Found the perfect mold mallet

[rnhathaway]

24oz orange plastic dead-blow hammer. Works great!

[Hardcast416taylor]

I`ve been using a hammer handle (never had a head on it) for the last 15+ years. Before that I used a piece of a dry hickory tree limb. The last few years I`ve been using my hand palm while wearing a good leather work glove. I`m thinking that 24 oz. may be a tad too heavy on the sprue hinge bolt.Robert

[jmort]

"The last few years I`e been using my hand palm while wearing a good leather work glove."

This. Banging on molds with hammer/stick should be a last resort/choice.

[462]

A 1 1/2 pound hammer versus a boolit mould? No need to wonder which one will survive that encounter.

Please, use a gloved hand. Your mould(s) will thank you.

[David2011]

Bullshop's Sprue Plate Lube and a gloved hand as first choice. A hammer handle without a hammer as a last resort. The hammer handle is plenty for a really stuck boolit.

David

[Mk42gunner]

I used an eight ounce dead blow hammer for several years, until I started twisting the sprueplate by hand. The only thing to watch for is if you are using two molds, don't set a hot mold on the plastic handle.

You will get a nice impression of your mold as a reminder.

Robert

[BPShooter]

I use a wooden handle screwdriver, I wrap the handle with tape and hold the blade. I never put the screwdriver down holding it in my right hand. I use RCBS handles, built like tanks and only hit the bolt that holds the handles together. I have cast thousands of bullets and have never ruined a set of handles.

[Spawn-Inc]

+1 for leather gloves and using your hands!

[Old School Big Bore]

I wish all the mold makers would put a handle on the sprue plate like the new Lee 6-cavity molds...

[Frozone]

I wish all the mold makers would put a handle on the sprue plate like the new Lee 6-cavity molds...

I don't, it gets in the way and the mold handle doesn't fit comfortably in the hand.
You know a ~ 8"x 1" piece of hardwood dowel does a good job too.

But the best mallet is No Mallet - just your hand does all you Should need.

[Mike W1]

Everyone should use what they're comfortable with. Dennis Marshall recommended a plastic mallet to me in a letter many years ago. In 35+ years I haven't damaged a sprue plate so far. We're not talking 16 pound mauls here.

[bhn22]

I ended up with a lot of rather puzzling bent sprue plates in my early days. They weren't bent much, just up a tad at the handle area. This gave me a lot of fliers, because my bases were uneven. It turns out that if you strike the plate squarely every time, the plate wouldn't bend. If you strike it slightly downwards, it wouldn't bend. But it you managed to strike it even slightly upwards, it would bend. A lot of the used molds I buy seem to have bent plates, and the original owner was probably unaware of it. I also wonder about some of these Lee mold complaints we see about loose sprue plates. A sheet metal screw isn't the best way to attach a plate in the first place, but there could be other factors at play.

Only you can prevent casting violence, don't strike your molds.

[detox]

I have small Orange plastic dead blow hammer. It works verygood, but melts very easily if you are not carefull.

A small leather mallet should work better against melting

The RCBS hardwood stick does not weigh enough for quick opening

Sometimes i open plate with gloved hand, but still need the hammer to release bullets (Strike mould handle at top of hinge). This is covered in RCBS instructions

[rbertalotto]

How are you folks getting the mold to release the bullets. Out of my two dozen molds, only an Accurate and a couple Lyman molds simply "drop" the bullets. All the rest need persuasion.

I have an oak tree branch I cut from a tree in the back yard. Shaved it down to 1.25" diameter. Wrapped one end with rubber from a bicycle inner tube and the other end with heavy duty fiber type packing tape. Has been working great for years. Never damaged a mold or sprue plate

[KCSO]

Had many years ago a Shiloh mould hammer. A nylon mallet end on one side and a sprue pick on the other. The whole thing was nice and light and worked like a charm for many years. I lost it in a stolen tool box and never got round to making another one so I am using a chunk of oak I turned up in 1967. It's getting pretty wore down.

