Spur Plate Magmet

[mrbill2]

Some time ago I made myself some thicker spur for my bullet molds for better base fillout. I like to keep them loose so they lay flat on the mold. In order to keep them in place when closed I installed a small magnet in the plate. Works great.

[theperfessor]

Neat idea. Is it glued in place?

[BABore]

Heat usually destroys a magnet in time.

[theperfessor]

I think the ceramic magnets are a lot more resistant to demagnetization than the all metal ones.

[mrbill2]

No they are not glued in. So far so good, if they do come loose I'll center punch the edge. They are rare earth magnets bought from MSC. There is a small hole on the top of the plate not shown in the picture so they can be pushed out if the hole depth was to shallow, otherwise they would be hard to remove. I was surprised at there holding power.

[Shiloh]

I've often thought that thicker sprue plates would be a benefit. I'd also like to see a V or U shaped channel connecting all the holes.

Is Your thicker plate beneficial??

Shiloh

[Cadillo]

I've often thought that thicker sprue plates would be a benefit. I'd also like to see a V or U shaped channel connecting all the holes.
Is Your thicker plate beneficial??

Shiloh


I recently cast some bullets with an a friend's old H&G 68 mould which had the channel you describe. It is a nice feature that aids with controlling the sprue thickness. Why do the other mould makers not do this simple machine step?

Lazy & Cheap!

[paul edward]

I had access to a machine shop back in 1980 and made a few sprue plates from a thicker material for my 2 cavity RCBS and Lyman molds. As an experiment I milled a trough connecting two of the sprues. It has been working well ever since.

Not sure why the manufacturers do not offer this feature.

PED

[oneokie]

Not sure why the manufacturers do not offer this feature.

PED

Thicker material=more cost for material.

Trough to connect the holes=more machine time-more cost.

[trk]

Rare earth magnets are formulated for the temperature range desired.
As they get hotter, they get weaker.
The strength of the magnet depends on both the formulation and the intensity of the fields when the magnets are 'shot'.

One can bore a hole and press the magnet into it, leaving a flush surface that will clamp another piece of steel directly to it.

Easy to remove - magnets tend to shatter when struck.

[mrbill2]

Is Your thicker plate beneficial??

Yes. It does take a little longer to heat, but my bases ar nice and flat. The screw for the spur plate is kept loose so there is no gap between the plate and the mold. The magnet just helps to keep it in place because the screw is loose. It is not meant to draw the plate to the mold.


I've often thought that thicker sprue plates would be a benefit. I'd also like to see a V or U shaped channel connecting all the holes.

Is Your thicker plate beneficial??

Shiloh

[XWrench3]

I'd also like to see a V or U shaped channel connecting all the holes.


+1 on that, especially with my lee 6 holers! it would be awesome to just hold the mold under the spout, and have all of them fill one after the other without dragging it along.

[Le Loup Solitaire]

Thicker or heavier sprue cutters/plates do better. Firstly they are less likely to warp or get bent; they can tolerate a healthier whack if necessary from a mold mallet, plastic or lead hammer. They sit on the blocks with more weight and that helps with sharper and flatter bases. They need more heat to bring them up to temp, but they hold more heat and that helps in keeping the sprue liquid somewhat longer which in turn helps in feeding the shrinkage; and that minimizes voids and or incomplete fillout. A trough helps with the consistency of the pour as it moves from hole to hole as you move the blocks. If there is no trough or sprue channel then the caster has to tilt the mold and pour "uphill" to better control the uniformity of the melt stream from hole to hole... from the dipper or ladle or from the nozzle of a bottom pour pot and the sprues can become pretty grotesque i.e a lot more melt than necessary is used and the pot empties out quicker. LLS