Just a shout out to Johnny for all the work that he put into these PID videos. I was able to build one complete with programming in 2 days without any problems at all. Thanks again Johnny for all the great work that you've put into these. .. It's really appreciated
Hey Johnny! I really can't think of anything to add... That's unusual!!! Just means you left no stone unturned ... Nice job going through every detail.... That's exactly how I did it! I wanted to wait to see what you come up with before I did some more casting... Ready to go! I guess I thought you'd leave me scratching my head! Not! : ) Thanks (again) This set up is off the chain........
My suggestion to Elvis was for him to have a 20 degrees conversion factor in his own reading of the temps...Since he knows that is the difference, it is compensated mentally...But I just like to be able to dip the thermocouple into the lead with my C-clamp cantilever... works great. Nice to have options though... Thanks again for this great device, I'm going to be doing some more casting tomorrow...will be the third run with the PID... Best to ya, FC Steve
Hey Johnny...here's some old electronics 101 for you fellas...a thermocouple is a junction between two dissimilar metal wires (like copper and zinc) when they are heated the Cu gives up extra electrons to the Z wire causing an imbalance in their charges...the PID reads this voltage and converts it into a temp. reading. The wires are joined at the weld to insure the electrical continuity between the wires....hope this helps a bit...charlie
I believe the type K is most common, Chromel / Alumel. That is what all the ones we use in aviation test and what jet engines use. For higher temps they use a pyrometer (IR sensor).
The thermal couple reads only at the tip . I have worked with them for years. It is a solid state device that uses a variable resistor in it. I'm building a PID at this time for my pot. Thanks for your videos .
Good comparison. You never cease to amaze me with your nitch for training, explaining and demonstrating.. Also, if you have a PID controller you can use it for more than one furnace, One could be your production furnace, one could be a furnace that you have another alloy in, another could be one just for blending alloys. This makes the PID control unit more versatile and still cheaper than the Lyman or RCBS furnace's at 3-4 times the cost per furnace price. Good Job dude.
Made one of these over the las week. I can see the advantages of closely controlling temp while casting. I look forward to using this a lot over the summer. Thanks for all the info. Mike B.
First, I want to say how much I appreciate, you, FortuneCookie45LC and Elvis, you guys continue to help everyone with their hobby!! Now, I don't really see the necessity for getting the temperature reading at the pour spout? Why? We are working at relative temperatures to cast the best bullets. So does it matter if the pot reads 30 degrees colder at the pour spout then the middle of the pot? Aren't we just trying to reproduce the temperature that gave us the best results Friday, today? It shouldn't matter where the temp is read as long as gives us repeatable casting day after day. Furthermore, where I live, Arizona, I cast on days that are 40 degrees and at 110 degrees, that difference in temps will equate to different pot temps to cast the best bullets. I have no thermometer now, I watch the bullets and they tell me if they need to be hotter or colder. Been doing it this way for 40 years! Hell casting isn't a science it's an art and no matter how long you've been casting there's always someone who can give you tips on helping your art! Anyway, I will be making one of your PID Temperature controllers, I think they're the cat's meow!! Again, Thanks fellas, Phil
hey Johnny just got my pid controller built thanks to you , Your videos made it easy , the directions that come with the controller are not easy to read at least for me
You need to calibrate the thermal couple to each device. If you change thermal couple then you need to recalibrate it to the device. I work with these all the time, and to calibrate it just put it in ice water and let it set till it stabilizes and offset it to 32 degrees.
May I suggest, making a box for two. One for heating and one for just pouring. That way instead of having to relearn, the computer will stay stable. So, adding or subtracting lead, one will give a read at pour spout and one at heater
The simplest thing I can say here is if you don't have the probe IN the lead then you're not going to read the leads temperature. Your original way was better. To compromise, maybe drill a hole in the pot near the spout and properly install a stubby type thermocouple. They sell some that are only about. 5" long. I hope that helps. I know this video is over a year old.
My guess is that the exposed spout/outside of the pot is acting as a heat sink. I looked it up, the wires are actually welded not soldered. I was just thinking, what if the spout rod were drilled (or the end of the thermocouple housing was reshaped to seal the spout) and used to house the thermocouple? I think that the depth it's drilled should determine where the temp is taken. I've seen people use stubby thermocouples that require drilling a hole to mount in the bottom of the pot.
