Lee 430-310/Lee QC BULLSHXX

[dmize]

It seems that this is a popular mold. Has anyone had problems with them?
I just cast a bunch from a brand new one and they wouldn't even touch the 430 sizer,a quick caliper check showed .425 to .427
This makes 3 *** molds I have recieved from Lee. I HAD a 357 SWC 6 banger that dropped from 355 to 359,that is in the bottom of my pond. A 325 grain 475 mold that dropped 472.
This **** is aggravating and getting really old.
And BTW this one is going to go back to LEE and I have never had an issue with their customer service,but the need to send it back in the first place is very very irritating.

[Ben]

What kind of alloy are you using ?

[dmize]

COWW.
Same alloy I use in 90% of my stuff.

[bhn22]

The best warranty available is the one you never have to use.

[cainttype]

I recently purchased 2 of LEE's newest designed double cavity 8MM moulds. Having never been a LEE mould fan because of prior experiences with the original designs, I felt the new pin-and-socket style deserved a fair chance.
One mould actually casts reasonably well, dropping projectiles that measure within specs and look like they may have potential (I haven't had the opportunity to push any downrange, yet).
The second mould is useless. The blocks aren't even close to matching. It's impossible for me to believe the two halves were cut together, the misalignment is that bad.
The vendor's FedEx return lable arrived yesterday, and they've offered to refund or personally inspect a replacement. I excepted the replacement offer because I'm confident it WILL actually go through a "Quality Control" check...although not by anyone at LEE.
You get what you pay for. It's that simple.

Although the only plus I can possibly recommend when discussing LEE moulds is their price, then hope you get lucky, I can say that their "commercial mould" handles are a decent value. They do tend to need the wood epoxied to stay in place, but that's no biggie.
I also find the "Factory Crimp" dies useful in several different rifle calibers.

[Newtire]

I can say that their "commercial mould" handles are a decent value. They do tend to need the wood epoxied to stay in place, but that's no biggie.
The Automotive High Temp silicon sealer for gaskets squirted into the hole and then shove the handle back on has never come loose for me. I pinned a few but that weakens the handles.

[leadman]

The blocks are not cut together like they used to be on a lathe. Now they are cut seperately on a CNC milling machine with a cutter.

The 44 310gr boolit mold is sensitive to too much heat, both the 2 and 6 cavity. This goes for the 45 cal 300 gr also. Try dropping the pot temperature down or slowing the rate of casting. Too much heat and they come out small.

[Larry Gibson]

Your consistently smaller than nominal diameter with several different moulds is saying the moulds aren't the problem. Probably not necessary to send the mould back to Lee.

Try adding 2% tin to the COWWs. Most commercial moulds are not spec'd for that alloy but with one with more tin. All COWWs are not the same, especially newer ones; they are notoriously low in tin and don't have the antimony content they used to have either.

Also with colder weather and many times colder casting areas the alloy cools a lot before you get it into the cavity, especially when dipper pouring. Even if using a bottom pour furnace it is necessary to get the alloy into the cavity very quickly and leave a very good sprue. An alloy temp of 725+/- is a good temp with larger bullets. the fluctuation of .002 in bullet diameter is a good indication the alloy is to cool to fill the mould out before solidifying. Be careful, as leadman says, not to over heat the mould as that can also cause the problem.

Larry Gibson

[pworley1]

I have that mold and have never had a problem with it. I am sorry that you are.

[Bohica793]

I have to agree with OP. I have two of the new style molds - a 452-200RF and a 452-255RF. I have attempted to cast these with 20-1 and with WW+2%. Neither one drops a round that my Lyman 45 .452 sizer touches. I use the same alloys with my Lyman 452-374 and it drops .453-.454 consistently. My Lyman 358XXX molds drop 358-360 consistently. I run the aluminum molds hot and the alloy around 750. I sent the 452-255RF back and Andy swears it meets spec, but you couldn't prove it by me. I will be sticking to Lyman and NOE molds from now on.

[ACrowe25]

I disagree on the alloy. I use nothing but COWW and my boolits all drop perfectly as stated by the mfg,'even in that exact mold.

