First Time Casting

[sw20strike]

Hello everyone,
Firstly I'd like to thank this forum because I have learned a lot from just reading threads on here. This past weekend with it being a 3 day weekend I decided to try casting for the first time. A little back ground on me,I'm 22 and recently decided to try this. I've been around guns for a while, and My dad has been casting since I was young. I remember sitting on hit lap so i could help him reload ammo when I was around 7 or 8. He is stationed overseas and now since I've been shooting more and he isn't around I've taken over reloading. Up until recently i've still had boolits laying around ready to be loaded but I am now running low.

We have majority 1911's in the household and I love my Kimber, it's been a blast to fire.

So onto the casting. The equipment we have:
I'm a using a Lee pot not to sure on the exact model though
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a47/Strike69/407500_10150530207733887_502763886_8810147_1492718 940_n.jpg
From here since I don't have access to a little side burned to heat up the mold I took advice i read on here and just placed it on top of the pot to get it close to operating temp. I had to cycle it a couple of times because the bullets were coming out very winkled. I'm also using a 6 cavity round nose mold.Took a while to get used to that
Now onto the bullets. With it being my first time I tried to get the bullets as nice as possible. Also from here learned wrinkled means too cold and frosted meant too hot.
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a47/Strike69/402731_10150530430758887_502763886_8811149_2566021 13_n.jpg
That was my first day of casting. I didn't plan to cast for very long and just thought day one would be me getting everything right and getting accustomed to the whole process.
Well one thing lead to another and I ended up making maybe a bit less than 200 which really i'snt alot,but I had to find out where my dad kept the ingots.

Day 2 was more or less productive, I kept running into issues. I had trouble fluxing the lead and the pot kept getting clogged so I didn't get much done.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a47/Strike69/407211_10150532474448887_502763886_8819880_5175650 41_n.jpg
these were a couple from yesturday that i casted.
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a47/Strike69/402917_10150528552148887_502763886_8805409_1371666 625_n.jpg
i actually like this picture and didn't attempt to make it all artsy, It was just a coincidence that the boolets were ontop of my chem book.

And now for today( Monday)
I been outside for a while, the temp was around 28 degrees. Had the windows open and just a small heater to keep me warm.
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a47/Strike69/388865_10150532475983887_502763886_8819884_8177013 3_n.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a47/Strike69/395100_10150532477038887_502763886_8819885_1640513 768_n.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a47/Strike69/399406_10150532477998887_502763886_8819890_1754716 989_n.jpg
I tried to get the best close up I could for the day which isn't the greatest pic so I apologize. As you can tell some are winkled. I was having issues with the pot again today and the lead kept pouring out of the spot. I kept having to stop it from excessive leaking so I think mold got cold inbetween the issues. Also had some issues with the mold, nothing too serious, I just had to tighten a bolt on it. The lee 6 cavity has some cheap handles though, the wooden pieces actually came off today
I'd like to least get have of the plastic soap bucket filled so I have enough to last me a while. I don't know when the next time I'll be able to cast with me back in school, but I'd appreciate some input or opinions on my first attempt of making boolits
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a47/Strike69/396620_10150530407678887_502763886_8811092_6450980 4_n.jpg

[RobS]

not too bad............the mold was a bit cool as you seen from the wrinkles. You may want to empty the pot out and then clean it if it keeps leaking excessively. When up to temp, you can also use a screw driver to wiggle the valve rod to see if it will help clean the spout.

[ku4hx]

Nothing like having company in the madness. :-D

Good start I'd say. Wrinkled boolits are often caused by a mold that's running too cool, so I'd advise upping your pot's temp. A good thermometer is always a good investment.

Cavities contaminated with oils of one kind or another can also lead to malformed boolits so a good cleaning might be in order. I've used Acetone, warm soapy water and an old toothbrush and certain spray carburetor cleaners.

But whatever you do be aware your life is about to change ... for the better I believe.

[sw20strike]

haha i can believe the whole life changing thing. It's gotten addicting trying to make a good boolit. The mold did get cold which is why I think I was having the wrinkled bullets. As for the cleaning part, I'm assuming this is to be done before I even start casting?

[sw20strike]

Rob's thanks for the input. Yeah I have had alot of excess dirt in it so fart and kept scooping it out. To unclog it I've been running a wire into it which has worked so far. When it has been leaking I do adjust the screw and it seems to make it better and stop the leaking. I do agree with it being cold, the bullets i made yesturday and the day before came out flawless I had a few hit and misses today. Today is also the coldest it has been in the past 3 days (28 degrees)

[gray wolf]

Good beginning and it looks like there getting better and better.
Stay with it, keep us posted and welcome


sam

[sw20strike]

Gray wolf: I felt like I was getting into a rhythm earleir today. I didn't have as many hiccups and now knew what to do when I had a issue with a clog or the mold not being to temp.

