docone31
08-10-2009, 06:35 PM
I just got done casting a couple of hundred Lee Minie Balls, R.E.A.L.s, and .50cal balls. Just got the molds.
I let them sit in mineral spirits for a few days each, got my pot up to heat, and started a castin.
First off, the .54 Minie' mold I got is fantastic! Cut the sprue, open the mold and they pop right into the water! Wonderful mold, even being a single cavity. They are huge, and cast fast without any blemish!
On a side note, IF you get a "feather" on the lower part of the mold, it does keep the mold open at the bottom. I would pour, and watch the sprue disappear.
It is a three part mold, and the "flash" gets stuck. The quick way to remove the flash is to pour, cut sprue, and let it sit. Then open it and most times it pulls the flash out also. It gets two spreads under the center mold part.
It heats up quickly, casts well. They are a fairly tight fit. A basically good looking mold.
The .54 R.E.A.L.s are LARGE! They cast also real well. Now I know why the BP Centerfire folks get such great castings! That much liquid metal in the mold, kinda hard to screw up.
Good detail, great fillout, Much heavier than in .50. The .50 balls literally fell out of the mold when I opened it.
My Lee Botttom Pour Pot, that is another story. The top screw holding the handle of the spout had worked loose. I spent several frustrating times trying to get a pour untill I noticed it and gave it a quick tighten. Problem solved!
All in all, the molds were worth the wait. They make really great castings. The Minie" mold is unique to me. It did not take long.
Tomorrow we try them out.
I hate it!
I got my wife a better rifle than I have! I only have a .50.
I do love watching her shoot though. When she tells MEN, who hunt, she fires a Walker, and has a .54 Hawken, they look at her real closely. When she tells them some tricks she has learned, they ask her details and she tells them stuff only someone who has experience would know.
I love it.
I let them sit in mineral spirits for a few days each, got my pot up to heat, and started a castin.
First off, the .54 Minie' mold I got is fantastic! Cut the sprue, open the mold and they pop right into the water! Wonderful mold, even being a single cavity. They are huge, and cast fast without any blemish!
On a side note, IF you get a "feather" on the lower part of the mold, it does keep the mold open at the bottom. I would pour, and watch the sprue disappear.
It is a three part mold, and the "flash" gets stuck. The quick way to remove the flash is to pour, cut sprue, and let it sit. Then open it and most times it pulls the flash out also. It gets two spreads under the center mold part.
It heats up quickly, casts well. They are a fairly tight fit. A basically good looking mold.
The .54 R.E.A.L.s are LARGE! They cast also real well. Now I know why the BP Centerfire folks get such great castings! That much liquid metal in the mold, kinda hard to screw up.
Good detail, great fillout, Much heavier than in .50. The .50 balls literally fell out of the mold when I opened it.
My Lee Botttom Pour Pot, that is another story. The top screw holding the handle of the spout had worked loose. I spent several frustrating times trying to get a pour untill I noticed it and gave it a quick tighten. Problem solved!
All in all, the molds were worth the wait. They make really great castings. The Minie" mold is unique to me. It did not take long.
Tomorrow we try them out.
I hate it!
I got my wife a better rifle than I have! I only have a .50.
I do love watching her shoot though. When she tells MEN, who hunt, she fires a Walker, and has a .54 Hawken, they look at her real closely. When she tells them some tricks she has learned, they ask her details and she tells them stuff only someone who has experience would know.
I love it.