First time casting with a devistator mold...need help

[Tripplebeards]

Every boolit that filled my mold today had a little lead that leaked a third of the way around my HP lip. You can see it in the pics below. I was using COWW with 2% pewter. I used my Coleman stove to heat the lead and my mold...and keep my pin warm. It took a while to get everything hot enough to get good boolits. But once I got going it was smooth sailing.

Is there a way to adjust the HP pin tighter? I'm guessing the pin or the mold is out of round and not mating together?

I also had a little lead that came between the base and sprue plate that I could scrape off each boolit with my fingernail.

The sprue plate was pretty tight...do I need to tighten it down more to fix the excess lip around the boolit base?

It's almost like the lead was filling too well and trying to seap out everywhere it could.

The box on the left had dimples around the HP so I culled them. The box on the right...I had to lightly scrape the little overflowed lip off the HP area of every boolit and lightly ran them across 1500 grit sand paper. They look good now but it was alot of BS.

Is there a way to adjust my mold so I don't get the overflow burrs around the HP lip and base?












I did notice a crack in the new HP pin handle but I'm sure it had nothing to do with the sealing issue

[Dusty Bannister]

Any dry lube applied to the pin where it fits into the mold so it settles completely into the recess, and hold the blocks firmly together? Did you check to be sure there was not a speck of lead holding the blocks or pin apart?

[Tripplebeards]

I used a pencil a couple times to put lead on the pin to keep from sticking. It looked clean around the pin and cavity area the whole time I casted.

Could the lead be too hot making it want to find new homes before hardening?

[Markopolo]

Is there any daylight at all showing in the mold?? In a strong light you may be able to see a sliver of light... before you try making any modifications to the mold, give the place you got the mold a call and see what they say. You might be able to get a whole new mold including pin... any grinding to sanding my void any sort of warranty. I have had a couple mold's that wouldn't line up properly, and folks who make mold stand behind them for the most part.

[Hickok]

I have that same mold and it works fine. IS the screw that holds the clip-ring on the HP pin against the mold in tight?

Why not give it a couple of more casting sessions and get the "feel" of the mold, what temps. it likes, and how it likes to be run.

[Grmps]

Like markopolo was saying assuming the sprue plate is snug, hold the mold up to a light and see if any light shines through between the mold body and the sprue plate. Check from 2 adjacent sides.
IF you see a problem contact the manufacturer/store purchased at and see what they want you to do without voiding the warranty.
Try taking the sprue plate off, slightly bevel the opening that the screw goes in. (sometimes there is a little "lump" there) then check the surface of the mold and the bottom of the sprue plate to confirm they are perfectly flat. With an older mold I'll run a diamond hone over the top of the mold just enough to see the low spots. (if a person hasn't lubed the mold enough the mold will wear where the sprue plate attaches. I worse cases I get a friend to mill of a couple thou to re-flatten the top (usually lyman molds). you can either drill and tap a bolt in where the stop pin was or dill and put a compression pin there.

If the mold and/or the alloy are super hot, you have a lot of tin alloy is know to go where you don't want it especially if you pressure pour (hold the sprue hole tight against the pot discharge spot and fill the mold cavity)

[Hickory]

If your concern is about accuracy, then the nose/tip of the boolit has little to do with it. If you are size/lubing with a Lyman or RCBS sizer/luber the top punch will give a nice uniform look to the boolit.

The weight and base of the boolit has a lot to do with the accuracy factor.

[Tripplebeards]

Clip ring screw is snug and doesn't move. I have it all the way in. I checked it after my casting session. Not home now but when I get back I'll try the flashlight thing. I have a 600 lumen stream light that should do the trick.

[OS OK]

Try backing down on the Sn content, add only 1% to the COWW's and backing down on the heat a little bit, say 50 to 75 degrees and see what happens. But...I'm spitwadding here but you may need around 1,000FPS to get those to open correctly without shedding weight. Fragging.

Try some COWW and soft PB as in SOWW's at 50/50 blend and then 1% of the pewter...you may not need the added Sn at all...that is an easy profile to fill in, in the mould.

For performance at 850-900FPS you may need to thin the COWW's even more with the SOWW's...you'll have to experiment a bit to taylor this blend to the weapon you intend to use.

Gotta love the HP's...they require a little more work to get them to work just right. It's worth the effort though.

[runfiverun]

lowering the tin content will help.
if you were pressure pouring you'll get that seepage.
I get super bad finning in a 22 mold if I pressure pour it with a high tin content alloy.
at least I know it's venting air.

on the base thing.
tightening the plate down will lift the off side, and loosening it too much will lift the onside.
you just want it to slide over the mold surface with a little grab.
look at the air gap between the plate and the mold from the side you'll see what you need to do.
check it cold then again when warm it can change some.

[Tonto]

try some mould release on the pin, the coating might increase diameter enough to stop this and make it easier to remove after each pour.

[Tripplebeards]

I called Lyman this morning. They told me because the lip and base on every boolit had seepage there had to be an issue with the machining. They asked to send it back in for repair or replacement and it would take 30 days turn around time. Lyman said it would be quicker to exchange it with the retailer for another. Natchez is emailing me a call tag and has an exchange on hold.

[Markopolo]

[Tripplebeards]

Tried the new mold today. The boolit bases casted good but once again lead leaked out half way Around the HP lip of the boolits...all the boolits. I made sure to keep the lead cooler this time thinking it might aid in solidifying before trying to seap out any cracks.

I did notice the HP pin's wood handle start to crack at the end of my 10lb casting session. Is the metal pin getting too hot causing the wood to crack?



My lead mix was my reject mix of 16:1 that only hardened to 7.5BH. It was 16lbs of lead flooring mixed with a 1lb of pewter. It sure makes a shiny boolit compared to COWW.

Wondering if I could bend the c clip on the pin to make the fit tighter or install a shorter screw for a better seal? Or I'm wondering if once again the machining is off?

[Tripplebeards]

Called Lyman, it's going back on their dime to figure out what's happening. I loaded up the soft alloy today and see that it squishes the Hp lip flat. It dose make it thicker on the lip where it had the over cast. My AC COWW boolits are hard enough that they don't push the lip flat so you can see the extra cast.

[fredj338]

lowering the tin content will help.
if you were pressure pouring you'll get that seepage.
I get super bad finning in a 22 mold if I pressure pour it with a high tin content alloy.
at least I know it's venting air.

on the base thing.
tightening the plate down will lift the off side, and loosening it too much will lift the onside.
you just want it to slide over the mold surface with a little grab.
look at the air gap between the plate and the mold from the side you'll see what you need to do.
check it cold then again when warm it can change some.

Bingo, the pressure casting is likely causing this. I cast the same mold & allowing the alloy to flow without contacting the pour spout helps keep flash down.

[Tripplebeards]

I am using a Lee hand held dipper. I would assume pressure pouring would be from a bottom drop pot? Which I'm not using.

[Tripplebeards]

Lyman emailed me on the 2nd mold and sample boolits I sent them. They are sending me mold number three. I emailed back and asked them to try the new mold before they send it to me. Didn't get a response back.

[Tripplebeards]

Mold number three just came in the mail. Once I recover from lyme's disease I'll try it out.

[Oklahoma Rebel]

do you really have lyme's disease? I have often wondered if I have that,since adolescence I have had joint stiffness, general weakness, always tired, and now kidney irritation. does that sound like it?