Wrinkles on egg sinkers are still there but getting better.

[meltleadalot2693]

I make sinkers and my egg sinkers still have wrinkles but I recent figured if you pour the lead a little over the top and it over fills slightly, the sinkers come out more complete and are even flawless sometimes. How do you pour perfect sinkers every time?

 

[Hawnjigs]

Perfect sinkers for me require a warmed up mold and hot enuf melt. Harder lead seems to skin over more evenly than soft. Pour tekneek has to be just right volume and velocity - ideal is the pour should zip thru the gate with a gap to suck air. Ladles are not created equal either - the right one for the job helps - and they generally pour better less than half full.

I'd be interested if anyone know how to tinker the ladle outlet for optimal flow.

 

[SaltyBuckster]

I pour a ton of big bank sinkers.The biggest 8 oz. Like Hawn said,if you tilt the mold a tiny bit to let the inlet have a small gap in it,the air will come out and your lead has to be really hot.That's if you are using hard lead.I pour a round in every cavity about half full at first pour,let the lead stay in there a minute or so and dump them out to be remelted as they won't be a good pour.The next set will be perfect and I just keep pouring until I'm done with what I wanted.Or run out of lead,either or.This heats the mold up

 

[meltleadalot2693]

I now pre warm the mold by setting it on top of the melting pot while the lead is melting and even right when I turn it on. I also realize that sinker pour better the less lead you have in the pot. I also wax flux each time I add an ingot to the melting pot.

 

[SaltyBuckster]

Molten lead poured into the mold is hotter then sitting it on top of the pot.Remeber that.

 

[Hawnjigs]

Salty has corrected me - the air gap at the gate during a pour is for release, not sucking. It just looks like the lead is getting sucked in.

 

[Fatman]

Hawn

If you're talking about getting a really fine stream the guys over at Cast Boolits recommend getting a fine cut triangle file and on the pouring spout file a groove dead center all the way down the spout.

I did that on my original hot pot and it worked great.

 

[LedHed]

Some days seem like everything works and some days they don't..........

Tilt and hard/hot lead X 3

 

[meltleadalot2693]

How do you cut the groove with a 3 sided file? Seems like a PITA to file a decent groove in cast iron.

 

[CrappieHappy]

How do you cut the groove with a 3 sided file? Seems like a PITA to file a decent groove in cast iron.

you use one of the pointed sides, not the flat sides. you would be surprised how easy you can file cast iron....

 

[SaltyBuckster]

Melts alot,if everything was so easy there would be no need for people to go to college,lol.

 

[meltleadalot2693]

So use one of those big triangle file or a tiny diamond shaped file with a corner on it?

 

[SaltyBuckster]

Hold the flat side up and put the side with a 33 degree corner into the existing groove so the file makes a little triangle into the spout,Got it ??

 

[CrappieHappy]

Hold the flat side up and put the side with a 33 degree corner into the existing groove so the file makes a little triangle into the spout,Got it ??

yep, what Bruce said, all your trying to do is IMPROVE the existing groove..

 

[meltleadalot2693]

Thanks, I will do that soon.

 

[Fatman]

Hey I couldn't get on I was stuck in a meeting!!!!

 

[cadman]

Melts alot,if everything was so easy there would be no need for people to go to college,lol.

Salty,
Your killing me, that was funny.


Meltsalot,
When you get to pouring lead, everyday or somedays is like a box of Cracker Jack, you never know what you will get. All I can say is keeep the molds hot, keep the lead hot, if you use hooks, keep them warm to hot, and finally use a mold release. Everything else you will have to learn from trial and error to remember, because we can tell you all the things we think will work, however since we are not there we don't know what all the variables are. So keep asking questions, and you will learn lik we all did from our mistakes and many, many frustrating days of pouring.

 

[cadman]

Doc and all other pourers. If you have never used this product, you are missing out on some easy pouring. It helps solve many bad days pouring. It just plain works. No drama, no secrets and mainly no B.S. It is call "Drop Out" by Frankford Arsenal. Everyone sells it now. Barlow's, Do-It, Zeiner's and many more. It costs about $10 for a 9 oz spray can. Use it sparingly. I have a can that has lasted me going on two years, and I pour with over 100 molds. This is especially good for troublesome molds. If you have no problems with your molds, spray it on anyway, it helps in achieving complete pours. Once you use it you will never go back to pouring with out it. Once sprayed into the cavity, it will easily last for about 400-600 pours maybe more. It sprays on flat gray. Once the gray starts to wear off you will see the silver of the aluminum showing through. At that time clean off the old drop-out spray with lacquer thinner or mineral spirits, dry mold cavity and spray on another new coat and you're good to go for another several hundred pours.

 

[meltleadalot2693]

Where can you get the spray for less than $20 shipped?

 

[cadman]

Where can you get the spray for less than $20 shipped?

If you are asking me, about the mold release, read my post above. It tells you where to get it.