SAECO (?) Molds

[shell70634]

Digging thru my boxes I found some old steel 4 cavity molds. There are no markings on the molds. Three have sprue cutters and and are marked 348, 130, and 050 with the SAECO name. Did they not mark the molds? The 45 SWC is about worn out. Are they worth repairing?

[runfiverun]

those numbers are the mold designations.
the #248 is a 250gr 35 cal mold.
the #130 is a 45 acp swc.
the #050 is [a guess] a 150ish gr 38cal. wad cutter.

they are good quality molds but usually don't pour oversized.
worth repairing?
probably.

[rintinglen]

Some of the older saeco's had very light markings on the sprue cutter that were the only markings on the mold. It may take a magnifying glass to seem them but they are usually there. They were good quality molds, perhaps a notch below contemporary Hensly and Gibbs molds and on a par with the Cramer and Lymans of that ERA. If not too beat up, they are well worth cleaning up and repairing.

[toallmy]

I enjoy casting with saeco , so I say yes save them if possible .

[skeettx]

Yes and parts are still available

http://redding-reloading.com/downloads/saeco6pageflyer.pdf

http://redding-reloading.com/

[SteveS]

I have four SAECO molds. They are high quality and easy to cast with. I'd say, clean them up and put them to work.

[FISH4BUGS]

30+ years ago I bought 2 SAECO 4 cavity moulds for the 45, a 230gr rn and a 185gr swc. I bought them in the 80's from Paul Fitz-Jones, the guy that was the distributor for Star Reloaders in the west, if not nationally. He also had a company that made grips for handguns, Fitz grips.
He was diagnosed with cancer and was letting go of his mould collection and Star parts....or so he said. I never could figure out of he was telling me the truth or was just a great salesman.
He said at the time that SAECO did a special run of moulds for him using meehanite, which I guess is a non-standard steel alloy for moulds. He topped them off with rosewood handles.
The sprue cutter is marked on the top SAECO Custom precision and the mould number. There does not seem to be any other markings on the mould or handles.
I bought them with the original wrapping and box, which I still have. The box is red and white color and is marked SAECO Custom Precision Bullet Mould on the top and SAECO Reloading, and Carpinteria California.
They cast like H&G moulds. They are great to use and the bullets drop like rain. I have to say that rosewood handles are pretty fancy and very pretty. Totally not necessary but they ARE nice. I guess I have to believe his story - who the heck would put rosewood handles on 4 cavity bullet moulds?
SAECO started as an aerospace contractor (Santa Anna Engineering Company - thus SAECO) and somehow they got off onto mould making. I think the owner combined his love of shooting with the skills of aerospace machining to extremely close tolerances.
The early SAECO moulds, while the company was still owned by SAECO, were as close to an H&G than you could get. Their skills as aerospace machinists allowed them to make good moulds.
They really are great moulds and the quality is wonderful. You need to get the early ones while they were still in Carpinteria to get the quality though. I think the quality started downhill after they were sold. But that happens to so many products.
But they are nice nonetheless.

[shell70634]

I cast some with the 45 mold. The mold leaves wings at the base of the bullet about a 16th of an inch up the seam. I don't think there would be much left if the mold was machined to get rid of them. the others appear to be saveable. the cavities are clean and without rust. If there someone that reconditions molds?

[MT Gianni]

Does the sizer clean up the finning?

[Maven]

"He said at the time that SAECO did a special run of moulds for him using meehanite, which I guess is a non-standard steel alloy for moulds." ...F4Bs

Lyman and perhaps Ideal also use meehanite for their mold blocks. If you google "meehanite," you'll get lots of info. about it. Btw, my Cramer (pre-SAECO) wadcutter and SAECO #315 cast beautifully, the latter especially so.

[paul h]

I cast some with the 45 mold. The mold leaves wings at the base of the bullet about a 16th of an inch up the seam. I don't think there would be much left if the mold was machined to get rid of them. the others appear to be saveable. the cavities are clean and without rust. If there someone that reconditions molds?

Hard to say what the problem is w/o seeing the mold but it could be as simple as a slight ding on the corner or side of one of the mold halves that keep the mold from fully closing. A simple way to check and clean up a mold is to take a piece of sheet glass, put a 1/4 sheet of 400 grit wet/dry sand paper on it, some ATF or other light oil and lightly sand each mold half for a few seconds. Then check the mold halves and look for any bright spots. The bright spots are the ding or dings that are keeping the mold from closing. Dress those spots with a file, then again lightly sand each mold half and see if the whole surface is getting shiny, or if you need to take a bit more off the ding.

It's generally not cost effective to have a mold rehabilitated but pretty easy at home with some care.

[shell70634]

184923This is the SAECO 45 mold that throws winged bullets. .0020 may clean it up enough to use. I'll try that before I make it a paperweight.