I finally switched my pouring technique after 10 years of doing it wrong

For the longest time I always poured my molds straight from the ladle in one fast go. Thought I was saving time you know. Last month I watched an old timer at the shop take his sweet time doing a slow bottom pour and I figured I'd give it a shot. The difference in how clean the metal came out was night and day. Way less dross on the surface and a lot fewer cold shuts in the final piece. Now I take an extra 20 seconds per mold and my scrap rate dropped from like 15 percent down to maybe 3 percent. Has anyone else had a similar moment where a small tweak made a huge difference in your pour quality?

2 comments

2 Comments

cooper.reese16d agoMost Upvoted

I tried slow bottom pour once and got more dross, not less.

coleman.henry16d ago

240 degrees is actually right in the sweet spot for a lot of lead alloys... if you're running it cooler than that, the tin and antimony can settle out and make a mess. Dross usually comes from pouring too hot or agitating the pot too much, not from going slow. Might be worth checking your melt temp with a calibrated thermometer before you write off the whole method.