Boolits sticking in mold project

[toallmy]

I'm in the process of getting a nice slightly used mold to be a fun to cast with mold , and boolits sticking in the mold is the exact opposite of fun to use . This has been a long and slow moving project mainly because I just tinker with it when I feel like it , and I enjoy a mold project . So if and when I finish I'll find another project .
I picked up a Lyman 4 cavity 358-156 from a member hear to play with at a very reasonable price . Now the first thing I had to overcome is the handle issue , I'm a cheap sorta fellow + I like the lee 6 cavity handles size & price but due to the thickness difference I chose to order a new set of handles . The quality of the Lyman handles are top notch very much resembling my Saeco handles , but they are a handful - so eventually ill put some smaller wood on them .
The first thing I do with a new to me mold is take it apart and clean it up really good , and study it really closely I noticed the alignment pin holes are not drilled completely through the blocks I don't think I care for that simply because I have in the past reversed the pins in a mold with a lot of wear around the alignment pin female holes . But that probably won't be a problem for 50-75 years as long as the mold is used with care .
I spent some time stoning the bottom of the sprue plate and smoothing the ruff edges on the sides of it , for a nice smooth to work with sprue cutter .
Then I went to work on the top of the blocks slightly stoned the top and gently smoothed the edges + just barely broke the inside edge of the face to help with venting I generally do this with all molds .
When I was ready to go to the pot I put everything together and applied a bit of lube , preheating the mold while the pot came to casting temp , getting ready to enjoy myself sitting there with the expectation of a wonderful time in a bliss of poring some shiny happiness . When it turned out to be a nightmare STICKING BOOLITS !!!!!!!
I put the mold up for a couple weeks trying to not get excited and start beating on it with my mold knocker , I tried to turn some cast boolits in the cavities with a little polishing compound but it was a no go not one could I get to turn in the cavities . So yesterday I decided to take my Dremel with a small carding weel to the cavities while I held the mold closed tightly I ran the soft wheel at as slow as possible - in and out of the cavities for a few seconds each being careful as humanly possible to not do more harm than good .
Back to the pot I went yesterday morning trying to limit my expectations this time around , the stars aligned while not quite perfect ( perfect would be falling out when the mold is opened ) the boolits could be dislodged with slightly rubbing my thumb over the base of the cast boolits , I had to cut my casting short so I haven't taken the time to study the boolits yet but things are looking up .
I just wanted to share my story and thank the members for sharing so much information with others .

[Huskerguy]

I got out my casting equipment the last two days and used three different molds. A fairly new NOE 360-158 aluminum 4 cavity SWC, a RCBS 38-150 steel 2 cavity SWC, and a Lyman 452374 2 cavity RN. I am NO EXPERT on this but I am convinced that every mold has their little hang ups somewhere depending on the bullet shape. The NOE dropped bullets like crazy, I go go like a wild man with it. I love the RCBS and it gets rave reviews but man was it a challenge to get everything set right temperature wise and to get the bullets to drop without tapping the handles with a stick. The Lyman dropped bullets like nothing, for a two cavity, it dropped like crazy and I worked up a bunch in no time.

To further confound the situation and I have NO scientific evidence to back this up, my lead mixture changes with each pot. I sort lead when I melt it into three categories, WW or hard lead, range lead and soft lead. I generally mix one hard to two range and one soft just to keep things consistent. I know someone will come along and tell me what I am doing wrong but it works and I powder coat and I shoot mild loads in 38 and 45 so I am not setting off sonic booms. I think small changes in lead mixtures, cooling rate, the day, the star alignment, and how one holds their mouth can make a difference. But then, I also think that sometimes a mold just is not going to do what I think it should do and be a pain in the neck all the time. Maybe that is whey someone sold it to me! :)

Happy casting.

[gnostic]

As of late, I'm thinking bullets sticking in the mold is the result of my casting too fast. If I waited for them too cool a bit, they'd probably fall out of the mold without beating on it. The reason I'm in a hurry is, water quenching the range scrap bullets works very well in terms of the bullets performance...

[elmacgyver0]

???? Rubbing your thumb over the base of the boolit to dislodge it?
Ouch!