JRB, i saw on elvis's channel you were trying to figure out the ball on the end of those wires, i haven't bought a thermocouple since 1978, they go bad because that wire comes apart! i use a tig welder to get ball on the end, but i have used i 12v battery
My understanding on thermocouples is that the temperature it senses changes resistance in the circuit(thermocouple). The pid reads the resistance and displays that as a temperture.
I did not read all comments. It is indeed only the ball on the end that matters. Each of the 2 wires are made of a different metal and the ball is where they are welded together. Heating that ball, makes the junction create a tiny voltage due to dissimlar metals. The pid controller amplifies that tiny voltage.
The temperature differential is going to change with ambient temperature due to the location of the sensor and the heat flow. Probably better to use the probe in the lead near the pour valve. The sensor on the outside is not reading the accurate lead temperature. Yes, this is 3 years old, but still a good project. Thanks guys!
I drilled a hole about the same place Elvis did I didn't remove the cover from the thermocouple and just slid it in. I run my lead at 750 it stays within 10 degree of my Lyman thermo. Have used it this way all winter If I need to move the pot just slide the thermocouple out of the pot. My thermocouple is hard wired to my Pid.
JRB I'm still wondering if you sent hot LEAD through the spicket if it would change the temperature at all. my theory is it could be acting as a heatsink and once warmed up your temperatures could rise
I NEED ASSISTANCE! I built a controller this week but I'm having an issue. Im getting 120v to the PID, but there is no voltage on the output side going to the SSR. Also, why is there a load wire from the black bus connected to load terminal 2 on the SSR? I have included a couple of extras in my design. First is power indicator lights and second, I placed a on/off switch inline to control the 120v power outlet with a power indicator light on it as well.
Your "mistake" getting the box reversed top/bottom actually wasn't a mistake at all. I tried to work it out ahead of time doing it the "supposed" correct way and it does not work. It will be very hard to get inside to service/repair anything should something go wrong not to mention being much harder to build and wire with things mounted on the removable lid inside of the bottom that stays put. Also I am with you and think having the thermocouple actually in the molten lead gets you much more accurate readings. Mounting it under the pot and coil throws it off at least 60 degrees.
Johnny I watched the RUclips video posted by Elvis in which he had received the PID gift that you had sent him. I have seen all your previous videos about the PID for the Lee 20# pot. And I am going to attempt the project once I round up all the parts. But I noticed that you built the PID in the project box with the correct top position so that the seam is not open on top and no material can get inside. I was wondering if you could share with me in how you are able to wire same when if you unscrew the box and take it apart how much extra lead length did you have to include to be able to take apart the box and also to be able to build. With the way you built in the videos ther were no components installed in the bottom (your top). But with the way you built for Elvis you have the power cord clamps in the ends of the top and the meter face for the PID and the switch and the Thermocouple socket in the opposite face and then I assume you mounted the SSR and heatsink and the terminal strips are install in the floor panel, because I don't see any screws on the top at all. I prefer to build the PID like you did for Elvis. So any construction help and wiring hints and pictures you can get to me would sure help me complete my project.
His "mistake" getting the box reversed top/bottom actually wasn't a mistake at all. I tried to work it out ahead of time doing it the "supposed" correct way and it does not work. It will be very hard to get inside to service/repair anything should something go wrong not to mention being much harder to build and wire with things mounted on the removable lid inside of the bottom that stays put. Also I am with you and think having the thermocouple actually in the molten lead gets you much more accurate readings. Mounting it under the pot and coil throws it off at least 60 degrees.
Way late to the game, but they make ring thermocouples designed to go under a nut like that. Look up k-type cylinder head thermocouple. I think the Lee pot needs a 12mm.
I need to sit down and come up with a price. I am almost certain that the price will be way more than anyone wants to spend. Probably $150 to make it worth my while. The interest would shrink quickly at that price, I'm sure.
Johnny.. I believe that you would have a good product, It's safe and well made, Not just that,, It's made by you with all the attention to detail. You could line up 10 of them and production line assemble them cutting time and increasing the viability of selling them for a good price. Seem like everyone wants one.. I would buy one of your units. All you have to do is make one and put my name one it. I'm serious. Dave.
Wouldn’t the internal Thermocouple read higher when the lead starts to flow out the nozzle? I think the most accurate reading would with it in the lead it’s self but with it ran internally look better.
The little ball on the end is the part that measures the temp. You can melt it if you get it hot enough or it can break off and it's junk. If it has a tube over it there is usually a little indention where it measures. Anyhow, check this out www.thermometricscorp.com/thertypk.html It shows the tolerances for different temp ranges and a lot of other stuff.