[Tonto]

I've been using a hickory hammer handle or a turned hickory mould beater for thirty years, never damaged a mould, never. If a mould drops easy, the gloved hand is great, once you get a sticker, you will be thumping the handle nut with something else. I've never been able to tune all my moulds to drop all bullets, all the time. I enjoy the cadence of the casting with this device too. To each his own, the right way is what works for you. I would avoid plastic though, at least one that could melt with contact.

[Springfield]

There is a difference between hitting the sprue plate to open the mould and hitting the handle nut to drop the bullets. I personally use an old rawhide leather workers mallet. Light, tough, and doesn't melt like a plastic one in case I set something on it. When I am not using the handle on the LEE 6 cavs I like to open the moulds with my gloved hand. Even works on a 5 cavity Accurate mould, no need to add on the LEE handle yet.

[Frozone]

How are you folks getting the mold to release the bullets.

I have found that most molds will stick in some conditions.
mold temp, alloy temp, and time before you open the mold all have an effect on how the bullet drops.

try varying each and you'll see. often just waiting a few more second ( or a few less) will have the boolits drop right out.

Of course, this all assume all other causes of 'sticky' have been addressed.

[rnhathaway]

I'm not beating the snot out of it. Just light taps. I don't/ won't wear gloves when casting. My dead blow works just fine and I see no chance of it bending either.

[cheese1566]

To those who answered with "I use a gloved hand and not a mallet"...what do you use until the mold heats up and the sprue cuts easily?

I must be doing something wrong since I have to use my lightweight rubber/plastic mallet to cut the sprues at first, eventually I can lose it and just use my gloves.

[bobthenailer]

Ive been using the same small 4oz CS Osborne rawhide mallet , avalible from Brownells for the past 25+ years with excellent results !

[462]

To those who answered with "I use a gloved hand and not a mallet"...what do you use until the mold heats up and the sprue cuts easily?

I must be doing something wrong since I have to use my lightweight rubber/plastic mallet to cut the sprues at first, eventually I can lose it and just use my gloves.




Moulds are pre-heated in a mould oven (5" electrical box with lid) so sprues are never difficult to cut, even on a Lyman 4-banger.

[Hamish]

I suspect that the OP has gad a good chuckle with this. Everyone has been in such a hurry to help that no one has made mention of the size of the hammer mentioned in the OP,,,,,,,

[bangerjim]

I use a lightweight rawhide mallet to "gently tap" the sprue open. If your mold and soup are at the correct temp, nudging the plate open should require very little effort.

NEVER any pounding or hard hitting!

Lee 6 bangers need NO pounding, just your hand pressure opening it.

banger

[Dave C.]

16 oz lead hammer.

Dave C.

[Shooter6br]

When I use a hammer( I usually use oven glove to open mold no pounding) This is it A rawhide hammer i used with hand dies

[fcvan]

I've used a wooden dowel, a wooden handle, and lately a plastic handle, each of which were covered by either leather, bicycle inner tube, tape, or something. I don't really hit the sprue plate so much as tap. Most of my molds are Lee but I have a few SAECO, Lyman, and one RCBS. I've tried to use the gloved hand and it worked ok but doesn't work with my casting rhythm. I tap, open/drop onto a folded towel, fill and set down the mold. Then I pick up the sprue with a metal spoon and drop it back in the pot. The boolits are picked up with the spoon which gives me a chance to inspect while putting them in a metal bread loaf pan. I usually use two molds and this keeps them separated.

Anyway, I'm thinking of getting a slotted spoon, or rather cutting a single slot. That way, I can put the sprue plate into the slot and use the spoon to cam open the sprue plate. I figure I'll have to play with the slot size to get the right configuration. If that doesn't work, I might try making a tool that has a spoon head on one end and an 'L' shaped slot to hook the sprue plate and cam open the sprue plate. As I use a spoon to inspect (rather quickly, but helps meter my cadence) I figure a tool to ad leverage while opening the sprue would be better than just a dowel or hammer. We will see.

[dikman]

Good point, Hamish - 1 1/2 lb does seem a trifle heavy for the task in hand :roll:.
I use a piece of hardwood hammer handle. I've tried the glove method, but it just doesn't work for me, as for one thing it means I have to wear a heavier glove, which I don't like. I've been toying with the idea of extending the sprue cutter, to give more leverage (Lee molds), or perhaps make completely new cutter plates, but I'm still thinking about it......

