MiHec 311410 Cramer

[rollmyown]

Groups, must see groups! Pics please!!

Still no sign of this or the 308 hunter around here yet sigh.

[xacex]

No groups yet. I don't even know if I can get my old 54R to group. Here they are loaded to the crimp grove with 13 grains of red dot. I wish I had a chrony that didn't have a hole through it.

[Captain_Howdy]

No groups yet. I don't even know if I can get my old 54R to group. Here they are loaded to the crimp grove with 13 grains of red dot. I wish I had a chrony that didn't have a hole through it.

LOL poor chrony!!! those rounds look good though. You are inspiring me too get off my butt and try and find a local vender that might have some 308 gas checks to get these going in my blackout

[dbosman]

By the time you start looking, USPS could have delivered your order.
PM me your address and I'll mail you a hundred Sierra GCs.

You are inspiring me too get off my butt and try and find a local vender that might have some 308 gas checks to get these going in my blackout

[xacex]

LOL poor chrony!!! those rounds look good though. You are inspiring me too get off my butt and try and find a local vender that might have some 308 gas checks to get these going in my blackout

Loading some up for the blackout as well. I am going to load them long at 1.905 because I noticed the nose damage from smashing into the feed ramp was worse loaded at the crimp groove. They still get dented pretty good loaded long. The nose is thin so if they hit anything on the way home they will be damaged. A fellow on this board had some plans he sent me on doing polymer tips that I want to try with this one. That would help a ton, and would bring the OAL to about 2.05".

[longbow]

Okay Rick 0.0004" under I can live with! In fact I hope mine casts ever so slightly undersize so I don't have to size. My guns like 0.315" so a bit under the stated 0.316" might allow me to shoot without sizing. I am exceptionally lazy so if I can avoid sizing, I will. I have elected to go with PB and will be "hot tumble lubing". If I have size so be it but I won't if I can avoid it.

I will be loading over COW with these as I have been getting very good results with some other boolits using PB with COW between boolit and powder.

If I want to push velocity or find I need a gas check then I will make a PB gas check maker... or load lighter.

Those black boolits look really good! I have been thinking of trying the Piglet coating method myself.

OOOOOOHHHHHH! I can't wait! I want my mould!

Longbow

[L1A1Rocker]

I mic'd the pin shoulders and the long HP pin shoulder is 0.0015" wider than short HP pin and 0.0020" wider than the flat nose pin.

Guess I'll spin the shoulder against some fine grit sandpaper and remove a smidge from the shoulder of long HP pin.

Just wondered if anyone else had run into any similar situation.

Thanks, Brad

Just checked the long hollow point pins, and mine are the same way.

[cbrick]

Hhmmm, I have cast with both molds, the PB & the GC but I have the short pins in both, they are fine in both molds. I haven't tried the long pins or the FP pins in either mold yet. Guess I'll have to get everything out & mic them & try them for fit.

Rick

[braol]

Got mine today, ordered and paid for a 2 cavity but got a 4 cavity. So if someone that ordered a 4-cavity 316 GC mold received a 2-cavity 316 GC mold I would swap with you.

Looks like dromia, Mohillbilly, and PB234 are the only ones to order a 4-cavity 316 GC mold

[longbow]

Even after heat cycling, my gas check mold with long HP pins won't close. My plain base mold with a flat nose and short HP pin works great.

I mic'd the pin shoulders and the long HP pin shoulder is 0.0015" wider than short HP pin and 0.0020" wider than the flat nose pin.

Guess I'll spin the shoulder against some fine grit sandpaper and remove a smidge from the shoulder of long HP pin.

Just wondered if anyone else had run into any similar situation.

Thanks, Brad

I got my mould! I got my mould! I got my mould!

I put it together and found the same issue you are having. I have not mic'd the pins yet but the mould closes fine with both FP and short HP pins. The little shoulder between HP taper and sliding pin is a little oversize. I will chuck them up in the lathe and use a diamond hone or fine emery to slim them down a hair.

It is a slight set back but I do want those long HP pins in and working NOW! I have milk jugs to kill!

I will mic them, fix them then be casting later this evening or first thing tomorrow morning.

Other than that it is a beautiful mould! I can't wait to get casting.

Longbow

[xacex]

I can cast, but I cant shoot. All public lands are closed due to fire danger. Went up the hill today which is only 15 minutes away, but the signs were up so I cant shoot till the rains come. Time to join the local club I guess.

[longbow]

Well, I mic'd my pins and both the short HP and FP pins mic at 0.129" and the long HP pins mic at 0.131" at the cylindrical bit between taper pin and body.

I chucked them in the lathe and used a diamond hone to carefully reduce them to just fitting the mould blocks. All done but no time to cast tonight. So first thing tomorrow I will be casting and hopefully shooting tomorrow or Sunday.

A minor glitch but it should be brought to Miha's attention as some folks might not have the equipment or skills to reduce the pins by 0.002". Everything else is perfect though so no complaints here.

