Mold storage, keeping rust at bay

[Brenden]

I was on the phone with Magma Engineering today, and the lady I was speaking to suggested using Pam cooking spray on the cavity. Has anyone heard of this? I was ready to pony up some $$ for Magm-Lube and she said I would fight wrinkled boolits from it, just use Pam and throw some desicant packs in the container to fight humidity.

[Forrest r]

I've always gone the high-tech route & put a qt of motor oil in a coffee can & put my molds in it.

[jsheyn]

I've always gone the high-tech route & put a qt of motor oil in a coffee can & put my molds in it.

How do you prep casting...break clean?


I spray mine down with wd-40 while its hot....hot soapy water and a bristle brush to prep

[GaryN]

I just put mine in an airtight container with some dessicant packs. Never had a rust problem yet. Course' I live in a dry state too.

[Forrest r]

I just wash them with a tooth brush & dawn dish washing liquid. Then I shake then to get rid of the excess water & preheat them. What little bit of water left in or on the mold evaporates when they are preheated.

I live in an area that is known for it's rust (the ohio rust belt), I've been doing this to my molds for 3 decades now. My one mold, a lyman 311465, I didn't use since the mid-90's. I pulled it out of the oil last year, cleaned the oil off & started casting.

[Beagle333]

I'm in a very humid state (South AL), but I use the same method as GaryN and keep mine in a Tupperware (air-tight) container with a bag of RemDry in there. After casting and cooling, I just put em right back in the container and check that the little blue dot on the bag is still blue. About every 6 months (or if the indicator starts to turn pink), I recharge the bag (bake it on oven at 200° for a couple of hours). I do like an oil bath for most of my metal preservation, but it really makes it easier for me to grab a mold and cast a few, or change molds quickly without having to scrub em down first.

[mold maker]

Today's forecast is for 92* with 85% wet. If its made of Fe and not in the sunshine, it will be red by evening, when it storms. If it was in the sun it will get drenched.
If it doesn't rust it's very well protected. My basement is over half below ground and has no damp proofing beneath it. The upstairs AC Keeps it almost comfortable, but it's damp even with a dehumidifier.
All my reloading equipment that will rust is kept in Ammo cans with a light coat of rust deterrent and desiccants. Presses and such are wiped down for fingerprints and then with a light coat of oil.
Yes, most the bench equipment has evidence of spots I missed.
Rust is just something you deal with in order to live, within 4 hr of the Ocean, and 2 hr from the ski slopes. I seldom use either, but this has always been home.

[Calamity Jake]

I just put mine in an airtight container with some dessicant packs. Never had a rust problem yet. Course' I live in a dry state too.

^^^^^ This, and I don't live in a dry state. I use 50 cal and 20MM ammo cans with a dessicant pack, no rust.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

this is what I use...see post #65
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?115858-Rust-Free-Mold-Storage-on-the-cheap/page4&highlight=

MN is dry in the winter, and humid in the summer.
With this, the first summer just starting, that I've had these containers, the test is basically just starting to see if these will work for me.
Jon

[Whiterabbit]

I was on the phone with Magma Engineering today, and the lady I was speaking to suggested using Pam cooking spray on the cavity. Has anyone heard of this? I was ready to pony up some $$ for Magm-Lube and she said I would fight wrinkled boolits from it, just use Pam and throw some desicant packs in the container to fight humidity.

First of all, she's the expert, I'm not. Because of that, even when my BS flag goes up, I try it. Case in point, my local muzzleloader shop tells me to use ATF as patch lube. Internet tells me ballistol or fat. atf sounded like BS< but he talks, I listen. So I try all three. ATF was most accurate.

In this case? pam sounds like a bunch of BS to me. I cook a lot with cast iron and to season my pans I've learned to ONLY use ghee, because all other fats will get gummy over time. I'd HATE to see my molds get gummy!

On the other hand, she is the the expert, not me. so frankly, I'd take a lesser loved mold but planned to use a few times in the near future (to see how cycling the fat worked) and give it a shot. When the experts give advice, usually there's something backing it up, even if it's megalomaniac experience.

Don't use pam for baking ;)

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I use WD-40 myself and store wrapped in waxy paper unsealed, but then again I also live in a dry dry climate.

[MGySgt]

A trick I learned a long time ago from another member here is after they cool, spray then down with Pledge furniture polish. It is not a wax (read the label of it contents, no way is mentioned), and burns off after 2 or 3 pours.

Now - the mould that I am using a lot, like a few times a week, I do not put anything on it. I just sit it down on a shelf in my reloading room on a block of wood so I don't burn the shelf and when I have some time to cast I just pick it up and take it to the casting shed and turn on the pot and the hotplate.

[Land Owner]

For after-use, water cleaned, farm equipment storage, such as a 500# capacity steel fertilizer spreader, some were suggesting WD-40 (pricy) and I found that 25% diesel and 75% motor oil (10W-30) works well and is cheap. The diesel thins the mix and the motor oil then spreads evenly through a hand held sprayer and does not evaporate over time in storage (though not as good as a solid oil bath for sure). So I use that mix on my moulds as well and use Dawn, hot water, and a toothbrush, to pre-clean and 15/30-minutes of pre-heat to dry a mould prior to pouring.

[Brenden]

I just wanted to get some feedback on the Pam spray idea, I have lurked here before joining for 2 years and never heard of it. I thought someone might have tried it, for an employee of Magma's to suggest it I figured it must have been fairly common.