How do you prep your MiHec mold

[glockky]

I ordered my first MiHec mold today and have read many different ways of cleaning and breaking in the mold. I would like to hear what you have had success with, this is my first hollowpoint mold.

[delvan]

Actually, I would like to hear some suggestions as well, as I am ordering my first one this friday as well...

[PWS]

There's some pretty good dope in the sticky above - http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?213156-Lead-Adhearing-to-Mould

[dkf]

- Clean/degrease cavities
- Assemble pins with the lube on pins & dab on the threads (tighten pins then back off 1/8 turn)
- Lube sprue plate
- Preheat and start casting

[glockky]

Man after reading that it has me worried about the brass mold. Thanks for the help

[Iron Mike Golf]

1. Pins need to be hot. Use a hotplate to preheat the mold.
2. Penta pins can be kinda rough (tool marks). You might dress them an bit.
3. Run the guide pins loose. I run mine so the HP pins will slide by their own weight.
4. I run the sprue plate looser than how it ships. Too tight and the far end lifts.
5. Get some beeswax if you don't already have some. You'll get some tinning on the mold face at some point. To remove, get the mold hot, touch a little beeswax to the tinning, and wipe with a cotton rag.

[DHC]

1. Pins need to be hot. Use a hotplate to preheat the mold.
2. Penta pins can be kinda rough (tool marks). You might dress them an bit.
3. Run the guide pins loose. I run mine so the HP pins will slide by their own weight.
4. I run the sprue plate looser than how it ships. Too tight and the far end lifts.
5. Get some beeswax if you don't already have some. You'll get some tinning on the mold face at some point. To remove, get the mold hot, touch a little beeswax to the tinning, and wipe with a cotton rag.

2 questions:

Are there common sources/stores that sell beeswax locally? I know I could order from one of the vendors here on-site, but for the small amount I need, I'd prefer to purchase locally if possible.

How hot do you get your mold in order to clean it? And - how do you heat your mold (hotplate, or ??)?

TIA

- Dan

[Iron Mike Golf]

Dan,

I got a block of beeswax at Pat Catan's recently.

I don't know how hot as I never measured the temp with a thermometer. I use a garden variety hotplate set about at about 3/4 and an old circular saw blade as a trivet. I put the mold on the hotplate and start the pot and the hotplate at the same time. Both are ready in 20-30 minutes.

Did you get solid pins? If so, do a practice run using those. That way you can get a feel for how hot is hot enough and not have so much problem with boolits hanging up if the mold is too cool.

I keep an propane torch with push button trigger handy. If boolits hang up and a couple of taps on the handle hing bolt doesn't free them up, use a torch to heat the guide pins. 3-5 seconds will usually make them fall off.

What boolit is your mold? Smaller boolits generally require a brisker casting cadence. If you are casting a 100 gr boolit, that's not much heat added to maintain pin temp. Fast pace and larger sprue puddle can help. Or run another mold (I do .380 HP and 45 ACP like this) and switch to the secondary when boolits hang on the pins. Just keep the idle mold on the hotplate.

If you get the mold too hot (I did this once. Things heated for an hour), make sure you keep those blocks closed tight until things set up. It's a big, big mess if the mold springs open. I set mine down on the bench and ....

[PWS]

Man after reading that it has me worried about the brass mold. Thanks for the help

Don't sweat it too much, you'll probably get good bullets even if you get tinning on your mold. At least that's my experience!

[Baja_Traveler]

You didn't put a location in your User CP, so we have no idea what local is to you, but you might try the candle making section in arts and crafts supply places like Michaels etc. There may also be a candle making supply near you. You can also check for an apiary supply near you (bee keeping)...


2 questions:

Are there common sources/stores that sell beeswax locally? I know I could order from one of the vendors here on-site, but for the small amount I need, I'd prefer to purchase locally if possible.

How hot do you get your mold in order to clean it? And - how do you heat your mold (hotplate, or ??)?

TIA

- Dan

[Mal Paso]

You didn't put a location in your User CP, so we have no idea what local is to you, but you might try the candle making section in arts and crafts supply places like Michaels etc. There may also be a candle making supply near you. You can also check for an apiary supply near you (bee keeping)...

I nearly choked at the craft store price for beeswax, $16/pound. Hardware stores have biscuit size pieces for drawers and slides, cheaper.

For a couple pounds or more RandyRat is better and a Vendor here.

[glockky]

If you want bees wax contact randyrat on here or look on ebay

[paul h]

- Clean/degrease cavities
- Assemble pins with the lube on pins & dab on the threads (tighten pins then back off 1/8 turn)
- Lube sprue plate
- Preheat and start casting

Has worked well for me. I find my MP casts just as easily as molds from other makers and other cavity materials. You really need to get it good and hot and keep a good cadence, but other than that it's really nothing exotic.

[plainsman456]

And get the mold hot through several cycles.

It will get better.
When you think you got it too hot it might be just right.

[detox]

This quote copied and pasted from Accurate Moulds web site:

Brass molds can warp if overheated. This will not happen with normal casting temperatures, where the mold block typically reaches about 325 degrees. If you preheat your molds, be careful not to get brass too hot. Brass makes a great mold block, but cannot be abused. I do not guarantee against warpage.

[Oreo]

This quote copied and pasted from Accurate Moulds web site:

Brass molds can warp if overheated. This will not happen with normal casting temperatures, where the mold block typically reaches about 325 degrees. If you preheat your molds, be careful not to get brass too hot. Brass makes a great mold block, but cannot be abused. I do not guarantee against warpage.

IMHO, Heat alone is not what warps the blocks. Uneven rapid heating / cooling is what does it, I think. I have heat cycled my MP molds many times as hot as an 1100w electric burner would get them and never yet had a problem. You'll never see me dip the corner of a cold mold in molten lead though. Same goes for water quenching a hot mold.

[remy3424]

After using my first brass mold the first time I wasn't getting good fill-out in the back side of the lube groove of 2 of the cavities. After inspecting it I noticed a couple flecks of lead on the faces and some silver on those spots of poor fill-out. Soak her in Kroil and the flecks popped off but not the "tinning". Found the bees wax answer now and found a small chunk of the wax in a Hardware Hank...$3.49 for a .7 oz...that is about $80/pound I believe before a pinch of tax. Should be all the bees wax I ever need. Going out now to heat-up that mold and hope it works magic for me. Lesson will be learned of less tin and more heat.