New Lee Mold Dropping Undersize Boolits

[eagle-man]

Hi,

I have a Lee 90310 mold (452 - 200 SWC) mold that has been working great. I got a second 90310 mold so that I could drop boolits from one mold while the other one cools. I measured the boolits from the new mold and they are coming out at .450 - 451, while my older mold is dropping at .453 - .455. Since I am sizing at .452, I am concerned that this will not work the best.

Does this sound right for a Lee mold? Would Lee fix this?

I cast about 1800 boolits this past weekend first time to use the new mold. I'm not looking forward to having to measure each one to find out what I can use. :(

[rmatchell]

I would call lee and see what they will do about the mold. As for the cast boolits you might get away with the 451 boolits or you might not. ( I know not much help) I have got away with some undersized boolits that were not pushed that hard but I cant say they will work for sure. Or it could be an excuse to buy a 45 plain base check maker.

[HATCH]

I would contact lee and see what their specs are.
According to their website its suppose to drop at .452 using

http://leeprecision.com/userfiles/images/Satisfaction.jpg

[462]

Not an uncommon problem, from my experience.

Lee or the retailer will see to your satisfaction, but don't let either of them make you pay for the return postage on a defective product.

[Boolseye]

Don't hesitate to send it back. Specs for lee molds are guaranteed -.000", + .002". Lee's service dept. is top-tier. I recommend the gentle touch. I have sent a couple molds back and have always been met with courtesy and good service.

[tomme boy]

Not me. The guy I talked to is a jerk. Eric??? I don't buy anything from them if I have to. I have sent molds back to them 3 times and they will NOT pay for the shipping. All three times they said there was nothing wrong with them. If a mold is out of round, I want it replaced. But, according to them there was never anything wrong. Oh yeah, supposedly they don't cast with lead at the factory. They use a pin gauge to check everything.

They may be a site supporter, but I have not been treated well by them. The last time he said " Oh yeah, you are that guy" Got an attitude and would not listen to anything I said. He just kept saying I will send your molds back.

Anyway, try adding a little tin to your lead and try them again. If not, do what everyone else here does. Contact Tom at Accurate Molds and get a REAL MOLD.

[DrCaveman]

That sucks. I guess it kinda confirms what many people say about Lee's QC. The fact is that when you are pumping out the number of molds they are, at the price point offered, there will be lemons that make it through. It is a production operation, no time to sit there and pour molten lead samples through each unit.

They are doing PLENTY of business to afford the replacement of a few lemons, shipping included. Contact them, send it back on their dime. Offer the argument that you gave us.

While i am not as hardline as TommeBoy, if you want to avoid this pickle and pour some damn fine boolits, go with Accurate Molds as he says. Top notch

[Char-Gar]

Thus far, you are worrying about a problem that is not real. Grab a handful and run them through your .452 sizer, load and shoot. If there are problems then it is time to try and deal with it. If there are no problems continue to shoot without worry. Time spend in concern about a theoretical problem is not time well spent.

[dkf]

Not me. The guy I talked to is a jerk. Eric??? I don't buy anything from them if I have to. I have sent molds back to them 3 times and they will NOT pay for the shipping. All three times they said there was nothing wrong with them. If a mold is out of round, I want it replaced. But, according to them there was never anything wrong. Oh yeah, supposedly they don't cast with lead at the factory. They use a pin gauge to check everything.

They may be a site supporter, but I have not been treated well by them. The last time he said " Oh yeah, you are that guy" Got an attitude and would not listen to anything I said. He just kept saying I will send your molds back.

Anyway, try adding a little tin to your lead and try them again. If not, do what everyone else here does. Contact Tom at Accurate Molds and get a REAL MOLD.

I had almost the exact same experience about a sizer die issue. Guys name was Peter and he was in love with the pin gauges also. I think we got the same guy. He really did not seem to care less about the issue and insisted I needed to spend more money on a U die to be able to use a quality .355" JHP bullet in a cartridge that uses a .355" bullet. A warrenty is only as good as the person/company behind it.

Next bad thing I buy from them I will not even bother with customer service. I will just throw it in the trash and not buy anything from them again. I do currently own a lot of Lee products, most of my stuff is Lee.


OP. Send the mold back and tell them it is defective and you want a replacement. Since you have other molds that cast properly it is obvious you are not doing anything wrong.

[eagle-man]

So I called the factory and talked to them, and they said to send it back in. The guy didn;t seem to bat an eye, and I tried the honey approach. I am going to send a few sized and unsized boolits for them to see. I will problably send a few boolits from my good mold for comparison

I also have some broken parts from my older single stage press that I will throw in the box to see if I can get replacement parts.

So far I am hopeful. I will update when I get a package back from them. I am optimistic that I will get two working molds that will drop boolits that are same!

