Lee Molds

[Billvz]

I have noticed that a many of you gentleman use LEE molds, I have never use an aluminum mold. How do they last & what temp do they run best at? Do you have to do anything special with them? How do they run for size ,large or small, like a 44 cal
429 or 430 diameter.
Thanks
Bill:Fire: :Fire: :Fire:

[dubber123]

I have had good and bad experience with Lee molds. Their 2 cavities are very inexpensive, but their alignment system shows it, kind of a bars and grooves arrangement. If you get a good one, (round), which is sometimes an issue, and keep the alignment parts well lubed, you can get a good service life out of them. A big deal with the 2-cavities is closing them gently. Slam them closed and you have junk in short order. The 6- cavities are much better made, and in my limited experience are a better bet in general. I run mine pretty hot, and let the sprues cool well to prevent smearing. I'm sure others with more experience will post.

[nighthunter]

Billvz ... The Lee molds put out a respectable bullet. The 6 cavity molds seem to be a better quality. Just give the mold a good scrubbing with soap and water and an old tooth brush to clean off any foreign manufactoring or shipping agents and then you are good to go. I can't give you an accurate temperature reading of my casting metal as I don't have that type of thermometer. I've been useing the same Lee 20 poung bottom pour for about 10 or 12 years and just kinda know where to set the dial to get good bullets. The major advantage of the Lee molds is the cost. You can get 2 Lee 6 cavitiy molds for about the same price of 1 Lyman 4 cavity mold and produce bullets at a very good rate. I recently cast up 8000 9mm's for my brother and I was makeing close to 800 bullets an hour.
Nighthunter

[Newtire]

Billvz ... The Lee molds put out a respectable bullet. The 6 cavity molds seem to be a better quality. Just give the mold a good scrubbing with soap and water and an old tooth brush to clean off any foreign manufactoring or shipping agents and then you are good to go. I can't give you an accurate temperature reading of my casting metal as I don't have that type of thermometer. I've been useing the same Lee 20 poung bottom pour for about 10 or 12 years and just kinda know where to set the dial to get good bullets. The major advantage of the Lee molds is the cost. You can get 2 Lee 6 cavitiy molds for about the same price of 1 Lyman 4 cavity mold and produce bullets at a very good rate. I recently cast up 8000 9mm's for my brother and I was makeing close to 800 bullets an hour.
Nighthunter

All the stuff nighthunter says and then smoke the cavities. Best is a butane lighter or a match. Never use a candle or it will deposit wax/oil & no casting after that until you clean it again. I have had to cast a pretty big bunch with a new mold & then all of a sudden, it starts casting great boolits & never stops. A little dry graphite lube wiped on the cavity face usually is all it takes to get the occasional stubborn boolit to let go. Read the sticky posts on Lee-menting in the cast boolits section...

[shooting on a shoestring]

I cast Lyman 358156 and 358091, sometimes 358087 in 4 cavities since the 70's and figured that was pretty much the living end. After reading some of the posts here, I tried a Lee 2 cavity for 30/30, a 150 RF, pretty delicate mold. I can see where they could get a bad reputation, they have to be babied. I read here to lay it on a flat surface (a board), to close it. That works well. I get good boolits with few problems. I also bought a 6 cavity Lee 140 SWC for .357. Just last night I cast with it and my old Lyman 358091. The Lee runs much better, the third handle for the sprue plate is like a mould turbocharger. There's no picking up a mallet, whacking the sprue plate, bumping the bullets out, putting down the mallet... The Lee is just pour, pull the third handle, dump the bullets (holding onto the third handle and wiggling it makes the bullets fall right out).

The downside to Lee is there bullet designs. I would really like to have a .357 150 to 170 SWC with a single large lube groove al a Keith. Lyman has one, so do Saeco and RCBS, but not Lee. Oh well.

[Dale53]

soass;
I have started using Lee's .358-158-RF in place of the traditional SWC's. It is a very nicely designed bullet. I have yet to shoot anything but paper with it but it has a nice, wide, flat meplat that should do as well as most any SWC. I really like it.

You might want to take a look at it. Using a Lee six cavity bullet mould is kind of like shelling corn (lots and lots of bullets:drinks:).

Dale53

[garandsrus]

soass,

There was a group buy for a .38/357 Keith in a Lee 6 cavity a while ago. The buy is going to run again shortly. The mold casts very nicely. You can find the old thread to see what the boolit looked like.

John

[Buckshot]

.................Anytime you have a steel on aluminum deal, the steel will win every time. In the one and two cavity moulds the horizontal movement is taken care of by the features extruded with the blocks. Those 'V's on the right and left. As aluminum gets hot it gets a bit sticky, so you have to keep those 'V's lubed.

The vertial block alignment is handled by one or two pressed in steel roller bearings. A very simple elegant way to do it. That is, except the steel roller bearings must align with their small mating reliefs in the opposing block. If carelssly aligned or banged shut, it won't take long before the steel has pounded the upper and/or lower edges of the relief and you loose the alignment.

The large 'V's must be free to move against each other so the roller bearing fits easily into it's opposing relief. I normally wear a glove on my right hand when casting, and with a Lee mould I gently close them and when almost closed I pinch the bottoms of the blocks together to seat the steel pins.

Lee moulds will last a long time if cared for, but don't plan on handing any down to your grandkids.

The same care will go far with any mould, regardless of what it's made out of. I see lots of Lyman moulds with alignment pin holes that are ovaled out from the pin having to force it's way in.

...................Buckshot

[pdawg_shooter]

I have 9 Lee moulds, some years old and I have had trouble with only 1. Lee replaced it free. Lot less tireing than my lyman and rcbs moulds to used.