First try casting bullets

[jwb28]

Hi
Got all the range scrap smelted. thanks again for all the help.

Tried casting today. kept getting wrinkled bullets. It's a new mold, 358439. They seem pretty filled out, edges, base, even hollow point not to bad. Some had one side frosted. Lead temp was 750 plus.
I cleaned the mold with carb cleaner first and the wrinkles are not in the same place. I didn't smoke the mold or use PB blaster. ( I think that that is what I saw on a thread here to use on a mold that keeps casting wrinkled bullets.

I can not cast maybe as fast as I should because of limited use of one arm. But some of the bullets were frosted. At least on one side and the hollow point and nose are actually better than the sides. The wrinkles are small, but there. I kept 20 or so to tumble lube and shoot just to see.

Lee bottom pore pot. The 10 lbs version. I could not find the 4-20 any place. I need to re read some threads and try again, but any help is much appreciated.

Longer learning cure to this than I thought, but it's fun. I'm just not very effecient. :)

PS. hope everyone had a great Christmas.

[ryanmattes]

Sounds like mould temperature. It comes down to rhythm. If you can limit the amount of wait between pours, the mould stays hot and the wrinkling goes away. Pot temp will vary by the alloy, so the more tin you add, the lower the temps need to be. With my alloy (approximately 20:1) it seems to work the best around 625-675, while with purer lead I had to have to up over 700 to get good fill out. So maybe try dropping the temp a bit to reduce frosting, and let the mould get good and hot before you start pouring, by dipping the base in the pot.

And just keep trying, we all made wrinkley violets when we started. You'll find your rhythm.

EDIT to add:

Aluminum molds cool down faster than brass, which cools down faster than iron/steel. So if you want a slower pace, look at getting Some heavier moulds.

[Winger Ed.]

You're off to a good start.

Tinkering around with the heat and getting settled into a steady rhythm should level it all out.
I run the heat up until they come out frosted, then turn it down until it just stops has worked well for me.

[jwb28]

I'll try till i get it. How hot can you get the lead? (range scrap). Is 800 to hot? Might buy me a little extra time between bullets. I was getting faster at it though.
I might try the Kroil and see if that helps.

Single cavity is slow, but it was cool seeing an actual 358439 that I made.

[Winger Ed.]

I'll try till i get it. How hot can you get the lead? (range scrap)..

I don't have a thermometer. I've been doing this since the 80's and didn't know I needed one until fairly recently.
I use a old RCBS pro-melt and the tried & true, official---- redneck method:
I crank the knob up almost all the way up to get it going, then back it off from there as needed.:bigsmyl2:

[jonjon00]

These were my first ever that I cast Wednesday night.
I'm right there with you in the try again club. Don't worry though because I made my second attempt this afternoon and was much more successful. https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20201227/8e2db3c2e5f1ca0f3003f920b9b1c61c.jpg

Sent from my G8441 using Tapatalk

[Conditor22]

I do most of my casting between 680 and 720°

If you get wrinkles I would clean the mold again.

I'd also suggest getting a hot plate to get the mold up to temperature (400) and keep the mold warm when not casting

efficiency comes with practice.

If you still get wrinkles after cleaning well a second time you could try lightly smoking the cavity with a kitchen match or butane lighter

[jwb28]

Forgot about the match trick. Struck out finding Kriol around here. I'll scrub the mold good again, tooth brush and carb cleaner. If I still have trouble next time I'll get a hot plate.


jonjon00, the wrinkles in mine weren't that deep, but yea it will be better next time (fingers crossed.) Just have to keep tying.

Thanks again everyone.

[Gunslinger1911]

Welcome to the (sometimes frustrating) club !
At least the boo boo's go back in the pot in our hobby !

Most new moulds need to be heat cycled a few times, 2-4, depending on your patience - lol
My theory is it draws out the last of the cutting oil and builds a "patina" in the cavities.

If working at a slow pace, try resting the mould on the rim of the pot to keep hot.

Extra fluxing of the pot can help

750+ may be a little hot, 700-725 seems to be my sweet spot with range scrap.

If all else fails, a little tin should help. go easy on the tin, a little goes a long way. 0.1 or 0.2 % to start. Too much and it will "tin out" on your mould creating worse issues.
Rotometals has tin in little nubs if no other source.

