Hensley & Gibbs Bullet Moulds: 1991 to 2021

[Texasflyboy]

As you may remember (or not) from a few of the articles I've posted here, I started a love affair with Hensley & Gibbs bullets moulds in the early 1990's when I started casting again after a hiatus of about 10 years. My first mould from Hensley & Gibbs was a loaner from a Sheriff's deputy, a 10 cavity beast, Design #50. I don't remember if it was plain base or bevel base but it cast beautiful bullets. It occupied my free time in the summers of the late 1970's while I worked at my father's service station in South Louisiana.

Fast forward to the early 90's and I started reloading again. eBay was just getting started and one of my very first purchases was a 10 cavity #50 to cast wadcutters. I later wrote an article for consumption here called "75,000 Wadcutters in a Model 27." All of those wadcutters came from that first 10 cavity mould. Since I was casting, and my equipment was lacking, I later designed and fabricated my own casting pot ("Diary of a Casting Pot Construction") with the help of many long time members here. Since I had a new casting pot that held about 100lbs of lead, I needed more moulds. So back to eBay I went. By 1995 I had a half dozen bullet moulds and also discovered that Hensley & Gibbs was still in business in Murphy, Oregon. I called the number, after spending days trying to find out what it was, only to be gruffly told that all business was via postal mail. Send in a $1 and you get the catalog. Send in the order and we will let you know when to pay and when we ship. I later discovered that Wayne Gibbs, like his father James, held faith only in the US Postal system. There was not, and never would be, a Hensley & Gibbs website. A few more years passed and I started an email dialog with Wayne, who under extreme reluctance, gave me his email and we started corresponding. Months would pass between my hitting the "send" button and a reply arriving. Wayne had his own calendar. And it was slow.

By 1999, Wayne confided in me that he was ready to retire. I pursued him relentlessly to gather as much information about the company as I could. His invaluable help led to the creation of the only list of the Hensley & Gibbs catalog that has ever existed outside of the bank ledger they used from 1932. That list is still not complete, and I plan to finish it one day. One day.

But after I gathered the factory ledger list, and published as much information as I could, life raised its head again. I moved from Texas to North Carolina, and then to Virginia, chasing work. In those years since I started I always kept an eye out for Hensley & Gibbs moulds. And bought them when I found a design I liked or wanted. After the website started to gain traction, I started to receive emails from estates looking to liquidate moulds they had found in "Dad's shed, Grandpop's attic, etc...." I always gave folks my honest opinion on value, even when I had to heart wrenchingly tell them they had ruined a $500 mould by cleaning it with a wire wheel bush "to make it look new so it would sell quick."

But, I kept buying moulds. I even bought a few non-Hensley & Gibbs moulds, two enormous eight cavity Ideal moulds for example. Made by IDEAL for the National Guard, I found them on eBay about the same time I found a Krag rifle with a good barrel. I bought them all.

But, for Hensley & Gibbs moulds, this is the first time since 1995 that I've laid them all out on a table. I have a new backyard office and today I moved the mould stockpile. This is it. Almost 30 years of collecting. And as I've said before, we are only custodians. There will never be another Hensley & Gibbs bullet mould made. That skill was in the toolmaker, not the name. It resided in the hands of George Hensley, James & Wayne Gibbs. I am happy to own some of their production from their roughly 60 year run. And I plan to eventually sell every single one of them to pass them along to other folks who can appreciate and enjoy them.

As soon as I get the big casting pot in place some of these safe queens are going to get a workout. And some of those two cavity moulds are going to Erik Ohlen at HollowPoint Bullet moulds for conversions.

Big photo (very large):

https://www.hensleygibbs.com/TCD/FIREARMS/HGMolds/HensleyGibbsMolds2021.JPG

277401

[Don Purcell]

I think I'm having heart palpitations!

[FISH4BUGS]

Yup.....and I owe you my thanks (or my frustration) for getting ME started in the H&G collecting world.
You are kind of like the crack dealer that says...."...here kid try this....you will like it!" :)
I use the 6 cavity #331 probably more than any, mainly because I burn up a LOT of 9mm with it.
I have a few safe queens, most recently a #45bb new in the box. Eric will get that one to remove the BB and it will be my 2nd go-to mould after the #503. I bought that #503 NIB, paid stupid money for it, and used it immediately.
What a wonderfully casting mould!
Quite the collection, Tom....quite the collection!
As always let me know if/when you tire of some of those. :)

[trooperdan]

I have a couple of H&G moulds at hand, a 2 cavity 68452 200 gr and a 4 cavity # 50. I'm pretty proud of them both!

[jsizemore]

If you need some help social distancing those molds, I got some room at my house.

[Mk42gunner]

Talk about mold envy.

The only Hensley & Gibbs mold I ever had was a four cavity #256 from San Diego, for the .41 Magnum. Since I don't have a .41, and it looked like I wasn't going to get one soon (still haven't) I passed it on to another member here. I did cast a few hundred boolits with it, had to find out what the fuss was all about.

