Boolit in or out?????

[abunaitoo]

I know this has been discused before, but I can't find the posting.

Is it better to leave the last casted boolit in the mould for storage, or leave it empty?????

If you leave the boolit in, why?????

[Rockchucker]

I just started leaving bullets in my steel molds, seems to keep more air and moisture out the cavities. Of course I may be wrong, but can't see where it hurts anything.

[Mike W1]

I generally leave them in but I'll qualify that by saying I don't think it hurts or harms. However I left a couple moulds sit for a few years in a ammo can with dessicant in it once and got some rust on the moulds. Now if I'm going to store them for a prolonged time, maybe more than a couple months, I remove the slugs and oil the heck out of things. Easier to clean out oil than rust!

[JSnover]

I leave them out. I've never tried leaving a boolit in the mold but I sure have had to fix or replace a lot of equipment that was damaged by similar practices.

[mold maker]

Desiccant packages absorb moisture and hold it. That being said, keep them away from contact with what you want to protect. If the seal on the container is faulty so that every temp change expels or draws air into the container, the desiccant pack can become saturated. At that point it is just like a wet rag, stored with your molds.
You can buy spray cans of dry nitrogen, with the little quill. To help insure rust free storage, a gentle spray of the (heavier than air) nitrogen into the bottom of a partially closed container will eliminate moisture problems in a properly sealed container.
Remember, its heavier than air and will overflow the moist air, last thing before you seal it shut.

[lwknight]

I take em out. Just cause I want every last boolit in the box LOL


Remember, its heavier than air and will overflow the moist air, last thing before you seal it shut

Air is 76% nitrogen and is heavy with H2O and O2. Dry nitrogen will mix so readily with "Air" that you likely would never float anything out on that account alone. Probably what is happening is that the compressed nitrogen is cold from being decompressed thus making it heavy enough to float the air out.

[winelover]

I pack my iron mould cavties with cotton soaked in oil for long term storage. Never had a rust problem and they are stored in a high humidity basement.

Winelover:cbpour:

[old turtle]

I take my molds complety apart and wipe all the screws, cavities, and surfaces with Marvel Mystery Oil. I then re-assemble the mold and put it in a plastic box. Even over long periods of time I have had no problem. I would be afraid to leave a boolet in the mold here in Florida because of the humid conditions. Puting the molds in a good tight ammo can is a good idea also. I use acetone to clean them before using.

[Bret4207]

Had a mould rust on me once doing the "last booit in the mould" trick. Since then I have a dedicated dead refrigerator with a 15 watt bulb always burning and a large desiccant pack in there. Still get a very slight color where my fingers touch, but it's better than oiling them or waxing them like I tried once.

[dtknowles]

That brown or tan paper that comes with may molds and guns is the thing you want to use to keep your molds from rusting. When I run across my contact info for my source for this stuff I will post it in a new thread. It keeps the mositure our or off or something and does not leave a residue on the parts or mold.

First hit from Google brings up this link, I got my free samples some place else, it works here on the Gulf Coast so it should work anywhere

http://www.corrosionvci.com/vci148_paper.htm

VCI paper provides corrosion protection to multi-metals. Available in one product (multi-metal vci) that protects all types of metals, copper, ferrous, nonferrous, cast iron, silver or in specialty VCI formulations to protect specific types of metals. Specialty products for your vci packaging requirements of specific types of metals also available fill out this form: VCI Corrosion Protection Evaluation free Corrosion Control product selection help.

Tim

[Storydude]

i use the paper my new barrels are wrapped in.

Of course, with Miha's brass molds, what's rust?

[c3d4b2]

Air is 76% nitrogen and is heavy with H2O and O2. Dry nitrogen will mix so readily with "Air" that you likely would never float anything out on that account alone. Probably what is happening is that the compressed nitrogen is cold from being decompressed thus making it heavy enough to float the air out.

We have nitrogen dry boxes at work that monitors the oxygen and moisture levels. When we open the door, the oxygen and moister levels rise and when we close the door they fall. The cabinet does have an exhaust so when the nitrogen comes in it displaces the moisture and oxygen in the cabinet.

