Please rate the mould manufacturers!

[oldblinddog]

I don't mean this in a derogatory way. But it's not the mold, it's you.

I have no doubt you are correct. Also, I am aware that others get good results from their NOE molds. However, I'm not doing this so that I can cast. I'm doing it so that I can shoot and I don't care to work at casting 25-30 good bullets when I can cast 100 perfect bullets with less effort. If you have read through all the posts in this thread, you know that I am not the only one with this experience.

[longbow]

My preferences in order:

Mihec/Accurate
Old Lyman (and my newer Lyman round ball moulds)
NOE
Lee

I think Mihec and Accurate are top of the heap though Mihec has a nicer overall presentation. As for casting, they are both top notch and Tom is very easy to work with to get what you want. Hard to pick a winner there as they are both so good. I am talking brass moulds here too.

Personally, I am a fan of iron moulds and my old Lyman moulds are also top notch but of course "production run" moulds, not custom or preferred sizes for oversize bores and such. Newer Lyman moulds, except for my selection of 12 ga. round ball mouds, have been a disappointment. I don't go there anymore.

I have two NOE moulds and they cast as advertised. At the time they only did aluminum and I prefer brass or iron. No complaints about my 316299 or my 0.314" x 129 gr. NOE. Great moulds but oddly they cast like brass even though they are aluminum. Had NOE been making brass at the time I would have gone brass. I may replace my 316299 aluminum GC mould with a brass 2 cavity. Great mould. One thing I do not like about NOE moulds is the alignment pins. I prefer the radius nose type like Lyman. A small thing but... The moulds are well made and cast exactly as advertised so great in that respect.

Lee moulds generally are good value for money and if they need a bit of TLC to get them going I'm okay with that. They are not my first choice but overall are not bad moulds for the money... those that I have bought anyway. A little burr removal and they are good to go and work well.

Different strokes.

Longbow

[cuzinbruce]

Five year old thread? My take:
Best: Hensley & Gibbs, Cramer, old Saeco, Ballisticast, Old West
Better: Mihec, old Lyman, Ideal, RCBS, NEI, Ohaus
Adequate: new Lyman
Fair: Lee, Herters

Probably missed some, never used some of the others.

[PBaholic]

I've always used Lee Molds. Cheap, and get the job done. Yes, they sometimes need a little tweeking, cleaning, lubricating, what doesn't.

As for Customer Service, Lee is #1 in my book. I had one of my original molds start having problems (align pins kept backing out), they replaced it with no questions asked. Even got to talk with one of their engineers as he was curious, as he had never heard of my issue before.

[dragon813gt]

Yes, they sometimes need a little tweeking, cleaning, lubricating, what doesn't.

I can tell you from experience Mihec, Accurate and non hollow point NOE molds work right w/ no tweaking required. For some people the tweaking is part of the fun. For myself I have little time and the molds need to work right the entire time. I try not to disparage Lee molds because I cut my teeth on them. But it's the one Lee product that I will never recommend.

[zubrato]

I try not to disparage Lee molds because I cut my teeth on them. But it's the one Lee product that I will never recommend.

Resonates big time with me, though I do recommend beginners use Lee molds so they can run a 20-40$ mold into the ground, before they abuse a work of art.

Kind of like learning to drive stick on a Ferrari you had to wait months for.

Lee customer service is very spotty at best. Some get great service, but seems I get the jerks, and I've had to replace several of their products for simple quality issues or design defects.
Usually goes like they blame you, tell you it's either in spec or someone who couldn't recognize their heiney from a hole in the ground implies you're a idiot.

My first Lee mold 6 cavity 356-125TL dropped bullets from .354 to .362 and it gave me nonstop problems in terms of leading, jammed bullets in the chamber, tumble lube grooves shaved clean off from oversize bullets. The guy told me that was perfectly in spec, and word for word told me if I sent it in on my dime he would send it right back and I would have wasted both his time and mine. I was shocked, I was courteous, didn't blame or point fingers just described the issue, and asked if they could have a look at it.

After that I swore off Lee products, although their dies, presses, and powder measures are alright.
Rcbs takes care of their customers, and you can always catch a lemon from any mfg.


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[Harter66]

I have another 5 yr under my belt and I have a couple of moulds I didn't have 5 yr ago .
Tops go to ,
NOE , LBT , Mountain Moulds
Second place ,
Cramer , Lyman , Herters
3rd place
Lee

Now the decision is still out on the much loved M-P/Miha/Mihec . I was very happy to win it as a prize ........ And very let down in use but it was the first pour with a new mould and the only Brass mould I've used . Fill out sucked . I cast over 30 pours in a preheated mould , washed and heat cycled , lubed with the provided lube at arm's length with a q tip . By the 10th pour the pins for the 462-420 HB were hot making clean bases and clean noses it was just everything in between that was bad . Talk about having to work at making a mould work​ ! M-P has 3 names ? I won't even go into the 18 month old Group buy with 40 names on I singed up for and 19 months later we , 70 some , got the mould from NOE or the 9mm 135 or the 165 40 cal I backed out of after 8-9 months wait .

I have NOEs from 225-37 to 454424 in 2s,4s &5s , only 1 gave any trouble mostly because I didn't follow the start up instructions .

The Mountain Moulds custom ordered at a .446 nose , .1 taper to .450 with 453 bands at 350gr is dead on . The order page promised 6-8weeks and 9 days I had a mould in my hands .

The LBT looks odd but was a gem to use. I passed it along to another here in a mould swap . Because I have a Lee 6C that makes bullets that shoot within a 1/4" of the LBT and makes 2-3 times as many in the same time , an important feature when feeding autos .