[Alchemist]

Welcome to the madness!

Looks like you're on your way...it gets easier with practice. Mould temp can be a challenge, so you might want to get a cheap hotplate @ Goodwill or some other thrift store. The uglier the better, since it'll be cheaper. ;)

As for the loose handles, some JB Weld will cure that. Just pull off the wooden handles and smear some JB Weld down inside the hole and slide the handles back on. Let 'em sit for 24 hrs and you're good to go. I usually make an alignment mark on them with a Sharpie, since they'll go back on easier that way. And if you have a Dremel tool, rough up the metal where it goes into the wooden section to give the JB weld more to hold on to.

[sw20strike]

Alchemist thats a great idea on the jb weld, I wish i thought about that sooner, luckily I wont be able to cast for the next few days because of classes so I may go out and purchase some jb weld later and fix my mold. Thanks for that excellent idea

[ku4hx]

As for the cleaning part, I'm assuming this is to be done before I even start casting?

Yeah, just the opposite of brushing your teeth: clean before use.

[runfiverun]

once you get going with that mold, the pot won't have time to drip.

[Thompsoncustom]

Here's a tip if no one has already said it. How I test my mold to see if it is at operating temp is I stick it in the lead at the top of the pot and let it sit there for a couple secs and than pull it out if there is a lot of lead stuck to it then it's to cold if there is just I drop or two than it's probably warm enough tho sometimes I might it a wrinkle in the first bullet or two. What are you fluxing with? Just wondering didn't see if you already posted it. Also another thing that seems to help maybe not with winkle as much as release is smoking the mold just a thought for ya.

[cbrick]

Smoking the mold is nothing more than another old wives tale that won't die. If it makes you feel good to do it go right ahead but all you'll accomplish is plugged up vent lines and the opportunity to re-clean the mold.

If there is a problem that you think smoking the mold will cover up and hide wouldn't it make more sense to fix the problem?

Rick

[canyon-ghost]

Good going! Keep after that heat and you'll get the wrinkles out. And, yes sir, that rhythm is there. I keep it for 3 hours and walk away with 3-500 new boolits (with a little ladle pot and 2 cavity molds). I can get half a coffee can done in an afternoon, usually more than I want to load the next weekend.

Your new favorite saying: Got a hundred rounds?

[sw20strike]

Ku4hx: Thanks for the advice I'm going to try it the next time I cast
Runfiverrun: yeah I noticed that I spend a lot of wasted time refilling the pot. We used to have 2 but the other one decided to burn out. I did however get news from my father that a 20 lb pot is being ordered soon so I should be able to make more that way.
Thompsoncustom: normally I just sit the mold on top of the pot to bring the temp up, but after on here and reading. I think it is time to invest in a small hot plate. We have more than 1 mold so in the long run the hot plate will pay for itself. As for fluxing I used wax, which may not be the best thing to use from reading on here. Some say to use saw dust? Any input on that or what preference do you have for fluxing? What is smoking the mold. I'm gonna search on the forum in a little to see exactly what you're talking about on that part.
Canyon-ghost I know what you mean. When my dad used to cast he would make a whole day out of it sometimes even a weekend. I'm trying to get on his level so then that way I don't need to be casting every weekend, plus casting is fun after all and once you get started mine as well keep going haha. Yes that is my favorite saying for the time being. Casting and reloading is two hole different things. I go to the range and shoot 500 and didn't need to worry about casting before, but now that I know I take a whole new appreciation to how much work goes into it, but you really do reap the rewards.


Little update: yesturday after the range(turned out to be busy because of the holiday, and left early because of a jam) I decided to reload. I was down to my last sized and lubed bullets so I decided to go for broke and reload everything. In the end it resulted in 850 rounds total. This weekend I plan cast again and try and fill as much of the bucket as I can and then throughout next week try and size and lube my future fresh boolits. Planning to take all the advice you all have given me to try and make a cleaner batch this time around. So far i have probably I want to say 5-1000 boolits that need to be sized and lubed, also need to clean the brass and prepare them to be loaded

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a47/Strike69/405639_10150533656508887_502763886_8824328_7990638 90_n.jpg
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a47/Strike69/406971_10150533657008887_502763886_8824335_1688001 189_n.jpg

[dbarnhart]

Hello sw20strike,

It looks like you and I are going down parallel paths:

http://www.castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=139000

With a little luck I'll be shooting my first batch this weekend.

