RepackboxLoad DataTitan ReloadingRotoMetals2
WidenersMidSouth Shooters SupplyLee PrecisionReloading Everything
Inline Fabrication
Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 20 of 23

Thread: Ever had one of those days?

  1. #1
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Aug 2020
    Location
    Dallas, Texas
    Posts
    570

    Ever had one of those days?

    So I went this evening to do some casting. Set everything up, filled the pot with lead and turned it up to melt.

    I got s new RCBS mold, so I thought I'd try it out. Wiped it down, cleaned it thoroughly, and put it on the edge of the pot to warm up.

    When it got hot, I set it aside to cool so I could heat cycle it again, and I got out my bull plate lube. When it's hot, I fill it a couple times, lube the bolt and plate, and start casting.

    I just can't get good bullets. I cast a couple hunred or so, hoping it would even out, I'd find the right temp and cadence, but no. Just nothing good happening. On top of that, I'm having stupid problems. The mold didn't come with a wave washer, so the sprue plate keeps coming loose. I don't really like to overtighten the sprue plate, so I snug it up and 3-4 fills later I have to snug it up again.

    So I switch to a known mold, an MP .45 HP mold. I've cast with this mold before, with great results. Get it up to temp and start casting. I'm getting crap. Somehow I got lead on the face, so I start getting finning. I stop to clean the faces with a dowel, get it back up to temp, and now I'm getting finning around the pins. And now I'm noticing a bump on one side, like it's getting bent coming out if the mold. I cast about a couple hundred of those before I got frustrated and stopped.

    Went back through everything I didn't throw back in the pot, and they were terrible. Far worst than my very first attempt at casting. I threw all the ugly ones back into my lead bucket, and this is what I'm left with, after 4 hours of struggle...



    I put it all up and had a scotch on the couch instead.

  2. #2
    Boolit Master

    FLINTNFIRE's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2012
    Location
    Longview, Washington
    Posts
    1,654
    When it just does not go right , stop check everything try again if it still is not working a good scotch is a great idea .

  3. #3
    Moderator


    Winger Ed.'s Avatar
    Join Date
    May 2007
    Location
    Just outside Gun Barrel City, Texas
    Posts
    9,483
    I've had the same issue when I left out the wavy washer after taking a mold apart to clean it real well.

    With the fining, and bent boolit-- I think the pot is too hot.
    That, and letting the boolit drop out when its still hot & soft would let it bend.
    That shrink hole on the base also tells ya its too hot when you made the pour.
    In school: We learn lessons, and are given tests.
    In life: We are given tests, and learn lessons.


    OK People. Enough of this idle chit-chat.
    This ain't your Grandma's sewing circle.
    EVERYONE!
    Back to your oars. The Captain wants to waterski.

  4. #4
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Aug 2020
    Location
    Dallas, Texas
    Posts
    570
    I don't know if RCBS just doesn't ship with a washer, or if I just didn't get one, but it's annoying. I need to just buy a bag of them to have around.

    On the bent bullet, I was having fill out problems with the 4th cavity, so I turned up the heat a bit until they were coming out frosty, and then backed it off. I still only got good fill out on that cavity every 3rd or 4th fill. I don't know why, I even started trying to pour back to front, thinking that the lead stayed in the first cavity you pour longer and kept that part of the mold hotter, but that's like brushing your teeth with the wrong hand. It just wasn't working.

    I'll try again another day.

    Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

  5. #5
    Boolit Master fastdadio's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2014
    Location
    Mi.
    Posts
    974
    Clean the molds real good and check them out, then add more tin to your alloy and try it again.
    Deplorable infidel

  6. #6
    Moderator Emeritus


    MrWolf's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2013
    Location
    NE West Virginia
    Posts
    4,853
    That was the time to walk away. Start fresh another day. Sometimes things just don't want to work.

  7. #7
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    NE Kansas
    Posts
    2,421
    I am surprised that the sprue plate bolt set screw allowed the sprue plate to loosen in such a short time of use. Ambient temperature also affects the rate of cooling so maybe you were cutting the sprue at the right time but needed to wait several additional seconds before opening the mold and laying the bullets on the padded surface. Perhaps limiting the free fall from the mold might reduce some of the damaged bullets?

    Yep, there are times that the end of a casting session is time for a cold one, good session or bad.

  8. #8
    Boolit Master Handloader109's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Location
    NW Arkansas
    Posts
    2,505
    I cast on a formica table that i cover with a clean rag, old dish towel is good. softens the drop. And I've had to walk away occasionally. a beer or two for me though..

    Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

  9. #9
    Boolit Grand Master

    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    England,Ar
    Posts
    7,687
    I guess we all have days where nothing goes our way. Be it work, casting, ect. Sometimes you just have to put it down and walk away. It just be that way sometimes!

  10. #10
    Boolit Buddy alfadan's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2020
    Location
    Augusta KS
    Posts
    475
    On all my rcbs molds I get the sprue plate tension where I like it when at temp, and mark the screw head for position. When cool, I file a flat on the screw shank to give the setscrew a, well, place to set.

