Heating a Hoch

[ColColt]

You're right about the thickness of the bottom plate. It's about .170" thick as is the top plate and that large nearly 5/8" spacer that connects the two plates has to heat up as well. The worse mould I ever cast with was a 510 gr mini ball mould with the bottom cherry. It had to be as hot as the mould or you'd get wrinkles and voids. Using pure lead as was needed it took a long time to get just one right. I abandoned that idea and just bought them when needed.

I can't fathom -30 degrees. I'd freeze to death quickly being on blood thinners. There's not enough coats to keep me warm in that climate.

[bigted]

well when you live in paradise then when the climate warms up to -30 its time to cast and get back outside for fun n games in the snow...LOL.

you cant tell who is who in these cooler temp's here as the bundle may just be anybody and male or female. BUT when the ice melts in spring time WHA HOO!!! the girls can be separated from the boys ... you never seen such nice looking women then from the spring time warm-up and the resultant peeling of the heavy winter clothing.

[ColColt]

Not my kind of weather. I like to see legs all during the year!

[GOPHER SLAYER]

Several years ago I bought two hoch bullet molds and the one I had high hopes for has yet to produce a good bollet. I had a really good mold that was marked 321, without casting with that mold I sold it to Buckshot thinking I wouldn't need it since I bought the Hoch that is also marked 321. It was some time before I tried the Hoch and it was a big disappointment. I have tried several times and the bullets always look more like the Pillsbury doughboy than a bullet. The other Hoch mold I bought at the same time cast good bullets the first time I tried even if it is a strange looking thing and a gas check to boot. Why would anyone have Hoch build a nose pour gas check mold? I thought about selling it until I shot a group with it in my 30-30 Ruger #1.

[RMulhern]

Stick your mould DIRECTLY into the blaze off a propane stovetop for about 2 1/2 to 3 minutes and when you take it out of the flame.....hold it up about 4" from your cheek and if you can feel the heat radiating to your skin.....go start casting! You'll get good bullets! Don't dilly/dally and phart around...cast!

[bigted]

Several years ago I bought two hoch bullet molds and the one I had high hopes for has yet to produce a good bollet. I had a really good mold that was marked 321, without casting with that mold I sold it to Buckshot thinking I wouldn't need it since I bought the Hoch that is also marked 321. It was some time before I tried the Hoch and it was a big disappointment. I have tried several times and the bullets always look more like the Pillsbury doughboy than a bullet. The other Hoch mold I bought at the same time cast good bullets the first time I tried even if it is a strange looking thing and a gas check to boot. Why would anyone have Hoch build a nose pour gas check mold? I thought about selling it until I shot a group with it in my 30-30 Ruger #1.

so here again is the trick to getting any mold to cast good boolits ... HEAT >>> HEAT >>> HEAT. those flat chunks of metal on the top or bottom or both have to be piping hot. as Mr. Rick explains ... "Don't dilly/dally and phart around" ... just cast and keep those plates full of lead and nice n hot. you will need the melt hot as well but it be imperative to get and keep those plates hot for good fill out of all portions of the boolit.

might also smoke the mold with a candle or wood match's but the heat is the most impotent portion of the equation.

[Greg B.]

I use an old two burner Coleman white gas stove with a cast iron pot to smelt and ladel pour boolits. The gas for the hot burner is opened up all the way to melt the lead. For iron moulds the second burner is put on about as low as it will go and the mould is placed over it. By the time the lead is ready to go the mould is hot enough. The advantage of this is that it probably would accomodate a Hoch mould ( I do not own one) as the grilling surface consists of crossed steel rods so the bolt heads would not hold the mould away ftom the heat. My .02 cents worth.