NOE HBWC Mold

[alexanderkidd]

Am trying out my first NOE aluminum mold, with RG pins for 38 special hollow base wadcutters.

The block come together with a thin sliver of light through the blocks. This occurs with and without the pins installed. Is this normal for NOE aluminum molds? My Lee aluminum molds seem to 'close up' when they are the right temperature; they start with a sliver of light and then it disappears at casting temperatures. My Lyman molds don't show any light at all.

Also, I feel a thin 'ridge' around the cavities drilled for the RG pins...They seem to have a raised area of metal that measures around .003 higher than the surrounding area, whereas the bullet cavities do not. Do I need to polish this smooth?

Overall very excellent quality mold and I am very happy to have it in my possession.

[Dale53]

alexanderkidd;
Before you do anything with that mould, I would suggest you contact NOE. They have super service and will tell you how to solve your problem. They may want to send you another one or suggest a remedy. That way, you won't be apt to ruin a great mould.

Just a thought...

Dale53

[Ben]

Yes, Al will advise you as to the best strategy to correct your problem.

[alexanderkidd]

Can do, it's a fine mold, I would hate to damage it. Best way to get in contact?

[SwedeNelson]

alexanderkidd

(801) 377-7289
Call about any time, spend most of my time here!
Leave message if I'm in the shop and I will get back to you.

Bullet maker, maker
Swede Nelson

[alexanderkidd]

Thanks Swede, did some light polishing on the mold block faces and now it seems to come together much tighter. Will try dropping another few hundred tonight and see how they turn out.

[alexanderkidd]

Cast a hundred or so after very light polishing of the blocks with 320 grit sandpaper on a block of wood. Not seeing light come through the mold anymore and the bullets were a uniform .362 all around. Thanks Swede!

[tazman]

Please let us know how they work for you. I have been considering that mold and some experienced feedback would be appreciated.

[alexanderkidd]

Please let us know how they work for you. I have been considering that mold and some experienced feedback would be appreciated.

I can't comment on accuracy as I'm very new to shooting pistols from a rest to get solid measurements; I'm just not very good at it yet.

I can say that I'm very happy with the bullet design. I wanted it for low recoil, cheap .38SP practice loads, with emphasis on holster drills and timed shooting. Excellent for that application. Using Hodgdon load data the loads are very soft recoiling and clean to boot! A lot less smoky than my other cast loads. Easy to see, big wadcutter holes too.

My guns are .357 magnums, so I find with .38 specials I have some leeway in bullet size. This allows me to load these as-cast with tumble lube. I find this to be a big plus as I might use 500 or so a month and lube-sizing is a lot more work than the actual casting. 4 cavities is a big plus in this department as well.

I don't have any real complaints with this mold, just a couple of things to be aware of:

#1 pre-heating is very crucial with this kind of mold. I have a very basic casting setup (Lyman Big Dipper), so I usually pre-heat the molds by leaving them on top of the pot. This is inadequate for these molds, probably due to the pins. The directions say to use a hot-plate; I used a camp-stove style burner on my grill. So find a way to get it up to temperature so the bullets don't stick.

#2 Make sure when you're opening the mold that you don't allow a bullet to 'stick' and get pulled free by the pins. This will basically deform the base of the bullet. Directions recommend a steady tapping on the handle when opening, this seems to mostly eliminate the problem. Some light tapping also helps when closing the mold, settles the pins in place and makes sure it gets closed tight.

#3 I used the cheap Lee precision mold handles on this mold, and they generally work. But I find that you have to pay more attention that the mold shuts properly since it's a different mold design.

For #1 and #2, pay attention to the directions and you'll do fine. The hollow base pins make casting a little harder than with 'normal' molds but I found that it wasn't too long till I was really comfortable with the process.

For #3, you'll probably get better performance if you spring for the handles with the mold. Wish I could have, but funds are limited so I just had to make do.

Wouldn't trade it though, a quality mold for a fair price that can make a small pile of easy shooting projectiles in a pretty short period of time.

[tazman]

I also shoot my boolits as 38 special in a 357 mag. Seems I can throw almost anything in the chamber as far as size. I prefer to size to throat dimensions unless the boolit is already there.
I prefer to cast, lube, and shoot when I can without using the sizing dies.
I have an NOE hollowpoint mold for my 9mm and I understand your suggestions for use completely.
At the moment I am interested in the accuracy potential. I have several molds for full wadcutters of various designs that all seem to work well but nothing that really stands out in the accuracy department. I was wondering if this mold might be the answer.

[nanuk]

EVERY aluminum mould I have bought new has had burrs along one edge of the cavity (leading/trailing??? I dunno)

I took a hickory hammer handle and rubbed the edges HARD, then washed the moulds twice, then did a triple heat cycle in a toaster oven...

all close perfect now

[tazman]

I guess I've been lucky. All my aluminum molds have been burr free. Only problems I've had have been from pins coming loose on one Lee mold and getting the release agent a previous owner sprayed into one out of it.
All my NOE molds worked perfectly from the start.

[alexanderkidd]

I also shoot my boolits as 38 special in a 357 mag. Seems I can throw almost anything in the chamber as far as size. I prefer to size to throat dimensions unless the boolit is already there.
I prefer to cast, lube, and shoot when I can without using the sizing dies.
I have an NOE hollowpoint mold for my 9mm and I understand your suggestions for use completely.
At the moment I am interested in the accuracy potential. I have several molds for full wadcutters of various designs that all seem to work well but nothing that really stands out in the accuracy department. I was wondering if this mold might be the answer.

I made a 3rd batch of bullets with the mold, after lightly polishing the mold face to deal with the raised edge of the pin cavities. Worked like a charm, worked up a load, took it to the range yesterday.

Best group of the day was from the NOE HBWC, in the 2.5" range. Keep in mind this is from a 4"-ish barrel Blackhawk with iron sights at 25 yards, and I'm fairly inexperienced from the bench. Was definitely an improvement over my Lee cast bullet loads (125 and 158 grain RNFP). With a better gun, shooter, and maybe an optic, I'm sure you could get a lot better accuracy out of it than I did. Haven't even begun to experiment with different powders either, so there's a lot of optimization that could be done.

[tazman]

That sounds very promising. I am not a great shot either, I just love to shoot and keep improving. Both my ammunition and my form.
That 2.5 inch group sounds really good to me.