.40 Minie

[Good Cheer]

I'm trying to get a forty caliber minie to fill out in a set of Lyman iron blocks. And of course getting a high reject rate because of difficulty in keeping the blocks and pin hot. Does anybody still make an small electric hot plate?

[Baron von Trollwhack]

You may want to try running your lead a little hotter. Sometimes it is good to open the sprueplate hole a little, with a good sharp bevel to help the fill and give a good cut of the sprue. Lap the plate too.

The pour hole in the dipper may be opened a little, and of course how you connect the dipper to the sprue plate is also a matter of fill out.

Pry the bullet out carefully with the base pin for minimum distortion and count on sizing later to give perfect roundness. A little tin to pure lead sometimes help the fill out also. Don't lay the base pin down after the bullet isout , stick it back in the mould and pour again. Cull later. BvT