Got a new mold in today, a Lee C309-170F, and I am struggling to cast clean bullets.
I put lead in the pot and the mold on top to warm up for about 30min.
Started casting at 700F, super wrinkly.
Worked my way up in temps in 50F increments.
Stopped at 950F as I did not feel comfortable continuing up in the temps.
At 950F the bullets all have a frosty appearance. many do not have good fill out on the grooves. Of the 100 or so I cast I only got 4 total that were clean.
What am I doing wrong? Is the mold not hot enough? I have several lee pistol bullet molds for handgun bullets that cast well at 750-800 F. I kept the mold on the pot to keep it warm between casting while letting the pot heat. I let the first couple castings at each temp sit in the mold a few extra seconds to help make sure the mold was at a good temp. Or with the long skinny rifle bulles do I just have to push the temps up?
I put lead in the pot and the mold on top to warm up for about 30min.
Started casting at 700F, super wrinkly.
Worked my way up in temps in 50F increments.
Stopped at 950F as I did not feel comfortable continuing up in the temps.
At 950F the bullets all have a frosty appearance. many do not have good fill out on the grooves. Of the 100 or so I cast I only got 4 total that were clean.
What am I doing wrong? Is the mold not hot enough? I have several lee pistol bullet molds for handgun bullets that cast well at 750-800 F. I kept the mold on the pot to keep it warm between casting while letting the pot heat. I let the first couple castings at each temp sit in the mold a few extra seconds to help make sure the mold was at a good temp. Or with the long skinny rifle bulles do I just have to push the temps up?