First casting results

[OnceFired]

Hey all

First session after many lame delays FINALLY took place this weekend. Results are mixed, and I am looking for recommendations.

I am casting 9mm round nose from wheel weight lead - all of which was smelted with 700 degree maintained heat. I am confident no zinc got through due to hand sorting and rigorous heat control.

I am using a new 6-cavity Lee mold. I used lighter fluid to cleanse the mold prior to its first use.

I am getting a failure rate of about 50%, but perhaps I am being too demanding. You be the judge. I have been quenching in ice-filled water bucket.

The BAD
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8346/8181075210_d6b581a59a.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8181075210/)
IMG_2375 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8181075210/) by ZombieApocGames (http://www.flickr.com/people/89996572@N07/), on Flickr

The GOOD
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8208/8181074650_81a21b94c8.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8181074650/)
IMG_2373 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8181074650/) by ZombieApocGames (http://www.flickr.com/people/89996572@N07/), on Flickr

Most common problems:
- Seam with extra material (likely caused by loose mold)
- Burr at the base (ditto?)
- Off center circle from the mold on base (ditto?)

I realized I had not been holding the sprue plate handle tightly closed, until about half way through. If that was the only source of issues, I should have a 25% failure rate, as a rough estimate.

Interestingly, I had one of the mounting screws come quite loose as well, and had to tighten during the session. It had been tight to begin with.

[Jkallen83]

congrats on casting. it does take time to get it all worked out and working for "YOU".


now, the good ones, look good.

the bad ones. some look like the mold is not hot enough so they "wrinkle" some, they still shoot fine from what ive found.

the ones with fins are from the mold not closed enough. i have a mold that is bad about it, not only do i just close the mold, i have to bump the bottom of it so it'll "lock in" together so it does not "fin".

only other advice i can give is practice practice practice.

[jdgabbard]

Seams, your mold isn't closing completely. Check to see if there is something that is causing to stick partially open. The sprues that have funny cuts, looks like the plate is being lifted up and cut at the same time. If not, the you may need to sharpen your sprue holes a little. The off center circles, could be a couple of things. Mold not completely closed, sprue plate not being competely closed, or off center sprue holes. My guess would be the first since we can establish that you're not getting a good closure on the mold.

[MikeS]

Some of the defects you're getting are caused by holding all 3 handles. Once you close the sprue plate don't touch it's handle, and hold the mould only by the 2 handles. If you hold all 3 the mould can open up slightly, and as the sprue plate is over it you won't notice it. Try casting only holding the handles that are attached to the mould and see if they don't come out better.

[blikseme300]

As MikeS said. I use Lee 6-bangers for most of my casting and had the same experience as you had initially. You don't need to water drop, but it is your choice. I don't even do that when I cast for rifle.

My new mold prep does not follow the Lee instructions but here goes. First the mold is cleaned using brake parts cleaner, flammable kind. I then use a sponge with the scotch-brite pad and wipe the mold mating surface in a circular motion to remove any small burrs. Careful here as the scotch-brite does remove aluminum. Clean again with the spray and inspect the mold. When the 2 halves are mated you should not be able to see any light through the block.

After assembly I use small drops of synthetic 2-cycle oil on all hinge points and mold pins. A very very light smear to the bottom of the sprue cutter. I then pre-heat the mold on a hot plate. No smoking of cavities needed.

Be gentle with the molds and never pound or force it. I have 10s of thousands of boolits from my molds and they will probably do many thousands more.

YMMV


Bliksem
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[popper]

What MikeS says, plus you have a loose sprue plate and are opening it too early (off center cuts - actually tearing). The base flash ca we fixed when sizing, then cut the extra off with a knife. Easier to fix the mould.

[snuffy]

I realized I had not been holding the sprue plate handle tightly closed, until about half way through.

As said above, leave the sprue plate handle alone! Close the mold halves first, then close the sprue plate until it goes under the bolt head at the back. Properly adjusted sprue plate pivot bolt and the bolt-head at the back should hold the sprue plate tight against the top of the mold.

Also looks like the mold is not hot enough. That's what causes the wrinkled boolits. Another cause is not forming a big enough sprue puddle. You must have enough lead on the top of the sprue plate so the bullet can draw on that while it cools. Third cause may be not enough tin in your alloy. Tin allows the lead to flow more like a liquid. Your sprue puddle should take about 5 seconds to cool, that's an indicator that your mold is hot enough. You should approach frosty boolits, just before they get the crystallized look.

Off center "circle" on the base of the boolit, means the sprue plate is not all-the-way-closed. Fins on the boolits means the mold is not closed completely. Make real sure the face of the mold is entirely free of any and all spots of lead that would hold the mold open. If you see some, VERY carefully remove it. Best bet is a piece of hardwood, like a dowel sharpened to a fine edge.

The aluminum is VERY soft, so extreme care must be used to remove the lead from the mold faces. IF the lead is near the edge of a boolit cavity, be real careful NOT to create a burr on the cavity. You'll find that one cavity will not release a boolit if there's a burr on it.

[Cherokee]

Congrats for your first go. Can't add to the good advice already posted, just keep at it and you'll learn.

