Front to back or back to front...?

[funnyjim014]

I'm not talking about cleaning your hieny. When you cast in a multi cavity mould, do you pour the back (handle side) or front first? Some times my mind wanders while casting

[twc1964]

I start at the non handle end and go from there. I didn't know if there is a correct end to start at. Maybe il learn something new lol.

[DerekP Houston]

I start at the back (hole farthest from me) and work my way forward. I'm lazy now with them broken in, a solid stream of lead and pull the mold straight through fills all the cavities. Works for all the little 6 bangers at least, larger calibers/rifles, ymmv.

[longshot1154]

I start at the handle end. Just got inside from casting a few hundred 40 cal.

[frkelly74]

I have made it a practice when starting out to fill one or two cavities at the far end. When those get easy to cut then fill three or four and when those are easy go for all six. Once everything is working nice I reverse order and fill from the handles out. I have never broken a sprue lever.

[RogerDat]

I'm mostly handle out, but will vary to from outside end back toward handle from time to time. I'm trying to keep the mold temp even. Figure the lead coming out of the ladle is hottest for that first pour and coolest for the last one.

Watching with interest to see what others do, would be worthwhile knowing if one is talking about with a ladle or with a bottom pour pot.

[robg]

One nearest the handles first pull mold out fill the farthest one last put mold down ,fill next mold then empty the first mold.allows time for bullets to cool .

[DerekP Houston]

hmm perhaps I need to switch directions!

[country gent]

I fill from handles out as my sprue plates all have a run off trough in them now

[waksupi]

I have made it a practice when starting out to fill one or two cavities at the far end. When those get easy to cut then fill three or four and when those are easy go for all six. Once everything is working nice I reverse order and fill from the handles out. I have never broken a sprue lever.

This method is only good if you don't want to break your sprue cutter. Leverage......

[Half Dog]

I have made it a practice when starting out to fill one or two cavities at the far end. When those get easy to cut then fill three or four and when those are easy go for all six. Once everything is working nice I reverse order and fill from the handles out. I have never broken a sprue lever.


Genius, pure genius. I learn something new every day.

[FISH4BUGS]

This method is only good if you don't want to break your sprue cutter. Leverage......
I cannot imagine ever breaking a Hensley & Gibbs sprue cutter. Lee? Yes. H&G? never.

[Calamity Jake]

I most often fill from back to front always pushing the mold away for me.
BUT some molds want to be filled in the opposite direction, I have a Lee 6 cav that
refuses to give 6 goods boolits per pour if I push away, if I start handle end and
pull toward me I get 6 good boolits.

[funnyjim014]

Wow good and interesting answers. Keep em coming

[kentuckyshooter]

I ladel cast with a soup ladel i modified so that it has a pore spout. My 2 molds are lee 2 cavity and i pore from the handle out. For me it is easyer to control my pore to get a good bollit this way. My only thing is i have to move quick to keep things up to temp.

[mold maker]

On a 4-6 cav mold, I always pour front to handle. That puts the hardest sprue where the leverage of the sprue plate is at it's best.
I too have never broken a plate or handle.

[rockrat]

I cast from the far end towards the handle, except on two moulds. Guess the venting is different. Have to cast from hinge end first to get all six cavities filled out correctly

[wv109323]

I start with the cavity closest to me and bring the mold out toward me. If done opposite filling the front cavity first,if there is lead spillage, pushing the mold forward becomes blocked. My mold guide has a cut out ,that the spilled lead can build up ,and not allow the mold to be pushed forward.

[JSnover]

When I first started this craziness I was advised that the larger/heavier boolits from a multi-cavity mold would be the ones from the last cavities, presumably because the blocks have absorbed more heat by the time you fill them. Then I was advised to weigh and measure and shoot those boolits last, if I ever shot in competition, since the barrel will have warmed and expanded a bit.

[BrassMagnet]

One nearest the handles first pull mold out fill the farthest one last put mold down ,fill next mold then empty the first mold.allows time for bullets to cool .

This is the efficient way to do it!
I also try solid stream and one pour per hole with each mould. Some moulds have a much higher percentage of acceptable boolits with the one pour per hole method than with the solid stream method.
If your pouring technique splashes unfilled holes and makes the boolit defective, you may have to change the tilt direction of the mould, the direction of the pour, or the speed of pour to get more good boolits faster.
My last casting session with 6C moulds was three Mihec moulds.

[toallmy]

I know this is off subject , but I found that breaking the top inside of the blocks helped me with base fill out much more than front to back , or back to front . It seamed like whatever direction I started pouring the other end had more of a chance of rounded base . But eather way the hot plate preheated molds made aluminum fun to cast with . I fill pushing from front to back under pot continuous pore , works most of the time count to 6 cut and add spru to pot and drop the bullets .