[462]

Everyone has been in such a hurry to help that no one has made mention of the size of the hammer mentioned in the OP,,,,,,,

Good point, Hamish - 1 1/2 lb does seem a trifle heavy for the task in hand .

See post 4.

[btroj]

For about 20 years I have been using a spare hawk handle. It is getting to the point where it need to cut it down and get another 20 years from it.

[John Boy]

I must be casting All Wrong! Have never touched the sprue plate with any matter except my gloved hand
* Frosted sprue puddle after 5 seconds
* Glove hand the end of the plate and cut the sprue
* Hickory hammer handle - lightly tap the handle bolt and open the mold
Yes, there will be stubborn bullets - so tap the handle bolt again
The only time any part of the mold is touched - is with the glove hand

[BruceB]

Over quite a few years, it's become apparent to me that most of those who do NOT "whack their moulds" view those of us who DO "whack our moulds" as philistines who don't appreciate good tooling. Their attitude seems to display an opinion...... an opinion that we use heavy hammers, swung with full-arm overhand swings, and hence battering the moulds into useless hunks of mangled metal.

Uhhhh...... not quite, laddies.

Some of my moulds have been with me for upwards of thirty or even forty years. In those decades, I have used some sort of non-marring implement to TAP the sprue plate to the "open" position on every mould I own. This is a considerable number of moulds (over 100 now). NONE of them have suffered any damage whatever, and the bullet quality is just fine, thanks.

For many years, I've been using a light, plastic-head mallet, head weight maybe four ounces??? That mallet's head has now been eroded to the point that each face is worn to about a thirty-degree angle from its original ninety-degree faces. It will be retired when I find another mallet of similar weight... maybe rawhide. The old mallet will be given a place of honor, as it's been used in the production of many hundreds of thousands of good cast bullets.... but the MOULDS will continue to produce , just as they have for many years.

I must admit that some of the implements described in this thread make me cringe. PLEASE, you newer fellers..... take it easy on the moulds, and by all means use NON-MARRING plastic or rawhide mallets, sticks or whatever. Remember too that a hot mould will mar easier than a similar cold one!

[dikman]

Sorry 462, must've missed that one [smilie=b:. (Note to self - try and read a bit more carefully, hmmm?).

[btroj]

Some moulds deserve to be beaten........

I have always used a stick to open the sprue plate, no interest in changing that now

[hammerhead357]

Can't use a gloved hand on a 10 cavity H & G mould. I couldn't anyway.. For them I always used a phenolic headed hammer...Of course I don't use the H & G moulds anymore sold all of mine... Bad move but that is another story..

[DRNurse1]

Casting pace and number of boolits required seem to dictated the process: I am one of the Philistines but I gently tap my sprue plate and mould handles with a rawhide mallet, and have considered a leather wrapped lead weighted dowel (drilled and filled to about 4 ounces at the head) but the rawhide mallet has not worn out (yet).

I cast infrequently but 2000-5000 boolits at a sitting and I do not think my gloved hand could survive one session.

[462]

Sorry 462, must've missed that one [smilie=b:. (Note to self - try and read a bit more carefully, hmmm?).

dikman,

I've been guilty of not thoroughly reading a post, also.

Happy New Year.

[bangerjim]

When I use a hammer( I usually use oven glove to open mold no pounding) This is it A rawhide hammer i used with hand dies

Hey...................you stole my hammer! Looks exactly like the one I use all the time.