[OnceFired]

Thanks everyone. Definitely appreciate the advice. I'll come back with round 2 this weekend.

ZAG

[popper]

I found I was cutting the sprue too early -- before sprue puddle completely changed color and had off center, high and oval divots. Way too early and you get smears.

[OnceFired]

Okay, did another session tonight and took pictures. I improved on the smearing issue seen above, so that has mostly gone away. But, I am getting a LOT of daisy-chained bullets with lead in the mold seam connecting sometimes all 6 bullets.

Basically, the mold is not staying tight enough, and I am getting more problems, not less. I think I hit a sweet spot in terms of the heat of the mold for a while, and that's where most of my good projectiles came out of. But after that brief period, it seemed like everything I was turning out was welded together to the next projectile. I kept having to tighten the nut for the sprue handle, or the bolt for the sprue plate.

I'll post the pics in the morning.

BAD
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8059/8190554629_984589962f.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8190554629/)
106 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8190554629/) by ZombieApocGames (http://www.flickr.com/people/89996572@N07/), on Flickr

LOTS OF BAD
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8480/8191637720_20da093178.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8191637720/)
104 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8191637720/) by ZombieApocGames (http://www.flickr.com/people/89996572@N07/), on Flickr

GOOD & BAD side by side
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8205/8191638304_a7c6e65b1c.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8191638304/)
105 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8191638304/) by ZombieApocGames (http://www.flickr.com/people/89996572@N07/), on Flickr


A few more notes:
After the mold cooled overnight, I was able to tighten one handle screw about 1/4 turn. But, I can definitely still see daylight between the mold halves. It is a tighter fit nearer to the handle, but i can certainly see why the mold is turning out daisy chains, particularly in the center of the mold. It's got a bowed opening - tighter at the ends, wider in the middle. When I open it, it sticks a bit at the far end from the handle.

Here is a top shot of the mold
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8347/8191697388_1c2755cb4b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8191697388/)
IMG_2491 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8191697388/) by ZombieApocGames (http://www.flickr.com/people/89996572@N07/), on Flickr

Here is the underside
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8062/8191696864_a8ccccc9e7.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8191696864/)
IMG_2492 (http://www.flickr.com/photos/89996572@N07/8191696864/) by ZombieApocGames (http://www.flickr.com/people/89996572@N07/), on Flickr

ZAG

[OnceFired]

Bump to counteract the laziness caused by thinking about turkey & stuffing. :)

ZAG

[DrCaveman]

Let's see some close up shots of the inside (mating portions) of the mould. While I doubt the camera will make burrs obvious, some wise members here may notice something that us newbies overlook.

Still sounds to me like something is obstructing full closure. I have the 45 cal 230 gr equivalent of your mould, and I found that the alignment pins walked out on me at some point. Some VERY gentle love with my vice brought it flush once again. Not sure what caused it, but I know what 'fixed' it.

Good luck. The best thing about a huge pile of rejects is the FREE LEAD! Cast more cast more, then cast more.

[runfiverun]

you got something in there holding the top half of the mold apart.
look at how your flashing is forming.

[snuffy]

That mold is warped! It's tight on the ends, but there's a gap in the middle.

Send it back to Lee, they'll send you a new one. I won't even guess how it got warped.

[Down South]

That mold is warped! It's tight on the ends, but there's a gap in the middle.

Send it back to Lee, they'll send you a new one. I won't even guess how it got warped.
Ditto, that mould is warped.

[dragonrider]

Yes agree that you mold is warped, pic #4 in post 11 confirms that. Ends are tight center is not.

[Bullet Caster]

I have a question more than a response. In one post you said to sharpen the sprue plate. How does one accomplish this task? Also, last Sat. I cast 954 9mm boolits like the ones in the OP. I ran into the problelm he has in that the sprue plate loosens as I cast. Some of the bases had rough areas. I keep a philips screw driver to keep tightening up the sprue plate. Is this a common issue? What will keep the sprue plate tight against the mould top? Could I drill into the mould to put a set screw against the pivot screw? Will this result in a damaged mould? Thanks to you guys that have more experience than I do. Will be subscribing to this thread by e-mail to see if it works and to get instantaneous replies. BC

[OnceFired]

Ok, submitted my ticket to Lee for a replacement. I'll report back on what happens.

ZAG

[runfiverun]

I have a question more than a response. In one post you said to sharpen the sprue plate. How does one accomplish this task? Also, last Sat. I cast 954 9mm boolits like the ones in the OP. I ran into the problelm he has in that the sprue plate loosens as I cast. Some of the bases had rough areas. I keep a philips screw driver to keep tightening up the sprue plate. Is this a common issue? What will keep the sprue plate tight against the mould top? Could I drill into the mould to put a set screw against the pivot screw? Will this result in a damaged mould? Thanks to you guys that have more experience than I do. Will be subscribing to this thread by e-mail to see if it works and to get instantaneous replies. BC

the set screw will definatley help.
look at the leementing sticky it will really help,and the set screw is part of the process.

[Bullet Caster]

Thank you for your response, R5R; I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge with others. I've read the sticky on Lee Menting a mould. I guess I just wanted to hear it from another Castbooliteer than I wasn't about to mess up my mould. Thanks again. BC