Best mold for a beginner?

[Woodchuck]

Midsouth has a lot of the 6 cavity molds in stock but is this a good way to go for a beginner. I guess I don't have to poor all of the holes until I get used to it. And is it easier to learn and a different brand other than Lee?

[mooman76]

I'd start with a 2 cavity Lee. Yes you don't have to fill all the cavities but it will be hard to regulate the heat in the mould. 2 cavity are good enough for most unless you shoot allot of a certain caliber but starting out it would be cheap and help you get used to casting and you could move up to something else later

[runfiverun]

put some thought into how you plan on lubing your boolits
a lot of designs just dont work with lee push thru, lubing.

[Leftoverdj]

I'm a huge fan of the Lee six cavities. They are far better built and easier to use than the two cavities. I'd be very wary of only filling some of the cavities because it would be almost impossible to get and hold an even temperature. Casting ain't rocket science and six cavities moulds ain't that much more difficult than two.

That said, the easiest for a beginner would be a well broken in single cavity iron mould that someone else had worked the kinks out of first. Good luck finding one because most of us are reluctant to part with moulds we have gotten casting perfectly.

New moulds can have almost as many problems as new casters. Just getting them clean is difficult for many, and it can take some TLC to get them deburred and dropping bullets easily. This can raise the frustration level considerably.

The Lee one and two cavities are the least expensive by far, and can make very good bullets. They are also more delicate, require careful lubing of the contact points, and the sprue plates can gall on the blocks. I still use them, but I also wrecked a couple in the learning process.

[wiljen]

I might consider starting with a 2 cavity lyman. Yes you'll pay a little more, but you can use the Lee 6 cav handles with it and I do think it is easier to get good temp regulation of the mold and cast well with a 2 cav when starting out. The Lee 2 cavs are not made as well as the lymans and present additional issues not present with the lyman. The RCBS molds are good too but the handles are not interchangeable with the lyman or Lee 6 cav.

[EDK]

I'd go for a LYMAN first...probably a two cavity because of price. Mould on eBay can be a gamble; I think I'd go for one off this forum from someone with a lot of posts Chances are it would be a good one that he has replaced with something new! Might cost more, but I'd go that route.

Most of the "old heads" here are stand-up guys. Read the deadbeat section of the classifieds...the guys getting a cursing have usually slid in, sold their junk...or ripped you off! and headed off into the sunset!

I've got several 6 cavity LEE group buy moulds...two excellent and a third needing a little tinkering. Might be a little much for an inexperienced caster, but help is on your screen!

:cbpour::redneck:

[jack19512]

I now have 10 of the Lee single and double cavity molds and I must be the luckiest person ever because everyone of them works like a charm. When I get a new mold I scrub them at least 3 times in boiling water with dish detergent and a stiff tooth brush then smoke them.

I like the single and double cavity molds the best only because I don't shoot as much as a lot of the guys here do and I actually enjoy casting my own bullets and with a 6 cavity mold the fun would just be over too soon for me. I do believe the frustration that can come from learning would be a lot less for a new caster if they were to learn on a single or double cavity mold vs. a six cavity mold.

[Woodchuck]

Well I bought 2 Lee doubles tonight. I decided to go for it and got on Midsouth and found 2 in stock. I had the .40 175 swc and went ahead and got the 148 wc in .358 since it was only $18 and the shipping didn't change. I also got the Lee liq. Alox. How do you apply the Alox? This is my first order from Midsouth so we'll see how they do. I've always ordered from Midway but their getting squirlly and I don't pay tax at Midsouth!

[mooman76]

Alox is easy to apply. Put bullets in a plastic butter tub(remove butter first) and pour some allox on the bullets a swish around with the lid on until evenly coated . Just put a little on at a time until you figure how much you need.Then spread them out on a wax or plastc coated paper until dry. I usually use a fan to aid drying and move them around periodicly. If the alox is too thick and it usually is thin witha little mineral spirits. I've don bussiness with both Midway and Midsouth with no problems and quick service!

[Cherokee]

I like the 40-175 TC bullet (2 Cv) for my 40 & 10 mm use. The 358-158RF (6 Cv) is my preference for 38/357 use and they both cast so easy for me. According to my Lyman thermometer, I have been casting my wheel weight bullets at 550-575* with near perfect results from a pre-heated mould.

[kjg]

my two cents the moulds you chose are good one , moonman right on the money, the liquid alox works loike a charm for the newbe,I started out with all the fancy gadgets,and tools, then discoverd the liquid stuff i do like it better, but found some bullets and firearms prefer the ther stuff, but you can't beat lee stuff for the price, after you gat handi withthe cheaper side you can allways go up from there. kjg