Works great. Now I need to go out to the shop and see if it is still there! HA...........ha.

banger :grin:

[RP]

When I started casting I got a pot and some molds from a elderly man that no longer was able to use them. Oh by that time he was to blind to use them any more. It was a lyman 61 pot some lyman molds and a hammer with a knife taped to it as a pic. Yes Steel. With my luck and lack of know how I damaged one of the molds by scratching it picking at a bullet. Granted none of the molds casted well and had a good amount of rust in the cavities which the bullets looked like bullets and heck I did not know anything.
Well that was over twenty years ago and I have learned a lot since then most from this site no one else I know casted or reloaded for any face to face help. I learned to clean molds removing rust from the cavities and tuning them up and have gotten several more molds since then.
I still have that old hammer with the knife still taped to it along with the molds. The pot is still working but had to repair it several times. I no longer use the hammer long ago I changed to a broom handle that was cut down wrapped with tape. What I am using now is a meat tenderizer hammer made from bamboo its light and I like the head . I modified the head to start with and just push the plate open and shut and tap the bolt on the handles if need to drop the boolits. I am sure no matter what you use if you beat a hot mold long enough damage will result. Treat them like kids lovingly guiding into making boolits but just like a kid some need a tap on the bottom to coach them along.

[jonas302]

I found this nice little stick out in the yard it doesn't weigh much so easy to handle and the bump on the end is just right for tapping the hinge bolt when needed I used to use it for the sprue plate but gloved hand has been working pretty good too I don't like leather gloves as they hold too much heat I've always done fine with the cotton ones
92226

[Beagle333]

I use a gloved hand.... holding a 10" soft cedar furring strip. 8-)
I cast almost exclusively HPs and if you can get them to jump off there every time you open the mold, you're a better man than I. :wink:

To the OP, that seems like quite a lot of hammer to be using.:coffeecom

[country gent]

The small dead blow mallets are great. Brooks molds recomends them. With the dead blow no mar hammers a light tap becomes more of a "push thru" as the shots momentum does most of the work. I tried one after seeing it on Brooks site after buying one of his molds and it really woorks good.

[robertbank]

I have been using a rubber mallet for a number of years. Easy to use, and no damage to the mold.


Take Care

Bob

[Dutchman]

That leather mallet is about 60 yrs old. I've been using it for bullet molds for 40 years. Wouldn't think of using anything else.

http://images18.fotki.com/v437/photos/4/28344/9430776/DSCF2070cb-vi.jpg

[RoGrrr]

I got tired of hammering so I built a "twister". I mounted 2 bolts in a bar and clamped it to my bench. Throw the lead and put the mold against one bolt and the sprue plate against the other and TWIST. No hammering.
I save hammer handles from extinction this way - PETHH - People for the Ethical Treatment of Hammer Handles

92577

92578

[oldfart1956]

For about 20 years I have been using a spare hawk handle. It is getting to the point where it need to cut it down and get another 20 years from it.......this...same one since about 1975. I drove a finish nail into the small end to pick debri from the sprue cutter hole and nudge boolits around on the towel after dropping. I don't whack the sprue cutter mind ye...I just push it open. Sometimes I need to encourage the boolits to drop free with a gentle tap at the hinge. Once casting the hawk handle never leaves my hand unless I'm dumping cut sprues back into the melt. Audie...the Oldfart

[Springfield]

I dip the mold in the molten lead so it is ready to go from the first cast. Hotplates will work for this also.

[Cane_man]

1" diameter Delrin rod, 12" long

find it on evilbay for $5 or less shipped

[sbeatty1983]

An 8lb sledge with the handle cut to 16 inches long works well for me ;)

[Wag]

Well, this thread has been an education for me.

I've been relying on the pour to heat my mold for me and the first dozen or so sprues are tough to cut. I've been using a 1 x 2 pine stick to whack those open at first. After the mold heats up, just the barest tap will open it right up.

I just need to use a better method of heating up the mold before I start casting.

--Wag--

[dikman]

Wag, I just rest my mold across the top of the pot while it's heating up. By the time the lead is ready the mold is pretty warm, the first couple of pours I let the hot lead sit in the mold to heat it even more, chuck those back in the pot and by then it's casting well (I'm talking Lee 2-cavity roundball here). Works for me.

sbeatty, I gather you must be a proponent of the old saying "there's nothing that can't be fixed with a bigger hammer"?:lol:

[Wag]

I've been pre-warming the mold on the edge of the pot too but it just never really gets there before the first pour. I don't mind returning malformed boolits back in the melt or waiting for the mold to heat up. Just seems like others have a better way to get it done. I'm going to be getting a cheap hot plate for other reasons so I may try that.


--Wag--

[94Doug]

wood crab hammers.

