New 35 RD mould , skinny in the middle

[RU shooter]

I bought a NIB 35 RD mould on another forum and got it all cleaned up and cast up a few today from my hunting alloy of 50/50 WW to soft ,This was my first 6 cav. mould took a while to get up speed pouring with a small lyman laddle But I learned that poor 3 and refill and do the back three works out OK. Once I got that big mould up to temp it cast some nice looking bullets . Sorted out the culls and put the calipers on a few of the keepers and the base band was .360 and the top band and bottom of the nose was .360 but the middle TL bands are all only .357-.358 ?

Firstly can they be used like this ? I normally size to .360 my bore is a measured .358 . Second ,besides lapping anyway to correct this ? More tin in the alloy maybe? Beagle the back of the mould?

[turmech]

I would say adding tin would help with fill out on those micro grooves. I just recently bought one of the RD molds in 44 cal. And with WW+1.5% tin I did not get the micro grooves real defined like they did when I used my version of Lyman #2 which has 5% tin. My WW ones would also not be hardly sized by the correct sizer (.432 in this case). I think the molds are designed to cast correct diameter with Lyman #2.

[Blammer]

I'd clean the mould, at a touch of tin and try again.

[longbow]

I agree with turmech on making sure the mould is completely filled out and all grooves on the boolits are well defined.

Did you check all boolits from all cavities of just a few random samples?

Using a small ladle is not the best way to go. I am a ladle caster but I use a large ladle that holds about a pound of lead so LOTS!

The short story is ~ make sure lead and mould are up to proper temperature and cast at a brisk pace then see how they come out. I usually get things hot enough to start frosting then back down a little. I always get good fillout that way.

If you are still getting "skinny in the middle" boolits then it is likely the mould.

Longbow

[singleshot]

If you use Liquid Alox at modest speeds they should shoot fine, but it also depends on what you are shooting it out of. A marlin 336 should be ok. The base band does the sealing, the driving band does the steering, so...

If you're sure you're getting good fillout, you can put some 600 grit lapping compound in the part of the mold you want bigger and put them back in the mold. Close mold. Tap machine screws into the base of the boolits and give them 3-5 turns each. Wash the mold with soap, water, and a toothbrush and recast...

I opened up a mold I had from .312 to .315 this way in one shot using 320 grit.

[RU shooter]

If you use Liquid Alox at modest speeds they should shoot fine, but it also depends on what you are shooting it out of. A marlin 336 should be ok. The base band does the sealing, the driving band does the steering, so...

I'm shooting a rem. 600, Bore is spot on at .358x.350 these are hunting bullets so 2K fps is the target vel.

I cleaned out the mould again with denatured alcohol and brush, Also added a small pc. of lino. maybe a 1" x 1" pc to a 8-10lb batch of alloy I had in my pot and tried again using only the first three cavities ,Still the same .357--.358" in the TL bands....? I know the alloy changed because the bullets are now a grain lighter before they were 193.5 gr now 192.5 gr. Dont really want to add more lino as I dont want them much harder. Think Im going to beagle out the top half of the mould a thou. or two as its easier than lapping for me. BTW what is the gas check shank suppose to be for a 35 cal. bullet ?

Tim

[swheeler]

I'm shooting a rem. 600, Bore is spot on at .358x.350 these are hunting bullets so 2K fps is the target vel.

I cleaned out the mould again with denatured alcohol and brush, Also added a small pc. of lino. maybe a 1" x 1" pc to a 8-10lb batch of alloy I had in my pot and tried again using only the first three cavities ,Still the same .357--.358" in the TL bands....? I know the alloy changed because the bullets are now a grain lighter before they were 193.5 gr now 192.5 gr. Dont really want to add more lino as I dont want them much harder. Think Im going to beagle out the top half of the mould a thou. or two as its easier than lapping for me. BTW what is the gas check shank suppose to be for a 35 cal. bullet ?

Tim

.341 diameter

[old beekeeper]

I purchased the RD 358-175RF to shoot in my Marlin 1894, the bullets fall from the mold .360 at the nose, but some measure .358 or .359 in the middle. I noticed this and I separated those that were udersized and loaded and shot them separately. I lube with 45-45-10 Alox, I put them in a can, heat them with a hair dryer, dump them in a ziplok bag, pour on some Alox mix and swish them around. I pour them on a piece of waxed paper and I have a small desk fan that I use and they are usually ready in a couple of hours. If I use the gas check, I lube a second time. I have not noticed any difference in the POI on any targets I have shot. I think it is the most accurate bullet I have ever shot from my Marlin. I had a problem with the mold at first, it had a bad sprue plate, RD sent me a replacement and it worked great. I shoot them with and without the gas check in my Ruger GP100 with excellent results. My Marlin slugs out at 358.5 and is very accurate with this bullet. With a charge of 15 gr LilGun with a gas checked bullet, now that I put a scope on the rifle to help out 75 year old eyes, I am getting 1" groups at 50 yards. I am not sure how they may affect your guns, but I am having great success with it. Without the gas checks, I shoot Unique, which is accurate for lighter loads. The only problem with this mold is that you can use up a lot of wheel weights in a days shooting, so I am saving this bullet for hunting now that I know how well it shoots. I have not tried it at 100 yards, but here in Virginia where I shoot, you cannot see beyond 50 yards because of the foilage, unless you are working a field. For plinking, I shoot the Lee 125 gr rnfp, saves a lot of lead.