Can a mould be opened up successfully?

[Kermit2]

I'm having difficulty with a new Lyman 429421 double cavity mould. It is consistently dropping bullets at .429" I'm began using a 50/50 alloy of wheel weights & soft lead. I've now changed to straight wheel weight alloy, but the bullets are still dropping small. Wheel weights are my best option due to availability at little or no cost.

It appears that Hollow Point Mould offers a service to enlarge the driving bands of the mould and open it up. Is anyone familiar with their services and the quality of their work? Is it feasible to have a mould opened up or enlarged? Thanks.

[Wayne Smith]

First I'd Beagle it and see how it shoots. May be a much cheaper alternative.

[Jim]

Kermit, read THIS (http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=115412) thread.

[Kermit2]

I've tried Beagling the mould with no success. I had already looked at the thread listed above and tried to place the tape on my mould like it was in the photo shown in the thread. The first time I tried it I used one thickness of tape. No luck. Second time I used two thickness of tape. Still no luck. The bullets dropped just barely touched the .430 sizing die, and that was just where the fins are from the mould joints. Not sure how many thickness of tape a person is supposed to put on the moulds to get it to cast larger.

This is frustating, and that's why I'm wondering if it would be best to just have the mould enlarged and hopefully permanently solve the problem. Can this be done successfully and if so is anyone familiar with Hollow Point Mould and the quality of thier work?

[cbrick]

It appears that Hollow Point Mould offers a service to enlarge the driving bands of the mould and open it up. Is anyone familiar with their services and the quality of their work? Is it feasible to have a mould opened up or enlarged? Thanks.

Yes, I've had Erik open up the driving bands on several molds for me. Erik's work and guarantee is second to none. In addition I've had Erik remove gas check shanks, hollow point molds, both conventional and Cramer style and more. I highly recommend Erik's services.

Some of the work that Erik has done for me is the picture on the cover of Glen Fryxell's book.

http://www.lasc.us/Fryxell_Book_textonly2.pdf

Rick

[HARRYMPOPE]

Erik has done many modifications for me as well.He is a good fellow and the most honest person you will deal with as cbrick says.

hmp

[JIMinPHX]

I like the set screw method - http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=115520

[cbrick]

Jim, have you done this yet?

My preference is to have the blocks close completely and properly, to have the mold cast at the diameter that I need & want every time I pick it up.

No doubt the set screw idea would work, no boubt that beagling with tape does work but I view this as a method of determing what I need for diameter rather than a permanent solution.

For the minimal cost of having Erik cut the driving bands and having the mold drop bullets that properly fit the firearm is the permanent solution for me.

Rick

[HARRYMPOPE]

i had Erik modify a 311291 to a plainbase of .314 and a "stop ring" of .319 and that's exactly what i got.Its worth having him do it rather than beagle or lap in my opinion.

HMP

[imashooter2]

Tape or screws just make an oval bullet.

Doing it right:

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=22604

[cbrick]

imashooter2, I have read that thread, very interesting.

However, for those that do not already own a lathe (like 99.9% of us) or have the experience & expertise to use one I think Erik would be just a bit less expensive. :rolleyes:

Couldn't agree with you more on the oval bullet thing.

But anyway, the original poster's question was "Is Hollow Point Mold Service worthwhile?" or something to that effect, not can I stick tape all over my mold or drill & tap holes in it or even how long does it take to learn how to operate a lathe and how much do lathes cost. The original question wasn't how many different ways are there to avoid an answer to the original question.

So, to the original poster . . . Yes, Erik is a skilled craftsman, his work and his guarantee is second to no one. I highly recommend his services. If you choose to use Erik I feel highly confident you will get back exactly what you asked for, a bullet from your mold that fits your firearm.

Rick

[imashooter2]

But anyway, the original poster's question was "Is Hollow Point Mold Service worthwhile?" or something to that effect, not can I stick tape all over my mold or drill & tap holes in it or even how long does it take to learn how to operate a lathe and how much do lathes cost. The original question wasn't how many different ways are there to avoid an answer to the original question.



LOL! This is Castboolits forum. You already answered the question in post #5. Now we're just making conversation.[smilie=1:

[cbrick]

Oh! Now I see. :oops:

[JIMinPHX]

Jim, have you done this yet?

No, I haven't done that yet myself. None of my molds are casting undersize.

I like that method because it is adjustable & it lets you go back to the original size that the mold dropped if you want to. Once you open up a mold on a lathe or by using an abrasive on a spinning boolit, you can't ever go back down in diameter.

The set screw method, or the tape method isn't the best solution in all cases, but either of them is probably a good place to start, since they are both reversible.

That's just my opinion.

[geargnasher]

I see from a previous recent thread that the the Beagling didn't work so well for you. Here's another reference to read, scroll down and read the John Goins (AKA Beagle) article, it does work quite well if you do it per his revised method written here: http://www.lasc.us/Brennan_4-0_ModifyCastBullets.htm

Since we're just making converstation I won't miss my chance to throw in my two cents as well: I would have no qualms sending the mould to Erik Ohlen, he's one of the precious few first-class folks around, and his work is amazing. Cheap, too, for the value you get in the job he does. He will need a few boolits cast from the mould as it is now with known alloy, and he needs to know what alloy you intend to use, and how big you want them. He will use this information to determine how big to machine the driving bands. You will not be disappointed. He does answer his phone during his posted hours and returns calls if he's busy.

As long as you know what you want, he can deliver. If you're still experimenting to find out what your gun wants, you might try Beagling the mould again with one or two layers of tape and size the boolits until your gun is happy, THEN call Erik.

Gear

[MtGun44]

Oval boolits shoot fine.

I have had Erik do a couple of HP conversions, very well done, so I'd expect the
same for opening up a mold.

Flat bottomed or rounded lube groove? If it was me, I would not spend the money
on the rounded lube groove 429421, but seek out a flat bottomed lube groove example
and hope it cast bigger. If not - I'd be happy to pay to fix it up.

Bill