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fldigger
01-22-2008, 03:07 PM
I have a Lee single cavity mould (I don't recall the number and I am at work, so I can't get it right now) that drops 158 grain 38 caliber hollow points. My question - the boolits it drops have the hole in the nose slightly off center. Not by much but enough to notice and certainly enough to drive me nuts. Will it affect performance or accuracy? I have not been able to get to the range and don't want to cast and load a pile of them if they won't ever be accurate. So tapping into the collective experience here, will it matter or am I being a bit too picky? Thanks for the help.

mroliver77
01-22-2008, 03:22 PM
Hole needs to be in the center. I have seen other lee molds like this. In fact I sent back a 158 Lee hollow point. They dont make it anymore and sent me a similer mold. Do a check with magnafier to make sure there is nothing interfering with the pin holder deal. J

Buckshot
01-23-2008, 04:26 AM
................Load up 15 or 20 and try'em out. At normal handgun ranges the offcenter HP may not be an issue. Never can tell.

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

MT Gianni
01-23-2008, 11:08 AM
One question to answer on an out of production Lee or anyone else mold is "Could they mess it up worse than it is?" Another is "Will they offer $ or a replacement mold I don't want or need as much as this one?" Both are strong possibilities. Gianni

tanstafl10
01-23-2008, 12:10 PM
fldigger,

I do not have the experience these other guys do, but I always have an opinion and do happen to have a Lee .358 cal HP mould that seems to have the same problem as yours. If I do everything just so, it produces a good bullet, but if my mind wonders, it goes south on me. So I cast very slow with it and very hot. This gives me the best results, but the bullet is just not pretty!!

I thought about culling the bullets that have uneven holes, but then decided to use them as plinkers.... 4.5 gr Unique in 38 Spec and 6.0 gr Unique in 357 cases. Turns out, it is one of my nicest loads for shooting offhand practice sessions (7 to 25 yds). I consider it rather accurate.

One thing I have NOT done is try them from the bench at 50 or 100 yards. That I do not know.

Mine drop at 140 to 145 grs and fill a niche in my reloading.... ORRRRR I just cannot admit that I bought a Bummmer used mould. It could go either way.

Try again before you give up completely

Woodwrkr
01-23-2008, 12:53 PM
I don't have any experience with cast hollow points, just theorizing here.

Would it be possible to use a process similar to Beagling to push the hollow back to the center of the boolit?

crowbeaner
01-23-2008, 02:42 PM
You could chuck the mould up in the drill press and indicate center from the outside diameter of the cavity and redrill using a larger bit; you'll have to replace the HP pin with the right diameter. Buckshot could 'splain it better.

mroliver77
01-24-2008, 12:52 AM
Not quite that simple with a Lee hp mold. J



You could chuck the mould up in the drill press and indicate center from the outside diameter of the cavity and redrill using a larger bit; you'll have to replace the HP pin with the right diameter. Buckshot could 'splain it better.

MT Gianni
01-24-2008, 12:00 PM
Just a thought, could you Beagle the pin side that is off? One thin piece of tape on the pin might give a wider point closer to center. Gianni

fldigger
01-24-2008, 02:12 PM
Thanks for the replies. I honestly have not given this mould a chance to prove or disprove itself. I was just looking for some sage wisdom as to what might come of it. I think that I will cast some to try as is and then maybe try beagling the center pin on the off side and see if that makes any difference. The mould came with a bunch of casting gear that I kind of inherited from a buddy, so if it doesn't do well it won't break my heart. At this point it is more of a curiousity than anything else. I will try to get some loaded and get to the range this week or next. Truth be known, the boolits it drops are probably capable of better accuracy than I am. I will report back once I get a couple of these downrange.