casting speed

[soldierbilly1]

OK, just bought a new Lyman 4 banger for my 9mm.

I worked up to 200 boolits per hour on my Lyman 2 banger.

What kinda volume/ speed do you all get on a 4 banger?

She is not broken in yet, so no new speed records at this point!!

just curious, what say you?

thanks
Bill boy:lovebooli

[youngda9]

I just cast a bunch today with a lee 6 banger. I was able to make boolits at an 18lb per hour pace. These were 158 grain .357 bullets. That's 800 boolits per hour. I cast for 1:45 and made 1400 boolits.

I heat up my ingots on a hot plate prior to dropping them in the pot. I set the hot plate just below the point where they start to melt the ingots. I keep the pot full and drop in another ingot as soon as the level drops enough to let me drop it in. This prevents me from ever having to wait for the pot to heat back up. My ingots are clean so I only have to scrape the pot and skim off the dross every 4-5 ingots or so. I use a PID controller to keep the temp where it needs to be.

[Cherokee]

With the 4 cavity you shoud be able to double your volume if you are careful with your mold temp and metal temp. Frankly, once everything is up to temp, I would use both moulds. I frequently cast alternating between two moulds which allows enough time for one to cool/sprue harden while poouring the other. That way you can more than double your volume.

[runfiverun]

i thought about that today while i was using my lyman 4 cavity and lyman 2 cavity.
the 4 cavity basically just doubles the amount.
i get about 720 boolits per hour from the 4 cavity's.
3 pours per minute x 60 minutes= 180 pours per hour x4.
any faster [even with 675* alloy] leaves lead smears on the mold, i do occasionally use a wet rag to cool the mold.
i could concentrate on speed, but i'd rather loaf along at this pace and cast for 2-3 hours rather than try to speed cast for an hour.

[462]

Bullets-per-hour doesn't interest me. Whenever I decide to quit, the number is what it is -- whether I'm casting with a single, double, four, or six-cavity mould, it matters not.

[mooman76]

I'd say you should almost double the output but not quite. Bigger cavities take a little longer. Not allot but you are filling 4 cavities instead of two and the second or two longer lakes time.

[Mal Paso]

Lyman is Iron is longer mold time because Iron holds the heat better.

I used to run 2 Lyman 4 cavity molds. They have been replaced with 1 Brass 4 cavity mold.

Brass conducts the heat from the lead much faster. Aluminum is second fast.

I set up the Greylab Timer last night. With 1 Brass, 4 cavity MP 503 mold casting 260g boolits I could comfortably cast quality boolits at just over 12 a minute. Thanks to Geargnasher who clued me in.

[1Shirt]

I believe in quality over quantity. That said, for revolver, I love Lee 6 bangers, and they will empty a pot quickly. Am not so fussy about revolver blts, as I am at best a marginal handgunner. As long as they look good, and the bases are clean, they are fine. For rifle on the other hand, I am very fussy, particularly for competition shooting as I spend the time to weigh to .3 gr for 30 cal and up, and for under 30 cal to exact weights. There are pureists who insist in only single cav for rifle competition, but I am happy with 2 cavs. Think there may be a slight variance between two blts in a two cav, but far more potential for variance in a 4 or 6 cav. mold. Just my opinion.
1Shirt!:p

[geargnasher]

Each session tends to have its own production rate, and like was mentioned, is whatever it is, who's counting.

If you set your pot temperature at the ideal point for the good of the alloy (hot enough to flow well, but cool enough not to oxidize excessively), and cast at a pace that keeps your mould at the "ideal" casting temperature for dropping primo boolits (it's subjective) in your current casting enviroment (temp, humidity, drafts, etc.), you will have a fixed production quantity for that session, whatever that ends up being. Some days you have to cast faster, some days slower depending on the weather. Change moulds and the whole situation changes slightly. Same with an alloy change that needs to be maintained at a higher or lower temperature.

As far as two-cavity iron vs. four-cavity iron, your production should be at least 90% higher, but I'll bet your sessions will also be about 90% shorter due to fatigue, so in the end you might break even with everything except the time at the casting bench.

Gear

[kbstenberg]

Billy If you don't mind my sticking my nose where it doesn't belong. For the first couple of sessions wouldn't it be better to just keep adjusting heat levels an temperatures and timing trying to make the best bullets you can.
Then after a couple of exploratory sessions with your mold you can go to town an strive for quantity.
Besides after a couple of heating cycles a mold tends to settle into a better bullet maker. So I've read.
Kevin

[462]

"Besides after a couple of heating cycles a mold tends to settle into a better bullet maker. So I've read."

I've experienced it.

[soldierbilly1]

kb and 462:
exactly, I've broken in a number of molds, they do get better as they age. Just like us.:-P
I was just curious. No land speed records. True, it's quality first, quantity is, in the final balance, not that important.

I am ladleing (sp?) the bullets right now, and the most important thing is a good clean base. These 9 mms will be shot at close range anyway.

thanks to all for the advice. Geargnasher, much wisdom there.

I have learned much from this forum alone.:smile:

but jeez, 720 bullets per hour. have mercy!

thanks
bill boy

[Shiloh]

A consistent pace gets me my best boolits.

Shiloh

[Mal Paso]

To give you a fair picture it's 12 boolits a minute until I empty the 4-20 Lee Pot which is less than a half hour. I have a second Lee Pot I was going to use as backup but there seems to be enough to do while metal is melting. I don't think culling rejects gets any faster with fewer rejects. I wanted to point out that mold material is a big factor. I'm dropping a cooler/less fragile boolit with only about 10 seconds mold time now.