Another maker I stumbled across

[madsenshooter]

Here's the URL to another mold maker I stumbled across: http://www.generalordnanceusa.com/index.html Some of you may already be aware of the company, but thought I'd post it anyway.

[Suo Gan]

The prices seem decent, the tools seem to be good quality and have good designs. I wonder if anyone has tried them?

[gandydancer]

I have seen one 4 cavity a 30 caliber it looked well made to me it was new in the box so I have no idea how well it cast. GD

[dromia]

There have been a few threads and posts about this maker, do a search to find out more about his work.

[MikeS]

The owner's name is Brad, and I've emailed him a few times, and he's sending me a 457130 4 cavity mould for me to test, and post my impressions of the mould here. He sent one mould out to me last month, but it apparently got lost in the mail, so he said he's going to send me another one. If I like the mould, I'm going to pay him for it, if not, then he wants me to send it to another forum member for them to evaluate.

So far it's all been talk (via email), and I'm still waiting to get the mould. Once I get it, I will post a review of it here. I hope it works as nice as the moulds on his website look.

[happy7]

I have two of his molds ordered. I will post my impressions.

[walltube]

Some questions, if you will, please:



Being that you have had communication with owner Brad, can you tell us if all moulds are 4x cavity as pictured on GenOrdUSA site? And at $99.95? Any dimensions as does NOE offer to us here at CB?

I realise this post may be a bit premature......but, there is in my heart a lust for some very interesting .30 caliber designs.

Regards,

Wt.

[Love Life]

His website states that the moulds as cast diameter is a bit larger than advertised to allow sizing. I have also had contact with Brad. Nice guy. He did not have a 2 cavity in the mould I wanted so I had to pass.

[madsenshooter]

I plan on trying the modified 245498, it looks better as a round nose instead of the Lyman semi-spitzer with the Long unsupported nose. I agree, he does have some interesting designs.

[gandydancer]

right now all moulds are 4 cavity at stated price of $99.00 bucks plus $7.00 bucks shipping. and I belive that is for their designs not custom ones. GD

[happy7]

First impressions in the ordering process is that you can get a reproduction of pretty much any Lyman design in a four cavity mold for $99 and get it in a couple weeks. No one else does that right now. However, what I still am wondering about is how faithfull the copy of the design is and the quality of the mold. Hopefully some of those questions will get answered as some of us get some molds in our hands.

[madsenshooter]

I have ordered the 245498, once it gets here, I'll start another thread for evaluation. I had some interest in the 245499 he shows, but he tells me the nose is the same .245 as the driving bands, I'd have to seat it way too deep for my 6x45. Might make a good bullet for a 6mm Lee Navy with a washed out throat.

[MikeS]

Some questions, if you will, please:

Being that you have had communication with owner Brad, can you tell us if all moulds are 4x cavity as pictured on GenOrdUSA site? And at $99.95? Any dimensions as does NOE offer to us here at CB?

I realise this post may be a bit premature......but, there is in my heart a lust for some very interesting .30 caliber designs.

Regards,

Wt.

Right now I don't have any firm answers for you. :( I'm pretty sure that the $99.95 price is for the 4 cavity moulds, and I think he does make smaller moulds as well, but have no idea of price on them. What do you mean by dimensions as NOE does?

[DragoonDrake]

I just ordered the 457130 and the 287337. I will post picks and give reports once they arrive.

[MikeS]

The mould he's sending me is also the 457130. Even tho it's really made for rifle use, am I correct in assuming that due to it's design it should be fairly easy to size it down to .452 to shoot it from a 45 pistol?

He sent me one that got lost in the mail, so Monday he's sending out a replacement. I hope I get it quickly this time!

[walltube]

What I meant by "NOE's dimensions" are the pertinent boolit dimensions Al publishes here for a potential buyer to view during the 'Discussion' phase of a new offering. "Accurate Molds", too, also publishes his designs with dimensions. Brad's site does not have, or offer, such dimensions for his boolits; only renditions from an Ideal\Lyman handbook.

The statement @ G.O.D. that one can expect a .003" to .005" increase in diameter over the nominal .311" as dropped from Brad's moulds have me wondering if this include the entire boolit and not just the driving bands. A too large gas check shank or nose may present some problems.

Hence my "NOE dimension" statement.

Waiting for Ya'lls critique on Brad's moulds..:popcorn:

Regards, Y'all..
Wt.

[madsenshooter]

Use the contact info on the webpage and ask him. I asked about the nose diameter on the 245498. I think .003-.005 is in some cases a bit much, will let you know how things are on the one I get. I cast with a high tin alloy that'll get me .001" anyway. As an aside, I got nearly enough out of my Lyman single cavity 245498, which don't shoot worth a hoot at the velocities I want, on ebay to pay for one of Brad's 4 cavities for trial.

[walltube]

I've had an internet conversation with Brad. A very accomodating fellow.

As for the oversize .003"-.005" question, I'll wait for yours and others opinion when you guys put your moulds to the test. Not being cynical towards Brad's moulds, but my circumstances demand a "wait and see" before I commit any $$$.$$.

Hopefully all is well, Brad has quite an array of long discontinued Ideal\Lyman to offer. Ahhh, so many choices, so little money..:roll:

Best Regards to All,
Harold

[MikeS]

Harold: Don't forget, unless a mould maker specifies exactly what a dimension will be, and really only a custom mould maker can do that with taking YOUR alloy into account, any dimensions are flexible. Sounds to me like you need to talk to Tom over at Accurate Molds, and tell him exactly what alloy you'll be using, and exactly what size you need. If you specify that a particular dimension on a boolits needs to be x.yyy he will make sure it is.

Brad's statement of the tolerances of his moulds sounds to me like he's taking into account the variations in different boolit alloys. He specs his moulds using Lyman #2, and I'm sure that using certified Lyman #2 (such as you could buy from RotoMetals, or Midway, etc.) his moulds will always be right about the same size, but when you take into consideration that many folks (myself included) mix up their own alloy, and call it Lyman #2 (my alloy is actually closer to 4.2%tin & 4.8% antimony, with some copper in there as well, and traces of some other metals), and also the fact that when a person makes an alloy at home, many times it might vary slightly (I know mine does from batch to batch, very slightly, but it's there), there's no way for a mould maker to know exactly what a boolit cast from their mould is going to weigh, or what size it's going to cast. Also remember, we're casting boolits, not aerospace parts, so tolerances really don't need to be held as tight as many like to think (unless you're a BR shooter, or schutzen, or other high precision shooting, in which case they usually get their moulds matched exactly to their alloy, and rifle, at a cost quite a bit higher than most of the moulds you see on this site).

What exactly do you need a mould to do, and why?

[square butte]

Excellent selection of .25 cal molds at General Ord.. Many are copies of obsolete and hard to find Lyman/Ideal molds. If I am not mistaken - I don't think Accurate can do molds below .30 cal.. Think I will probably be doing some business with General Ordnace.

[Alan in Vermont]

It looks like there is a lot of potential there, I'll be looking forward to some reviews from users.