Mold alignment holes are loose

[twocool4u]

First let me say this is the best shooting related website there is. If it was not for this site I would not be casting my own boolits.

That being said, I need help with an Ideal mold. The alignment holes have become wallowed out a bit and the mold does not close properly. When the mold is closed the blocks are out of alignment just a little. What is th best solution to this problem?

I have search the archives for a question like this, but I have not found any answers.

Thanks

[35remington]

Hold the mould block faces up to the light at a ninety degree angle to the protruding pins.

Look to see that besides the hemispherical nose of the pin, there is also parallel sides protruding. Likely they are not, and no bearing surface is present to align the mould halves.

Solution is to disassemble the mould halves, lay the one with pins face down on a soft piece of pine and drive the alignment pins out with a punch, checking after each adjustment for the proper protrusion.

Should solve the problem. The pins are meant to be driven out for such a reason.

[MtGun44]

+1 on driving the pins out, but with the clarification that you are going
to move them around .010" or maybe .020" in most cases. I haven't seen
a mold need more, but that doesn't mean it couldn't happen.

Bill

[jsizemore]

Hold the mould block faces up to the light at a ninety degree angle to the protruding pins.

Look to see that besides the hemispherical nose of the pin, there is also parallel sides protruding. Likely they are not, and no bearing surface is present to align the mould halves.

Solution is to disassemble the mould halves, lay the one with pins face down on a soft piece of pine and drive the alignment pins out with a punch, checking after each adjustment for the proper protrusion.

Should solve the problem. The pins are meant to be driven out for such a reason.

I tried driving the pins out with a punch on a saeco mold and I couldn't get them to budge. What's the next step?

[twocool4u]

Worked like a charm.

Thanks again.

[Catshooter]

I tried driving the pins out with a punch on a saeco mold and I couldn't get them to budge. What's the next step?

Sounds like a joke, but's it's not: use a bigger hammer. Some alignment pins can be tough to move.


Cat

[Slowpoke]

I tried driving the pins out with a punch on a saeco mold and I couldn't get them to budge. What's the next step?


Two or three drops of Kroil on the back side of the pin and let them sit for a spell, with in a hr you should have Kroil showing up on the Mould face ( it creeps :) ) special made fitted punches can be furnished by Buckshot. I sure smile every time I use mine.

good luck

[jsizemore]

Sounds like a joke, but's it's not: use a bigger hammer. Some alignment pins can be tough to move.


Cat

Thanks

[jsizemore]

Two or three drops of Kroil on the back side of the pin and let them sit for a spell, with in a hr you should have Kroil showing up on the Mould face ( it creeps :) ) special made fitted punches can be furnished by Buckshot. I sure smile every time I use mine.

good luck

Thank you too

[theperfessor]

Find a friend with an arbor or hydraulic press. Local auto shop probably has one. All you need is a very short piece of round stock to put between the pin and the press ram.

I have found it to be a far more controllable way to shift pins, but then I'm not real good with a hammer.

[WHITETAIL]

twocool4u, Welcome to the forum!:drinks:

[JIMinPHX]

When I bump pins out, I set the blocks up on shims with a hard surface below them. That way when I drive the pins out, they have something to hit & stop them from going too far. I increase the shim pile by .005" each time I drive the pins out until I get a good fit between the pins & their holes. If you go too far, the pins stick in the holes & then you need to tap the pins back in, which I find harder to control. I also find it easier to use an arbor press rather than a hammer as a pin driver. Another option is to tap the back of the pin hole & use a set screw as a pin driver. This probably involves the most work, but gives the best control.

[Char-Gar]

I have had to drive the pins a little farther into to compensate for wear as the original poster did on several occasions. A bench block is a big help and it contains holes where the pins can go without any danger of them being damaged. Brownells and others sells nylon bench block that won't damage the inside surface of the hold block.

[fatnhappy]

I tried driving the pins out with a punch on a saeco mold and I couldn't get them to budge. What's the next step?
a bigger hammer

[454PB]

One of my admired mentors when I was a kid had only two tools in his toolbox: a large pair of pump pliers and a 3 pound ball peen hammer. He could disassemble an engine with those two tools.