The First Step in Casting is Setting Up Your Pressure Pot 

Thanks for posting these videos. You always do in depth videos and I am excited about this series.

I really appreciate you taking the time to put this video together. I picked up all the necessary pieces and was able to assemble my very own pressure pot. Waiting for my order of resin, molds and dyes. It won't be long before I blaze the trail of resin casting as well. I have a feeling, it's quite addicting. Thanks again Bob!

Thanks Bob. I watched several videos and your hint to replace the bolts saved me a ton oh grief. I would never have thought of that. Cranking down those bolts stopped the leak.

Another video I need - thanks you are a super considerate person to take time to help us all.

Great video Bob! I've been toying with this idea for stabilizing wood and for infusing wood with acrylic resin for knife handles and pens. I'm glad you put all the information in a concise video to share. Thanks!

Thank you Bob for posting up the video. Looks pretty simple to modify. I'll definitely be doing this soon.

Thanks for taking me along on your journey Bob !! Regards BobLee

Thanks for the video, between your video and Zac Higgins I'm set up and ready to cast....after I make my molds of course.

Nice. I look forward to seeing some of the castings. Looks like this will be fun to do...:)

Really looking forward to the rest of this series. Good work Bob :)

I bought this pot about a month ago but have yet to cast anything, mainly just because I was unsure of my setup. After watching your extremely detailed video, I am pretty confident I can complete my setup and make it work. Thanks! I always appreciate your videos!

Very nicely done. I like your videos. You do an excellent job explaining the process

very cool Bob, thank you for the very informative Video.....as always you have helped me out...

Looking forward to seeing what you come up with . Take care.

Bob nice job on the video. The original handle comes in handy, I cast in the basement and carry the pressure pot upstairs where its warmer. I set mine up with a combo pressure/vacuum gauge with a venturi pump from HF that I can attach for pulling a vacuum with the same pot. I now have a real vac pump and vac chamber so have not been using the venturi.

Hey bob, Ive been turning pens about a year that got me into woodturning now today just got my harbor freight pressure pot cant wait to set it up. Im looking forward to see how you do.😆

Thanks Bob. I’ve been considering doing this. Now I know how.

Thank you for the info and always, Go Card!

I watched video when it came out. A friend and commercial penturner (I'll not name him as I haven't asked his permission) who graciously allowed me 2 days in his shop teaching me some of the techniques he uses. He had a HF pot that had stripped out the lid tightening mechanisms. I took his pot back to my machine shop to overdrill and tap for a larger bolt. The purpose of this comment is to tell you what he had to deal with the concave bottom. He had simply put the pot on a level surface and poured resin into it, put it under pressure and Viola! A flat bottom.

Congratulations Bob you are on your way to casting

I used this pot for several pours and then one of the bolt hold downs broke (pressure was within tolerances as stated for the pot). The resulting explosion sent the top off the pot and into my ceiling. I am very fortunate to NOT have been bending over it when it happened or else there would have been significant injury. I have since switched to a CAT pot which has a much better bolt system. His comments about danger are quite correct ... especially when you are not sure of the manufacturing quality.

Got one of them for Christmas Bob. Got to get all the other components and I'll be in business!

IMHO there is no way I'd pressurize a HF tank to 60 PSI which I believe is the max it's rated for, nor is there is a need to. I use a 60 psi pressure relief valve on my tank. You only need 30-40 psi for casting to eradicate bubbles. At 60 psi you'll see you can put too much pressure on the mold if you're doing tube in castings. What happens is the mold will flex in toward your casting and your tube could protrude outside the casting chamber. I only do tube in castings and have never used above 45 psi and have no bubble issues. I know a lot of folks use the bolts, but again we are talking Chinese garbage. If you're gonna torque down these bolts, your gonna put a very slight bend in the cheap metal lid which will eventually cause more air leakage and fatigue the metal more then it was designed for with hand tightening. If the lid is gonna fail, it's not be because of it being hand tightened. I do a lot of castings and I don't usually post online, but these are essentially an explosive danger. Need I say again, this is a Harbor Freight device, they work, but it's Harbor Freight and I'd never push the limits on anything they sell. This is just my opinion, I just wouldn't want you (Bob) or anyone else to get hurt while enjoying our craft. Thanks!

Nicely done.