  11. #11
    Moderator


    Minerat's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    Jefferson County, CO
    Posts
    9,542
    I have a 312 lee that gave me fits too. Many hours fighting that mould usingd a bottom pour pot. Wide open or slow trickle, pre heat or cold calling it every colorful name in the book and threatening to use a band saw to cut it in quarters nothing worked. I got a RCBS easy melt and a ladle and started pressure pouring problem solved. The long 180 gr bullet fills out perfect now. You might try ladle pouring this mould too if you are not doing it now. Good luck.
    Steve,

    Life Member NRA
    Colorado Rifle Club member
    Rocky Mtn Gun Owners member
    NAGR member

  12. #12
    Boolit Master
    405grain's Avatar
    Join Date
    Apr 2012
    Location
    Modesto, Ca.
    Posts
    1,213
    Yes! I've got a Lyman 375449 sitting on my desk in front of me from a batch of pure fail. The lube grooves weren't filling out fully, there's small inclusions in the boolit, and the sprue plate is bent just enough to put a fin on the bottom of the gas check shank. That whole batch is going back in the pot.
    I got a new replacement sprue plate for the mold. I cleaned all the crud out the pot so there's no junk in there to cause any more inclusions. I'll add a little more tin when I re-melt that batch of boolits, and I'll give the melt some more than normal, extra fluxing with beeswax. Sometimes casting runs textbook perfect, but once in a while, if it's a mold not working good or an alloy misbehaving, it tried to fight you. Best thing is to take a break, figure out what's going wrong & fix it, then go back later and turn those reject boolits into winners.

  13. #13
    Boolit Grand Master

    gwpercle's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Location
    Baton Rouge, Louisiana
    Posts
    9,254
    Oh Yeah ... Plenty of those days !
    When nothing wants to cast right ... and I've made sure I'm " Holding my Mouth Right " and have my good luck shirt and shoes on ... Then I know it's not "the right Phase of the Moon" ...
    Put everything away and come back another day ... It's the "Moon" ...Trust Me !!!

    Either that or ... the mould has become possessed by an "Evil Casting Spirit" ... in that case you have to bring the mould , a bottle of Vodka and a ten dollar bill , on a dark moonless night , to the old cabin way down in the Atchafalaya Basin ... leave them on the front porch , an old creole woman lives there ( Voodoo Woman ) and pick up the mould the very next night at Midnight ! The evil mould spirit will be exorcised !
    Gary
    Certified Cajun
    Proud Member of The Basket of Deplorables
    " Let's Go Brandon !"

  14. #14
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Dec 2012
    Location
    North West Ohio
    Posts
    688
    Yep you are not alone.On a day when i am casting a mold that have have cast many good bullets the off switch is your friend.

  15. #15
    Boolit Master

    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Location
    East Coast
    Posts
    792
    Turned my Lee bottom pour on a few days ago and left it to warm up. Came back to a 5 lb tumor of lead molded top to bottom and enveloping the mold resting plate. 20 min with the blow torch. Keep swearing I'll buy a Lyman pot.

  16. #16
    Boolit Grand Master

    gwpercle's Avatar
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Location
    Baton Rouge, Louisiana
    Posts
    9,254
    Quote Originally Posted by Hanzy4200 View Post
    Turned my Lee bottom pour on a few days ago and left it to warm up. Came back to a 5 lb tumor of lead molded top to bottom and enveloping the mold resting plate. 20 min with the blow torch. Keep swearing I'll buy a Lyman pot.
    Keep an aluminum pie plate under the pot ...at least the "casting sculpture" wont mould itself around the base ... learned that the hard way !
    Gary
    Certified Cajun
    Proud Member of The Basket of Deplorables
    " Let's Go Brandon !"

  17. #17
    Boolit Master
    Scrounge's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2016
    Location
    OKC Metro
    Posts
    1,433
    Quote Originally Posted by gwpercle View Post
    Keep an aluminum pie plate under the pot ...at least the "casting sculpture" wont mould itself around the base ... learned that the hard way !
    Gary
    Stealing that idea!

  18. #18
    Banned
    Join Date
    Dec 2018
    Posts
    3,409
    We all have had "Murphy" visit us ie: try to sight in a scope that's not tight on the gun --- ran out of ammo to sight in with
    try to sight in a scoop with a boolit the gun just doesn't like --- finally grabbed a different boolit and had it dialed in with 1 adjustment (held the gun steady and adjusted the scope past then back to the hole both vertically and horizontally)

    A real "DUH" moment when you finally figure it out.

  19. #19
    Boolit Master
    Join Date
    Aug 2020
    Location
    Dallas, Texas
    Posts
    570
    Quote Originally Posted by Conditor22 View Post
    We all have had "Murphy" visit us ie: try to sight in a scope that's not tight on the gun --- ran out of ammo to sight in with
    try to sight in a scoop with a boolit the gun just doesn't like --- finally grabbed a different boolit and had it dialed in with 1 adjustment (held the gun steady and adjusted the scope past then back to the hole both vertically and horizontally)

    A real "DUH" moment when you finally figure it out.
    A couple months ago I was shooting my Savage .308, which had been previously sighted in. It was good, and then all of a sudden it wasn't. Everything looks good, but now it's all over the place. As I probe further, checking if any screws were loose, I put an allen wrench in one of the leupold sight mounts, and it spins right out. Damn bolt sheared off, I guess it was touching part of the rail slot and the recoil was banging it against the edge of the slot every time I fired. Still haven't been able to get anyone at Leupold by phone or email to ask for a replacement, so my .308 is down until further notice. I gave up and had a scotch that day too.

    Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

  20. #20
    Boolit Buddy alfadan's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2020
    Location
    Augusta KS
    Posts
    475
    A lot of people will have bad days shooting and want to fiddle with scope or sight settings, then on a better day have to adjust again! I just figure its me and resist the urge to blame my equipment.

Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  
Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check