Good luck, keep asking questions !!!!!

[Super Sneaky Steve]

If you're lubing your sprew plate make sure you have boolits in the mould. If oil gets into the cavs you'll get wrinkles.

I'm not sure how fast you are filling them, but if you go real slow that can also make them look like that.

I have a lot of aluminum moulds and the only thing I do to clean them is use a toothbrush and some Lava soap.

[44Blam]

Looks like either your mold is too cold or you have some oil or something in the mold. Either way, if you keep casting, the wrinkles will go away - the mold will get hot and any oil will burn off. :)

[Dusty Bannister]

Looks like that mold might like the stream right down the middle of the sprue hole. Your earlier culled bullets show cold melt, slow dribble pour, perhaps need to clear the nozzle on the bottom pour pot. Fast fill reduces that soft serve ice cream look.

[468]

Looks like you are where you should be on the learning curve. Don’t worry so much about frost. Frosted boolits shoot as well as shiny boolits. Your wrinkle problem will iron out (:bigsmyl2:) as you get the mold temp and rhythm where it should be. Keep the mold on top of the pot as you heat up the alloy. Don’t expect any keepers from your first 10-12 pours.

I’m betting your next session will be more productive.

[Peregrine]

Don't read too much into anything yet, molds take time to break in. What you should try is heat cycling the mold to working temperature and back down before you use it again.
Frosting on bullets is fine, I'd assume the temperature is OK and there's just some volatiles that still need to flash off. Hence the heat cycles to advance the process.

[jwb28]

I did put WLL sprew plate lube on the plate. Annnd I forgot the instructions say to have a cast bullet in there first. But I cast for over an hour. Still had wrinkles.
I'll have to time my casting. I got a lot faster toward the end, but I still shift the mold handles between hands. Not4 casts per min I know. I might be able to eek out three. It is what it is. Maybe a mold guide will speed it up a little when the 4-20's come back in stock.
The hp pin is slowing things down too. I have a 6 cavity lee non hollow point to try. But if I can do HP's that should be cake.
I'll be back after my next try. :).

Thanks again

[Three44s]

More power Scottie, I need more POWER!

Turn up the heat then start inching it down.

Frosty boolits are fine. If it goes to growing little fins then you have gone a bit too far. Cooling things down (air cooling) from there will do the trick.

You will get this though, I have confidence!

You will find that molds are like women, “no two think alike”!

Three44s

[WHITETAIL]

Welcome to the forum!
And down the rabbit hole you go.
The more you make the better you will get.
I 2nd the motion that the mold needs a few
heats before they make good boolits.:Fire:

[Bashby]

Been mentioned a couple times, but in addition to mold temp, pour rate matters. I’m not nearly as experienced as some here, but when I cast it takes about 1/2-3/4 of a second to fill each cavity.

[Wayne Smith]

Get the hotplate. Not only does it allow you to preheat the mold but if you need to rest it gives you a place to put the mold and it stays hot. If you are handicapped that hotplate just may become your best friend.

[JoeJames]

Still learning, but I have the Lee 10# bottom pour, and finally I figured out I was not gettinga strong enough stream out of the pour. Because of that it was forming boolits that resembled stalagmites, all wrinkled up. Luckily mine stopped up completely; so I pulled the valve assembly, and went to using it with a ladle. All of a sudden I started getting well defined boolits. I did keep my ingot mold under the spout though just in case it decided to open up. I also heated up the mold by setting it upside down, sprue plate down over the pot.

[Targa]

I started casting with Lee aluminum molds, my next mold was a iron H&G mold. Going from aluminum to iron was a real eye opener. My first attempt was just like yours, cast after cast of wrinkly bullets. I found out real quick that a hot plate for the mold and a small torch for the sprue plate was my best friend before casting.
After that, perfect bullets rained out of that thing and it was nice having a more leisurely tempo with the iron molds vs. the aluminum.

[AlHunt]

Not4 casts per min I know. I might be able to eek out three.

That should be plenty fast enough. As long as your sprue is freezing, not tearing the bottom of your bullet out in that 15 - 20 second window, you're in the zone.

I recently switched from holding the mold right against the bottom pour pot to holding it a half inch or so off. I recommend the latter method. I'm cycling a 6 cavity aluminum mold in about 40 to 45 seconds @ 750F and it works fine.

