New Moulds-again

T

TXGunNut

New member
Couldn't stand it any longer, had to break in a couple of exciting new moulds.:D Was a little too hot but I couldn't wait any longer. One is a 330 gr .45 cal HP Gould boolit from Lyman, it's been in my casting box for months. The other is also a .45 cal but that's where the similarity ends. It's a TL 200 gr swc Lee commercial 6 cavity mould. Both moulds worked quite well once I figured out what they liked, seems all my moulds have different likes, these both like to be run pretty hot. I'm up to eight moulds now, think I need to start a notebook to record these little personality traits.
Thanks for the warning about the sprue lever, Studman. Mine's still in one piece thanks in part to your thread.
Wish I'd read the warning label on the lighter I used to smoke my moulds, said something about avoiding temps above 120 degrees. :o I carelessly left it on the table and as I was filling the mould something exploded and I ducked, expecting a tinsel shower. :eek: Soon pieces of debris started landing around me and I realized the lighter was missing, sort of. :rolleyes: Heavier pieces landed a few feet away, others traveled over 15 feet.
 

Attachments

  • HOT 001.jpg
    HOT 001.jpg
    251.6 KB · Views: 56
  • HOT 002.jpg
    HOT 002.jpg
    263.8 KB · Views: 49
  • HOT 003.jpg
    HOT 003.jpg
    175.2 KB · Views: 50
Ever tell you about the time a bead of sweat rolled down my nose into the lead pot?

You are a sick freak Tex with no life. Casting bullets is for geeks and another thing.....oops, looks like its up to temp, gotta go....
 
You are a sick freak Tex with no life. -Sal


:eek: Well...yes, of course! Wondered for a moment where you were going with that. ;) You're even more twisted than I am, its 106 headed for 109 around here now, was "only" 102 when I called it quits. Boolits were still too hot to pick up barehanded an hour or so ago.
No, haven't heard that story but I was very careful to never lean over the pot. Gloves did double duty today; kept my hands from getting burned and kept sweat from dripping into the pot.
 
Hey Tex; that Lyman HP mould will probably want it hot anyway. Mine likes the temp right up there to cast with no voids. Good thing about it is that you can squeeze them down to .452" and shoot them in a charcoal burner or a 460 Smith. 90 grains of Pyrodex RS and a T/C sabot will lay anything on earth down.
 
Sounds familiar, got a new mold last week, had to try it out, even with 109 temps and high monsoon humidty...30 minutes and I was done.
Sorry about the lighter, that's why my lighter is a Zippo!:D
 
Hey Tex; that Lyman HP mould will probably want it hot anyway. -Crowbeaner

You're exactly right, 750 made perfect (if a bit frosty) boolits in the new Lyman mould. New Lee worked great above 720 or so. Both moulds liked running hot as well.
 
Glad my pain abated the suffering of another :D . Thats a very nice pile of boolits you've got there. I've got the same lee mold but with the lube groves (I TL now but i'm not entirely convinced I'll never get a luber-sizer). Whats the hardness of the alloy you used?
 
45acp boolits are straight ww's and the Gould boolits are ww's with just a touch (4oz tin to 15 #'s of ww's) of added tin.
I have a Lyman 4500 for BPCR and 45 Colt boolits but the TL system w/ Lee sizer seems to meet my needs better for the 45acp.
Nice pile indeed, thanks. :D I have about 650 45acp boolits lubed, sized and in the final lube drying stage in my reloading room. Too hot to shoot ;) so I may have them loaded by this time tomorrow. As soon as I get them packaged I'll be able to focus on rifles again. :)
 
Last edited:
8 molds? Maybe bullet casters anonymous is in order.:D
Hello, my name is Vance and I am addicted to bullet casting.
Nice pile of bullets Tex.
 
Eight moulds is nothing around here, Vance. Was pretty sure I only had six or seven but I took the opportunity to count while the alloy was coming up to temp.

My name is Mike and I'm in denial. Ya'll go ahead and share and do whatever you do and I'll sit here and daydream of silver streams...:D
 
@ Crowbeaner: is it normal for Lyman HP moulds to like a hotter than normal alloy temp? I don't think my other Lyman moulds need the lead quite that hot. I think I need to start keeping a notebook.
 
ONLY 8 molds? I have more like 80. Seriously, I haven't counted, but I'm sure it's around 40.

If I had to cast outside,,,--- well I wouldn't cast at all. I'd buy cast bullets from some supplier, probably MBC, Missouri bullets. But then I don't have a SWMBO telling me I can't bring the mess indoors! Outside in Wisconsin would mean I MIGHT be able to cast 15 days out of the year. BTW today is 75 F with a nice breeze, would be a good day to cast outside.

Try casting in conditions like this; 20 degrees, with a wind chill of -5!

IMG_0213.JPG


IMG_0215.JPG


Nice pile of boolits Tex. I hope they shoot good for you.
 
Tex, hasn't that air conditioner thingy caught on in Texas yet? Maybe I'll count my moulds, more the 8, but probably not 80.
 
But then I don't have a SWMBO telling me I can't bring the mess indoors! -Snuffy

I don't have to clear the SWMBO hurdle, no successful applications for that position yet. ;)
Yep, A/C working great! I just don't want to cast in my home and don't have a shop to work in @ the moment. I'm going to clean up my loading room today, maybe I can figure out how to make room for my casting operation in there. Floor is carpeted but I can cover that.
Sal; did you cast anything interesting yesterday or were you just yanking my chain?;)
 
Last edited:
Yeah I cast up some 454490s? A ray thompson design I think. Got for my rebarreled SAA. Shot up some swaged remingtons with so so results so i bid on this mold cause it has a GC....No one told me .45 gaschecks are 40+ per. Like you I need to clean up my reloading room, amazed at what a disaster it is.

The only good thing is everytime I open up a box its like Christmas.
 
Until reading this thread, I considered my 16 or so molds a good start and me a rookie caster... I could go for at least a dozen more molds and a bunch of other miscellaneous bits to go with it...

Tony
 
Until reading this thread, I considered my 16 or so molds a good start and me a rookie caster... Geezerbiker

I've only been casting less than two years but I don't feel the number of moulds is a measure of a caster. 16 is a good start indeed but I need to pace myself, new moulds mean new projects and I have too many going now as it is.
Loading room looking goooood! Think I'll go load those boring 45's so I can get on with the rifle loading!!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top