How to drop my cast bullets

[jcork]

I am using DC Lee molds in .44 and .38, and casting plain base SWC's and RN from straight wheelweights with a bottom pour Lee pot.

When I water quench, my bullets are a lot more uniform, but are really too hard for how I'm shooting them. I like the air cooled models better, but when I drop them on a wet towel in a bucket, they often get stuck together and damage each other.

What's a good system for air cooling bullets so they don't cool too fast, and don't dent each other while hot?

[waksupi]

Instead of dropping the bullets on a wet towel, use a dry one. I like about three or four layers for cushioning. I make sure the bullet has cooled enough, and holding the mold close to the towel, give the hinge a tap to free them. The bullets never fall more than an inch or so. As you cast, keep dropping the bullets away from previous cast ones, until you have enough that they are in the way. I then lift a side of the towel, rolling them to one side, to clear more space, and keep casting. I then use a spoon to clear the towel, and start in again. I very seldom get deformed bullets, or any stuck together. If you're having this, you may not be letting the mold cool enough before dropping the bullets. I like to see the sprue puddle flash over, then I give it a count of two or three, to make sure the core of the bullet has firmed up. Consider, the sprue puddle is "freezing" in the open air faster, than the alloy enveloped in the mold. It needs time to catch up.

[MARCORVET]

I drop onto about 6 layers cut from old flannel shirts. Lee molds, Lee Pro 4-20 Pot, Sounds like you just need to slow down a hair before you drop.

[wills]

You can drop cast boolits on the concrete garage floor and it will not scorch or dent the floor and there is plenty of room to keep the boolits apart.

The only disadvantage to this is it tends to be bad for the boolits. On the other hand you can buy SWMBO a bunch of new kitchen towels, and ask her for the old ones. Then you can fold the old towels several layers thick and drop the boolits onto them, as described by Waksupi.

[felix]

The longer you can keep them in the mold, the softer the boolits will be. Unfortunately, for some molds the mold itself will get too cool in between to make good boolits. My suggestion would be to go ahead and water drop them, and then place them into the oven at 300 degrees, for one hour at 300 degrees. Then just turn the oven off without opening the door. The more boolits in the oven, the softer the whole batch will be in the end. ... felix

[beagle]

I made a "casting table". It has a good work surface which I cover with an old towel. When I get a pretty good ple built up, i'll scoop them up with a big spoon and place them in a box.

This allows the bullets to air cool and also allows for easy removal with the spoon so that you don't get a too much of abuild-up and allow them to hit each other./beagle

[slughammer]

Try running both molds at the same time. Fill one and set it down, pick up the other shear the spru, drop the boolits and fill it up again. The time that they are sitting while you do the shuffle back and fourth allows them to harden up enough to be dropped.

[Ken O]

I use a welders fire blanket folded over to drop bullets on. I put an igot on the blanket in case there is a stubborn one that doesnt want to drop out, I can bump the mold on it.

[waksupi]

Ken O - I hope you aren't bumping the mold blocks thierselves. This will lead to mold mis-alignment in short order. Always tap the hinge or handles.

[Diamond-City-Bob]

I use a roller tray that sometimes does double duty as a place to put paint before I run the roller through it. fold up an old bath towel, drop the boolits in the shallow end after you cast about 40 or so you'll run out of room in the shallow end. Add a few ingots to your pot, then lift the end of the towel and roll the now hardened boolits to the deep end of the tray. after you get 4 or 5 hundred boolits in the deep end pick 'em all up with the towl and transfer them to a 5# coffee can, works for me, ymmv.