So you can buy a 1.5 inch thermal couple, why not drill a hole in your pot and mount it inside your pot near the bottom so the thermal couple is inside with the lead? It should mount just like the outlet on the pot.
I work with them everyday in my job HVAC TECH. they work off resistance so if you take a oham meter toy will get oham reading according to temp. also you will not get a freezing temp in ice water cause the ice its self is 32 deg but you have liquid absorbing the cold temp off the ice which the water is warmer than the ice so you will not get 32 deg unless the whole cup is froze
Melting or freezing ice is 32 and stable why we use it. Just mix and let stabilize for a while. Isulated cup may help a bit too. Same as boiling is 212...
@@ewetho Yep. A mixture of ice/water will always be at 32 degrees F (0 degrees C), or within a fraction of a degree above that temperature. The same is NOT true for boiling water, except at what they call Standard Pressure. At one atmosphere of pressure, about 29.92 inches of mercury (standards vary slightly), pure water will boil at 212 degrees F (100 degrees C). The boiling temperature decreases as the atmospheric pressure drops. For example, at an elevation of 2000 feet above sea level, water will boil at about 208 degrees F.
Johnny, get one of these www.ebay.com/itm/Digital-Thermometer-Dual-channel-Temperature-Meter-for-K-J-T-E-R-S-N-GM1312-US-/231601563137?hash=item35ec876601 readers and you can read simultaneously both probes, the way you keep switching back and fourth, you saw what happened, the system went haywire. What I noticed is that I could be measuring same thing and the difference will be off as much as 3 degrees. Also did try to measure ice water and boiling water, you really have stick the probe between ice cube to get close to 32F, same with boiling water, the only way I could get close to 212 is to stick the probe in the electric kettle as it was boiling, not what I was expecting. I build my PID controller last summer and I did for 10lb pot, I ended up drilling the hole at the bottom and machine a brass plug kind of like flat top bolt then drilled a hole in the middle and pressed fit the tip of the stubby probe through and attached it with the nut from the opposite side, it works great and solid. I don't have Lyman thermometer to compare accuracy. The only problem is that it's sticking out a bit underneath and gets in the way of the mold a little. There is something else to consider, my TC had terminal connectors that I had to connect directly to PID and I've read that you can't just take any wire if you want to let's say make extension or quick disconnect, so that's something to consider why it might throw off your temp. by 30 degrees. I haven't watched all your PID videos yet, just found your channel few days ago.
Another thing I want to mention my first PID was this one I got from Amazon (link below) and it only displayed in Celsius and numbers were smaller BUT it was more accurate, it didn't have Auto Tune and it didn't need one, it kept temperature much closer to the target then one by MYPIN that I got 2nd time. I noticed that sometimes mypin would "run away" and would just keep going up past target point that never happened with first controller, only a small overshoot which is expected. www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RA0TWWA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Is it really that important to be that close in temperature. We are casting bullets,not sending folks to the moon. A few degrees isn't going to do anything and it seems to talk some time to fool around with.
When reloading match grade ammo that can shoot through the same hole consistency is the key to success. If you are looking for a bullet hose for blasting 8" steel plates at 7 yards rapid fire it isn't going to matter as much.
Watching the way you guys are mistreating these Thermocoupler's makes me cringe. If you short the two wires, the will read incorrectly, and may cause a fire due to the controller not failing due to a thermal runaway.
Just a shout out to Johnny for all the work that he put into these PID videos. I was able to build one complete with programming in 2 days without any problems at all. Thanks again Johnny for all the great work that you've put into these. .. It's really appreciated
Hey Johnny! I really can't think of anything to add... That's unusual!!! Just means you left no stone unturned ... Nice job going through every detail.... That's exactly how I did it! I wanted to wait to see what you come up with before I did some more casting... Ready to go! I guess I thought you'd leave me scratching my head! Not! : ) Thanks (again) This set up is off the chain........
Great idea, man! Makes things much more convenient.
1
My suggestion to Elvis was for him to have a 20 degrees conversion factor in his own reading of the temps...Since he knows that is the difference, it is compensated mentally...But I just like to be able to dip the thermocouple into the lead with my C-clamp cantilever... works great. Nice to have options though... Thanks again for this great device, I'm going to be doing some more casting tomorrow...will be the third run with the PID... Best to ya, FC Steve
Hey Johnny...here's some old electronics 101 for you fellas...a thermocouple is a junction between two dissimilar metal wires (like copper and zinc) when they are heated the Cu gives up extra electrons to the Z wire causing an imbalance in their charges...the PID reads this voltage and converts it into a temp. reading. The wires are joined at the weld to insure the electrical continuity between the wires....hope this helps a bit...charlie
I believe the type K is most common, Chromel / Alumel. That is what all the ones we use in aviation test and what jet engines use. For higher temps they use a pyrometer (IR sensor).
