Boolit hardness - Mold control

[303Guy]

Have any of you Folks found boolit hardness to vary without any heat treatment?

Take a look at this -

The recovered boolit (notice the intact knurling)
http://i388.photobucket.com/albums/oo327/303Guy/MVC-010F.jpg

The as cast boolit
http://i388.photobucket.com/albums/oo327/303Guy/MVC-745F.jpg

The mold
http://i388.photobucket.com/albums/oo327/303Guy/MVC-888F.jpg

This mold was designed to cool quicker at the base so as to prevent shrinkage flaws. It does that alright, but it also produces a softer nose section!

The lead and mold are hot when casting. I do not know whether this particular boolit was left in the mold until cold or taken out as soon as it was firm enough. (My usual modus operandi).

[randyrat]

What kind of mold is that? How does it work? There are no lube groves on that bullet, is it a paper patch boolit?
interesting subject BTW

[303Guy]

It's a 'hollow point nose pour'. I use a g/c as the base plug. When the [pouring funnel is removed, it leaves a hollow point with a sprue stub in the middle.

http://i388.photobucket.com/albums/oo327/303Guy/MVC-889F.jpg

I lube by dipping the loaded boolit into molten 'waxy-lube' which also seals the neck and holds the boolit in place. I have now taken to knurling with a file. Those knurls are still there in the first pic indicating that the lube stayed in place and did its job.

[randyrat]

Did you knurl the whole bullet. If so, it looks like the back of the bullet is smooth where most of the obturation took place. Even though obturation took place farther back on the boolit, i still see rifling over the knurling farther up, so maybe your theory is right.
Or... did they design the mold like that so you can hold it with a devise with no intentions.