Nice one Bob, can't wait for the first casting.

Thanks Bob, so glad the vaseline helped, take care and have a good one

You got a like for the Louisville hoodie! I’m a UK fan, but it’s always nice to see a fellow Kentuckian!

Nice video i like the bolt idea. I used a silicone mold making kit and mixed up the silicone and used that for the bottom as the epoxy will not stick to it and it is self leveling.. great vid.

nice tutorial and informative vid,cheers.

Thanks for that Bob, it was very informative. I do cast my own blanks but do not use a pressure pot because I use Polyester resin. 😜😜😍

The best explanation on RU-vid on how to set up a HF pressure pot. Thanks Bob!!

Just subbed! RJB are my initials too (assuming those are your initials)! I followed your build almost exactly, accept when I took the paint fitting off the top the threads were stripped out. Instead I took the tube off the bottom and plugged it there. I also put a particle and water separator between the valve and the nipple. Thank you for such an in depth tutorial. You helped me a lot!

I did mine a tad different. I installed my air inlet in the same port but vertically. Got this tip from Zac Higgins. His thought is that you have your blanks in the pot and are hooking up the air you want to push down instead of sideways which may bump your pot a bit and spill your resin. I then put a 3/8 NPT to 1/4 NPT on the outlet port and then a tee to connect my gauge and Pressure valve. I too replaced my pressure valve after I broke the one that came with the tank. I also didn't find one at the big box stores because those are for compressors and kick in at around 120 PSI. I got one on I think Walmart.com ($6 bucks free shipping) that kicks at exactly 60. I'm also planning on adding a big desiccant air filter. I bought the small one from HF and installed on the pot between the quick connect and the ball valve. After only a few runs it was almost all used up. It uses a water filter housing and rechargeable beads. Have fun in the rabbit hole.

Real good video for beginners like me. I am concerned about putting to much pressure on the gasket that it will smash down to much and shorten it life span. Thanks again.

Thanks Bob Great video

I've just bought a similar tank. The inlet outside and tube inside seem impossible to move. I see from your video the inlet was in fact returned to its ordinal location. In relation to the tube inside, can I simply cut this off flush with inside of the lid. Ant help gratefully received. Thanks John

Thanks for the video. It’s very helpful. I was just wondering why you didn’t use the pressure gauge that came with the pot?

Very informative!

I set my regulator on the air compressor to 55 psi. I then leave the valve open on the top of my pressure pot. I have eliminated the issue of the extremely slow leak that I cant find.

I'm all giggly inside watching you on this journey. I hope we win.

If you put a little soap and water in a spray bottle, you can spray all your connections to find the leak as bubbles will occur at the leak point. Also, apply silicone sealant between the gasket and the lid. Use a sharpie to make reference marks on the lid and pot so you put it back on in the same location.

Your lucky. I've gone through 3 of these and am on the 4th attempt. All 3 of the previous ones have had leaks at the welds on the ports on the lid. Sheesh cheap junk....but worth they try.

I'm new to this, so I was under the impression that you'd want to use a vacuum for casting. I didn't realize that you could pressurize as well. What would be the main difference for either?

Hi Bob, I’m going to set up a pressure pot the same way you’ve done yours in this video. I noticed when you set up the inlet side there were 3 holes. The inlet was one, the relief valve and the gauge the second. What filled the 3rd. Regards Grant

Very nice video. Thank you.

Thanks for another super video Bob. The cheapest pressure pot I can find in the UK is £208 which is 274 dollars.

Bob great video I have seen multiple videos on pressure pots and vacuum chambers for casting. What is the reason you went with a pressure pot over vacuum chamber?

Let the casting begin......

I have a leak at the joint under the gauge. I’ve taken it apart, wrapped the threads with Teflon tape, added a liquid thread sealer to the threads, and reinstalled but still leaking. Can you stop a slow leak without taking it apart again? Like maybe using hot glue or something similar?