[dikman]

Wag, the "hot plate method" obviously works for a lot of guys, it's just not something that I need. It could, however, be just what you need. You won't know until you try it.

94Doug, you've got wood crabs in Wisconsin? We only get the ordinary shell-type ones down here and don't need a hammer to crack them.;-)

All this talk about hammers got me thinking, perhaps I should replace my piece of hammer handle with a suitable hammer thingy. I've made several small ones for my black powder stuff (hardwood or nylon heads) so I just made another one with a hardwood head. I have some 1/4" thick leather, very hard stuff - some sort of old machinery belting, I think - so I'll glue two layers of this to one face. The piece of hammer handle has been working well, but I'm always willing to learn something new, if it works it should be a bit "gentler" on the mold. If it doesn't then I've got a nice little leather-faced hammer, I guess.

[Green Frog]

Well, after 40 years of casting, the hickory tack hammer handle I've been using for all of it (except a couple of sessions with a dowel when I mislaid the handle) I've almost worn it down to where it's too far gone to use (more than another 5 years or so.) My Dad used it quite a bit during that time as well, especially when he made a season long supply of round balls for the Boy Scout camp. I only have about 30 or so moulds at this point, but none of them show any damage at all to their encounters with the hammer handle. Then again, I may be the exception to the rule... :roll:

Froggie

[smoked turkey]

I basically use one and two cavity moulds for most all of my casting. I find the harder the alloy and the longer it sits in the mold prior to cutting the sprue and the more sprues to cut through dictate which method. I agree with and use the gloved hand method if I can. I like to be kind to my moulds. However when a "tap" on the sprue cutter is necessary I use an old shortened hammer handle (no steel head ofcourse). Occasionally a boolit will not release from the blocks and it is necessary to "tap" the handle hinge bolt to release the boolit. Never hit the mold blocks themselves. Unfortunately I have some moulds that the former owner mistreated and the sprue cutter has evidence of either hitting or carving for reason unknown to me. The moulds do still cast good. I have recently started using a small hot plate to preheat the moulds. That usually works very well to get things going much quicker.

[69daytona]

I use a small leather hammer, I think they use them for leather work, found it at a swap meet for 2 bucks.

[meeesterpaul]

Ah! Good one.

[meeesterpaul]

Nice deal. Jewelers pay good money for those hammers. 'Garland' is a brand name if anyone wants to look them up.

I use a small leather hammer, I think they use them for leather work, found it at a swap meet for 2 bucks.

[Swede44mag]

I use a wooden mallet I made in shop class when I was a senior in High School.
I have tried a mallet with the plastic head it melted and turned into a mushroom shape.
I have a broken sledge hammer handle I am going to try next time.
I have rheumatoid arthritis so twisting a mold with a pair of gloves is not possible.

[RoGrrr]

<SNIP>
I have rheumatoid arthritis so twisting a mold with a pair of gloves is not possible.

Swede
Look at my twister in post #45

[WALLNUTT]

When needed I use a tinner's mallet.

[ncbearman]

Those that say use your hands........ maybe I'm wrong but it seems to me, on steel moulds if you allow the sprue to cool as it should to keep from "tearing" instead of cutting there is no way you can open the sprue plate with your hand. Especially on 4 or 6 cavities.

[rondog]

I currently use a piece of pine curtain/hanger rod about 10" long. Old hickory hammer handle is next. Ain't NWIH I'm going to beat 'em open with my hands! I have enough hand pain already. Nope nope nope.

[abunaitoo]

I've been using a rawhide mallet since I started casting.
Still use the same one to this day.

[gwpercle]

I`ve been using a hammer handle (never had a head on it) for the last 15+ years. Before that I used a piece of a dry hickory tree limb. The last few years I`ve been using my hand palm while wearing a good leather work glove. I`m thinking that 24 oz. may be a tad too heavy on the sprue hinge bolt.Robert

Hammer handle also , from Sears , 14 inch , hickory, got about 1968 for $0.99....
I'm still using the same one . New ones now have gone up to $6.00 !

[ncbearman]

Hammer handle also , from Sears , 14 inch , hickory, got about 1968 for $0.99....
I'm still using the same one . New ones now have gone up to $6.00 !

