Mold hangup & pull-outs

[Wallyl]

Have a "new" used DC Lyman 452460. Seems the the corners on the front driving band are very "square" and not radiused, so it "sticks" in the mold. If I try to drop the cast bullet too soon, I will get tear offs on the front driving band. No other bullet does this for me and I have 50 various bullet molds. I do have a Lee equivilent ... a single Cavity 90347...it casts extremely well but is a SC not a DC... Perhaps there is a "trick" that will allow me to "fix" the Lyman...I thought I'd ask before I experiment. It will cast good bullets if I wait 15~20 seconds or more and allow it to cool down...the trouble is I can make 'em much faster than with the Lee SC. Yes, I have tried to cast with teh melt cooler...doesn't really help after the iron blocks get heated up.

[243winxb]

wait 15~20 seconds or more and allow it to cool down.Run your pot & mold at a higher temperature. This will increase shrinkage as the bullets cool. When you get frosted bullet, just drop the heat a tiny bit or let the mould cool some. Or add pure lead to the alloy. Lead shrinks more.

[Wallyl]

Thank you, I will try that!

[Robert Palermo]

There are ways to carefully polish the cavities of the mold to increase the release.

The mold then can be coated witha mold release agent like a spray on moly coat.

[Wallyl]

Robert...can you advise what ways that I can try? I was thinking of spinning a tight "plug" of 0000 steel wool in the cavities coated with a polishing compound...I know it won't hurt the mold as it is far too fine to damage it...

[mehavey]

OP's apparently got a lot of mould/experince so I hesitate to ask if he's using a mallet to
tap the handle-hinges if the bullet doesn't immediately drop from the mould. ()

Other that that, my finally stabilizing at 700° for just about everything (pure lead, 1:30,
#2, and WheelWts) gave me the most consistant mould performance (incl diameter)
across the board.


post: BIIIIG bullets like my 500gr 45's and up require a longer cooling (>20-25sec), but the 300 and below is only 10 sec after sprue harden)

[Robert Palermo]

An ultra fine polishing compound like simichrome and a felt bob or maybe the steel wool thing. I myself use fine rubber abrasive tips hand shaped to fit down inside the mold at specific areas while the mold is closed and polish those areas.

You have to do this with the mold closed or you run the risk of rounding out the edges of the mold where its split.
Sometimes being extremly careful I can spot polish a bad area within the mold if theres a small nick or rough spot but you have to be very careful.
The square lube groove thing is a PIA as my first Lyman mold a .44 240gr SWC would not come out without beating the bullets out of the mold when I was handcasting. I sent the mold back and they replaced it with the lube grooves slightly angled to released.
Since that time I learned the meaning of a proper "draft angle" from the late Walt Mealander of NEI in the mold blocks to provide a proper release.

[Wallyl]

Thank you...I figured it best to ask before I experiment. I had another 452460 that did the same thing...seems that Lyman made the front driving band and top grease groove "too square". But I bet that my method will solve the problem..won't hurt to try. Another method is to use a cast bullet... attach a screw to it and spin it (with a drill) in the cavity with some abrasives, but that will make the cavity larger.

[snuffy]

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/show...t-Revisited%29

Try the above procedure BEFORE attacking the mold with a felt fob or any abrasives.

Using a bullet to do the polishing, ensures that the edges of the molds cavities are not rounded by careless grinding.

The title LEE-menting is misleading, it works on all types of molds.

Oh, and this thread belongs in the bullet casting sub-forum at the top of the page

[Wallyl]

A fine polishing compound like Flitz won't hurt anything....

[Mike / Tx]

I understand your frustration. I have some very nice brass molds that do the same thing when pouring solids, but will just spit HP's out like they taste bad.

The key is a regulated cooling method. Not so much a lot but just a little bit between pours. Some use a slightly damp towel and after they drop the bullets out and close the mold they set it on the rag for a 2-3 count before the next pour. Or in my case, I use a small fan that I hold the open mold in front of for a 3-4 count. This seems to help out a good deal, but I still get one every now and again that is stubborn and just wants to stay put. Sometimes I let it and just pour the empty cavities. Usually it will drop that next dump, sometimes it needs a little persuasion.