Hmmm... Wonder why I'm looking at this tonight.... :D

Hey just thought I might share a bit about gauges. To my understanding gauges are designed to be most accurate in the middle of their range. So if your going to do your casting at 60 psi I would suggest a gauge that max’s out at 120 putting 60 dead in the middle. Of course this is only if your trying to be accurate with your gauge readings. If +/- 10 psi is okay they your fine. Just thought I would share for you next purchase. I got my information from Ashcroft gauges so I don’t know that it applies to all manufactures but that’s my understanding. Hope this helps. PS personally I think you’re playing with fire, if you need 60psi then your pot should be rated higher then your need. Also the C clamps that hold down the pot were never tested for bolts and the fastening torque that comes along with them. I know many things are over engineered for safety and 60 psi should be fine. I just know the added piece of mind having a pot rated and designed for what I’m doing worth the few extra bucks to me. Good luck, happy casting, and keep making videos :-)

Thanks for sharing.👍🏾This is one of the few videos I've seen that has solved the leaking lid problem. I'll be trying this with your suggestions. Questions though: If you have a pressure relief valve installed, why is using a pressure pot so potentially dangerous? Isn't it the same risk as any other air compressor? Maybe dumb questions but I just want to make sure I cover all the bases before I start. Thanks again! 😊

RJB very good video and instructions I wanted to ask if you ever found a 50 LB pressure relief valve at a reasonable price and why didn't you use the relief valve that came with the tank.

I have completed several projects and goals related to my lathe and wood turning. My next one is being able to cast my own blanks, as well as to be able to help my wife who is an exceptional artist and wants to get into doing some stuff with resin. So I am looking to doing a pressure pot. There is a lot of good information regarding the pot itself but I will need to buy a compressor as well so I am looking for any information / tips / suggestions on what are the things I need to look for in an air compressor. Very limited budget so would like to find the "cheapest" option, but something that will be safe to use and do what it needs to do.

you can increase the pressure on the relief valve that came with the tank by tightening the pressure set spring located on top of the relief valve. its the one with a slot on each side. you can use needle nose pliers or even a metal compass . watch the input pressure. as the valve reliefs and opens then reset it and then tighten that ring on top till it lifts at about 65 or 70.. all done because relief valves are not cheap..

I plan on getting into casting my own blanks as well as doing some resin casting projects with my wife. I am hoping in a month or two to put this setup together. Just wanted to see how this has worked for you. Thanks!

Hello Thanks for your instructional video! Question: most resin hardens at about an hour +. As long as there is pressure for the first couple hours isn’t that enough? Thank you

Watched all the RU-vid videos on the topic and liked your approach best. All the other videos retianed the black round pressure regulator and one sighed it as a safety feature. You discarded the pressure regulator. Would it serve a function in this application?

Hello Bob Thanks for the video. I too want to start casting some pen blanks. This was a great video. May I ask what size type compressor would be suitable for this? Thank you Chris

I purchased a HF pot. Seems ok but the pop off valve goes off at 20 psi. Where did u get your add on valve?

so... if one doesn't have a powered pump and is going the cheap route... do you think a 100 psi foot pump might work? (noting I would not be going above 30-40psi in the pot.)

👍,thanks for sharing

Hey bob just got my pressure pot today did you seem to have any trouble taking the original fittings off the lid or did they seem pretty tight not sure what to expect here thanks

People keep doing this the hard way, and not as safe as it should be. All you have to take off is the dip tube and the top side fitting above it. Buy a second gauge and screw it into the lid there. That is the gauge you trust because it's directly measuring the pressure in the tank. Get a pipe plug for the spray gun air outlet on the regulator. Install the ball valve on the regulator inlet, and the air hose quick connect on the ball valve. Install the gauge supplied with the tank onto the regulator where it's supposed to go, if not already installed. Install the regulator onto the T fitting where it's intended to go. No need to move the pressure relief valve.

So do you think it was the seal, the bolts or removing the airline? Just curious if you have troubleshot since this video. I picked up my pressure tank today and will attempt my first casting session this weekend. Very informative video.

Great video I hope you show your first cast

Hey Bob, as always, great video and thanks so much for the walkthrough. I am setting up the same to pressure, but I also wanted it to function as a vacuum chamber. At 5:35 mark, you had switched focus to the outlet side where you mounted the relief valve. If you back up and mounted that to a 4 way splitter instead of a 3 way T, then you could use the HF outlet hole (where the paint hose was originally) as a set up for a vacuum port and gauge. Am I thinking correctly here? PS....I know you cant see inside for the bubbles, so I may end up using a thick piece of polycarbonate here unless I can figure out some sort of timing method.