[Calamity Jake]

Sounds like small burrs around the cavity edges, take the mold apart and using an xacto knife or simuler lightly scrape the cavity edges
getting onto the corners around the crimp and lube groves.

[kevin c]

???? Rubbing your thumb over the base of the boolit to dislodge it?
Ouch!
Actually, I've done the same. Just a slight nudge with virtually no pressure on the boolit base, perpendicular to the mold face, using my gloved thumb. The double thickness of leather keeps the heat out. I used to use the tip of a pair of pliers until I dinged the mold with it, fortunately not on the mold face or cavity.

My molds are all aluminum, 5 to 8 cavities, from Accurate and MP, which I deburred with a wood coffee stirrer. I still get some sticking, usually it's in the same cavity or two in each mold.

Nearly all my molds are bevel based for ease of rapid reloading. I've read here that this makes for easier unmolding compared to flat based designs, but I have never quite understood the how's and whys of it.

[toallmy]

[smilie=s:[smilie=s:[smilie=s: I cast with a glove on my left hand . Actually a thick glove on my left hand and a thinner glove on my right hand 🤚

[Randy Bohannon]

Try cleaning the mould with a piece of lead remover cloth pushed into all of the crevices with a piece of wood fashioned to do the task .

[country gent]

Disassemble the blocks from the handles, usually the sprue plate can stay on. Use a pencil eraser and work over the edges of the cavities, grease grooves and surfaces. the eraser will break sharp edges lightly radius them aiding release. A little tooth paste on the eraser helps it also. This smooths edges and surfaces.

I had a mold one cavity would release with out a lot of hammering. Under magnification the the cavities one groove shoulder was slightly under cut ( possibly a chip gaulded to the cherry) this held that bullet tight. A light scraping and polish with eraser cured it.

[toallmy]

???? Rubbing your thumb over the base of the boolit to dislodge it?
Ouch!

Hehehe I bet you only do that once .
Thank you gentlemen for the great ideas , it's a slow moving project but it's getting better and better .
This morning before going to work I'm going to bring the cast boolits up from the basement and do some visual inspection of the boollits and mold ......

[Cosmic_Charlie]

As of late, I'm thinking bullets sticking in the mold is the result of my casting too fast. If I waited for them too cool a bit, they'd probably fall out of the mold without beating on it. The reason I'm in a hurry is, water quenching the range scrap bullets works very well in terms of the bullets performance...

Some people have a small fan blowing where they dump the bullets. You can also try running your pot at a lower temp though this may cause the bottom pour valve to clog ( fix with heat from a bic lighter ). But yes, if the bullets take too long to cool they will often stick. I will take a break leaving the mold open to cool and add sprue back into the pot.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

Getting rid of those little burrs also helps with mold fill out.

[gwpercle]

A Q-Tip will snag those pesky small burrs and show you where they are . Run the Q-Tip around in both directions , everywhere you think a burr might lurk .

Liquid Wrench Dry Lube (L512) can be used as a mould release . Spray on a light even coat on a cool mould , let the carrier evaporate , it leaves a thin micro-thin coating of Teflon on the surfaces...
Like a Teflon Coated Frying Pan...nothing sticks .
It works like an old New Orleans Voo Doo woman's spell ...it's just magical !

[Walter Laich]

As of late, I'm thinking bullets sticking in the mold is the result of my casting too fast. If I waited for them too cool a bit, they'd probably fall out of the mold without beating on it.

same problem here--I have to force myself to give the mold a few more seconds to cool down.

during our Texas summers it seems like it takes forever for the molds to cool enough even with a fan and sitting the mold on a heat sink (lead ingot)

[DHDeal]

I tend to agree about a cooler mold will allow those PITA sticky cavities to let bullets drop out. When I use a non HP mold and set it on the hot plate to do something to the alloy (or whatever) when I pick the mold back up and open the mold, the bullets seem to jump out.

Problem I have is when I get in a groove and things are just right, I don't want to slow down. It's the reason I keep the leather mallet handy....

[MaLar]

Qtip tip sounds good. I take a caramel apple stick and rub around the edge of the mold before I even clean it for the first time.
It will remove all but the big burs with out harming the mold.