The polishing thing with something like Comet, Bonami, or Flitz isn't going to hurt, just be careful to go slow. With the couple I have polished out, I more or less followed the Lee menting procedure, but I used a small t-handle, made for small taps, that I attached to the cut off screw to turn the bullets. That way I cold easily rotate them back and forth nice and slow. I didn't want to inadvertently hit the trigger on my cordless drill and really screw something up. It is pretty amazing how just a little bit of touch up will really improve some molds.

One last thing, IF you use the above process and find that it really didn't help much, give this a try before you give up. Get your mold up to temp, and pour one cavity at a time water dropping the bullet in ice water. If you think you can keep them separated you can pour both at once, maybe use two containers. That will give you a much harder bullet which will put the polishing compounds work more on the mold than on the lead. It might even save you a little time as well starting off with a bit harder bullet. Just a thought.

Hope this helps.

[Wallyl]

Mike, Thank you....

I have tried a fan (it shortens the cool down time nicely) and I got into a "patten" of touching the mold base to a damp sponge and holding it there for a few seconds after a few casts..that also helps. However I have many dozens of bullet molds...never had one like the 452460 and I tried two different ones. I have had others that had the same problem and the steel wool plug/spin trick fixed it....I had a Saeco 8mm mold that had drop out issues...this method fixed it. I've had many dozen of Lee molds..never had a hang up issue with any of them. Lots of folks bash Lee molds...IMHO they are a wonderful bargain. I fiund I prefer a DC Lee mold to any DC iron mold...as they are so much more "comfortable" to cast with IMHO.

[Sure Shot Mc Gee]

Just went through the same problem {I think}with a new Lyman two cavity 041. Rear cavity was hanging up. Polished out the cavities bluing with my dremel along with its accessory. A waxy metal polish. Than soak the mold overnight in kroil. Next day brought the mold up to temp {Didn't remove the Kroil film before hand.}by casting junk at first. As usual as the mold heated up it began to make nice bullets. I immediately took notice its bullets were practically falling out of the mold on their own without having to hit it. What a difference!! I don't know it if was the molds polishing that also lessened the the sharp edges on the driving and lube bands. Or it was the Kroil that made the difference. Which ever sure made that mold a pleasure to cast with now.

S/S

[Wallyl]

Sure Shot.....I take it you used the felt pad on the Dremel with some polishing compound....that I think I best try first...
Thanks,

Wally

[Sure Shot Mc Gee]

Felt pad as you mentioned. Seemed to work well. You don't need a whole lot of tool speed either. In fact the less speed the better. As it helps the felt wheel hold onto its polishing compound.

[Wallyl]

Sure Shot, I could not find the shaft that connects the Dremel onto the felt polishing pad...so I made a plug of 0000 steel wool and spun on a drill--then used rubbing compound. I will try it later and I bet my problems will be over..

[snuffy]

My last new mold was/is a RCBS 501680. It's a single cavity making big 375 gr. SWC boolits. Fodder for my X frame smith.

I cleaned it up, getting rid of the cutting oil and whatever preservative oil was used. I do this by boiling the mold in VERY soapy water .

The first casts were a nightmare. The boolit just refused to drop from the right side of the mold. Boolits that did drop had scuff marks right at the parting line, it was obvious that there was a burr on the front right side of the cavity.

Second observation was the mold was undersize. It's supposed to cast a .501 boolit. It was right at .500. Solution was to take one of the boolits cast, drill a hole in the base,(using the sprue plate hole as a guide), then tap it 8-32. Then a screw with the head cut off is chucked in a variable speed cordless drill.

I have a fire lapping kit made by wheeler, that has 3 grits, 220, 320, and 600. I used the 320 grit, put several applications on that boolit, then cleaned up the mold, cast some more. These dropped better, but still some stuck, needed more than a few taps to get them loose. Also, I had only increased the size by .0005, to result in a .5005 boolit.

The initial procedure had taken the bluing off the surfaces of the cavity. I needed more diameter, and the burr was not completely gone. So I drilled 3 more boolits, spun the first 2 with 320 grit, the last with the 600 grit to final polish the cavities.

The result is a mold that the boolits fall out of their own weight, and it casts @ .5025! Passing it through the lyman 450 with a .501 sizer die makes a beautiful boolit.

Oh, and it shoots great!

[Sure Shot Mc Gee]

Felt pads don't use the same threaded shaft that the cut off wheels require.. The felt pads require the shaft with a machine screw looking head on one end.

[Wallyl]

All fixed..the steel wool plug with rubbing compound did the trick....not one hang up or tear off...I am amazed how well it worked. Thanks for all the suggestions.