Robert

[Targa]

I am with Don....I am having that heart thing he mentioned!

[Bazoo]

Do you need a curator? I can offer my services for a very nominal fee.

[FISH4BUGS]

I DO hope everyone here appreciates the work Tom did on this Hensley & Gibbs stuff. That is a body of knowledge that all owners/users/collectors can take advantage of.
We are all better off for his efforts and I think many more now better appreciate the workmanship and craftsmanship of these works of the machinist's art.
Don't forget...they did these moulds on Bridgeport Lathes (or some like lathe)....pre-CNC days. Micrometers, skill, quality steel.....I have developed a deep appreciation for these moulds and the skill needed to make them.

[jakharath]

That. Is. Beautiful.

[MrWolf]

I DO hope everyone here appreciates the work Tom did on this Hensley & Gibbs stuff. That is a body of knowledge that all owners/users/collectors can take advantage of.
We are all better off for his efforts and I think many more now better appreciate the workmanship and craftsmanship of these works of the machinist's art.
Don't forget...they did these moulds on Bridgeport Lathes (or some like lathe)....pre-CNC days. Micrometers, skill, quality steel.....I have developed a deep appreciation for these moulds and the skill needed to make them.

Agreed. Texasflyboy you done good and your hard work can be appreciated by others who may encounter those molds. Thanks.
Ron

[Ural Driver]

For Texasflyboy I just have one question: Will you adopt me? :popcorn:

[dale2242]

I bought a number of molds at the H&G estate sale in Murphy a number of years back.
The ones I bought were from George Hensleys private collection.
These molds have up o 4 different designs and calibers cut in them.
I assume they were test molds for new cherries.
I also got a number of cherries. I don`t know if they have any value but got the for nostalgias sake.
Thanks for the list on your web site. I used it to identify the molds.
I have cast with most of them and cast in the usual H&G fashion.

[Scrounge]

As you may remember (or not) from a few of the articles I've posted here, I started a love affair with Hensley & Gibbs bullets moulds in the early 1990's when I started casting again after a hiatus of about 10 years. My first mould from Hensley & Gibbs was a loaner from a Sheriff's deputy, a 10 cavity beast, Design #50. I don't remember if it was plain base or bevel base but it cast beautiful bullets. It occupied my free time in the summers of the late 1970's while I worked at my father's service station in South Louisiana.
SNIP!
But, for Hensley & Gibbs moulds, this is the first time since 1995 that I've laid them all out on a table. I have a new backyard office and today I moved the mould stockpile. This is it. Almost 30 years of collecting. And as I've said before, we are only custodians. There will never be another Hensley & Gibbs bullet mould made. That skill was in the toolmaker, not the name. It resided in the hands of George Hensley, James & Wayne Gibbs. I am happy to own some of their production from their roughly 60 year run. And I plan to eventually sell every single one of them to pass them along to other folks who can appreciate and enjoy them.

As soon as I get the big casting pot in place some of these safe queens are going to get a workout. And some of those two cavity moulds are going to Erik Ohlen at HollowPoint Bullet moulds for conversions.

SNIP!



Frankly, all I'm feeling here is hopeless envy! I don't believe I've so much as seen a Hensley & Gibbs mold. From the way you write about them, I've seriously missed something. Think you could post a couple of close-up photos of the features you like so much? It's not like I need another addiction, but...

Bill

[Scrounge]

I bought a number of molds at the H&G estate sale in Murphy a number of years back.
The ones I bought were from George Hensleys private collection.
These molds have up o 4 different designs and calibers cut in them.
I assume they were test molds for new cherries.
I also got a number of cherries. I don`t know if they have any value but got the for nostalgias sake.
Thanks for the list on your web site. I used it to identify the molds.
I have cast with most of them and cast in the usual H&G fashion.

Unless they're completely worn out, I'd say they're of value. Even if they ARE completely worn out, much could be learned from studying them. I've been an amateur metalworker for about as long as I've been a reloader & boolit caster, though I'm a baby machinist-wannabe. Good detailed photos of the cherries with a scale in the photo could be useful to folks like me. Particularly if you know which cherries go to which molds. Be a good thing to add to Tom's lists, too, I'd think.

Bill

[Taterhead]

That's a beautiful collection. I have but a single H&G mold. You've done us all a huge service in documenting and preserving this history!

[Targa]

A buddy of mine sold me a H&G 4 cavity #50 that he bought in the 70’s that he never used. It puts a big smile on my face, absolute favorite mold that I own....

[farmbif]

sounds like everything needed to make book. what an awesome collection.
I keep thinking one day I'll come across a yard sale or estate sale and there will be casting or reloading stuff but I've yet to be that lucky.