[wilddog45]

If I know I am not going to use a mold for a while I smear a liberal coating of RIG on the entire mold and wrap in plastic. No rust will appear for sure. When I am ready to use again I spray with brake cleaner and im ready to roll.

[anachronism]

Spray the mould with a good water displacing oil while they're still warm, but not hot. Them hose them down with brake cleaner twice before using. Just leaving the last bullet cast in the cavity to prevent rust is an old wives tale. I pack mine in airtight ammo cans with dissicant for long term storage.

[Char-Gar]

The only really rusted molds I have seen have had the last bullet left in them. I wouldn't do it on a bet.

I give the molds a good coat inside and out with a good oil or grease, Breakfree works just fine. Wrap them tightly in plastic food wrap and secure with making tape. These molds will be good for at least 20 years (probably much longer) of storage. I live on the Texas Gulf Coast which is very humid and I have never had a rusted mold stored this way.

When I want one, I scrub it inside and out with hot tap water and dish washing detergent on a soft toothbrush. More hot water to rinse and blow dry with a hair dryer.

I give the cavities a coat of NEI Mold-Prep with a Q-Tip and apply Bull-Plate Spru Lube as directed.

As soon as the mold reaches proper tempreture, I get good well filled out bullets. The above is my routine for any mold, be they iron, brass or aluminum. I have some molds I have been using for 50 years and they are as good as new.

The above only takes a few minutes and can be done when the alloy is melting and have lots of time left over.

I would never use Brake Cleaner....it is far too toxic to use, where there are other methods that work just as well and are just as fast. I darn near killed my cat Beamer, when he picked up a little Brake Cleaner residue on his feet. He was luck to pull through.

[longbow]

I always leave boolits in the mould, especially iron moulds.

Three main reasons:

- I have a sample to look at and measure if I want (many of my moulds are lapped)
- the boolits left in help (I think) in keeping the mould blocks from separating and "rattling" with any possible rough handling
- I oil my moulds when finished casting and by leaving boolits in the cavities I am positive that oil fills and seals the casting surfaces as it is drawn into all the little crevices. I do seaparate mould halves and apply oil around boolits to make sure, then close them tight.

I have never had a mould rust and do not find cleaning oil off before casting to be a problem. Oil is cheap, moulds aren't.

Longbow

[prs]

I take 'em out. Can't shoot 'em whilst they are in the molds.

prs

[dominicfortune00]

Those little packets that you find in jerky that absorb oxygen would work well in an airtight storage container if you could find a source of them new.

[runfiverun]

i spray mine down with penetrating oil and leave them in a drawer.
no boolit inside,the only time i put a boolit in a mold is to ship it to keep things from being ratlled around and scuffing up the mold cavities.

[Crash_Corrigan]

I don't do a thing to my molds. I leave them on a shelf in my casting room and I have never had one show any rust ever!

Of course I live in Las Vegas NV and we just had more rain in a week than we had in the last 6 months.

Normally we have 4 inches of rain a year or less. So anything rusting unless it is left outside would be abnormal.

[qajaq59]

I leave them out and use light oil. It's easy to clean oil out of a mold. But gettimg rust out is a bear.

[winelover]

That brown or tan paper that comes with may molds and guns is the thing you want to use to keep your molds from rusting. When I run across my contact info for my source for this stuff I will post it in a new thread. It keeps the mositure our or off or something and does not leave a residue on the parts or mold.

First hit from Google brings up this link, I got my free samples some place else, it works here on the Gulf Coast so it should work anywhere

http://www.corrosionvci.com/vci148_paper.htm

VCI paper provides corrosion protection to multi-metals. Available in one product (multi-metal vci) that protects all types of metals, copper, ferrous, nonferrous, cast iron, silver or in specialty VCI formulations to protect specific types of metals. Specialty products for your vci packaging requirements of specific types of metals also available fill out this form: VCI Corrosion Protection Evaluation free Corrosion Control product selection help.

Tim

VCI paper or bags will work fine, but the protection only lasts for one year and then you need to replace them with FRESH ones! You have been warned. I researched this earlier this year in hopes of protecting my knife collection. I didn't choose this route cause I didn't want to unwrap over 100 knives yearly.:holysheep

Winelover:redneck: