New NOE Bullet Mold

[Phlier]

Found myself in the neighborhood of NOE Bullet Molds. Can't pass up an opportunity like that, so....



This will be used for 9mm Luger. Would love to hear what you guys that have used this mold for 9mm have to say about it. Specifically, it'll be used in a S&W M&P CORE 9L and a CZ 75 SP-01.

Stopped by Dad's house as well. He had an early Christmas gift for me:




Even the original instructions are included. I took a picture of them, but didn't want to upload a picture of the instructions because of possible copyright problems, although since the instructions are circa 1957, I'm not sure that would be a problem. Dad has had this sweet old Ideal lubrisizer packed away in it's original box for the past two decades.

This will be my first lubrisizer... I'm still pretty new at the casting thing, and have just been tumble lubing til now.

I'd like to eventually switch over to ESPC lubing, but in the mean time, I bought that specific NOE mold because of it's lube groove. NOE also sells a non lube groove TC mold that I'm hoping to get once I get the whole ESPC thing down.

So you guys that use this particular NOE mold, what do you think? I'm hoping it'll be a big improvement over the Lee six cavity TL356-124-2R I've been using.

I have to drive back by Provo Utah today (passing right by NOE Bullet Molds), but luckily they're closed on Saturdays.

Edit: Would also like lube suggestions for that mold. I'll be driving that boolit at around 1k fps through the guns listed above. Temps will be between 45F in the winter to 115F in the summer. I'd like a lube that will handle that big of a temperature range, but if that's not possible, something that will handle 45-75 degrees would be great, as that's the conditions we'll be shooting in for the next few months.

[Beagle333]

Very nice!!!! I love those 45 sizers (even though I ESPC about half my stuff too). I haven't used that particular NOE mold, but I got a couple dozen or so other ones from them. Great molds.
RandyRat's TAC-X lube will handle those temps with ease. Give him a PM.

[runfiverun]

I think your in good shape.

good thing HM-2 isn't still cutting molds or you'd really have went broke, they were about 3 miles from NOE.

[Phlier]

Very nice!!!! I love those 45 sizers (even though I ESPC about half my stuff too). I haven't used that particular NOE mold, but I got a couple dozen or so other ones from them. Great molds.
RandyRat's TAC-X lube will handle those temps with ease. Give him a PM.

Thanks, Beagle, I'll get some. Much appreciated.

I think your in good shape.

good thing HM-2 isn't still cutting molds or you'd really have went broke, they were about 3 miles from NOE.

Good to hear, runfiverun, I'm sure looking forward to throwing a few down range. If they work out well, I'll be buying a second one so my son can cast at the same time.

Hate to hear of a good mold maker closing up shop.

One last question... Will the current generation Lyman lubrisizer heaters fit the old Ideal 45's?

[runfiverun]

I think they all use the same bolt pattern.
I use star sizers so I'm going from remembering what I have heard.

[Phlier]

I think they all use the same bolt pattern.
I use star sizers so I'm going from remembering what I have heard.

Great to hear, runfiverun, thanks for that. I'm still mulling over a star sizer, but I think I'm going to give ESPC a try first. My son and I go through around 1,000 rounds per week. I'm going to try several different lubing methods. The one that results in best accuracy, least amount of barrel leading and highest production vs. time will be the winner. I'm a bit concerned (due to how expensive they are) that the star sizer might end up being the winner.

[runfiverun]

for speed you can't beat them.
well you can if you buy the motorized version, or build yourself an air operated model.

you might want to look into the Hi-Tek coatings too.
you have to do 2 or so coats but if your banging out 1-K a week you'll want the star and the air and feeder and a bunch of tubes [I got mine at the plumbing supply store down in SLC and cut them to length]
1-K boolits is a bit over an hours handle pumping [and a stop to re-fill the lube] after filling the tubes.
having 1-2 people filling the tubes for you as you go will give you plenty of breaks.
I have 20 tubes of each size and the wife and oldest girl can't fill them fast enough.

[treadwm]

RandyRat's TAC-X lube will handle those temps with ease. Give him a PM.

Ditto on the lube! It's all I use on my 9mm & 45's. Tried it and haven't felt the need to try anything else. Though like many I am trying the PC route.
As to the mold, I have the 358-135-FN RG which looks to be similar to yours. In round hollowpoint form, it's the most accurate thing I've shot out of my Sig 226. Once seasoned and a little practice it casts very cleanly w/o hangups on the pins. I'm glad I don't live as close to NOE as you do or I'd be in the doghouse, poor house or both! Enjoy the new toys!

[Phlier]

for speed you can't beat them.
well you can if you buy the motorized version, or build yourself an air operated model.

you might want to look into the Hi-Tek coatings too.
you have to do 2 or so coats but if your banging out 1-K a week you'll want the star and the air and feeder and a bunch of tubes [I got mine at the plumbing supply store down in SLC and cut them to length]
1-K boolits is a bit over an hours handle pumping [and a stop to re-fill the lube] after filling the tubes.
having 1-2 people filling the tubes for you as you go will give you plenty of breaks.
I have 20 tubes of each size and the wife and oldest girl can't fill them fast enough.

Luckily, I do have a Dillon 1050 and a son to help. But yeah, it's getting to be a ton of work keeping up with our ammo needs.

Ditto on the lube! It's all I use on my 9mm & 45's. Tried it and haven't felt the need to try anything else. Though like many I am trying the PC route.
As to the mold, I have the 358-135-FN RG which looks to be similar to yours. In round hollowpoint form, it's the most accurate thing I've shot out of my Sig 226. Once seasoned and a little practice it casts very cleanly w/o hangups on the pins. I'm glad I don't live as close to NOE as you do or I'd be in the doghouse, poor house or both! Enjoy the new toys!

Good to hear about the lube.

I just tried the NOE mold out tonight for the first time. I'm using Lyman #2 from RotoMetals right now. Al at NOE told me that the mold would cast a bit large with Lyman #2, but I wasn't expecting it to cast quite *so* large. I'm getting .362-.363 (with just about perfect concentricity) with it, which is a bit too large to force through my Lee .357 sizing die. All of my COWW's are still COWW's.. haven't had a chance to melt them down yet, so I'm stuck casting with my Lee mold until I get some COWW's ready to go, I guess. I checked it for possible "beagling", but the mold is fitting together nice and tight, and the bullets are just about perfectly concentric (runnout is .0005 at worst). So yeah, no "beagling". I also followed NOE's break in procedure instructions to the letter before using the mold.

Is there really to be *that* much of a size difference expected between COWW's and Lyman #2? I need .360 or smaller to comfortably be able to size it down to .357. Hopefully a different alloy will put me in business with that mold, but for now, it's on the shelf. :/ Won't be able to clean up and ingot any COWW's til after the holidays.

[JeffinNZ]

I had a 45 like that. Picked it up at the Creekside Gunshop in upstate NY in 1996 when I was visiting. I can tell you a Kiwi boy in upstate NY was a novelty for the natives.

[runfiverun]

probably not as novel as the one in Kemmerer Wy.

you'll lose about .001 when you change down to the ww alloy.
you could go with .358 which is what I run in all of my 9mm's.