Bullet sticking in the mold

E

EricBella

Inactive
how do you prevent this? or is their no way to? i have a lyman mold (38 spl) and boy do my casts like to stick in it. i use a small rubber mallet and tap the mold until they fall out.....any suggestions?
 
Sounds like a bur.
Inspect the cavity edges with a magnifying glass. There might be a bur you can scape out with a utility knife.
Maybe run your fingernail along it. You may not see it.
 
If you have a oxy/acet torch, you can "smoke it with a carburizing flame (a flame that contains more acetylene than oxygen).

I have done this with great sucess in the past.
 
I have "Comet lapped" some of my molds to make them release better. I cast a bullet and cut the sprew. Keeping the mold closed I drill a small hole in the center of the bullet base about 1/3 of the length of the bullet. I screw a hex head sheet metal screw into the hole until tight and remove the bullet (now the lap). I now make a Comet cleanser paste with water and apply it to the lap. Using a drill with a hex driver to fit the screw head, I put the lap back into the mold and turn it with the drill, holding the mold tightly together. Reverse directions several times (lap perhaps 10 minutes, forward and backward). Using Comet removes very little if any metal from the mold, so bullet dimensions don't change. Clean the mold and cast some bullets. On some molds I have used this same method but used fine valve grinding/lapping compound to clean up and open up the cavity some. Go slow and check often...
 
I have a brand new NOE 38/357 mould and I smoked the cavity’s before use but when the mould got hot it started to stick a little. (430-440 but likes to run over 400 to get good fill out)
I put it down to just a new mould I have only used it twice and intend to smoke it until it stops sticking. With the quality of the NOE moulds there shouldn't be any burs on it.
 
Sometimes running a mould a little too cool will cause sticking. Sometimes they need a little smoke to get them to loosen up. Sometimes it is a burr holding them in.

I recently acquired a few new moulds and after thoroughly cleaning them and heat cycling them, they all (except one) drop without any effort. I suspect the other one (brass) just needs a little more heat than what I could get that evening from my casting pot. I have a new pot on order and will delegate the old one to "indoor" use to keep the temp sufficient for my other moulds.

I have never tried the mould release agents. I have heard bad things about them and been told to stay away from them. Who am I to question the experts who have been casting much longer than I?
 
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