Fluxing lead in a Lee Production Pot IV

[mitrisin]

Those of you who use a Lee Production Pot IV to pour jigheads. Do you flux your lead in the pot or do you use another pot to keep your Lee pot cleaner? Also what do you use to clean the slag out of the Lee pot? The pot is rather small with the rod in it and my ladle won't fit. Should I get a smaller ladle or just use a spoon?

[liftbite56]

I'm still working on those issues too, I flux in the same pot I use and old long spoon to clean out the trash...I flux with wax ,soon as I drop it in a stir real quick to try to avoid the flame up (hardly ever do). I pour 200+ heads a week...sometime my pot just does not pour like I want and sometimes it does. I use x-ray room reclaimed lead...I clean my pot when I just get tired of a lower than 75% perfect heads... which right now (last 2 pourings) were just above 75% it get frustrating sometimes.

[crappielimits]

I use wax and allow flame to burn off. I then flux with a spoon. I keep it very hot. Remember to smoke your mold.

[Fatman]

Ok I'm the weirdo around here when it comes to my Lee pots. I flux my lead in the Lee pot, using candle wax from old fancy candles. I use a large flathead screw driver to stir around the inside of the pot and then put another chunk of wax in and stir again. I use an old table spoon and scoop out a little at a time till its gone.

Now I clean out my pot after EVERY USE!!!!!!!!!! Some leave lead in it but I won't, before I had to replace my last ones they were 24 and 27 years old!!! and I cleaned them out after every use, I also used them to clean up lead and they lasted that long.

The few minnow heads or ball heads where the barbed collar doesn't pour complete, I just cut the collar off!!! My last pouring session I did close to 500 jigs and I don't think I had more than 10 that were bad enough to remelt.

[litewirehooker]

This is what I do but may/may not work for everyone. First thing I did was to drill out the bottom of the pot (Just a little) where the lead comes out. This gives better lead flow. I do use candle wax everyonce in a while. To me, Most important is heat and smoking the mold. I try to pour 5,000 per week. I use spoon to clean off excess trash/impurities from the top of the pot. I clean pot bout once a month or when it drips little too much for me. Dripping is not much of a problem....I cut hole in table where I pour and any drips goes thru the hole in the table into a 5 gallon bucket. I clean out bucket about twice a year. Pouring 1000 hooks, May have to remelt 10 -15 that are not perfect. The 3/32 pours the best with very few that are not perfect...........That's kinda how I do it........been do it for probably 10 years.

[liftbite56]

litewire, never smoked my molds...please elobrate? smoke with what? The supplier of the molds I buy say it's not needed..if it helps I'm all for it!LOL

[litewirehooker]

I use candles from wedding. Lite the candle, hold about inch below the cavities and get soot all over the cavities......and the top where you pour. The lead will flow and fill out the cavities......This is my #1 solution when cavities don't fill out........and be sure lead is hot. Be careful.....it will flow like water on wax paper.

litewire, never smoked my molds...please elobrate? smoke with what? The supplier of the molds I buy say it's not needed..if it helps I'm all for it!LOL

[crappielimits]

I use candles from wedding. Lite the candle, hold about inch below the cavities and get soot all over the cavities......and the top where you pour. The lead will flow and fill out the cavities......This is my #1 solution when cavities don't fill out........and be sure lead is hot. Be careful.....it will flow like water on wax paper.

x2

[Fatman]

I guess I'm lucky with my pouring I've never had that problem. I probably pour more jigs than I'll ever use, but I trade for other styles of jig heads, and put them in material swap box's. I'd probably try a Mold release agent instead of smoking them. I will say that some of my newer molds from Do-It are really ticking me off!!!!! Used to be all I had to do was smooth the spot from the sprue being removed. Seem to be cleaning up more and more flash and this is from new molds not older ones.

For the amount of trimming I'm seriously thinking about going to custom molds when I want a new one.

[litewirehooker]

My custom molds work much better than do-it molds.