Aluminum vs Iron for a beginner caster

[gwpercle]

I believe iron is a little more forgiving for the beginner.
I learned on 1 and 2 cavity Lyman's. The much cheaper Lee's came out and I started using them.
Lot's of tricks to learn with them.
Graduated to a few NOE Aluminum moulds...3 and 4 cavity , still a few tricks in casting but the quality is off the chart.
I have never tried brass. And I do not have any 6 cavity moulds.
All of them have learning curves...the only way to learn is to cast boolits. You have a problem, ask for an answer. You can cast good boolits with any mould but you are going to have to put in the time over a hot pot learning what works and what doesn't.
The brand or material of the mould isn't going to make you a great caster. Iron is harder to damage, can take a bit of rough handling and might be preferred for the beginner, but a nice NOE can be a pleasure to cast with. Aluminum and brass is softer so easier to damage...be gentle with them.
Gary

[john.k]

The trouble with beginner equiptment is that many beginners have no mechanical experience whatso ever........they cant tell if a screw is coming loose,or if soft metal is being damaged by what they are doing,until the thing is wrecked......Lee molds need a lot of attention ,and fall to bits without it....Iron or steel molds are better built,and the harder surfaces resist abuse .And the higher price buys improvements like locking screws,.....and better handles......which are extra cost on iron molds.

[jamesp81]

I don't know now. I might give iron a try. I've got Lee and one Accurate mold, all aluminum. I think I have trouble regulating temperature. My belief is that I need cooler melt and a hotter mold compared to what I've been doing.

I need a PID for my pot. I cannot bring myself to spend well over $100 for one when my lead pot cost 1/3 of that.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

I get the feeling that a big part of the challenge is the alloy that you are using. Scrounged lead is probably more difficult than virgin alloy. I did about 500 boolits yesterday out of a Lee 6 cav and managed to not have one reject. All shiny and nary a wrinkle. Preheated the mold and paused a while before cutting the sprue. But I am using virgin 16/1 alloy. Pot temp ran from 700 to 750. Added sprues to bring temps down. I also try to keep the pour rate optimal, fast but controllable.

Got and rcbs iron 2 cav coming tomorrow - 250 gr. Keith style in .44.

[RogerDat]

I don't know now. I might give iron a try. I've got Lee and one Accurate mold, all aluminum. I think I have trouble regulating temperature. My belief is that I need cooler melt and a hotter mold compared to what I've been doing.

I need a PID for my pot. I cannot bring myself to spend well over $100 for one when my lead pot cost 1/3 of that.

I get what you mean, I keep thinking I want a PID and then stop and consider how much do I "really" need one and the cost.

Do you have a thermometer to measure the temperature in the pot? That helped me adjust the melt temperature to match my casting rhythm and provided one more real metric that I could adjust. Since I use a ladle I have been known to pour a little lead along the side of the mold if I think the mold is too cool, or dip a corner of the mold into the melt, that raises the mold temp fast.

I bought this one for $22 also available from Amazon. https://www.teltru.com/p-272-big-gre...degrees-f.aspx Or the Lyman one which seems about the same for a bit more $$ https://www.amazon.com/Lyman-2867793...ad+thermometer

[Mxrick55555]

I started with the LEE 6 cavity molds by the time I figured out what I was doing I had 2 6 cavity molds for each caliber I cast and an old electric flat griddle to set them and the lead ingots on for pre heating and to help keep a constant temp. I would get the molds up to temp, cast in one set it down cast in the other set it down pick up the previous and the sprue would be ready to cut drop bullets and repeat, this worked best for me as I have twin 4 year olds so the faster I could get it done the better. I now have a magma master caster recently acquired but loving it so far. When I get home from work I turn it on sneak out to the shop about 40 min later and cast what I can then usually the wife will call me back in and a little later I can sneak back out and cast some more. Not to mention when my ADD cousin comes over to visit on the weekends I make sure it’s ready to go he really seems to enjoy pulling that handle lol.

[Oklahoma Rebel]

are frosty boolits ok? I seem to find they fill out better than shiny boolits... but others say that the alloy is too hot if your boolits are frosty?

[rintinglen]

With aluminum molds, I find frosting is essential to the consistent casting of good Boolits. Back to the OP's question, yes, Virginia, iron is easier to learn to cast on.

[ukrifleman]

I have Lee, RCBS and Lyman moulds and they all produce good bullets when used properly.

I prefer Lee aluminium moulds because they heat up quicker and they are lighter to use.

Nothing wrong with frosted bullets, it's not vital to produce bullets that look like they are chrome plated.

ukrifleman

[gwpercle]

I don't know now. I might give iron a try. I've got Lee and one Accurate mold, all aluminum. I think I have trouble regulating temperature. My belief is that I need cooler melt and a hotter mold compared to what I've been doing.

