Mould Packing Peeves

[.22-10-45]

Today I recieved the third mould I had bought from members in the Swappin & Sellin forum. When I emailed seller, I asked that mould be packed securely so blocks would not vibrate or bang against one another in shipment...each seller assured me this would be done and not to worry. The best solution is what some custom mould makers use..zip ties. next or just as good is packing tape..not the clear stuff..the type with fiberglass strands. Rubber bands will work,..but will break....or wrap each block seperate & securely. One mould came triple wrapped with packing tape..had trouble getting unwrapped..but thats a good thing! One came with double rubber bands. The third arrived in the early little red cardboard box...loose! My heart sank when I opened the box..usually this means a bad ding..or dings sometimes unfixable. Both halves were on opposite sides of box..sprue plate kept 1 block there..what secured the other is anyones guess..but I was lucky..no damage to either blocks! Now anyone who has spent any time around firearms and bullet moulds knows that shipping metallic items loose is going to result in some kind of damage. Is sellers attitude once money is in their hands..all responsability for item arriving at buyers address in as good a shape as it left gone? You can be sure I will continue to do businesss with those caring folks who took the time to assure moulds would arrive in good shape..and will never consider buying anything from the others.

[pworley1]

I feel your pain.

[georgerkahn]

I had almost exact experience with a mould I bought vis eBay a couple of years back: both halves of this 2-cav Lyman were LOOSE in a small flat-rate box. Not even a wisp of t.p. as a cushion, and seller's location in excess of 1,000 miles from mine. I, too, was extremely lucky, using said moulds, since, without a hitch! However, due to ineptness of this seller, I have since risked annoying greatly a few sellers in purchases since, when I beg them to securely wrap and immobilize moulds before shipment. As a kudo for Cast Boolit forum sellers -- albeit few, all CB sellers have done quite nice packaging. As a possibility, those on this site ARE users, and -- like me -- care for moulds as a parent does a child. On other sites... well, perhaps "estate sale" buyers who have turning their estate finds into cash as their highest priority. Then, too -- to quote Forrest Gump, "stupid is, stupid does".
Again, re loose moulds received -- I, too, feel your frustration.
BEST!
georgerkahn

[zuke]

I bought a LEE 6 cavity that came loose in the box. I looked at them,took pic's and was refunded my money.
When I ship I like to double wrap in snare wire (brass wire)

[bhn22]

You can cut yourself "Ranger Bands" from an old bicycle innertube to hold moulds safely together. This is an idea that CBRick suggested to me. Even taping the blocks tightly together with electrical or even duct tape works fine too. Duct tape might leave a residue, but it comes off a lot easier that dents and dings do.

[montana_charlie]

I have sold a few moulds that needed to be mailed to the buyer.
In each case I totally disassemble the mould, lay all of the parts out in a Food Saver bag, and vacuum-seal the whole package.
A taped on layer of bubble wrap on front and back pretty well matches the interior of a small flate rate box.

No two pieces of metal touch another, and the buyer can 'inspect & inventory' the whole assembly without cutting it open.
If he had any reason to cancel the deal, he could ship it back in the same condition he received it.

CM

[alamogunr]

About 10 years ago I bought a dbl cavity mold on Ebay. I had bought 2-3 prior to this one and did not make an issue of packing. This mold came in a box that was about the size of a SFRB except different shape and the halves were not secured in any way and no packing. I've still got the mold but don't use it since the boolits might not release from the dings. It didn't quite measure up to the seller's description anyway. I guess I could have returned it but my winning bid was so low that it wasn't worth the hassle.

[Hickory]

They might be democrat voters.
Someone who are unable to see causes & affects of their actions.
Or maybe they just don't think, or even care.
Or careless in other aspects of their life also.
Who knows?

[Gtek]

Unfortunately there are some in the herd that cannot see or think past the fly on their nose. With the loss of predators and situations thus allowing them to keep breeding and multiplying in the gene pool, natural selection has been trumped. I think about all we can do is ask and hope for the best. I have seen people break hammers! I have felt your pain.

[white eagle]

I consider molds that I sell like eggs
I want the buyer to enjoy them not be upset with my shipping procedures
so far not a hitch

[ryan28]

I have shipped a few held shut with rubber bands first, then plastic wrap, like what movers use. A few layers of that stuff, and nothing moves. Easy to get off too, just unravel.

[Sig]

I use the elastic bands that women use them to put their hair in pony tails. My wife & daughter got tired of me taking theirs, so they bought me my own 12 pack for a dollar. I have very little hair but I find them very useful for other tasks.

[Omega]

So far all the molds I have purchased on S&S have arrived zip tied closed and packed pretty good. But the best one was one that had a boolit with sprue left in it. After putting handles on it I cut the sprue and checked out the boolit, it emmediately gave me a pretty good idea of the condition of the mold cavities and sprue plate. Which was pretty good since due to weather it would be some time before I tried them out.

[Le Loup Solitaire]

The old practice of leaving a bullet cast in the mold cavity was based on the idea that two things cannot occupy the same space so rust would/could not get into the cavity. There is a lot of controversy about that and a lot of evidence that it does not work especially in a setting where humidity is high. I tried it once or twice and got rust in the cavity so I stopped doing it that way. I swab my mold blocks and cavities with Clenzoil, wrap them in saran wrap and store them in GI ammo cans. Yes I have to clean/degrease them with a solvent...usually acetone before using them again, but no rust problem ever. LLS

[osteodoc08]

Thankfully everyone I've bought molds from here packaged them well and took proper precautions including making sure they were also protected against rust/moisture/etc.

[bedbugbilly]

What's worse is those that package the blocks well and then don't tape the $#%^# box! If there's anything that I hate worse than poorly packed items . . . it's receiving an empty box where the ends have come un-done during shipment . . tape is cheap insurance!

[fredj338]

I like the way Tom ships his molds; each half is packed separate & then in the same box.

[Harter66]

It's a wonder Lee moulds are ever serviceable.

[Hardcast416taylor]

When I got moulds back from "Buckshot" doing his HP magic on them I really liked the manner in which he packed them. He would put the mould halves together then wire them together with coated telephone line wire. They were then packed so as to avoid movement. Sadly, I have heard that he may have stopped doing HP jobs, a real loss.Robert

[bullet maker 57]

I also ship items in a food saver bag with bubble wrap.