Darrin, I used bees wax for flux when I melted it down the first time in a large cast iron pot, ladled it off into another large cast iron ladle to make ingots about two lb.'s each. When I put it in the casting pot I flux again. When I got the lead, it was rolled up like a jelly roll. I compressed it down with a sledge hammer on a clean concrete floor. Then I took a splitting wedge, an ax, sharpened them, pounded them almost through with a five lb. hand maul into chunks that would fit my pot, roughly 8"x8". I used a propane burner outside. It all went pretty smooth, once I got into the swing, so to speak.