mold lube

[chet]

I was reading the Lee instruction sheet for my new 45 Cal mold, they give a part number to lube the lold so it won't stick, what alternatives are there!

Chet

[imashooter2]

Bullet lube does the trick.

[Buckshot]

.............Chet, imashooter2 said it. You also asked about alternatives? Well for Lee moulds there really aren't any. Due to the way they align the blocks the very best lube IS bullet lube. The Lee aluminum blocks have those mating 'V' features (don't worry, Carpetman will give us a rundown on the habits of "Mating 'V's") and the aluminum gets sticky when hot, so the lube helps to keep that from happening.

Ditto under the sprueplate at the pivit screw, a more liquid (meaning melted) lube is best. All you need is a tiny amount. I use a little jeweler's screwdriver with just a tiny bit of lube on the tip. Use a toothpick or whatever. Too much and you'll see it wick into the cavity.

With a cast iron or steel set of blocks the materials are much toughter and you can get by with graphite or moly, so they do have alternatives.

.............Buckshot

[Oldfeller]

Dry moly powder is a good alternative to bullet lube. Pack the black dry powder under the plate in the boss recess as you re-assemble the plate and you will never have to lube it again. Dust the "V"s along with the kurled surface lightly and open and close a few times to grind the powder into the engagement surfaces of the "V"s -- once again it lasts a long long time.

Top surface motion needs to have the dusting refreshed periodically. One good thing moly does there is once it is ground into the surface cast metal won't stick there any more.

Moly does not smoke and stink, it does not care how hot the mold gets and it does not migrate to contaminate the cavities.

I buff moly into the bullet cavity surfaces anyway to give me all the postitive effects of "permanent smoke". However, this is all extra work that many will not take the time to do. As to it working well, I prepped all 100 of the first run of 6.5 Swede molds to drop free when cast and the moly trick was part of that preparation.

Oldfeller

[Willbird]

I have been using a moly grease, it is a loctite product, I rub it into the top of the blocks and the bottom of the sprue plates, and any other points of contact, it is good for 600 degrees, it does not seem to migrate into the cavities

I have on my to-do list to get some og the perma-tex high heat never sieze some other posters have been using,

Bill