[emorris]

Im in the same boat as dkf with my lee pistol resizing dies in 40s&w, 9mm, and 380acp. I held on to the dies because they work well with cast boolits, but for fmj I use a lee undersized die in 40s&w and 9mm. For 380 I just use my 223 rem sizer. The expander ball has been tooo big on every bottle neck rifle sizing die I have ever used. Even the collet neck sizer die.

I have sent one mold back to Lee. It was the TL452-230 mold. It dropped at .450. I paid shipping to them along with a few bullets I casted. I got the mold back in a couple weeks along with two bullets they casted. They said the mold was in spec., but the bullets they sent measured at .4509 with a micrometer.

[Smoke4320]

I had just the opposite experience ..
I send a 6 cavity mold back that I got in a trade.. it was damaged in several ways.. expected nothing but what the heck lets see what they do .. got a call several days later .. your mold is too far damaged to repair but we will sell you a new one for 1/2 price ..
I took them up on that offer and they did not charge me any shipping.. 3 days later I received a new mold.. and its casts great ..what can I say... it worked for me

[DLCTEX]

I can open a Lee mould a couple thou in 30 min. or less using an abrasive and a screw in the base of the boolit. This also removes any burrs and makes boolits drop easily. I won't wast time sending one back for slightly undersize. Just my 2 cents.

[Lights]

That's what I would do too. Lap it to size.

[Matt85]

ive had only experiences with Lee. I recently bought a hand loading kit and it had a damaged bullet seater. so I took a picture of the damage and sent them the picture via a form on there website. a day later they sent me a email saying the replacement bullet seater was on its way. didn't even ask me to send the broken one back to them! ive enjoyed using their molds and ive got the challenger single stage press which is a steal for the price.

-matt

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I really like Lee and their products, but when a company is in that price point range, you can expect some tinkering if you are expecting perfect quality.

If I were to buy a new $17 aluminum Boolit mold and it drops boolits .001" to .002" too small, but everything else about the mold is to my liking. Before I'd think about paying $$$ to ship it, I'd strongly consider Lapping/Leementing it.

that's my 2¢
Jon

[jmort]

Lee Precision customer service has been very good to me. Never had a rude conversation. Sent me new parts for free. I would suggest reading "How to Win Friends and Influence People" - i.e. the "honey" approach suggested. I will not engage in any negotiations or customer service calls unless I"m in a good mood, unless there is no other option. Has made me more money and I have generally gotten good/excellent customer service.Lee Precision Round Ball molds are an incredible value and produce better balls than the Lymans. Waiting for a Ranch Dog group buy on the .30-30 mold. Many happy Lee Precision mold users and many not so happy. I am happy, but I do like Accurate as well. Just got one from Tom and it is a beauty. God Bless Richard Lee and Lee Precision for sponsoring this site.

[Lights]

Lee Precision customer service has been very good to me. Never had a rude conversation. Sent me new parts for free. I would suggest reading "How to Win Friends and Influence People" - i.e. the "honey" approach suggested. I will not engage in any negotiations or customer service calls unless I"m in a good mood, unless there is no other option. Has made me more money and I have generally gotten good/excellent customer service. God Bless Richard Lee and Lee Precision for sponsoring this site.

I have had the same thoughts and experience with Lee Precision and starting conversations with people.

[Boolseye]

That's what I would do too. Lap it to size.
It's a six-cav. That's a piece of work, though it can be done.

[pdawg_shooter]

I have more Lee molds than all others combined. Yes, sometimes I have had to fine tune one or the other, but if I did not like playing, I would just shoot factory ammo in factory stock firearms. Where is the fun in that?

[myg30]

i have more lee molds than all others combined. Yes, sometimes i have had to fine tune one or the other, but if i did not like playing, i would just shoot factory ammo in factory stock firearms. Where is the fun in that?

amen brother !!

[eagle-man]

I sent my mold back to Lee with a letter explaining what was going on. I also had a Lee single stage press that I owned since I was a kid that had the linkage between the ram and the handle that broke. I was hopping that they would have some replacement parts for the press. Well, I got a call from Lee after I sent my mold in. not only are they replacing the mold for free, but they are including the parts for my press, for free as well. I was expecting to pay full retail for the parts, and then have to pay shipping on the parts, but the lady at Lee said that they were including the parts for free.

The service that I received from Lee is the same level of service that I have seen from RCBS over the years. I am really impressed with Lee and their service. They have definitely increased my perception of the company with the commitment that they have shown to their products.

[DeanWinchester]

Lee's quality control isn't the best in the world but that's not always a bad thing. I have a .30 cal mold from them, it's one of the 230g boat tail molds for .300 BLK. It drops around .306-.307. Obviously no good for anything......wrong, soon as I get a few other project done, I'm going to order an appropriate sizer from Buckshot and use this sucker for a paper patch boolit. THe tumble lube grooves should help hold the patch pretty good. It should be awesome in .303 British or 7,62x54R

[hylander]

Glad to see they took care of you.
I had the same problem with a mold of theirs dropping way to small.
I was blown off and pretty much told to bad for you.