What does this do different than a vacuum chamber for casting? I thought the idea of a vacuum was to drive the bubbles out of the resin but now I'm just confused :) great video though!

Anyone have the Lowes item numbers for this conversion? I don't have the other stores mentioned:(

The pipe on the inside of the pressure pot, how did you get that out?

I also use Harbor Freight myself Bob..

Thanks for the video. Can I ask what the interior dimensions of the tank are? I'm really getting interested in hybrid casting blanks, but I'm more interested in bowls.

Thanks for sharing Bob. This looks like a great setup specifically for the tight budget I'm in. Now this might be a dumb question but can this setup ve used as a vacuum for stabilizing? Thanks

Hi Bob, Looks like the safety valve provided with the HF pot purchased is leaking. I'm having a problem locating a pressure relief valve at my local stores . Would you please send me the valve specs and where to purchase the valve you you finally settled on? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Jim

I am wondering how I can get access to the list parts to create my own pressure pot?

i have an issue with the threads apparently being different on the fittings that came with the tank and the ones i bought, so i gotta figure that out

The pressure drop could be due to the air compressors discharge air being hot and then the air temperature cools. I believe that pressure and temperature are directly related....

Hey Bob , my two cents worth....might want to use 100% silicone grease instead of Vaseline... Vaseline is a petroleum product and can and will flash under pressure...that is why we are always taught to never lubricate air fittings with any kind of petroleum product! Great video ,well done,be well

Hi. Great video. Can you shed some light on the compressor you use? Thanks

I bought the same pot and set it up identically to yours, my first time pressurizing the pot it started popping and pinging (stressed steel sounds) at 30-35psi is that normal?

Very very educational video! I have had some plans to get a pressure pot myself but they are not available in Sweden for a reasonable cost. Maybe order directly from china...?

Great in depth video, Bob. When would you use a Pressure pot vs a Vacuum chamber? What does each one do? I've used a couple of Stabilized blanks and love using them. Would there ever be a time that you would use both?

Maybe some kind of deverter on the inside , to direct the air away from your work pieces.

Vaseline will deteriorate rubber over time and ruin your seal. You can find food-grade silicone type lubricants at restaurant supply stores and some salt water aquarium vendors.

i had to resort to silicone caulk...the silicone ring that comes with this thing just does not keep things air tight

Hi Bob. You may want to put an elbow on the inside of the air inlet. Otherwise when you fill it up the air will be blowing onto your casting liquid. You don’t want this to happen. Makes a big mess.

What sort of compressor is used?

An Update on this video for 2022. I just bought a HF Paint Pot to convert. The various factory installed fittings on the lid are now set with Red “Locktight” sealant on ALL connections. I wasn’t willing to take a torch to those fittings to loosen that red sealant. I ended up modifying the set up to still use their now permanent fittings. The connecting nut joining the valve to the inlet fitting kept coming loose, no matter how I tightened it. So I ended up using Blue Locktight on that fitting. I’ve been waiting for the Locktight to cure so have not been able to test the system yet. 🤞

Are you sure you used the right type of locktight? I thought the blue was to 'glue' metal and the red was to airtighten.... nice tool. I dont think the big box stores around these parts carry something like that. Might be safety regulations in Europe being more strict...

Did you put vasine on seal

What pump are you using?

After watching a lot of these, how to convert a harbor freight I found all of them would be a lot better if they would have put up a list of needed fittings. I spent a lot of wasted time going to different stores looking for parts. Also it would have been better if they went slower.

Anyone have a link to these bolts?

Why not use an air pressure regulator in line to keep the correct pressure.

Do you have a video of your cast

Nice, informative vid. Please don't use Vaseline on the rubber seals, though. It's petroleum based and will damage the seals over time!

Bob why don't they use a vacuum pot I use a pressure cooker and a vacuum pump, works great, and if the vacuum leaks off the bubbles do not come back.

When the compressed air in the tank cools down the pressure is going to go down.

Same thing from Ebay in Australia is 10-Lt-Pressure-Pot-Set-Spray-Gun-Tank-Hose-Gauge-DIY-House-Paint-Air-Tools $au136, free postage

Watching the pot being Pressurized to 60 psi made me nervous for you. I’m making one of these now and learned a great deal so thanks for the video.