My only other thought is your cleaning regimen. Some cleaners can leave residual deposits and I'd be very skeptical of carb cleaner. NON Chlorinated brake parts cleaner is my current cleaner, or straight acetone (the main ingredient in NC brake parts cleaner). Regular chlorinated brake parts cleaner was causing me problems as it has some other component that makes wrinkled bullets.

All those recent changes and I've been at this for decades. The improvement never ends.

Good luck with your new endeavor.

EDIT: That light frosting you're seeing is a good indication your melt temp is hot enough. I'd say if your sprues are freezing fairly quick and you're getting a little frost, that's a good indication that your alloy temp is close to right.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

Is there enough tin in that range scrap? Are you pouring fast enough? ( each cavity filled in under a second ). Preheating the mold ( I do it on our glass top stove while the pot is melting ) will get you good boolits almost immediately but your mold should heat up after a dozen pours or so on it's own. You will get there in time. My casting sessions always go well now with few rejects.

You might try ordering some 20/1 from Roto Metals and mix it 50/50 with your range scrap.

[oley55]

If all else fails, a little tin should help. go easy on the tin, a little goes a long way. 0.1 or 0.2 % to start. Too much and it will "tin out" on your mould creating worse issues.


Gunslinger, can you or someone elaborate a bit more on the too much tin, and "tin out" issues?

[243winxb]

Use a stencil brush & Dawn with hot tap water to clean mold. The Dawn has 5% ethonal in it. Rinse well with the hot tap water. Dry.

Preheat on top of Lee 10 lb pot. Then use maximum alloy, pot & mold heat to start. No lubing mold needed. Lube just makes wrinkled bullets. LEES aluminum needs a tiny amount of lube.
http://castboolits.gunloads.com/asset.php?fid=233266&uid=717&d=1609074515 http://castboolits.gunloads.com/asset.php?fid=233265&uid=717&d=1609074492

[Conditor22]

I use Stihl high-performance ultra 2 cycle engine oil Ultra lubricating qualities that are superior to other 2-cycle engine oils. This fully synthetic oil is also highly biodegradable

link for reference only, 1 2.6 oz bottle will last you a lifetime https://www.amazon.com/STIHL-0781-313-Performance-Engine/dp/B005DC0IRA/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1EHPTIOW26FVJ&dchild=1&keywords=stihl+high+performance+ultra+2+cycle+engi ne+oil&qid=1609087859&sprefix=STIHL++High+Performance+Ultra+2+Cycle+Engi ne+Oil%2Caps%2C246&sr=8-1

I use a needle tip bottle like this https://www.amazon.com/Liberty-Oil-Products-Bottles-Stainless/dp/B07NKSLFSR/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3NAD7BQDTIIGB&dchild=1&keywords=needle+tip+bottle&qid=1609088132&sprefix=needle+tip+bottle%2Caps%2C257&sr=8-3

to put 1 tiny drop of oil on the sprue pivot, work the sprue plate back and forth several times and wipe off any excess on top of the mold and under the plat (also keep an eye on the top of the mold for a few casts to see if more oil builds up and wipe off any excess) and use q-tips with a few drops of oil dampen the bottom of the sprue plate and top of the mold (with boolits still in it) wait a few seconds then using a paper towel I wipe off all the excess oil.

open mold, add 1 drop to the q-tip and carefully lube the alignment pins.

I have a self-igniting propane torch by my casting pot to warm the spout or heat up the cavities/burn out any oil that might get in there

Something like this might help with your casting http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?379710-Sprue-Plate-opening-jig-prototype

I find that fluxing with both pine sawdust and wax dies a better job

Kroil in the cavities can be hit - n - miss, I'd avoid it.

[Gunslinger1911]

Gunslinger, can you or someone elaborate a bit more on the too much tin, and "tin out" issues?

Oley55, What I have read and experienced is too much tin "can/could" plate out on the mould. Think "tinning" copper pipe as a flux when soldering.
Seems to happen mostly with brass moulds.
I got a little heavy on the tin a few years ago with a stubborn mould, should have heat cycled it a few more times, tin really gets the lead moving ! I got patches right beside the cavity in the vent grooves that weren't lead - total heck to get that cleaned !!!!