off the clips and other junk that floats on the top, do you flux it while still in the big pot? or do you wait til you melt it to pour jigs to flux it??
also, i poured it into a cupcake tray to make little ignots, but over half of them got stuck in there. is there a trick to getting them out without destroying the cupcake tray? do you wait a certain amount of time and then do it so they pop out easier?
thanks in advance for any help

[mesmerizejigs]

I flux when i am melting the first time. ( saves some time for me when i am pouring jigs. i have poured into the small cupcake trays without problem, not sure what is causing yours. try letting them cool a little longer. Or purchase a regular ingot tray. Hope this helps. John

[dan2173]

yea im not sure why they stick in there either?? ive tried letting them sit longer and they still do it. maybe i bought some cheap crappy cupcake tray that dont like lead because its not betty crocker?? where do you buy an ignot tray? that might be the ticket. i have over 600 lbs. of wheel weights that i want to melt down and having them stick isnt helping the process any.

[Crider]

cracker barrel cast iron corn

[paulpus]

You can order a ignot mold from Netcafters or Barlows, I think they are around $14 only.
Paul

[Cooney]

What do ya'll mean by "FLUXING"? I just melt and pour...

[dchance]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Cooney &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">What do ya'll mean by "FLUXING"? I just melt and pour...</TD></TR></TABLE>

[fr8dog]

Basically, fluxing is using a marble or sugar-cube sized piece of paraffin/beeswax dropped onto the molten lead, and carefully stirred in. It helps to separate the impurities. Done correctly, the junk will float up to the surface and turn into a powder. This is easily skimmed off. It will make your pours cleaner and more consistent. I don't know the scientific reasons for this, but it works.

This MUST be done outside, with good ventilation, and clear of anything that might catch fire. Eye protection, gloves, and a long handled stirring spoon are used. After the lead is melted, put in a small piece of wax. Then, with the long handled spoon, thoroughly mix the lead. When the smoke dies down, just skim off the powder, and pour. Flux again when you add more lead.

Ingot molds are the way to go. Melt, clean, pour ingots. Then use later for pouring your stuff. Please be sure that your wheel weights are completely dry before putting them in the pot. Water will cause molten lead to "blow-up" out of the pot.

[nektarios]

Not trying to hijack your thread but can old bullet weights be melted? Painted or unpainted ones?

[DG]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by nektarios &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Not trying to hijack your thread but can old bullet weights be melted? Painted or unpainted ones?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Yes, but the painted ones will create a lot of smoke. I've melted down old spinnerbait heads, jigs, bullet weights, etc.

[dan2173]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by crider5 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">cracker barrel cast iron corn</TD></TR></TABLE>
picked up something similar at gander mountain for 11 bucks. works like a charm. thanks

[Bad Habit]

If you having issues with your leas sticking in your muffin pan you are probably using aluminum. You need cast iron. I flux with candle wax when I am 'ingotizing". I flux several times. You can't flux too much but with fishing lead it doesn't have to be real clean lead. If you want smaller ingots you might want to go to Grafs.com or any other shooting outfit and get some ingot molds. Those ingots are a lot smaller than a muffin pan ingot. I cast a few hundred lbs of bullets a year and am considering jigs.