The thermal couple reads only at the tip . I have worked with them for years. It is a solid state device that uses a variable resistor in it. I'm building a PID at this time for my pot. Thanks for your videos .
Good comparison. You never cease to amaze me with your nitch for training, explaining and demonstrating.. Also, if you have a PID controller you can use it for more than one furnace, One could be your production furnace, one could be a furnace that you have another alloy in, another could be one just for blending alloys. This makes the PID control unit more versatile and still cheaper than the Lyman or RCBS furnace's at 3-4 times the cost per furnace price. Good Job dude.
Made one of these over the las week. I can see the advantages of closely controlling temp while casting. I look forward to using this a lot over the summer. Thanks for all the info. Mike B.
First, I want to say how much I appreciate, you, FortuneCookie45LC and Elvis, you guys continue to help everyone with their hobby!! Now, I don't really see the necessity for getting the temperature reading at the pour spout? Why? We are working at relative temperatures to cast the best bullets. So does it matter if the pot reads 30 degrees colder at the pour spout then the middle of the pot? Aren't we just trying to reproduce the temperature that gave us the best results Friday, today? It shouldn't matter where the temp is read as long as gives us repeatable casting day after day. Furthermore, where I live, Arizona, I cast on days that are 40 degrees and at 110 degrees, that difference in temps will equate to different pot temps to cast the best bullets.
I have no thermometer now, I watch the bullets and they tell me if they need to be hotter or colder. Been doing it this way for 40 years! Hell casting isn't a science it's an art and no matter how long you've been casting there's always someone who can give you tips on helping your art!
Anyway, I will be making one of your PID Temperature controllers, I think they're the cat's meow!!
Again, Thanks fellas,
Phil
hey Johnny just got my pid controller built thanks to you , Your videos made it easy , the directions that come with the controller are not easy to read at least for me
Johnny Nice info . Your outstanding and a great guy . I'm sure Elvis and cookie will continue to keep you busy with questions.
You need to calibrate the thermal couple to each device. If you change thermal couple then you need to recalibrate it to the device. I work with these all the time, and to calibrate it just put it in ice water and let it set till it stabilizes and offset it to 32 degrees.
Thank you very much for taking the time to produce these videos. Very educational!
May I suggest, making a box for two. One for heating and one for just pouring. That way instead of having to relearn, the computer will stay stable. So, adding or subtracting lead, one will give a read at pour spout and one at heater
The simplest thing I can say here is if you don't have the probe IN the lead then you're not going to read the leads temperature. Your original way was better.
To compromise, maybe drill a hole in the pot near the spout and properly install a stubby type thermocouple. They sell some that are only about. 5" long. I hope that helps. I know this video is over a year old.
I think it's just a matter of attaching the TC to a heatsink. Roll with it, and please keep making more cast boolit videos.
My guess is that the exposed spout/outside of the pot is acting as a heat sink.
I looked it up, the wires are actually welded not soldered.
I was just thinking, what if the spout rod were drilled (or the end of the thermocouple housing was reshaped to seal the spout) and used to house the thermocouple? I think that the depth it's drilled should determine where the temp is taken.
I've seen people use stubby thermocouples that require drilling a hole to mount in the bottom of the pot.
very cool controller.....nice work Johnny.....
Looks like several people want you to sell them myself included. Great job
JRB, i saw on elvis's channel you were trying to figure out the ball on the end of those wires, i haven't bought a thermocouple since 1978, they go bad because that wire comes apart! i use a tig welder to get ball on the end, but i have used i 12v battery
My understanding on thermocouples is that the temperature it senses changes resistance in the circuit(thermocouple). The pid reads the resistance and displays that as a temperture.
when I worked for a refrigeration company we use adjustable thermometers we would fill the cup up with ice and add water then set to 32 degrees
I did not read all comments. It is indeed only the ball on the end that matters. Each of the 2 wires are made of a different metal and the ball is where they are welded together. Heating that ball, makes the junction create a tiny voltage due to dissimlar metals. The pid controller amplifies that tiny voltage.
Where are the two tips located within the pot? Convection and conduction.
