IDEAL 452490 Hollow Point ...45 Caliber Gas Check SWC

[joeatact]

It drops .440 or .445 no where near .452. I am using ww only. Am I doing something wrong?

Joe

[45 2.1]

Probably not. Could you post a picture of your cast boolit. It might be a misslabeled mold.... been known to happen.

[runfiverun]

even slightly small and using pure lead would produce 449 or 450.
measure inside the mold with some calipers.
if it truly is measuring that small there is definately something wrong with the mold.

[joeatact]

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/imagehosting/thum_212524f74f054cfe41.jpg (http://castboolits.gunloads.com/vbimghost.php?do=displayimg&imgid=4627)

Here is a picture

[40Super]

That doesn't look to be filled out at all. From my limited experience it looks like the mold is way to cold and the lead is not filling out to the full dia.Put the mold on a hot plate and get it closer to the pot temp,or hold the mold in the melted lead for ten to twenty second before pouring. Your bullet should have nice square edges and corners.

[45 2.1]

That indeed is the 452490 (the first version suitable for the 45 ACP and 45 Auto Rim). As mentioned, the incomplete fillout is responsible for the undersize measurements. A well filled out sharp banded casting should be what you want.

[joeatact]

The mold I heated on a hot plate. Could it be the lead is not hot enough?

[Texasflyboy]

Cast as fast as you can until the bullets are uniformly frosted. Then allow to cool DOWN a bit to a good working temp. That might fix problem. If you can't get frosting lead isn't hot enough.

My. 02

[Larry Gibson]

It's hopeless, all Lyman moulds cast undersize......didn't you know???? Just send it to me and I'll properly dispose of it for you..........

Seriously; Before I would arbitrarily blame the mould I would;

Add 2% tin to the WWs and if you want decent expansion then add 50 - 70 % lead to that, you'll want a soft alloy for proper expansion at handgun velocities. Depending on the intended velocity a 40-1, 30-1 or 20-1 lead tin alloy would be better for expansion.

Make sure the alloy was at 700 - 750 degrees before casting and well fluxed

Open the spout adjustment so the alloy comes out hot and fast getting into that big cavity as quickly as possible and let a good sprue form and run over the side of the mould if it wants

Cast fast enough so the bullets were just short of really frosty

Keep the HP pin hot (see photo)

Larry Gibson

[40Super]

I just tonight noticed ,as what Texasflyboy said,when I got my bullets hot so they were frosting fully,then cooled it down,those were my best and shinniest bullets,Till then I couldn't get as consistant "lead shine",they always turned flat silver(not really frosted though)without being wrinkled.

maybe I'm too fussy, wanting them shinny.I gave up trying to get treatment.:cry:

[MikeS]

Actually shiny boolits are not what you should be shooting for. Satin is more like what an ideal boolit should look like, not quite shiny, and not frosted. I find that when casting with Lyman #2 alloy I get the best results when casting at 650F rather than up at or over 700F. Looking at the picture of the boolit, I would think that the mould wasn't hot enough, even tho it was preheated on a hot plate. I would say to either turn up the heat on the hot plate, or leave it on the hot plate longer. I'm assuming that it's a single cavity mould, I would say to set the hotplate on medium, and then leave it on the hotplate for about 1/2 hour or so.