:) In 1968 $0.99 WAS $6 haha ahhhhh the good ol' days…………...

[robg]

Used a chair leg for a few years till it wore out now use a plastic faced small hammer no way I could move the cutter by hand

[Mica_Hiebert]

I may have to try this. I have a noe 360-180 wfn mould I have to beat like a red headed step child to get the bullets to fall out of.

[mold maker]

Guess I'm lucky. At 74 I still use only my gloved hand to open sprue plates on all kind of molds. Occasionally a stubborn boolit won't drop and a tap with a wooden handle from something is necessary.
It's my experience that timing and attention fix most problems.

[Hamish]

Guess I'm lucky. At 74 I still use only my gloved hand to open sprue plates on all kind of molds. Occasionally a stubborn boolit won't drop and a tap with a wooden handle from something is necessary.
It's my experience that timing and attention fix most problems.

Exactly so. What the folks who are poopooing using the hand don't seem to be realising is that one does not "whack", or "beat", or "knock" the sprue plate open with the gloved hand. Once a good casting temperature and cadence are reached, only a quick pressure with the pad of the hand at the base of the thumb on the sprue plate handle will easily CUT the sprue.

Yes, if one does not get the mold to the correct temperature on the first pour or two, a tap with a piece of dowell may be needed to assist, but if you get them hot enough to start with I've not seen the need for bashing ones sprue plate and hardware potentially bent and out of alignment. (whack one off center and away from the blocks loing enough and hard enough). That's just personal experience, I know we've got members here who've been tapping the plate up to, and over a half century, and it works for them. I just don't like whacking, especially on my aluminum blocks.


That having been said, futzing about with a mould with a removable hollow point pin is a *much* bigger aggravation than any multi cavity mould I own,but having seen enough guys post otherwise, that's just me.

[Drew P]

This thread cost me almost $10!!

[MnSpring]

Well, I have had, 100's of, 'Srue' 'Mallets.
Sticks from the, wood pile. About 2-3" round.

Try this, Pour, wait a sec, tap the plate about 1/4, Just enough to drop off, the spruce, (in the re-melt container), Wait a 1/2 a sec, Open the mold, Then tap, 'LIGHTLY', the plate to all the way open. 80+% of the time, the bullet will just drop out. If it doesn't, than, tap, LIGHTLY, on the Hinge, of the mold. It will drop. (If your melt is correct temp, and if your mold is correct temp.)

[MARCORVET]

i USE A 12 INCH PIECE OF OAK 2X2 WITH ONE END SANDED INTO A HANDLE. WORKS GREAT FOR TAPPING THE HINGE PIN TO DROP STUBBORN BULLETS. USE THE END OF IT TO PUSH THE SPRU PLATE OPEN.

[mozeppa]

i use a jack hammer.....i love power tools!:grin:

[pugjunga123]

Hammer handle. I've had mine for 15 years with no issues.

[bob208]

I use broken hammer handles. like out of a claw hammer or ball peen hammer. works great plus they are cheap as in free. if you get the good hickory they make good knife handles.

[robertbank]

Rubber mallet if I have not posted on this thread before. Mine has been around for 15 years or so and is as new.

Take Care

Bob

[shoot-n-lead]

I have to tap with a hammer handle...the little bit of arthritis that I have in my thumbs won't tolerate cutting that sprue with gloved hand.

[BustemAgain]

I can not imagine casting again without a 6 ounce Garland rawhide mallet. Seemingly light as a feather but gets the job done on the first stroke every time. Non-marring and Amazing shock absorption too. I believe I was turned on to them by Ross Seyfried. I bought 2 of them 20 plus years ago, still haven't had occasion to use the second one. I don't know what Water Buffaloes eat but they sure have some crazy tuff hide. I honestly don't think you could wear one out in a lifetime of casting.

[rondog]

Actually, I have a new one now. I have my dad's old tree branch loppers, and one of the handles snapped off. Long and skinny, but made of hickory. Sawed the broken piece to a comfortable length, wrapped a lil' duct tape on the holding end, and it works beautifully! Lightweight and hard, but long enough to have some authority.