Either your calipers are wrong... Not a very precise tool for the job IMO. Do you have micrometers?

Cast 10 boolits from the same cavity and measure all 10. If not consistent, I don't suspect lee is the problem.

[DougGuy]

Well, if it falls through a .430" sizer, it certainly ain't the calipers!

[dmize]

I DO NOT need a caliper when I can push 25 of them into the sizer and the come back down on the ram.
As for alloy and temp I was also at the same time casting 358456's and using a Ranch Dog 41 mag Lee mold.
I might also mention that I have 5 Ranch Dog Lee molds and 4 other "production" molds",that have never given me problem.
I guess I have a mind set,given my job, that when something leaves it is perfect.
Alloy was at 700 deg. +/-
I will try dropping alloy temp and casting a few out of curiosity. Thanks for the info.

[dkf]

This group buy is over but the call for payment has not been made yet. You may be able to get an extra if you PM Mihec. Expensive mold but worth it.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?217607-Mihec-305gr-44mag-444marlin-2-cav-brass-cramer

[dmize]

Thanks dkf. I PM'd him.
I already have 5 MiHec molds and 25 more wouldn't bother me one bit.

[double bogey]

I have the Lee C430 - 310RF new. Cast for the first time today, most were not keepers, but thats due to my technique I think. 680° to 715° was what the pot was running. Did not preheat the mold, but ran about 15 cycles thru before getting good bullets. The good ones mic 0.432". Also cast with the 429-240 tumble lube mold and got about 275 decent bullets. Culled about 25 with poor fill and wrinkles, after about 15 drops to warm the mold. I got to get a hot plate.
None of this meant to be critical of your technique, just comparing notes. I'm not qualified to critisize anyone, as I cast my first ever boolits today. Starting with the Lee molds due to cost.

['74 sharps]

Sticking with RCBS, SAECO, and Lyman molds has worked well for me............

[Jailer]

I had one of the new style and it cast undersize as well. I say had because I ruined it trying to lap it open enough to be usable.

[Bullwolf]

I purchased one of the new style Lee C430-310-RF moulds with the intention of milling the Gas Check shank off and turning it into Plain Base design.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=66528&d=1365215718

LEFT
Boolit with GasCheck shank weight 282 grains cast from my mix of Mono/Linotype.

RIGHT
PB (Plain Base) boolit weight 265 grains cast from 50% pure lead - 50% hardball.

NOT PICTURED
Boolit with GC shank cast from 50% pure lead - 50% hardball alloy weight 306 grains with no gas check installed.

Maybe I got lucky, but my Lee C430-310-RF is a keeper and does not cast undersize boolits when used in conjunction with my alloy. I do not/have not cast with this mould using straight Wheel Weight lead.

The mould did have a bit of a learning curve to it before obtaining any successful casts without a high reject rate.

I am not disparaging anyone else's casting methods or results here, just repeating my experiences.

The mould needed to be run extremely hot with a quick casting cadence to obtain a decent fill out. I was even using an electric hotplate as a pre-warmer with this mould, and it still took a good while to warm up. This was the most cold blooded mould I think I've used in a while. I thought it worth mentioning as I took the time to make a note of it, and put the note in the box with the mould blocks so I won't have the pleasure of relearning this little quirk during my next casting session.


Boolits drop from my mould at .433 when cast from straight lino/monotype.

Boolits cast at .432 from my certified (rotometals) mix of 50% pure lead - 50% hardball alloy.



- Bullwolf

[Legion489]

I am not impressed with Lee CS at all, worst in the industry and worse than most computer and electronics companies. However having gotten a number of Lee molds that were obviously defective just by looking at them (they shear the aluminum off and one had a huge chunk ripped off the side they decided to use as the top so there was a giant V running across/through the top of the mold, the others were horribly misaligned when you looked at them), Lee did replace them for me. Not happily or quickly, but they did finally send me different molds. Lee CS was never good and it seems to be getting worse. I do like their dies however and have not had any problems with them (yet).