what am I doing wrong

[45fan]

Well finally did it guys, I attempted my first boolit casting. This is the outcome, does anybody know what happened just by looking at these? I cast in a Lee 20lb. bottom pour, kept temperature between 650 and 750 (tough to get a steady set temp), used Lee 6 cavity moulds, cleaned them very well and smoked them, never had an issue dropping them, the lead I used is nothing but COWW. Tell me guys what did I do wrong to make them look like this?

[Larry Gibson]

Add 2% tin to the COWWs.

Keep the mould hot when casting.

Keep alloy between 700 and 750.

Open the spout flow adjustement so the alloy gets into the cavities faster.

Make sure a good srue is over each hole before moving to the next one.

Larry Gibson

[Bad Water Bill]

+ 1 on everything Larry said.

Keep at it.

Everyone has to learn to read exactly what their mould is telling them. It is a process of learning from our mistakes and coming here for answers as well.

[462]

Moulds are not up to their optimum casting tempertures.

[docone31]

Yeah, those six bangers need heat!
I rest them on the melt, then pour.
I try to use the six second rule. Each sprue freezes at the count of six. Too fast, too cool. Too slow, too hot.
That has worked for me for a long time.

[mistermog]

You really dont NEED to add the tin to the wheel weights, but the rest is good. I found with the lee pots you have to adjust the spout to JUST before it leaks so it pours fast enough.

[geargnasher]

Moulds way too cold. Preheat them and cast faster. You don't NEED any more tin, really, it won't make the wrinkles go away from cold moulds.

Smoking the cavities insulates the blocks from the heat somewhat and can make the wrinkle problem even worse.

Gear

[45fan]

Thank you gentlemen, I knew you guys would be able to tell me what I did wrong just by looking at my boolits (really dont even deserve to be called boolits at this point), thanks again all for the help I think I will look for a hot plate. I have heard others using one to keep their moulds up to temp.

[runfiverun]

aluminum molds usually do better after a few heat cycles.
i usually get mine real hot then cool them off a bit then cast with them for about 30-40 pours then let them cool.
after about 3-4 cycles of this, you'll start to notice them pouring well filled out more consistent boolits.

[Silvercreek Farmer]

No worries. Follow the advice given here and those boolits will be casting pretty in no time at all. I finished my 3rd casting session on Saturday and I am already noticing a marked improvement in boolit quality over my first session.

[MT Chambers]

A hot plate and a fan are your friends, pre heat the mold on the hotplate, if bullets get too frosty or sprue falls apart when dumping it, use fan to cool mold slightly as you cast.

[geargnasher]

I've yet to see a newbie get their moulds too hot from casting, most are too busy looking over each boolit that just dropped from the mould while they hold their mould (open, and losing precious heat by the second) absent-mindedly in their hand. We've all done it. Just focus on fill rate, sprue freeze rate, overall casting rhythm, and keeping the speed up and the wrinkles will take care of themselves.

Big hint: Keep the alloy about 100 degrees hotter than the fully-molten temperature (the point where the last grain of slush goes liquid and the solid/liquid phase change is complete), and cast at a pace of three to four pours per minute to keep the mould hot. Sometimes you have to do five pours a minute. Cut the sprue by hand while it's still soft, but set-up enough to not smear molten alloy on the blocks. Time it and you'll see where your problem is. If the mould gets too hot after 20-30 pours, just slow down a tiny bit.

Gear

[cabezaverde]

Those look a lot better than some of my first ones.

[Longwood]

I get my tin for free or at the most 50 cents a pound at recycle centers. The last lot of very high tin content solder that I got cost me 25 cents.
I usually add about 4" of bar solder to 20 pounds of wheel weight lead.
I did it back in the 70's for pistol rounds and now do it for my large diameter rifle rounds and find that it does help wheel weight bullets cast a little bit better.

[Wayne Smith]

Clean the smoke from your cavities. It shouldn't be necessary and it does act as an insulator, keeping the mold heat from the cavity and vice versa.

[GRid.1569]

Listen to Gear.... he's got it for sure....

[PS Paul]

The friendliest, most helpful bunch on the interweb! Takes a fair amount of courage to show a frist-try "fail" on ANY forum. Just imagine the vitriol that would be spewed on other forums! This is why, after lurking for a few years, I finally joined up and learn something new DAILY! Keep up yer casting there, 45fan. It will be perfect next time after using the sound advice offered up by the Cast Boolits community!

[MtGun44]

Standard Answer #1: Mold is too cool.

Might also be Standard Answer #2: Mold is dirty.

Bill

[45fan]

Thanks all, it appears I need to clean my mould cavities and get my moulds hotter, so I want my moulds the same temp or close to the temp of the melt? I plan on getting a hot plate to rest them on to keep them up to temp. Is it possible that I could damage the moulds by having them rest on a hot plate? Particularly since it isnt a solid hot surface like a glass top stove, could the coil type design of the hot plate damage the moulds in anyway?

[bgokk]

put an old skill saw blade on the coils. works for me.

[462]

Here's my mould oven: A 5" electrical box and cover. Since the picture was taken, I've drilled holes in the cover so a thermometer can be inserted into a cavity. The original idea is not mine, but I can't recall the member who came up with it.

As to mould pre-heating temperature: I've found that 400 to 425-degrees almost always produces first-cast keepers.

[wallenba]

Here's my mould oven: A 5" electrical box and cover. Since the picture was taken, I've drilled holes in the cover so a thermometer can be inserted into a cavity. The original idea is not mine, but I can't recall the member who came up with it.

As to mould pre-heating temperature: I've found that 400 to 425-degrees almost always produces first-cast keepers.

Oh dude...that is so cool, uh...hot! Off to Home Depot in the morning. Thanks for the repost, I missed it.