[sw20strike]

dbarnhart haha yes it does look like we are going down the same path. What gun are you shooting? This is the first time casting for both of us, have you reloaded before this though? Casting sure is fun though isn't it? It really is a learning process and hopefully from time we'll make better boolits

[Cherokee]

Good start, things will improve with practice. Peoper temp's for the mould and alloy will help a lot. A hot plate is better in my opinion than setting on top of the pot. For the handles, I put some good wood glue down the hole and shoved them back on the handles; they don't move now.

[sw20strike]

you didn't have a issue with the wood glue and the temps the mold will reach? i was gonna use the jb weld but still haven't gotten around to it and I plan on getting a hot plate instead of putting it on the top. One more thing to add to the things to do list haha

[cbrick]

sw20strike, here is some must reading. It will answer all of your questions and many more questions that you didn't yet know you had. It's in pdf, download it, print it out. It's a great read and you will refer to it often.

From Ingot To Target (http://www.lasc.us/Fryxell_Book_textonly2.pdf)

Rick

[geargnasher]

I would recommend using an RTV silicone such as Permatex Ultra Copper, coat the tangs of the handles with it, put a dab in the hole, and push them back on. It might take a few days to set up depending on humidity levels. JB-Weld or any of the steel epoxy mixes will work just fine and take the heat that gets that far up the mould.

Your wrinkles are from the mould being too cold. I notice you said it was 28 outside one of those days, that's COLD! It's tough to keep an aluminum mould, especially a large six-cavity mould, hot enough for good boolits when the ambient temp is so low. Low temps and breezes make pot spouts freeze and you lose heat from everything, including the sprue plate on the mould. You might try fabbing a windbreak out of scrap wood, stacked bricks, or sheet metal and duct tape to go around the back and sides of your pot.

I've never found that putting a six-cavity Lee mould on top of the pot got it hot enough to do much good, I use a $10 open-coil hot plate and made a little "oven" to put on top. You can make an oven easily by putting an old circular saw blade right on the hotplate coil, putting the mould on that bottom-down (might have to prop up the handles with a brick or something to keep the blocks flat on the saw blade) and covering the mould with a large metal coffee or bean can that has a notch cut in the side for the handles to protrude.

Also, cast FAST, fill, cut the sprue (just before it freezes solid, but while still firm enough not to smear molten lead on the top of the blocks), dump the boolits, close the mould, fill..... Keep up the pace to keep that mould nice and hot.

Opinions vary, but I get the best fillout by running the mould fast and hot enough to give the boolits a nice, even, satin, frosty appearance after they cool for a couple of minutes. As the mould comes up to temp, boolits cast from wheel-weight-ish alloy will be shiny and wrinkled, then shiny and filled out, then shiny with the edges of the bands and base heavily frosted (looks like a white crust), then as the mould gets even warmer that frost will even out as the mould temp evens out and the whole boolit will get a satin apperance. If you let it get any hotter, the boolits will start to look like they were sandblasted, almost like freshly broken cast iron, and that's too hot. They will be undersized and rough.

Hope this helps some, keep at it and you'll get the rhythm. I find that, once the mould is up to temperature, on a comfortable day (60-75 degrees ambient) it takes about three pours a minute with wheel weight metal and a Lee six-cavity mould to keep the heat right. Set your pot for around 700 degrees or so, less if you can get it to work. Never go over 750 degrees because that's where tin's oxide barrier effect (which makes the alloy more "liquid" and flow better) is destroyed at that point and excessive dross forms on top of your melt.

Here's a pic of what I consider "just right" mould temperature. Alloy is clip-on wheel weight metal with about 1.5% tin added to it, and the pot was run about 675 degrees.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=28901&d=1296091775

In this pic, the boolits in the right are from the mould that was too cool yet, note the wrinkle and the rounded edges. On the left, the mould was too hot. Note the heavy, speckled frost and again, the rounded base and bands. The middle is "just right" in my book, light satin appearance and sharp base and bands. Keep in mind that in all three examples, the pot temperature was the same, the only thing I changes was my casting speed to get more or less heat into the mould blocks.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=28007&d=1293562439

Gear

[44man]

I would recommend using an RTV silicone such as Permatex Ultra Copper, coat the tangs of the handles with it, put a dab in the hole, and push them back on. It might take a few days to set up depending on humidity levels. JB-Weld or any of the steel epoxy mixes will work just fine and take the heat that gets that far up the mould.