I'd be very unhappy if I spent $70-90 for a 2C iron mould and it's 311291 was almost 308 and I can see why people are unhappy with Lyman thankfully the 457193 single was on sale and drops at 459 . The RB moulds are round and of advertised dia . I have a host of old singles , doubles and even a 4c . They all seem to deliver round correct bullets , well except the 291 that I knew was small and size down for paper patch .

I have 6 Lee 6 cavity moulds that pour +.001-3 over size and up to 10 gr heavy I have a hand full of doubles and singles both old and new . If the 18 ball 00B mould were a bullet not shot I'd be upset . The .375 RB moulds are only .360 across the tangical cut off I have 2 of those 2Cs to cut up or run buck shot in .... Yeah those suck but I've only had one of 20 + Lee's that was hard to pour , it's easy now ,I was young and stupid then I'm older now .

I will admit that going from some of the better moulds back to cheaper moulds takes a little reset . I can't count the times I've heard me saying pour and dump faster , roll left this time , your pouring heat to slow , dip now rest on the pot and pour . Pour faster ! Okay you're running to fast for this mould now ....... and so it goes .

[S.B.]

I own all three of the makers molds you mention and never had any trouble with any of them, mind you, they all have personalities of their own.
Steve

[Ken in Iowa]

From my humble experience..... best to worst.

NOE

Arsenal

RCBS

Ideal

Old Lyman

New Lyman

LEE

[Lloyd Smale]

best-ballistic cast/H&G
applegate when he was still making molds
Mihec
NOE, Accurate
saceo
rcbs
lbt
lee 6 cav
lyman
lee 2cav

[trixter]

MP/Mihec and Lee, the only 2 brands that I own.

[lightman]

Interesting thread! I don't have enough different molds to participate. I only have a couple of older Lyman, 8 or 10 RCBS and 5 H&G molds. The RCBS are easy to get good bullets quickly and both cavities produce consistent weights. I wish they made 4 cavity molds. The H&G's are a joy to cast with. Nuff said! The Lymans hardly ever get used, mostly because I use that type of bullet the least. I've been looking at some of the custom makers seriously lately, so this threat has been helpful to me.

[Digital Dan]

Have to smile a little after reading some of this. Some of you fellas walked a path I haven't.

Don't have any bad moulds, just some that are easier than others. They all qualify as favorites for one or more cartridges and/or muzzle loaders.

Hilliard .50 is about 150 years old and does the job.
Brooks, Hoch, Ideal, Lyman, Mos do just dandy.

About 20 moulds, no complaints.

A suggestion for those with fit issues for different moulds and such. Lyman and Hornady checks aren't the same diameter for all calibers/shanks. Lyman moulds prefer Lyman checks.

[sw282]

Best..Hensley&Gibbs

Runner-up... Saeco-RCBS-Lyman

Last and least...Lee

l just love their pots and priming tools.. Sizers too

[Elkins45]

Five years later and the only thing that has changed is that I have a bunch more NOE molds, most of which are hollow point RG models. I'm a member of the $1000 club.

One change is that the arthritis in my hands is annoying enough that I don't use my brass MP molds very often since they are so heavy.

I still don't own an Accurate mold, nor a Saeco.

[johnnysespresso]

Just found this thread. Great info and comments. I have 4 new Lymans and 1 new RCBS. My first Lyman was for a Marlin .44 mag and a Marlin .444 and both have a groove diameter of .431, so I had to "beagle" it. My second mold was the RCBS .40 cal. 200gr. and there was a burr on the bottom of the sprue plate that customer service took care of promptly, but that left me leary of them. Glad to hear RCBS molds are held in fairly high regard as I will try them again. I'm thinking also of getting an Accurate mold that will cast the correct size from the get go for my .444 Marlin. I have no where near enough experience to rate the manufacturers, but I really appreciate that those with experience have done so

[white eagle]

like asking which kid you like the best
molds have different applications what might be good for
my pistol I may choose and prefer another manufacturer for a rifle
can't pin it down that easily
that said we are fortunate to have at our finger tips a cast of mold makers
that are second to none the golden age of casting is here

[JWT]

Excellent - MP/Mihec (all brass)
Very Good- NOE (all brass)
Good - RCBS, Lyman, Lee

I did have a little trouble with bullets sticking on the large HP pins in NOE brass 434-290-FN until I polished the pins. I have a Lyman 452630 4 cavity that the sprue plate washer broke in half in the first 20 pours. My only experience with Lee or aluminum is a Lee 459-405-HB which does ok. It's not a star but it does work and my trapdoor likes it.

Brass molds work great once you learn their heat preferences. The iron molds seem to be the easiest to just grab, pour, and get good boolits.

[fatelvis]

The iron molds seem to be the easiest to just grab, pour, and get good boolits.

I agree with you there. If they didnt rust, I would prefer that material the most.

[FISH4BUGS]

No question here - Hensley & Gibbs are the best. Been collecting and using them for 30+ years.
Second, I have 2 Carpenteria CA SAECO moulds from the original SAECO Company. Bought them from Paul Fitz Jones probably 30 years ago. Still have the original red and white SAECO boxes. Great casting 4 cavity 45 acp moulds. Made with Meehanite alloy and rosewood handles. Supposedly a special SAECO run made for him exclusively.
Then RCBS. Too bad they don't make 4 cavity moulds. I started with RCBS moulds years ago. They still cast wonderfully.
Then Lyman. Maybe I started with Lyman....who knows? I have been casting for 40+ years. I bought a few over the years.
Then Lee but only after being worked over.