HP Mold Suggestion

[ACrowe25]

Hey guys,

Looking to purchase a HP mold (I think). Just curious, what are the reasons you guys decide to go with HP molds? Either way, I want one :)

I mainly shoot my 45 ACP officer size 1911. Eats Lee 200 SWC with no issues. Any recommendation to a good quality mold? Something to save for? I've seen a link posted that has a hunch of stock already, but forgot the companies name.

Also, can you recommend any care for the mold itself or a link to study? Really can't afford to mess up an expensive mold lol.

Thank you,
AC

[runfiverun]

try here:
http://www.hollowpointmold.com/

[paul h]

After getting a pair if Mihec hp molds I can highly recommend them. As to why a hp mold, it was something I simply had to try and the Cramer design Mihec uses cast as fast as a regular mold so I no longer had a reason to avoid hp's. I simply can't abide a single cavity mold

[Spawn-Inc]

i tried the mihec cramer style and love them, they work great and look sexy as hell! i just recently tried the NOE style as well, which is who i suspect you looked at, and their RG style worked great too.

i thought people were nuts paying $100+ for molds, but after buying one, a few months later i own 5 now and a few more on order. i still get cheap lee molds though, and really like the new style they changed too.

[Bzcraig]

Really like my NOE.

[MtGun44]

This is why I got hollowpoint molds.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=52430&d=1307446037

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=51815&d=1289713935

Penetration in wet newspapers is half of ballistic gelatin, expansion is identical.

The .45 is a MP mold. The .38 is a Lyman modified to my specs by Erik.

Bill

[2wheelDuke]

I'm fond of the Mihec 452-200 for .45 acp

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n73/2wheelduke/Guns/2013-02-08_16-05-57_153_zps92fa1d1e.jpg

Shot into a water tank, with a Winchester SXT for comparison.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n73/2wheelduke/Guns/2013-02-08_18-41-02_925_zps69ee3e37.jpg

[Forrest r]

8 mihec hp molds & waiting on a 9th mold.

I'm sure any of the mold makers listed above have good products/molds. The mihec's give me an excellent quality boolit that are consistent in weight from cavity to cavity (weighed 100+ mihec h&g #68 clones & they had a sd of 1.1gr/a gr of lead looks like a flake pf powder) & a beautiful round boolit that has a diameter that that is usable/large enough even with range lead which is all I've cast with for the last couple decades.

I also have/use the mihec 452-200 hp in the 45acp. Great mold, great boolit & great results for a great caliber.

85728

[Boolseye]

HP's are impressive performers with the right alloy. I like a 50/50 Range Lead/Pb mix or equivalent.
I have a NOE rg4 in the .358" 128gr. 9mm bullet. As for care–be reasonably gentle, though a good mold doesn't need babying.
I whack the big bolt that holds the handles together to release bullets in all my molds. Haven't smacked the molds yet.
I keep my molds well lubed (I lube them at the end of each casting session so I don't have to think about it). I use Bullplate sprue lube for the sprue plate bottom and mold block top (applied with bullets in the mold–none in the cavities!) and a little bit of 50/50 BW/LLA for the alignment pins, sprue plate bolt and stop bolt. I put a little cross-section of copper wire between the set screws and their associated bolts to prevent smashed threads. With the custom molds galling doesn't seem to be an issue, the tolerances and materials are so good.

I follow the NOE instructions for break-in, heating the mold up to temp and letting it come back to cool 2-3 times before casting (when brand-new only). He says it helps settle in the alignment pins.

If you have Lee handles, do yourself a favor and epoxy the wood part to the steel handles. They will loosen and be a PIA otherwise. Pre-heat your molds with a hotplate and/or dip a corner in the melt for awhile (never do this with a cold mold) to get it up to temp. I dip all my molds to no ill effect, and it gets me casting good bullets fast. A big aluminum mold like a NOE can take a while to get up to temp without this.

Good luck,
-BE

[Oreo]

The neat thing with the current hp molds is the ability to swap in different pins to change the cavity size and shape, or eliminate it entirely.

[HiVelocity]

I've had several over the past few years, the few I kept were 3 Lee, and 2 NOE.

I love the NOE 452-230-HP (small pin); Comes with extra pins, excellent round for your OM. I shoot these with a plain based gas check with Titegroup in my 3" Kimber.

Excellent boolit, easy to cast, easy to load, accurate in every barrel length. You'll see.

HV

[paul h]

Once you get your hands on one...

http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/529550_10200484612059051_453998364_n.jpg

http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/563530_10200484617379184_1056676625_n.jpg

http://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash3/11225_10200484614779119_43068111_n.jpg

... and you find out how easy it is to make these ...

http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ash4/313774_10200657097971091_2064127982_n.jpg

... its only a matter of when you'll order another.

[rintinglen]

I have M-P HP molds in 38, 44, and 45 caliber, as well as NOE RG-2 molds in 9mm and 45. They are virtually as fast as as a conventional mold, yet they are hollow point. HP boolits expand, markedly, when cast of soft lead. They are better for self-defense than JHPs when fired from short barrels at low velocity. In an experiment I did last year, I cast for an hour with my MP 432-640, and then the next day, I did the same with with my 429-421, both 4 cavity molds. I found I cast about 12 boolits a minute with the semiwadcutter versus 10 per minute from the HP mold.

I do not recommend single cavity handgun HP molds. While they can make good boolits, they can not do so in quantity, quickly. I had a 358-156 that was hollow pointed, and finally sold it in frustration. It is simply too slow and fiddly to manipulate the detachable pin, while dumping the boolit, then putting it back in an refilling the mold. I had a hard time keeping the mold up to temperature, resulting in a higher number of rejects. And the number of decent boolits was on the nature of 1 per minute. A 2 cavity NOE RG_2 is only slightly more expensive than a lyman devastator, and will produce 3 or 4 times as many boolits in a given time frame.

[skizzums]

has anyone recently bought a mold from hollowpointmold.com? i tried emailing thema couple times and never recieved a response. and i dont see a way to purchase it just through the website.