Saeco #081 issues...

[offshore44]

I have a Saeco #081 mould for my 8mm Mausers that really wants to shoot. The issue is that the bore riding nose portion is out of round by about 0.002 - 0.003". E-mailed Redding and the nice guy there said to send it back to them. (along with five or six castings.)

The quandry is should I send it back? I have heard rumors that what you get back may be worse than what you send in. I also hate to spend time and money on shipping for no positive result.

On the other hand, the mould casts undersized by a bit at right angles to the parting line.

Anyone have experience with Saeco customer service and moulds that are close but not right?

[novalty]

Wow, this would be the first I have heard of a bad Customer Service issue with Redding. If you were speaking about Lyman I could see your concern.

[offshore44]

Not a bad customer service experience at all...two hours from sending in the e-mail I had a response from them saying send in the mould. Their customer service is not the issue at all, sorry for the mis-communication on that.

I am concerned that sending it in is futile though. No experience at all with what to expect AFTER I send the mould back. If it's a futile effort, I'll figure something else out to get the mould right.

[novalty]

I know it was a number of years ago. My father-in-law bought a box of used reloading equipment from a LGS, and their was a Redding #1 scale which had damage to the knife edges on the beam and was missing the pan. He called Redding about getting replacement parts, he said they had him shipped it back, and they replaced the beam and pan and calibrated it for free. He uses that scale to this day.

[offshore44]

Nice. Thanks for the feedback. Ill cast up a few fresh boolits and send it off then.

['74 sharps]

A manufacturing company the size of Redding will have equipment that will produce a dimensionally correct product.

[offshore44]

I went out today and cast up the samples that Redding requested I send along with the mould. As a result, I have egg on my face.

Paying careful attention to alloy and mould temperature & etc, using fresh Rotometals Lyman #2 alloy and careful casting practices the boolits turned out about as perfect as one could expect or hope for. The bore riding section is only 0.0005" out of round and the drive band sections are only 0.0015" out of round on the worse ones. Most are half that.

Today I relearned something. Don't blame the tool until you carefully examine the craftsman. It also helps explain how my 24/47 Mauser with a new barrel will shoot almost one inch groups at 100 yards off the bench some days.

Good customer service from Redding, and good product.