Thanks for the information in your videos. I have just completed my own it seems to work well all the best .
only thing that im wondering is if the cover on the wire can take the heat under the pot with out the sleeve only time will tell
The temperature differential is going to change with ambient temperature due to the location of the sensor and the heat flow. Probably better to use the probe in the lead near the pour valve. The sensor on the outside is not reading the accurate lead temperature. Yes, this is 3 years old, but still a good project. Thanks guys!
The only thing I would worry about is crushing the ball of metal on the TC. I have something in mind to fix that
I drilled a hole about the same place Elvis did I didn't remove the cover from the thermocouple and just slid it in. I run my lead at 750 it stays within 10 degree of my Lyman thermo. Have used it this way all winter If I need to move the pot just slide the thermocouple out of the pot. My thermocouple is hard wired to my Pid.
JRB I'm still wondering if you sent hot LEAD through the spicket if it would change the temperature at all. my theory is it could be acting as a heatsink and once warmed up your temperatures could rise
I will be sure to test that. Makes sense to me!
I would really like one of these. How much???
I NEED ASSISTANCE!
I built a controller this week but I'm having an issue. Im getting 120v to the PID, but there is no voltage on the output side going to the SSR. Also, why is there a load wire from the black bus connected to load terminal 2 on the SSR? I have included a couple of extras in my design. First is power indicator lights and second, I placed a on/off switch inline to control the 120v power outlet with a power indicator light on it as well.
Your "mistake" getting the box reversed top/bottom actually wasn't a mistake at all. I tried to work it out ahead of time doing it the "supposed" correct way and it does not work. It will be very hard to get inside to service/repair anything should something go wrong not to mention being much harder to build and wire with things mounted on the removable lid inside of the bottom that stays put. Also I am with you and think having the thermocouple actually in the molten lead gets you much more accurate readings. Mounting it under the pot and coil throws it off at least 60 degrees.
Johnny I watched the RUclips video posted by Elvis in which he had received the PID gift that you had sent him. I have seen all your previous videos about the PID for the Lee 20# pot. And I am going to attempt the project once I round up all the parts. But I noticed that you built the PID in the project box with the correct top position so that the seam is not open on top and no material can get inside. I was wondering if you could share with me in how you are able to wire same when if you unscrew the box and take it apart how much extra lead length did you have to include to be able to take apart the box and also to be able to build. With the way you built in the videos ther were no components installed in the bottom (your top). But with the way you built for Elvis you have the power cord clamps in the ends of the top and the meter face for the PID and the switch and the Thermocouple socket in the opposite face and then I assume you mounted the SSR and heatsink and the terminal strips are install in the floor panel, because I don't see any screws on the top at all. I prefer to build the PID like you did for Elvis. So any construction help and wiring hints and pictures you can get to me would sure help me complete my project.
His "mistake" getting the box reversed top/bottom actually wasn't a mistake at all. I tried to work it out ahead of time doing it the "supposed" correct way and it does not work. It will be very hard to get inside to service/repair anything should something go wrong not to mention being much harder to build and wire with things mounted on the removable lid inside of the bottom that stays put. Also I am with you and think having the thermocouple actually in the molten lead gets you much more accurate readings. Mounting it under the pot and coil throws it off at least 60 degrees.
How can I get one of you PID's
Your temp point is 700 and cookies was 752, is that because or the alloy combo you use vs cookies or?? Wondering?
Way late to the game, but they make ring thermocouples designed to go under a nut like that. Look up k-type cylinder head thermocouple. I think the Lee pot needs a 12mm.
Hi Johnny, the SSR and Thermocouple are not available on Amazon anymore. Do you have any recommended part replacements on Amazon ?
Both are back in stock on Amazon. You can also buy off Ebay.
Is that a k style thermocouple?
What causes the reading is the reaction of 2 dissimilar metals in contact with each other.
Will these ever be for sale ?
Causing trouble , yep, Johnny you should think more about selling these .i think there is a lot of interest in them.
Worksof1art
I need to sit down and come up with a price. I am almost certain that the price will be way more than anyone wants to spend. Probably $150 to make it worth my while. The interest would shrink quickly at that price, I'm sure.
Johnny.. I believe that you would have a good product, It's safe and well made, Not just that,, It's made by you with all the attention to detail. You could line up 10 of them and production line assemble them cutting time and increasing the viability of selling them for a good price. Seem like everyone wants one.. I would buy one of your units. All you have to do is make one and put my name one it. I'm serious. Dave.