Your wrinkles are from the mould being too cold. I notice you said it was 28 outside one of those days, that's COLD! It's tough to keep an aluminum mould, especially a large six-cavity mould, hot enough for good boolits when the ambient temp is so low. Low temps and breezes make pot spouts freeze and you lose heat from everything, including the sprue plate on the mould. You might try fabbing a windbreak out of scrap wood, stacked bricks, or sheet metal and duct tape to go around the back and sides of your pot.

I've never found that putting a six-cavity Lee mould on top of the pot got it hot enough to do much good, I use a $10 open-coil hot plate and made a little "oven" to put on top. You can make an oven easily by putting an old circular saw blade right on the hotplate coil, putting the mould on that bottom-down (might have to prop up the handles with a brick or something to keep the blocks flat on the saw blade) and covering the mould with a large metal coffee or bean can that has a notch cut in the side for the handles to protrude.

Also, cast FAST, fill, cut the sprue (just before it freezes solid, but while still firm enough not to smear molten lead on the top of the blocks), dump the boolits, close the mould, fill..... Keep up the pace to keep that mould nice and hot.

Opinions vary, but I get the best fillout by running the mould fast and hot enough to give the boolits a nice, even, satin, frosty appearance after they cool for a couple of minutes. As the mould comes up to temp, boolits cast from wheel-weight-ish alloy will be shiny and wrinkled, then shiny and filled out, then shiny with the edges of the bands and base heavily frosted (looks like a white crust), then as the mould gets even warmer that frost will even out as the mould temp evens out and the whole boolit will get a satin apperance. If you let it get any hotter, the boolits will start to look like they were sandblasted, almost like freshly broken cast iron, and that's too hot. They will be undersized and rough.

Hope this helps some, keep at it and you'll get the rhythm. I find that, once the mould is up to temperature, on a comfortable day (60-75 degrees ambient) it takes about three pours a minute with wheel weight metal and a Lee six-cavity mould to keep the heat right. Set your pot for around 700 degrees or so, less if you can get it to work. Never go over 750 degrees because that's where tin's oxide barrier effect (which makes the alloy more "liquid" and flow better) is destroyed at that point and excessive dross forms on top of your melt.

Here's a pic of what I consider "just right" mould temperature. Alloy is clip-on wheel weight metal with about 1.5% tin added to it, and the pot was run about 675 degrees.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=28901&d=1296091775

In this pic, the boolits in the right are from the mould that was too cool yet, note the wrinkle and the rounded edges. On the left, the mould was too hot. Note the heavy, speckled frost and again, the rounded base and bands. The middle is "just right" in my book, light satin appearance and sharp base and bands. Keep in mind that in all three examples, the pot temperature was the same, the only thing I changes was my casting speed to get more or less heat into the mould blocks.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=28007&d=1293562439

Gear
Nice, my friend and those little divots at the sprue cut mean nothing at all, they are perfect.

[HardColt]

Those are beautiful. Its a shame it needs to go downrange. Pure beauty.

[dbarnhart]

sw20strike,

The gun is a Colt Combat Commander, 45acp. I've been reloading for it and other 1911's for 30 years. This is my first foray into casting though.

I swear casting is more addictive that reloading.

[sw20strike]

Cbrick: thanks for that I skimmed through that article but then couldn't find it again.
Gearngasher: thank you for all the advice. It is cold here haha. I'm doing this in a shed so I not much wind does hit the pot or mold, but I have been waiting before i drop the boolits from the mold. I'm going to try your method and see how that works. The pot has been around 750 from when I did cast. Like others have said about the hot plate I really need to get on before I cast again since the mold was still cold. The pics you posted are beautiful, hopefully I can get it to that quality as I progress.
Dbarnhart: Nice gun, I was actually shooting that yesturday since my Kimber is out of commission right now (shipping issues with my new sights). Yes it is addictive. I do like reloading but since I already got into a rhythm for reloading I want to get more into casting

[sw20strike]

Little Update:
Managed to cast a lot of boolits for the 45, need to size and lube them and then reload ( The long journey continues)

Also I decided to bite the "boolit" (haha see what I did there?) and order my new gun. After much debate between the CZ75 compact, CZ PCR, and the CZ P01, I placed my order for a P01, which was my first choice to begin with. Now I know some may say they are all pretty much the same gun....pretty much they are haha. I really wanted 75 compact for the steel frame, but couldn't find a place who had it in stock. Also I know the OAL isn't much smaller than the full size Kimber I conceal carry, but I still wanted it. Can't wait until it arrives, going to start casting for it tonight