My Mihec 6-Cavity H&G#68 Clone

[seagiant]

Hi,
I finally used my Mihec mold and it worked ok. I tried it with no mold drop out and it dropped the boolits if I smacked the handle lightly. It wanted to leave a little flashing at the part line at first but got better after a little use. Are you guys using any mold drop out and what about the flashing? Just wondering if my experience is typical? Thanks!

[btroj]

I wouldn't use anything in the cavities. The little bit of flashing you are getting is not any real concern- it indicates that you have good lead flow and fill out. It may be related to the mold temp and melt temp. Are you pressure casting? That will often lead to small bits of flashing like that.

[seagiant]

Hi,
No,I don't pressure cast never needed to! You are right there is nothing wrong with the boolits. Probably expecting to much to soon,need to run it some more. Thinking it will get better along the way! Thanks!

[btroj]

I have a similar mould from a previous run. It casts so well I don't know what to do!

[seagiant]

Hi Btroj,
Yes...Thats what most people say. Maybe I was expecting to much because of that. It is a better mold than my old LEE six-cavity but not light years ahead. I just finished another cast session and it is working better all the time. I had to trim the shoulder on the sprue plate screw so I could tighten the plate up some. That helped operation a lot. The small flashing has mostly gone and the boolits are falling out a little easier. Be advised I'm not complaining just making observations about the mold as I see it!

[MtGun44]

Might need some bullplate lube on the top of mold and bottom of sprue plate. Miha
normally sends a bottle of his lube with each mold, so try that, too.

Bill

[Dale53]

seagiant;
That bit of flashing you see is often caused by running a mould too hot with your particular alloy. Just back off the temperature a bit and see if that doesn't help.

Many recommend running your temperatures at too high a level. As an example, my standard alloy for most pistol and revolver bullets is WW+2% tin. I get great fill out without flashing at 700-725 degrees (by thermostat).

I also have a small manicurists fan (about $7.00 at Walmart or Target Stores) blowing on my mould where I drop my bullets. This helps me to maintain my mould temperature. Before I started using the fan (thanks to Mike Venturino) I had to use various ways to cool my mould as it would get too hot in use.

FWIW
Dale53

[seagiant]

Thanks Gentlemen,
This is interesting! I've never used any lube but might try it. Did not get any with this mold. I actually dropped my temp once I got up to speed on my 2nd try and noticed that this mold will work at lower temps than my LEEs used to!

As I said I have no problem with this mold it makes fine boolits just want to fine tune our relationship so to speak! Thanks again!

[Doby45]

You don't really want to drop the mold temp, you want to drop the alloy temp as much as possible and then adjust mold temp.

[pmer]

I was getting the same flashing at the base as in post #5 with 358156. Turning the melt tempurature down took care of it.

[MikeS]

I don't have the aluminium six cavity mould, but I just got a couple of his brass 4 cavity versions of the #68, and they are a joy to use. The boolits jump right out if I let the mould cool a bit after pouring the lead, and cutting the sprue. If I don't wait long enough they might stick in the cavity for a moment, but tapping the mould against the table has them falling right out (I have a 2" thick rubber cutting pad as my tabletop at the moment, so no chance of hurting the mould). The finish of the cavities on Mihec moulds is better than any other moulds I have seen (they're also the only custom ones I have seen, so can't compare them to NOE moulds yet).

[geargnasher]

You don't really want to drop the mold temp, you want to drop the alloy temp as much as possible and then adjust mold temp.


I was getting the same flashing at the base as in post #5 with 358156. Turning the melt tempurature down took care of it.

Like was said, often people run their alloy too hot and their moulds too cold. The thing that works best for me is to maintain the alloy at about 100 degrees hotter than the end of the mush phase, or full-liquidus point, of the alloy, and cast about three cycles a minute after preheating the mould to maintain a nice, HOT mould that will fill out the boolits, make crisp edges, and not fin or flash.

I was in on this last group buy myself and my mould DID come with a small sample bottle of sprue plate lube, I believe Miha ships ALL of his moulds with such a sample. Find it, read the directions for Bullplate sprue plate lube, and use it accordingly. Sounds like you have lead smearing and building up on the top of the mould blocks causing the sprue plate to elevate, especially on the end opposite the pivot screw. Since there is no head on the stop pin, there is nothing to lock down the opposite end of the sprue plate or to indicate you have a problem with buildup and plate lift until you start to get the base flashing. Clean the mould blocks, underside of the sprue plate, and do a "daylight" check to make certain that the plate is sitting flat on the blocks.

Gear

[seagiant]

Thanks Gentlemen,
I did set the shoulder back on the sprue plate bolt so I could get it tighter and it helped alot. I have been casting for close to 30 years and was on this forum when it was the "other" forum so have benefited from good advice for a while now! No one that I know around me cast their own bullets! I get comments like "you must be really bored!" Nothing could be further from the truth! Thanks again and here is a pic of the finished product! It's nice to know I have an exact copy of the original H&G#68!

[ColColt]

It's been a long time since I've used SWC's in a 1911. These boolits look good. I haven't had the opportunity to cast any as yet with this mold but was wondering about the OAL of the cartridge. I use to measure with the rim of the case flush with the hood and it seems the OAL was about 1.245-1.248". Does that sound about right? Some 1911's can be finicky about OAL.

[seagiant]

Hi Col,
I was using the LEE six-cavity till I got the Mihec. When I switched boolits I was looking to see if I had to readjust my seating die. No everything was still good. The Boolits you see in the pic are 1.252" My reload manual states 1.275"max and 1.150"min OAL. I use my cartridges in everything from a S&W 645,CZ 97 and a couple 1911's and they work great!

[ColColt]

I guess the possibility exist whereby each barrel may be a little different and take a somewhat slightly different OAL. To me, it it chambers without the rim sticking out above the hood, you should be good to go.

[Dale53]

ColColt;
You are correct - using the barrel removed from a 1911, the round should drop in the chamber (hold the barrel vertical, chamber up), and the base of the case should be flush with the barrel hood. As long as that round is not too long for the magazine (this would be a RARE circumstance) the round is the proper length.

I recommend taper crimping to .470" at the case mouth of the loaded round.

Dale53

[MtGun44]

I agree with Dale. I had settled on 1.260 for decades for H&G 68 commercial clones,
but I had to shorten that to 1.250 LOA when I got a Dan Wesson 1911 because it has
such a tight throat. Remove the barrel and use it as a gage to set the TC and LOA.
In 30+ yrs of coaching IPSC shooters loading for the .45 ACP, the most common cause
of failure to feed has been a total lack of or too little taper crimp, with too long LOA
being the most common cause of failure to close all the way.

Bill

[ColColt]

I just checked last night some old rounds still ready to go with the 200 gr SWC(commercial) I had made some years back and they measured OAL 1.252" and the crimp was .468". I may use that as a starter to see how they do in the upcoming SW1911 I'm looking at. Then it's off to casting some new ones from Miha's mold.

[MtGun44]

Both sound like good places to be, although each gun may require a bit of a tweak. There
has been a real trend to tight chambers with short throats in 1911s over the last 15 yrs or more
to improve accuracy. Such is competition between the MANY, MANY 1911 makers that one of
the big issues is "well, how accurate is it?" even if the diff between the two guns is entirely
theoretical for most ammo, most shooters and for most shooting situations.

Bill