Johnny's Reloading Bench ill buy one too
Sign me up for one.
I'll pay $150 so I don't have to build it....I work so much.
JRB, i think your problem is your smashing the very end of the wire, it's not expanding and contracting, the very end just needs to touch
JRB, drill a hole in the washer, and slide the wire under till the little ball is at the hole then put the nut on
how much for you to make one of those temp controlers for me sir
Wouldn’t the internal Thermocouple read higher when the lead starts to flow out the nozzle? I think the most accurate reading would with it in the lead it’s self but with it ran internally look better.
The little ball on the end is the part that measures the temp. You can melt it if you get it hot enough or it can break off and it's junk. If it has a tube over it there is usually a little indention where it measures. Anyhow, check this out www.thermometricscorp.com/thertypk.html It shows the tolerances for different temp ranges and a lot of other stuff.
Looks good. The only thing that could go wrong would be the wires getting damaged inside the pot.
Yup, and it will be hard to guard against that. I will probably check it occasionally with a thermocouple directly in the lead.
To fix that put some oven insulation under the pot and put wire for the TC under that next to the alum bottom.
So you can buy a 1.5 inch thermal couple, why not drill a hole in your pot and mount it inside your pot near the bottom so the thermal couple is inside with the lead? It should mount just like the outlet on the pot.
are you gonna sell this
I work with them everyday in my job HVAC TECH. they work off resistance so if you take a oham meter toy will get oham reading according to temp. also you will not get a freezing temp in ice water cause the ice its self is 32 deg but you have liquid absorbing the cold temp off the ice which the water is warmer than the ice so you will not get 32 deg unless the whole cup is froze
Melting or freezing ice is 32 and stable why we use it. Just mix and let stabilize for a while. Isulated cup may help a bit too. Same as boiling is 212...
@@ewetho Yep. A mixture of ice/water will always be at 32 degrees F (0 degrees C), or within a fraction of a degree above that temperature.
The same is NOT true for boiling water, except at what they call Standard Pressure. At one atmosphere of pressure, about 29.92 inches of mercury (standards vary slightly), pure water will boil at 212 degrees F (100 degrees C). The boiling temperature decreases as the atmospheric pressure drops. For example, at an elevation of 2000 feet above sea level, water will boil at about 208 degrees F.
Johnny, get one of these www.ebay.com/itm/Digital-Thermometer-Dual-channel-Temperature-Meter-for-K-J-T-E-R-S-N-GM1312-US-/231601563137?hash=item35ec876601 readers and you can read simultaneously both probes, the way you keep switching back and fourth, you saw what happened, the system went haywire. What I noticed is that I could be measuring same thing and the difference will be off as much as 3 degrees. Also did try to measure ice water and boiling water, you really have stick the probe between ice cube to get close to 32F, same with boiling water, the only way I could get close to 212 is to stick the probe in the electric kettle as it was boiling, not what I was expecting.
I build my PID controller last summer and I did for 10lb pot, I ended up drilling the hole at the bottom and machine a brass plug kind of like flat top bolt then drilled a hole in the middle and pressed fit the tip of the stubby probe through and attached it with the nut from the opposite side, it works great and solid. I don't have Lyman thermometer to compare accuracy. The only problem is that it's sticking out a bit underneath and gets in the way of the mold a little. There is something else to consider, my TC had terminal connectors that I had to connect directly to PID and I've read that you can't just take any wire if you want to let's say make extension or quick disconnect, so that's something to consider why it might throw off your temp. by 30 degrees. I haven't watched all your PID videos yet, just found your channel few days ago.
Another thing I want to mention my first PID was this one I got from Amazon (link below) and it only displayed in Celsius and numbers were smaller BUT it was more accurate, it didn't have Auto Tune and it didn't need one, it kept temperature much closer to the target then one by MYPIN that I got 2nd time. I noticed that sometimes mypin would "run away" and would just keep going up past target point that never happened with first controller, only a small overshoot which is expected. www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RA0TWWA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Is it really that important to be that close in temperature. We are casting bullets,not sending folks to the moon. A few degrees isn't going to do anything and it seems to talk some time to fool around with.
When reloading match grade ammo that can shoot through the same hole consistency is the key to success. If you are looking for a bullet hose for blasting 8" steel plates at 7 yards rapid fire it isn't going to matter as much.
Watching the way you guys are mistreating these Thermocoupler's makes me cringe. If you short the two wires, the will read incorrectly, and may cause a fire due to the controller not failing due to a thermal runaway.