Daylight Thru Mold Question

[Jason30-30]

I havent been casting for too long and have little experience. But i have a Lyman mold that i could see daylight thru the cavities and on the side of the mold.

Will this make the boolits drop bigger?
Is it a problem?

Thanks Jason

[mooman76]

It may or may not be a problem and could be a benifit, a little bigger could help. Sometimes it's something with the handles that don't quite close. A spec of lead somewhere or a burr. It may not show light after the mould is heated up and if there is no finning it should be fine. You have a beagled mould without the tape

[odfairfaxsub]

ive had one just recently just like that, lee made it, i trimmed all the alumium flashings on it that i felt comfortable with and it still saw the daylight too. worried was i yes. cold mold cast no flashing, hot mold cast no flashing, just decent bullets.

[Jason30-30]

Thanks for replying

I dont have the mold mounted on handles i just held it up to the light and saw that one of the cavities is a little more open than the other. I think its becuase of the allignment pins sticking out a little more than they should but not sure.

[odfairfaxsub]

ya i even ran my cutting type tool around where the allignment pins lay on the 2 cavity and it didnt help, my light came on the inbetween the two bullets.

[gandydancer]

sounds to me like you have the wrong handles on the mold. how old in the mold? send me the mold #numbers single or double cavity? GD

[GP100man]

First ,make sure there`s no splahed lead hiding in cracks or around the pins .

Next inspect the pin holes ,both sides ,sometimes metal raises around the pin holes & will have to be leveled .

Make sure pins are`nt out too far .

Last but not least check for warpage .

Try casting with it as long as ya don`t get "wings" or too far out of round they should size fine & still be balanced.

If ya level em do it on 1/4"sheet glass & 600 grit paper & go slow & check often.

Measure the pin protrusion before removing em though .

[Jason30-30]

sounds to me like you have the wrong handles on the mold. how old in the mold? send me the mold #numbers single or double cavity? GD

The #s on the mold are 586 i dont have it mounted on handles yet

[Jason30-30]

ya i even ran my cutting type tool around where the allignment pins lay on the 2 cavity and it didnt help, my light came on the inbetween the two bullets.


Thats what my mold has too i can see daylight thru the actual bullet cavities and the side

[odfairfaxsub]

mine when i did size em would have slight more lead sizing on two sides as per lead protrusion from sizing after running up through the die (noticable around the lube grooves) although it is my most accurate mold i have reguardless.

[gandydancer]

The #s on the mold are 586 i dont have it mounted on handles yet. well so much for my 2 cents. gandydancer

[Suo Gan]

After you check and make sure there is not a bur or a bit of lead on the face, adjust the pins.

[Jason30-30]

After you check and make sure there is not a bur or a bit of lead on the face, adjust the pins.


Thats what im going to have to do there in there pretty good i put WD-40 on the pins to see if i can slowly drive them in.

[Jason30-30]

mine when i did size em would have slight more lead sizing on two sides as per lead protrusion from sizing after running up through the die (noticable around the lube grooves) although it is my most accurate mold i have reguardless.

I hope it works out as i like the design of the mold

[Cap'n Morgan]

It could be a slight warping of the blocks. The human eye can easily detect light through slits less than .0001 wide so it may not much of a problem. Unless the boolits are way oversized or developing excessive whiskers, don't worry about it. It will just improve the venting of the mold.

[Iron Mike Golf]

1. Also check for a ding on the outside of the mold blocks near the parting line. A dent there can displace metal on the inside face. You don't need much to let daylight through.

2. Cast some up and take a micrometer to them. I am betting a sizer will fix them right up.

3. I have flattened mold blocks and gotten rid of the daylight using a hammer. One medium rap on the assembled mold. Did it on the basement floor (linoleum over concrete). I wouldn't do this unless the mold is dropping objectionable boolits.

[DLCTEX]

I took the warp out of an abused mould I got off Ebay a few years ago by squeezing the blocks together in a vice.

[Jason30-30]

I took the warp out of an abused mould I got off Ebay a few years ago by squeezing the blocks together in a vice.


Upon closer inspection My mold is a little warped might have to do that.

Did you just squeeze them from all sides?