Milk jugs beware! I'm coming soon!

The weather has conveniently cooled off and it rained some too so all is well in river city!

I can't wait to cast!

Longbow

[Diegokid]

xacex

New to making rifle bullets so I'm curious as to what the powder you are putting on the bullets and what purpose does it serve?

[cbrick]

Interesting. Frustrating.

I got two 4 cav's, all 8 short HP spuds and all 16 of the pins that go thru the blocks fit perfectly in either mold. Out of 48 of the pins that slide thru the blocks there is one that has a shoulder on it at the threaded end that's .0035 larger in diameter than all other pins, it's enough that you can even see it and it won't go thru the blocks. Out of 16 long spuds not a single one fit the blocks, even with the pins unscrewed from the spuds and any one of the long spuds in any one of it's cavities the blocks will not close. Same with the FP spuds, none of the FP spuds fit either of the blocks.

If it were the pins causing the problem I could chuck them in a drill and use emery paper to fix it but that ain't gonna work with the very short spuds to turn them down.

As I understand it Miha farms out the pins and doesn't make them himself. I think it's time for him to have a serious talk with his supplier. If this turns out to be the norm for all the molds and it's starting to sound like it will be it'll sure be a huge PITA for Miha and us.

On the bright side for me is that my prime interest is in the short spuds and they all fit. The only solution I can think of is new long & FP spuds that fit from Miha.

Bummer huh?

Rick

[BK7saum]

Rick

Based on my measurements and pin fitting with this mold, your flat point pins should probably seat in just fine with heat cycling.

The long HP pins definitely won't without some work. So that looks like 8 pins that won't fit. I only turned down 2 of my 4 because that's all I plan to use at one time.

Still, someone should contact Miha and let him know. Maybe he can get some pins out to those that need them.

[longbow]

I just PM'd Miha to let him know what I found with mine and that others are also having problems with some pins.

I will be casting with mine right after breakfast but do not expect any other problems and now that the long HP pins have been honed to fit, these are the freest floating Cramer HP pins of any of my moulds.

Let's see what Miha comes back with.

Longbow

[cbrick]

Not a very exciting morning but I made good progress with both molds. The short spuds fit perfectly right from the git go. None of the long spuds or FP spuds fit either mold and that is a bit perplexing because after careful measurements of all of them the short spuds and the FP spuds mic identical plus or minus a couple of tenths yet the short spuds fit and the FP didn't. I heated & cooled the mold & all spuds 3 times & assembled them in the blocks, I didn't force anything, just assembled them & checked for fit. I don't want to force a larger spud into the brass cavity and enlarge it because the rest of the pins fit so perfectly. After the heating/cooling all short spuds and all FP spuds now fit perfectly in either mold, only the long spuds still won't allow the blocks to close.

I'll not cast with the long spuds until we hear from Miha. They could probably be worked in and made to work but I don't know what effect that might have with the fit of all of the rest of them. Right now 16 out of 24 spuds fit perfectly, only the long ones are the problem. If Miha thinks using the long spuds won't effect the fit of the ones that already fit I'll go ahead and give them a go. In reality they aren't all that far off, plus or minus a couple of tenths they are only .0015" larger than the others but that's enough to hold the blocks apart.

Rick

[mold maker]

I hadn't tried to cast with the long pins yet, but find exactly the same circumstance. Both the FP and the short HP pins allow the mold to easily close. however the Long HP pin shoulder holds the mold halves apart.
I'm sure they will be made right. I wonder if this isn't what took the time between, "they're on the machine", and shipping.
Subbed out parts are almost never made to the standards of the original mfg. It's a shame Miha has to take the blame.

[xacex]

xacex

New to making rifle bullets so I'm curious as to what the powder you are putting on the bullets and what purpose does it serve?

That is black powder coat from H/F. It serves as the jacket so I do not need to use lube. There is a lengthy thread in the lube section that I wholeheartedly recommend. I have been using P/C on pistol boolits for a couple of months now, and probably wont go back to traditional lube for those. The verdict is still out on rifle boolits as far as accuracy.

[cbrick]

Subbed out parts are almost never made to the standards of the original mfg. It's a shame Miha has to take the blame.

I don't blame Miha in the slightest & I understand that he does not make the pins. The molds are total perfection and that's what Miha did make. Even my pins (48 of them) are consistent within under .002" but the slight over size of the long pins prevents the blocks from closing. Just need to hear from Miha & see what he recommends concerning the long pins.

I'll hold off using the long pins until we hear from him & cast with the short pins & FP, that'll keep me pretty busy for quite some time.

Dunno if subbed parts are never made to the standards of OEM but I do know that it would be extremely difficult for anybody anyplace to make much of anything to the same standard of excellence of an MP mold and maintain that level of perfection mold after mold year after year. No, Miha is not the problem.

Rick