358156 boolits not coming out

[30hrrtt]

Not exactly sure what to title it.

I have a 2 cavity Lyman 358156. After it warms up and I start casting, it works great. Boolits come out sometimes without a tap. The longer I use it, the more they stick. At 75-100, I have to almost beat it. None of my other molds does this.

Cause and solutions?

[MT Gianni]

Where are they hanging up? both sides? one side? top or pry out with a stick? I would use a #2 pencil all through the cavity then rub it with a wooden un-sharpened pencil, check for burrs with a magnifier, and hope for more ideas.

[Glen]

Look for "flashing" around the mouth of the mould. If your sprue plate is a little loose, you can get metal sneaking out in between the top of the mould and the sprue plate as things heat up and this can cause bullets to hang up. The cure is to tighten up your sprue plate.

[cbrick]

Burs or flashing are a definite possibility.

Another is, the reason boolits fall out of the mould (when they do) is because as they cool & solidify they shrink and thus no longer fit in the cavity that made them. As you cast and things get hotter (both your mould and the alloy in your pot) it takes longer for the boolit to cool enough for it to shrink enough to easily fall out. Did your alloy get hotter? Most electric pots get hoter as the level of alloy goes down. Did you change the pace of your casting and get the mould hotter?

Also, high antimony boolits shrink less and compounds the problem.

Just a little something for the grey matter to chew on.

Rick

[Bret4207]

Darn good advice above. Look up "leementing" here, it's a glorified deburring process. You'd be amazed the difference a little burr can make.

[Bass Ackward]

Just a little something for the grey matter to chew on. Rick


Nice looking avatar.

[Wally]

Not exactly sure what to title it.

I have a 2 cavity Lyman 358156. After it warms up and I start casting, it works great. Boolits come out sometimes without a tap. The longer I use it, the more they stick. At 75-100, I have to almost beat it. None of my other molds does this.

Cause and solutions?

The mold is too hot--- when filled merely touch the bottom of the mold on a water soaked sponge, to cool it down just a bit---eventually you will find ho many "dumps" you can do before you need to cool it again. I have this problem with a 429215 mold. The front driving band is where the bullets stick in it---once it reaches a certain high temperature, they stick.

[GBertolet]

I have that mold in 4 cavity and I experience the same problem. I always thought it was because of the sharp edges on the bullets not wanting to slide out of the cavities. Possibly this is just a contributing factor, and the suggestion of too much heat makes sense also.

[Wally]

BTW I did contact Lyman about the 429215 "hangup" problem--I don't have this with any of my other Lyman SWC molds--they told me to send it back & that they's fix it for me--I will do just that.

[38-55]

30hrrtt,
Sounds like a 'mold to hot' issue.. I've had the same issue in the past and I find I have to cast 'cold' or maybe a better description is that I cast alot cooler than I cast with my other molds.. With out going into great detail I've observed that all my mold have quirks and some I have to fiddle with alot more than others.. 358156 and the above mentioned 429215 I've found have to be 'cast cool'.. I think it may be just the sharp edged design but what ever the dynamics I've found that I can solve the release issue by lowering the temp and waiting a few extra seconds between pours.. Both are excellent boolits that I have used for years and well worth the time to cast...
Hope this helps
Stay safe
Calvin
ps for what it's worth I use straight wheel weights with the occasional dab of marvellux flux

[cbrick]

Nice looking avatar.

Thanks, I figure everyone needs a few gold boolits.

Rick

[30hrrtt]

Thanks cbrick and the rest, the mold was getting too hot.

This morning I tried running 2 molds simultaneously at the same time, first for me, and it worked incredibly. I ran a RCBS 32-170 and the 358156. Even then, I also tried a wet rag for the 358156. I cast at a slow even pace and the result was incredible for me, a huge pile of bullets. The rcbs fell out 3/4 of the time with a small tap on the others. The 358156 fell out about 1/4 of the time but still, a light tap was all that was required for the rest. It was actually easier for me using the 2molds than waiting, yup a little impatient.

I have been using cast boolits for some time now but fairly new to casting them myself. It's as fun for me as shooting them. The combined knowledge on this site is awesome and sure makes it easier to learn about both casting and shooting.

Many thanks to all.

[runfiverun]

try the kroil in the mold.
i use a spray penetrating oil it takes a couple of pours to get going then the boolits come out much easier and look better [to me anyways]
you can tell when you need a bit more.

[thx997303]

I also was impatient when using a single mold.

Using two at a time helped me also.

[shooterchris]

Tap the hinge bolt on the mold handles before opening the mold and let your tap open the mold. I've tried all of the quick fixes for sticky bullets, but was watching a real bullet casting vet pour and asked about why he tapped before opening the mold. You will be surprised how much this helps.

P.S. You probably know this, but don't hit the mold itself.

[Bret4207]

Boys, I can darn near promise you that if you take a glass and look over those moulds that you need to cool that you'll find some teeny tiny little bump, burr, pit or something that's making them hang. Something like a typewriter eraser or cratex abrasive drum rubbed in the right spot will relieve the edge that's giving you your problem. What you're getting is really complete fillout with a good hot mould. Something is sticking. Fix it and be happy.

[cbrick]

Bret,

Burrs and other anomalies are of course a real possibility especially in mass produced moulds but the real tip off in 30hrrtt's post & question was this:


After it warms up and I start casting, it works great. The longer I use it, the more they stick. At 75-100, I have to almost beat it.

If there were a burr in/on the mould it should have been there when he started casting and not show up after 75-100 casts. It's not a case of a mould that ya "need to cool" but rather a mould that ya need to not get "too" hot.

Rick

[Bret4207]

Had a couple over the years did the same thing. A good look with a glass revealed tiny imperfections that, after being rubbed out, proved to be the culprits. You may be right but I would still advise taking a good look. A tiny pit that the alloy won't adhere to when it's cool will sometimes become a problem with a hot mould. The result is the same either way and it won't hurt to look the mould over closely.

[38-55]

Hey Bret,
I think you may be right.... I've very rarely had a new mold that cast up to expectations on the first try... It always seems the first casting session the bullets just don't come out well.. Not to say I've never got a good bullet the first time but that's an exception in my experience.. Seem's I always have to get them up to temp and then just put them aside for a bit.. ( like the next day ) and then they behave themselves.. I've degreased them to the inth degree and went over them with a jewelers loup and a 10x microscope with no apparent burrs and yet still had the same 'stickiness'. But that's just my experience..
30hrrtt,
Glad things are working for ya !
Stay safe
Calvin