Aluminum VS Brass

[Irascible]

I have come to a conclusion which may be off center. It is that 1) an an aluminum mould is better for large heavy bullets because it looses heat faster and doesn't overheat causing sunken areas in the bullet. This should mean you can cast good bullets faster. 2)For smaller bullets a brass mould should work better, once it has reached temperature, because it won't cool down as fast, keeping closer to the ideal temperature.
Is this a silly asumtion?

[country gent]

For me The big bullets I cast I have several brass moulds and truly like them. I cast with 2 moulds at a time and the brass's ability to hold heat is a plus. Ive also found brass dosnt seel to frost bullets as quick as aluminum moulds do. I cast mostly 40 - 45 cal at 400grns to 550 grns. The brass mould blocks are heavier than aluminum though. I normally run my pot at 700* - 750* with 20-1 alloy. I cast a a nice pace. I dont believe under normal casting mould material makes a huge diffrence. Learning to run a mould and how it wants to cast is more important.

[JWFilips]

Call me strange but I do not like Brass moulds. They tin & I hate that! Rather fine Alum Moulds or steel..... but that is just me

[Beagle333]

Ahhhhh..... it is that time of year again? The big debate!

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?239033-The-ol-Brass-vs-Aluminum-thing

[osteodoc08]

I prefer a well crafted mold over one not so well crafted.

Ive used steel, brass and aluminum. They all have their pros and cons. A search will yield days of reading.

[GhostHawk]

I guess you could call me a Lee Fan Boi. So far I have had no major problems with any of mine. Just got a new 6 cavity in the .224 Bator from Midsouth.

I have had to "stick" some screws from turning themselves out. And my .45acp mold somehow got a bit out of center. But a few minutes of careful punch work soon had both sides lined up again and cranking out good bullets.

I think a yearly "wash and scrub" party is a good plan for long term use.

For what I have into them, and the volume of bullets they have produced in the last year.
I'm not just happy, I'm estatic!

If I have to replace a few, some time down the road, well no sweat, they paid themselves off in the first 2-300 bullets cast. Everything above that is gravy.

[Irascible]

I should have boiled the question down a little more!
Will brass moulds take longer to heat up and then hold their heat better?
Will aluminum moulds tend to lose their heat faster?
It seems to me that is the way it should work. Is it?

[fredj338]

Brass molds are really nice, I have one, but heavy to use for long periods. I prefer a quality alum mold, like NOE or Accurate. A joy to work with. Brass does take longer to heat but does hold the heat longer.

[rintinglen]

My preference is for Brass, or Iron, over Aluminum.

I have some of each, alright, a bunch of each, but I get more good boolits per cast with brass than with either Iron or aluminum. Now I have to make this caveat, my brass molds are all either Made by MP, NOE, or Accurate. Most of my Aluminum molds are made by Lee. Most of my Iron molds are Ideal/Lyman. There is a very real element of "you-get-what-you-pay-for" involved here. The more costly molds work better.

Though I have to say that if RCBS made 4 cavity molds, I'd never have bought anything else. If 2 is enough, and their designs fit your needs, you can't do better. But for me, especially with hand guns, 4 is good, 5 is better, 6 is real good.

[dragon813gt]

Will brass moulds take longer to heat up and then hold their heat better?
Will aluminum moulds tend to lose their heat faster?
Yes and yes. But remember that there are different grades of brass and aluminium. They are going to have different properties. The aluminium that Lee uses is sub par compared to what NOE uses.

[fredj338]

My preference is for Brass, or Iron, over Aluminum.

I have some of each, alright, a bunch of each, but I get more good boolits per cast with brass than with either Iron or aluminum. Now I have to make this caveat, my brass molds are all either Made by MP, NOE, or Accurate. Most of my Aluminum molds are made by Lee. .
And this is the problem. Lee uses the cheapest alum alloy possible, very soft. Their qc is also way hit or miss, but it is a beginners mold IMO. Give one of the Accurate or NOE alum molds a try. Right out of the box I get perfect bullets. I love the iron molds too, all my molds for the Magma are iron or melonite, but for hand casting, even a 4cav iron gets heavy after an hour.

[Springfield]

Lee 6 cav moulds make pretty good bullets. NOE, Accurate, NEI, hm2 moulds make great bullets. i haven't had them long enough but it looks like the others will outlast the LEE's with out having problems. I have a couple of Lee 6 cavs that have cast at least 300,000 44-40 bullets, but they do not look like a LEE anymore. ALL the pins and pivots will fall/strip out eventually with a LEE if you cast an abnormally large amount like I do. There are fixes, but it can be difficult to keep one gong. I have only cast about 15,000 through my Accurate 5 cav 38 mould, but it still works like new. Many of my LEE moulds were GB's, so I cannot just "buy a new one". And I certainly need to get more than 2-3000 bullets out of my moulds. Most all of my molds are aluminum, except for the brass HP Mihec's, which are all 2 cavs as the 4 cavs were just too heavy.

[Elkins45]

As the arthritis in my hands gets worse, the casting qualities of brass are starting to be overruled by the lighter weight of aluminum. I can't run a MP four cavity brass mold for very long before it really starts putting the hurt on my fingers and wrist.

[rintinglen]

And this is the problem. Lee uses the cheapest alum alloy possible, very soft. Their qc is also way hit or miss, but it is a beginners mold IMO. Give one of the Accurate or NOE alum molds a try. Right out of the box I get perfect bullets. I love the iron molds too, all my molds for the Magma are iron or melonite, but for hand casting, even a 4cav iron gets heavy after an hour.

Umm..the key word wasmost. I have NOE, and NEI, as well as the afore mentioned LEE. I prefer brass over aluminum. Holds the heat better and gives more good boolits per cast. But I have to agree that aluminum is much more fun when you have a need for a pile o' boolits. more than 10 pounds is work with a 4 cavity brass mold.

[Irascible]

Elkins45
Agree, Agree. A 4 cavity brass mold is a real bear. I only held on to my MP mould in 270SAA for about 4 casts and sold it. It was way heavier than my 4 cavity H&G 44 molds. And having to turn it over with the hollow points installed only added to the difficulty. Now I still order brass moulds if they are available, but only in 2 Cavity. The 4 and 6 cavity are ordered in aluminum, only because of the lighter weight.

[Dragonheart]

I like my steel Saeco molds because I consider them a lifetime+ investment. The Saeco are also considerably more expensive than the Lyman, but also much lighter for an old man to handle on a long casting session. My Aluminum molds are seldom used.

[Irascible]

I have a 2 and a 4 cavity Saeco 44, also a 2 cavity 45 from them. ALL cast undersized bullets, but they are a reasonable weight. The 4 cavity, being compact overheats quickly so it has to be used in unison with another mould to give it time to cool.