A disasterous casting session with my new NOE mould. Arggh

[dromia]

Night Owl Enterprises.

Have you seasoned the mould as per the NOE instructions?

Dipping the front edge of the mould in the melt will help heat it up before casting, a blow torch on the sprue plate will help that get up to temperature.

An electric hot plate beside the pot will help keep the mould hot whilst struggling with the lee drip-o-matic, a hot plate is good for getting the mould up to temp as well. I lie an old syrup can on its side by the hot plate to put the mould in, it acts a bit like an oven.

[Alpha1]

Hot plate good idea I'll have a skeg at work we use hot plate/stirrers in the labs. I might be able to find one no longer used and spirit it away.

[FredB]

The blow lamp is the experienced casters secret weapon. You can, as Dromia says, heat up the sprue plate and / or the whole mold with it and you can also use it as an aid to fluxing---add wax, direct lamp at surface and stir. The lamp will fully oxidize the dross and leave a lovely clean pot full of metal.
Fred

[Alpha1]

I found a hot plate it only goes to 250c our normal ones go to 375c but it will have to do for now until I can find a 375c one not in use.

[Alpha1]

I had another go I warmed the mould and sprue plate with a blow torch the wife bought me a Lee melter for my birthday she knows nothing about shooting so she thought It was the right thing to buy anyway I'm not complaining the thought was there. I resurrected the old one and used it to melt the wheel weights then fluxed and skimmed the melt. I shoved a ingot mould under it. The stuff peed out the bottom but it did not matter. I then transferred the clean ingots to the new pot and set to.

Lovely shiny boolits. Its a 4 gang mould two plain base and two gas check boolits. The plain base all dropped at .3145 the gas check ones are all .314. perfect. Iv been after this mould for a while I'm over the moon. I can not wait to try them out.

There is all ways a down side isn't there I can not find my .314 H&I die I know I definitely had one. Iv got a Lee push through one but I really wanted to whizz them through the lubesizer. Damn aaarggh

[dromia]

Thought you were turning out H&I dies by the score?

[dromia]

The 10lb and 17 lb Lee pouring pots can be made useful by removing the pouring mechanisms and plugging the spout, I use a self tapper and fireclay. They melt lead and 17lber makes a handy dipping pot which holds a useful amount of lead as opposed to the 10lb dipping pots which is all we seem to get over here.

Lee do do a 17lb dipping pot the Magnum Melter 110v (same furnace as the Pro 4-20 sans pouring mechanism) but haven't seen them available in this country.

[Alpha1]

I'm waiting on delivery of reamers I have all ready roughed one out. Once the reamers arrive I'll make a .314 H&I sizer. I tried opening a Lyman one up but they are hardened the reamer would not touch it. Making the die is easy enough it's the internal diameter and finish that is the important bit.

[Alpha1]

I have made my first D&H (my initials) sizing die in .314 for the Lyman lubesizer. It was interesting it turned out OK. I need to make another one for another NOE mould I purchased. I just need to find the time to spend in the shop.

[Alpha1]

I made one in .313. I got my knickers in a twist with this one. I started machining from the wrong end and ended up struggling to finish it because it was not gripping in the chuck. Any way I have worked it out if you machine them in the right sequence they are pretty straight forward. As I said its the internal diameter that's the critical bit. But it was a interesting exercise. hmm whats next.