That is the one thing that I don't like about attaching a PID to the pot, but I got to looking and they do have connectors out there that you can hook up to your TC so that you can plug in and unplug so that things become more easily moved and stored. I found a project box that looks big enough that I can put 2 plugs on the back of it, one for the pot to plug into and one for the TC to plug into. 
I do like the idea of the long TC that just runs down the side of the pot. It shouldn't be all that hard to bend it out of the road and then make up a little attachment clamp and affix it to one of the screws on the top of the pot. 
I did go over the CBA site and did some reading there, very imformative. They did say that a 25 SSR was enough but I might up it to a 40 just to be on the safe side.  Once I have everything figured out and my shopping list finalized, it should make for a nice project for a few days. The only part of the project I am not looking forward to is producing the holes in the box for the plugs. With a mill it would be easy but with just a drill press, say and files, it will be a pain in the behind. Oh well, just call it a character building exercise.
Sam

CBA. ???????

Larry

As you wish, sir, on the box material. You are correct about the thermocouple codings being "Chinese", figuratively and literally. To be honest, I just put them up by rote, and the change to a different one is what made me screw one up- costing the company a nice hunk of change when somebody had to travel to Asia to troubleshoot my build. Keep that under your nuclear hat.

nuclearcricket wrote on Jun 20^th, 2015 at 8:42am:

Been away at the Shippensburg 60-shot BPCR match. Had the privilege of watching Brian Chilson set two new national records. He knocked 57/60 animals and also knocked over 12-chickens in a row. The 57 was 3-higher than the previous and 12-chickens is two higher. The next highest score was a 47. Brian is amazing. Good thing he doesn't have time to shoot Scheutzen. 
For your PID questions:
Yes, the 110v PID as shown above works just fine with the Lee 20# pot. And, yes, the 40A SSR does, as well. The type-K TC is part of a bridge circuit which is built into the PID and needs no other power. Just connect it to proper place on the PID controller and it is fine. The SSR goes across one side of the AC power cord to the Lee pot. Just cut one side of the AC power cord and connect both ends of the cord to the SSR. The other two terminals of the SSR are wired to the control points on the PID controller. The SSR can get fairly warm (even hot) to the touch. The back side is metal and is meant to be mounted to a heat sink like a sheet of aluminum. However, I just suspend mine in the air-stream at the top of the exhausted casting booth I built and it has been fine. It will take you about 30min to make all the connections. I use an Omega Engineering KTSS-18G-12 TC. The probe end (which is obvious) simply sits in the melt like the thermometer it replaced. I leave mine in the pot, along with the ladle when I turn everything off. Also, I plug the pot and PID into a power-strip which has an on/off switch (along with the exhaust fan for my casting bench & the light). Works great and have cast 10,000+ bullets with it over the past 3-4 years.

On eBay type in "PID controller and 40A SSR" in the search box and a bunch of them will show up. I don't like the TCs they include as are too short to sit in the pot. Make sure you get the higher temp PID.

Larry D wrote on Jun 20^th, 2015 at 4:23pm:


Cast Bullet Association

-----J

You are fine with 18ga wire from the PID to the SSR as it only carries a 4-20mA control signal. Pretty sure I used 22ga. You can use most any 120vac power cord to the PID. I usually have an old computer power cord laying around and you can just cut off the IEC plug and strip the wire back as needed to connect to the PID. As mentioned above, the power cord going to your pot is cut on one side, only, and the SSR is inserted into the line. The control signal from the PID then tells the SSR how much power to allow to be fed to the pot based on the signal from the TC (the temp). So you only need a foot or two of the 18ga wire and the cord to power up the PID.

I had a sort of Epiphany about the wire. Since I plan on using a computer power cord I did a little looking and I have 4 or so of them on hand, very easy to cut one up and just use the wire from that. That will give me 2 colored wires to work with and I all ready know they are heavy enough to handle the current. 
I also sat down and priced things out and to get what I want and the way I want it, it looks like its going to be a quick $100 plus what ever shipping might be added. I was hoping to come in under this but maybe some more research and shopping will yield better results but I doubt I will find much savings. The controler you can find at a lot of places, its the other things that there doesn't seem to be many sources of. Or at least not that I have found so far. Nice thing about the DIY projects, it allows you time to shop and find the best prices.
Sam