I need a PID for my pot. I cannot bring myself to spend well over $100 for one when my lead pot cost 1/3 of that.

No you don't NEED a PID to cast good boolits ....I cast good boolits and have been doing so for over 50 years and guess what....I do not have or ever will have a PID. I just don't see the need .
I use a 20 lb. Lee Magnum Melter, set the Lee dial at number 7.50 or 8.00 to start with , when boolits start getting frosty I back the dial down, usually finish casting at #7.25 on the Lee dial. I've used these numbers with 3 different Lee pots. I like them cast with a very light overall frosty look to them...everything's up to temperature then and you just have to watch how fast you cast...go too fast and things get too hot and the sprue doesn't cool enough to cut. Go too slow and the mould starts cooling off too much...nobody is going to say this casting thing is easy...it's not.
You can cast good boolits also , fire up the pot and practice, pay attention to what's happening.
I don't even use a hot plate...mould heats on top of pot and with a few cast boolits poured is ready to go.
Those boolits go back into the pot.
Spending money on gizmo's isn't going to make you a good boolit caster....casting will do that .
Gary

[john.k]

Ive been casting 50 years,and I was running too low a temp......still turned out tons of good bullets tho,...anyhoo,I was given a laser thermo,run the temp up about +70 degF,and now I find I dont have the problem with fuzz forming and blocking the Lyman ladle .....which was banged off frequently......Lee say to dip the mold in melt,that works 100% in a few seconds......I have cast with Lee molds straight from the box,no cleaning needed..........but a simple rule with casting.....the lighter bullets will cause trouble....casting 22s will drive you crazy....any child can cast 45/400gn ,as the mold heat is maintained.

[marek313]

No you don't NEED a PID to cast good boolits ....I cast good boolits and have been doing so for over 50 years and guess what....I do not have or ever will have a PID. I just don't see the need .
I use a 20 lb. Lee Magnum Melter, set the Lee dial at number 7.50 or 8.00 to start with , when boolits start getting frosty I back the dial down, usually finish casting at #7.25 on the Lee dial. I've used these numbers with 3 different Lee pots. I like them cast with a very light overall frosty look to them...everything's up to temperature then and you just have to watch how fast you cast...go too fast and things get too hot and the sprue doesn't cool enough to cut. Go too slow and the mould starts cooling off too much...nobody is going to say this casting thing is easy...it's not.
You can cast good boolits also , fire up the pot and practice, pay attention to what's happening.
I don't even use a hot plate...mould heats on top of pot and with a few cast boolits poured is ready to go.
Those boolits go back into the pot.
Spending money on gizmo's isn't going to make you a good boolit caster....casting will do that .
Gary

I agree with everything stated above.
I even put together PID to see how that would work and now i dont even use it. I never finished installing it in an enclosure anyway. Trust me you dont need it. You can make science out of it but for ordinary home caster I wouldnt bother. There are many variables here and mold material is just one of those. How about number of cavities , cavity size, alloy composition, mold temp, alloy temp, outside temp etc etc etc you get the idea. This is why I consider casting half skill and half art. Skills you can learn how to control temp and timing your sprue cuts etc but the other half is pure art which I cant even explain. How come one day I cant get a decent 45acp out of my mold and couple nights later I was up until 3am because I couldnt stop casing perfect boolits so almost 50lbs got converted to 452-230RN.

The best thing about casting is that even if you screw up your not wasting any material, just remelt and try again. You got nothing to lose

[Char-Gar]

I started casting in 1959 when only iron molds were available. My first aluminium mold was an NEI some 25 years later. I now own molds of iron, brass and aluminum and move between them with no problems. Each has it's quirks, but if you have casting down, the change of material is quite easy.

[RogerDat]

I started casting in 1959 when only iron molds were available. My first aluminium mold was an NEI some 25 years later. I now own molds of iron, brass and aluminum and move between them with no problems. Each has it's quirks, but if you have casting down, the change of material is quite easy.

Dang Char-Gar you HAVE been doing this awhile. Guess you must enjoy it. Or just too stubborn to give up on it.
If you have any of your original equipment around it's only a few years from being able to retire and collect social security.

[gwpercle]

are frosty boolits ok? I seem to find they fill out better than shiny boolits... but others say that the alloy is too hot if your boolits are frosty?

A lightly frosted is OK. You want them right at the light frost temperature...so they have a matte finish, just above shiney.
They seem to fill out best and be the most consistent ...I've never tried casting much over that temperature but I'm sure an extremely high temperature would not help a boolit....might make it brittle but I really don't know.
Gary