Need casting help 44 cal

[Ford SD]

Need help casting with my new 44 cal Lyman 2 cav bullet mold:groner:

have Lyman 20lb bottom pour pot
44 cal Lyman 2 cav bullet mold cowboy bullet, cast weight 250g

after dinner tonight to get 100 good bullets took me over 2 hours :killingpc with all of the rejects ( yes 2 cav mold) getting frosting (no fill out) around the middle of bullet around at 1st band. Turned down pot to 5-1/2 on dial so cold even spout is freezing up

Last night was casting using the above mold and 1 30 cal and trying to reduce frosting (lack of fill) was empty 30 cal -fill 30 cal and refill and put it down and empty 44 and fill and repeat 98% good 30 cal and 5% adverage 44 that i got fed up sorting 44 and tossed all of them back in the pot

earlier to night was casting 2 30 cal double molds at 8-1/2(150g fn and 160g sil) ( casting fast one after the other and was getting very good bullets 95% plus:lovebooli
Love casting when things go right:p have about 1000 30 cal cast ready for the summer

So what is wrong with my 44 cal mold ??? is it small vent lines???
or something else
or just a large bullet problem

i have been casting for 15-20 years but first time for 44 cal
been doing lots of reading on this site and after reading about casting using 2 mold a the the same time love it

question about kity litter on top of the pot how often do you change it ??? just started trying it

[fredj338]

I don't use the kitty litter, so can't help there. What alloy? Do you hold the sprue plae in contact w/ the spout? I "pressure" cast by holding the sprue tight to the spout, fill, then back off to make the sprue. It gives me more consistane fill out than leaving a gap. Mostof my casting is doen w/ straight ww or 50/50 ww/lead or 25-1 lead/tin (for LHP). I use a wide variety of big bore molds, RCBS, Lyman, Lee, Saeco, they all fill out fine running no hotter than 700deg (about 6.5 on a full Lee 20#).

[GabbyM]

You may simply not have all the oil burned out of the mold yet.

With the big bullets you'll get shrinkage at the center of mould bullet edges from overheating. If you run to fast. A small fan on your bench works wonders for cooling a mould.

[Blammer]

clean the mould again while it's cold.

[MT Gianni]

Pics might help. I call frosting a light glaze on a fully filled boolit. Lack of fill out to me screams contaminants.

[j20owner]

As far as kitty litter goes, I change it out when it's all burnt and powdery. I usually wait till the pot is cold and let whatever's loose on top fall into the trashcan and then add a little more.

[Le Loup Solitaire]

Casting 44's should not be difficult as they are short fat guys compared to long rifle bullets. Wrinkled bullets usually are the result of oil still in the mold. Bad fillout can occur because of zinc or another contaminant, but venting is often the cause. If the stream of lead is too fat for the sprue pour hole it will interfere with the escape of air from the cavity. So will the sprue plate being too tight. The sprue cutter has to sit flat on the top of the blocks, but not be sloppy up-and-down either...it has to just swing free of its own weight. Frosting is a result of running the melt too hot and getting the mold too hot. It has no effect on accuracy, but many folks don't like the way it looks and it also is a waste of energy. There is probably nothing wrong with your 44 mold; if the same alloy is making good bullets in the 30 cal mold then it is not contaminated. Clean the mold again with acetone, laquer thiner or mineral spirits on some Q- tips and preheat it well before casting. Readjust your sprue cutter and the thickness of your spout stream. Vary the distance from the spout to the sprue holes with a temperature a little lower than frosting level. You have to try things in various combinations as Molds seem to have "personalities" and "attitudes. It'll work ok for you. LLS

[longbow]

I can't comment on the bottom pour pot as I ladle cast and I cast hot. If I have difficulty with fill out I flux and cast hotter. The bottom pour pot may not require fluxing as often but it is still a good idea.

My boolits are almost always frosty but I have never worried about frosting and it has never been a problem. I find it easier to cast hot enough that I have to occasionally cool the mould or slow down my casting rate because the sprue stays molten too long.

Cleaning the mould can't hurt either as any remaining oil will hurt fill out. Also cleaning the vent lines may help and loosening the sprue plate if it is really snug. I like mine to almost swing free.

Having said that, I seldom do any more than wipe them down (I oil for storage) and pre-heat them until they smoke. Lots of heat is my weapon against poor fill out. It works for me.

Another trick that can help poor base fill out is to LIGHTLY file or hone a VERY SMALL bevel across the top edge of the mould blocks to allow air to escape as the base fills. I am talking about a very, very small bevel on each block that results in a gap like a vent line under the sprue plate.

Longbow

[MtGun44]

Too cold or dirty mold. Scrub mold with Comet and an old toothbrush. Increase pot
temp setting.

Bill

[HORNET]

It sounds like it could still have some of the cutting/preservative oil in it. Some guys on here soak them in mineral spirits for a couple of days, some will boil them in water with some dish detergent in it, some scrub them down with dish soap and an old toothbrush , dry them, and then spray them down with brake cleaner.
Once you think it's clean, check the vents with a magnifier to make sure they're clear. Re-chase them if needed (see Lee-menting Stickies). Get the blocks clean, hot, and vented and they should work.

[Ford SD]

Did more work on mold
cleaned it and same problem
Did a light lap with polishing compound better but not good cleaned it again
and cast some high heat with 100% frost good fill out
tried bottom spout against mold--- bullets better but still rejects
(faint lines in bullet ? trapped air ?

tried cleaning vent lines (when hot so did not do a good job)
somewhat better bullets so waiting for mold to cool so i can clean out vent lines again
thanks for all the help this is a good site for cast info

its really a pain when you can pull a mold out, that you have not used in some time preheat it for 5 min and the first bullet out of it is better than the mold you have been working on for hours :killingpc