Mihec's 44 HP cramer mould

[Springfield]

My 44 HP(429640?) mould arrived to day and I cast a few. Both the hllowpoints are very large, but the penta pin version seems a bit more finicky when it came to getting perfect bullets. I certainly had more rejects in that style when I put one of each version in the mould and cast with it. The pin comes very close to the front edge of the bullet which I think is the main culprit. The mold itself works very well, as is usual for any Mihec mould.

[redneckdan]

I received mine today too. I had heard rumors that the NOE 429421 RG4 (also came today) was having issues with burrs so i was worried about that one. Turns out the 429640 was the problem child. To be fair though, I did heat cycle the NOE on the stove 4 times before casting where as the MeHic mold was run straight from the box. I started with the pentagon pins, they were tight in the blocks. I ran a pot and half of lead through it and still was getting wrinkles, so I set it aside to cool and then cleaned it with brake cleaner. After getting up to temp it started casting decent bullets. About halfway though the 4th pot I started to notice the pins were sliding much easier when I pushed them in with the sprue wackin stick. I applied a little bullshop and the pins slid back and forth under their own weight. Cast up a couple hundred good ones and the star is heating up right now.

[JesterGrin_1]

With the Brass mold you have to cast HOT around 800F plus. I also found with my Mihec 44/444 mold that for best results with my bottom pour RCBS was to just let the stream hit at the inside lip of the sprue plate and let the lead swirl into the mold. I had much better fill out.

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

I also found that the round ones came out better, but when I went to make the flat noses they released hard . . . I'll probably grind the hex tip off so the mold lays flat when I'm making the flat noses . . .



Top is dimensions, measured on both sides of the seam (which is hard too see!) and then opposite.


Weights of five random samples using approximately 68% wheel weights, 29% recovered range lead, and 3% tin:


8.0 gr of Unique, and ready for a walk:


By the way . . . don't try to change the pins while casting . . . it can be done . . . but, is not as much fun as when it is cold!

Gonna see how they fly tomorrow!

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

I went out this morning, it was in the high 70's sunshine, and windy (10 - 20 mph) coming from about 1 O'clock . . .

First I shot my Ruger Super Redhawk Alaskan with the 2.5" barrel with the solid boolits into a series of old five gal oil totes filled with water (14" long) I had trouble capturing them, it would penetrate two of them, but not the third . . . I then shot the round hp's and it would only blow up the first jug . . . in the end I loaded up my Marlin 1894 with 20" barrel, first a solid, then a round hp . . . had three lined up, solid penetrated the third jug, and so did the round hp, but I think that because the first just was already half down on water that it really only penetrated two jugs. I found a solid on the ground a few feet past the jugs and to the left a few feet, the one intact round hp I found laying under the third jug appears to be from the Alaskan, as there are pieces and the base from another round hp inside of the third jug, which would have come from the higher velocity of the rifle.

Using approximately 68% wheel weights, 29% recovered range lead, and 3% tin . . .



The solid shrank in length, notice the loob groove:


The Round HP OK for 2.5" barrel velocity, but for faster, I need harder:


I'm not a very good shot, but I got them on the paper! My Alaskan is my carry weapon . . . so 6" at 15 yards will do for now . . . but I wish it were better!

Marlin 1894:




Alaskan:


ETA: These cycle much better in my Marlin than the H&G 503 copy . . . I like!

[fatnhappy]

I received mine today too. I had heard rumors that the NOE 429421 RG4 (also came today) was having issues with burrs so i was worried about that one. Turns out the 429640 was the problem child. To be fair though, I did heat cycle the NOE on the stove 4 times before casting where as the MeHic mold was run straight from the box. I started with the pentagon pins, they were tight in the blocks. I ran a pot and half of lead through it and still was getting wrinkles, so I set it aside to cool and then cleaned it with brake cleaner. After getting up to temp it started casting decent bullets. About halfway though the 4th pot I started to notice the pins were sliding much easier when I pushed them in with the sprue wackin stick. I applied a little bullshop and the pins slid back and forth under their own weight. Cast up a couple hundred good ones and the star is heating up right now.

Your experience and mine mirror each other perfectly. I ran an entire pot of WW's through the mould and still haven't gotten a good boolit yet. I scrubbed the mould with brake cleaner and a toothbrush again. I'll give it another workout next weekend. I believe my problem wasn't alloy temp but casting speed. I couldn't cast fast enough to maintain high enough mould temp.

[Three-Fifty-Seven]

I just sprayed mine with brake cleaner, and set it next to my pot to warm up, (I use a coleman propane stove and a pot) started with the 434640 the sprue was still so cold that it would not let me fill the whole cavity . . . plus my alloy was not quite up to temp . . ., I just kept filling it, and after about 20 times, it straightened out, I then added my new 359640 in and same thing, but it went a tad faster as it had more time sitting next to the pot . . . but I find that they like high temps, but let them cool off between pouring otherwise the hp's get messed up . . . So I used two moulds, otherwise I'd just be standing around waiting!

I also found that the 434640 needed a "break" every 10th pouring, as it got too hot, so I'd just let it cool with the cavity empty, and the sprue open, while I ran the 359640 another time . . . the extra 200 grains of hot lead makes a difference!

I also found that with the pins reversed to make the solids, that they tend to hang up, in both molds. It appears that there is a small flash on the nose . . . look at the picture above of the before/after of the solid.

I also used the sprue lube that came with it to lube the pins, but only the part that slides through the block, with it in casting position, I used a Q tip, and did what was showing outside of the block, then I opened the mold, and pushed the pins in like I was releasing the boolit, and carefully lube that section avoiding the actual pin that makes the hp. As in other MP molds I have with some use, they get smoother, I used some 600 grit sand paper to polish them a tad before inserting t hem.

All in all with the heat up problems . . . it took me about 3 hours to make about 450 keepers running two moulds, certainly not fast, but figure also that I changed the pins around in the middle, you think it is fun playing with those tiny e clips when it's cold, don't try it when it is up to temp! But overall an enjoyable way to spend the morning!

434640 on the left - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 359640 on the right:


Sure beats going to work!

[45 2.1]

For anyone having problems getting good boolits casting out of anybodys cramer, RG- 2 or 4, or all hollow point mold, do yourself a favor and get a Rowell bottom pour ladel. The smallest one available from Bill Ferguson "the antimony man" will get you the proper volume and pour speed to fill out and keep your mold hot enough with a lot less pot temperature. The bottom pour pots and the smaller Lyman and RCBS ladles will not do it properly unless very hot................

[fatnhappy]

I fired up the pot again today. After my troubles last week, I switched over to the round HP pins and coated them with graphite. I changed my casting technique slightly and since the boolits dropped much easier (faster) I was able to keep the mould temp high enough to frost boolits. I'm happy to report this mould cast like a champ when I got and kept it hot.

I did about 40 lbs of these today.

[JesterGrin_1]

Yep FatnHappy you have to keep that mold HOT.

[dragonrider]

I now have both the pb and gc versions of this mold. These two mold cast nothing alike. The pb version is so much easier to get perfect boolits from that it is easily twice as difficult with the gc version. But the gc version will come around I am sure, just need to find the right combo of heat and casting speed. I seldom have problems with fillout, heat and/or proper venting corrects that. I do get problems with wrinkles at times, and sometimes they do not want to go away, this is what is happening with the gc version of this mold. This has happened with other molds at times and on those the only thing that helped was lapping, not a big deal as lapping can be done quickly. I don't undertand why but after a quick lap, great boolits. Boggles the mind but that is what is so interesting about our hobby, different problems to conquer.
Back to the pb version, with the round pin installed the boolits are great and literaly fall of the pin as soon as it is pushed from the mold half, it's like magic. Open, push, close, refill, repeat. I am hoping that Miha attemps to make a 3 or better yet 4 cavity cramer mold soon, even though I can cast quickly enough with the 2 cav, a 4 would be marvelous. Oh and the penta pins I won't be using those in the future, they have too many problems with release that they are not worth the time to use. I have I think six MP cramer molds now and each one exibits difficulty with the penta pins, not worth the aggravation and loss of speed and mold cool off which causes other problems.

[45 2.1]

Do yourself a favor and get the smallest rowell bottom pour ladle that "The antimony man" supplies. All these mutiple hollow point molds benefit from increased pour speeds and volumes, not from greatly increased higher heat.

[WARD O]

We had been discussing "draft" for the flat points nose - could someone explain what is ment by draft please.

I had mentioned that I had great difficulty in getting the FP's to release from the mould and when they did they all had a noticable ridge around the edge of the meplat. I also had mentioned that Hornday gas checks were a very sloppy fit. Sizing to .432, the lube pressure would push the gas check off the bullet. Sizing to .430 was only slightly better.

I took some to the range last Sunday. Shooting the 275 grain solid point version over 23 grains of 300 MP with a Federal 155 mag primer in my 44 mag Marlin 1894 with a receiver sight yielded a five shot 100 yard group of 2.75" with four going into 1.75" - I am pleased with this accuracy. I did not chronograph the load. They were sized to .432 lubed with BCA and the Hornady gas checks were loose.

I ran some of the 255 grain hollow points sized .432 with BCA through my 629 over 12 grains of HS6 with a Federal 150 primer. At 25 yards I was able to break the 2" mark for a five shot group. I tried the same bullet sized to .430 through my 29 Classic with slightly less success.

I hope to be able to tune these handguns loads a bit and it looks like this is going to be a very nice shooting bullet!

On Monday I worked on the mould a bit and tried to open up the gas check shank a little with a wood rod wrapped with a 320 grit sandpaper strip. I also tried to shorten the flat point pins just a bit with a file in hopes the bullets would drop from the mould more easily. I ran another session casting and it appears that I gained some ground on both fronts. The gas checks are snug if I size to .430 but still loose if I size to .432. On my first casting session it took six or more whacks on the handle hinge to get the flat points to drop from the mould. On this second session casting, it was down to 1-3 whacks with only one cavity doing most of the sticking. A little more adjustment and I'll try to give it another go round next weekend.

Ward

[fatnhappy]

I also had mentioned that Hornday gas checks were a very sloppy fit. Sizing to .432, the lube pressure would push the gas check off the bullet. Sizing to .430 was only slightly better.
Ward

I ran into the same issue sizing .431"
Am I to assume you bought a .432" mould too?

Unannealed Hornady checks were loose. Annealed Hornady checks were acceptable. Gator checks tightened things up.

YMMV.

[fatnhappy]

Do yourself a favor and get the smallest rowell bottom pour ladle that "The antimony man" supplies. All these mutiple hollow point molds benefit from increased pour speeds and volumes, not from greatly increased higher heat.

My experience suggests exactly the opposite. The issue as I saw it was the numerous thirbligs and pin hang ups increased cycle time. I reduced the thirbligs, alleviated the pin hang ups and the consequent decreased cycle time improved quality. Pour speed was not a variable I changed.

[hicard]

I guess I now have to order a New SS Blackhawk Flattop 44 Special to go with this beautiful boolit. Been reading a lot of good things about them.

[DukeInFlorida]

As I mentioned in another post, the penta pins would have worked better if they were shallower. That is, if they didn't get as close to the edge as they are.

[longbow]

I got mine a couple of days ago and it is beautiful!

I am up to my armpits in broken down vehicles at the moment so won't get to cast for a few days but I expect this one will cast about like my H&G #503 which likes hot lead.

I had a little trouble with the penta pins as some of you are reporting with this mould but casting hot solved it and they turned out really nice. Do they blow up a milk jug of water ~ wow!

These should do the same and I am looking forward to the 270 gr. solids too.

I will be casting with this mould ASAP. I am betting the Marlin will like it better than the SWC though I have that feeding not badly now.

Nothing like a little variety though! Now if only I could afford to get the 200 grain version as well! Maybe later if there are extras.

Longbow

[longbow]

Well, even though I am up still to my elbows in broken down vehicles, I couldn't stand not casting with the new mould!

I didn't have a lot of time but fired up the pot and put the mould on the other burner to pre-heat.

I started casting a little soon and got 30 rejects then all the rest came out very nicely ~ 75 keepers before I shut down. I guess I should have kept going and cast a bunch but I wanted to check them and mike diameter.

They cast very well after lead and mould were up to heat and I did not get one sticker in mould or on the penta pins even before I was at good casting temperature (all cast on the penta pins so far).

Diameter mikes at 0.433" with no detectable out of round except they are a whopping 0.434" at the seam. These will be perfect in my sloppy barreled Marlin which is just under 0.432" groove diameter.

The only mould prep I did was to put a drop of sprue plate lube under the sprue plate, a little on the pin sliders and around the pins then heated the mould. After casting the first 10 or so pours I could see I was still getting some wrinkles and I could see some sprue plate lube around the pins on the mould faces so I gave the open hot mould a shot of brake cleaner.

Another couple or three pours and they came out nice and smooth.

I didn't have any trouble with fillout around the penta pins after everything was up to temperature. Alloy was plain old range scrap so probably a little softer than straight ACWW.

I do like this mould and can't wait to load and shoot some. Milk jugs full of water may become an endangered species around here until I run out of penta hollow points! Oh wait... I'll cast more.

Thanks to Miha for producing another beautiful mould that casts perfectly and thanks to Shawn for all his hard work in honchoing the group buy.

Longbow

[Lloyd Smale]

Like ive said in a couple other posts, I think were getting carried away with the size of the hp cavitys on the molds were having made. Id sure like a set of pins that are shallower and a bit smaller for this mold. From testing of other hp bullets id guess that the round pins supplied are going to be a bit big and its going to be about impossible not to loose the nose on deer sized game and the penta pins are going to be about useless. Im going to contact miha and see if he will make me a set of smaller round pins. By the way ive casted about a coffee can of the round pin bullets and my mold seems to work just fine.