[fivegunner]

277450277451 Tom, I also want to thank you for all the work you put into the research, And Thank you for helping me along the way.

[Outpost75]

Absolutely wonderful. Good to see you back on here Tom.

[Texasflyboy]

Good to see you too buddy. Email on the way.

[Burnt Fingers]

WOW! I've only got 11 H&G molds.

That's quite the collection!

I did scoop up a #249 six cavity the other day. I never even knew it existed, but once I saw it I knew I had to have it.

I love the four cavity H&G molds as well as the four cavity SAECO molds.

I do have to say that brass molds by NOE, MP, Arsenal, and Accurate come very close to the quality of an H&G mold, at least in my opinion.

[LenH]

I have an eight cavity, a 6 cavity and a 4 cavity. The 8 cavity is a S242 .45 SWC and is a beast, the 6 cavity is a 73 a .38 SWC 145 gr and the 4 is a 50 .38 WC.

[Devon]

If my records are correct, I have 23 H&G Molds. Some I don't even have guns chambered for. I have 68, 50, 45, 51, 290, 256, S55, 254, 251, 309, 55 & 73. Several multiples. Five 10-cavity molds. I probably need therapy.

[Mk42gunner]

If my records are correct, I have 23 H&G Molds. Some I don't even have guns chambered for. I have 68, 50, 45, 51, 290, 256, S55, 254, 251, 309, 55 & 73. Several multiples. Five 10-cavity molds. I probably need therapy.

Devon,

Purely in the interests of you feeling better, you can send all those H&G molds to me for disposal. For just a slight nominal fee, of course.

Robert

[FISH4BUGS]

If my records are correct, I have 23 H&G Molds. Some I don't even have guns chambered for. I have 68, 50, 45, 51, 290, 256, S55, 254, 251, 309, 55 & 73. Several multiples. Five 10-cavity molds. I probably need therapy.

You are not the only one. I have a bunch that I don't even own guns for. They were unusual, mint condition or new in the box, or not that expensive.
It's all Tom's fault! :)

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I will also forward my appreciation for your hard work...as it has helped me with a couple purchases.

The three molds I own are from the earliest of times, labeled Geo A Hensley.
one is a well worn 4 cav Long nose 38 WC, but still casts great.
one is a 2 cav #50 that looks minty, haven't poured any yet.
Lastly is a 2 cav, with one cav a #68 and the other cav is #6, this also looks minty and casts great, but both cavities are a wee bit on the fat side.

So I guess I have to say I current don't own a H&G mold ...I own three H molds, LOL.

[SSGOldfart]

If my records are correct, I have 23 H&G Molds. Some I don't even have guns chambered for. I have 68, 50, 45, 51, 290, 256, S55, 254, 251, 309, 55 & 73. Several multiples. Five 10-cavity molds. I probably need therapy.
Naw your just getting started.
Thanks for sharing this post,I enjoy reading your articles.I've used some H &G molds since the 70's myself

[lightman]

My H&G molds are a pleasure to cast with. Thank you for all of the work you did in gathering info and starting a web site.

[AndyC]

I only have a 2-cavity H&G #68 (the famous .45acp 200gr SWC design), but it's a work of art. Sadly somebody broke the original bolt that holds on the screw-plate, but it was replaced with a modern bolt and still works just fine.

Oddly-enough, I acquired it in a trade for my detested Lee 6-cav so-called 'clone' of that bullet (not even a close clone, as you'll see below) and still feel I came out on top. Here's an interesting comparison photo I took a number of years ago and clearly shows the differences - I do love the subtle curves on the nose of the H&G:

https://i.imgur.com/tlxPUwA.jpg

[chumly2071]

For some of the extremely popular, and great performing profiles, I wonder if there would be any value in laser scanning the cavities and making some CAD models? Might be worth it to get new versions available.

Sent from my SM-G986U using Tapatalk

[PDshooter]

I have a H&G68 6 cavity mold bought it back in 1986. I just love it. I think I paid around $275 for it. It's a work of art. Very heavy don't drop it on your foot.
I meet the owner when I was in Oregon 85. Back then He said it was one man operation. I knew then if I was going to order I better do it soon. I wish I would have bought more :(

[alamogunr]

I've got 6 H&G molds. The only one I cast with now is the 4 cavity #50. I also have a 6 cavity #50 but have gotten too old to handle it. I have never understood how anyone could use those 10 cavity monsters.

[Chill Wills]

I am among the casters that have not had much experience with H&G molds. Do these come up for sale often or are they the rare bird? Then too, these are not great times to find loading and casting equipment.

[Burnt Fingers]

There's always a few available on Fleabay.

I own a few H&G molds. As far as I'm concerned MP, Arsenal, Accurate, and NOE make a mold that's every bit as good as an H&G.

Part of the mystic around H&G molds is that they were VERY expensive, the other choices were Lyman, RCBS, and Lee, and a small handful of others depending on the time frame.