Broken sprue opener in lee six cavity .358

[michael m]

I went to cast bullets, took my lee pot, plugged it in, put dipper and 6 cavity on top of pot (as normal), came back, leads melted, dipped dipper until it poured, fluxed, put mold on top of pot, poured six, fast cooling, pulled sprue handle, nothing, used some hand effort and sprue handle broke in two(aluminum). A new part is on the way


Was the sprue plate just too cold? I cast in a 70F basement.

[mongoose33]

Lee had some trouble w/ the sprue handles; mine broke, too, and they sent me a new one pronto. Something about the alloy used to make it having too much copper.

I wouldn't put the blame on you.

[farmerjim]

Go to KAL tool and die in the vendor sponsor section. They make a replacement that is better than the one Lee uses.

[Maven]

I broke my handle as well (Lee replaced it gratis), but I learned my lesson. I.e., you have to fill one cavity at a time until you get perfect CB's from it, and only then move on to the next. It may take a few minutes more, but you get near perfect CB's + an intact sprue plate.

[bangerjim]

Heat your mold on a hot plate! ( normal for many today)

May not have prevented the handle break, but forcing a cold mold sitting on a pot puts a LOT of stress on that part. After preheating to FULL CASTING TEMP, my sprues cut like butter and the boolits drop perfect from the 1st one.

Try it, you will wonder why you ever used you pot to heat molds.

bangerjim

[runfiverun]

when I cast with my one and only 6 cavity lee mold [22 cal core mold] I start at the front cavity and pour only 2 boolits.
then move back one hole at a time feeling for the smooth cut of the plate.
it takes me about 15 pours to get everything running smooth.

[Hardcast416taylor]

I broke my handle as well (Lee replaced it gratis), but I learned my lesson. I.e., you have to fill one cavity at a time until you get perfect CB's from it, and only then move on to the next. It may take a few minutes more, but you get near perfect CB's + an intact sprue plate.

This is the same way I pre-heat my 6-holer LEE`s. I broke 1 sprue plate handle thinking I had it heated enough, now I do it this way.Robert

[MT Chambers]

What? A lee sprue cutter broke?

[michael m]

Thankyou to everyone who have responded, I knew I was not alone with this issue.

Let me state for the record, I have no issues with Lee products, sometimes stuff(++++) happens.

[MT Gianni]

Search on how to warm up a lee mold to avoid this should come up with at least 25 threads. All say to do as R5R said. Not a faulty product, it is similar to starting an engine at 6000 rpm's.

[Shiloh]

I keep spares. Titan Reloading, one of the top page sponsors, has 'em.

Shiloh

[happy7]

What bangerjim said. If you don't use a hot plate, you are a masochist. :kidding: Seriously, though, for me, when I started using a hot plate it made everything a lot easier and a lot quicker. There is zero wear and tear at the beginning of a casting session with this method because the mold starts out hot. The sprue plate opens with minimal effort from the very first cast if you have the hot plate adjusted properly. To do that just put a boolit on it and keep turning up the heat gradually till the boolit melts and then turn it down just a tad. That will get you close. Back when I was first learning to cast, I struggled. When I finally bought a hot plate a lot of my problems went away. Since then I have gone through a few hot plates over the years and for what they cost, there is no way I would ever not cast with one. That doesn't mean I won't dip a mold in the melt if it is necessary due to me not planning ahead and something like that, but to me a hot plate is essential casting equipment.

[walltube]

michael m,

As farmerjim says. KAL will save you grief and fits of anguish.

KAL sprue plates are hardend steel, not anodised aluminium. In time the soft Al Lee sprue plate will become dull requiring increased effort to cut the sprues. This puts undue strain on the sprue plate bolt. This is where you will have a fit of anguish when the bolt either breaks and\or damages the mould. KAL's sprue plate handle is designed to increase torque when opening the mould halves. Less strain on the mould, less effort by you. Works a dream on my .45 200 gr. round -flat six cavity. Ought to work as well for you.

I doubt you will be disappointed.

Good Luck,
Wt.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I went to cast bullets, took my lee pot, plugged it in, put dipper and 6 cavity on top of pot (as normal), came back, leads melted, dipped dipper until it poured, fluxed, put mold on top of pot, poured six, fast cooling, pulled sprue handle, nothing, used some hand effort and sprue handle broke in two(aluminum). A new part is on the way


Was the sprue plate just too cold? I cast in a 70F basement.

Honestly, the best day of my Casting hobby happened when I bought a Hotplate at the thrift store for $1. when the Lead starts flowing, a preheated mold gets you "keeper" boolits in a minute or less...instead of half an hour, well that was my experience anyway.

PS: Yes, I have broken the Lee sprue Cam lever as well.

[alamogunr]

I have a lot of Lee 6 cavity molds, acquired back when GB's were done thru Lee. In order to cut down on storage space, I removed the cam levers. If I break one(never have), I will just get another one from the pile. I got a couple of the KAL levers for my most used Lee molds.

[michael m]

All this new info is super. I have decided that the simplest thing for me to do is heat the mold as normal, fill two holes then cut, fill 4 holes then cut, fill 6 and get started. I can remember that.

I also put a hot plate on my list. Thanks again to all, Mike

[bangerjim]

All this new info is super. I have decided that the simplest thing for me to do is heat the mold as normal, fill two holes then cut, fill 4 holes then cut, fill 6 and get started. I can remember that.

I also put a hot plate on my list. Thanks again to all, Mike

For the few $$ a hotplate costs you could be casting a lot more good ones.

By the time you follow your plan above, I could have cast at least 48 perfect boolits from the 1st drop. Thank you, Mr Hotplate!

Get that plate. They are not expensive at all and should be on every casting bench as part of the standard necessary equipment.

banger