New Caster

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onondaga posted this 28 March 2012

The hard part is not wrecking and breaking stuff when you start!!!. Study manufacturer instructions and ask questions before starting. There is no luck involved, you have to get it right. Have a safe start.

There is really only two things in Lee instructions that experienced casters nearly all agree is just wrong, lubricating bullet molds with bullet lube and smoking mold cavities. There are much better, less messy ways to do that.

Gary

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Wal posted this 28 March 2012

onondaga wrote: The hard part is not wrecking and breaking stuff when you start!!!. Study manufacturerÃ‚Â instructions and ask questions before starting. There is no luck involved, you have to get it right. Have a safe start.

There is really only two things in Lee instructions that experienced casters nearly all agree is just wrong,Ã‚Â lubricating bullet molds with bullet lube and smoking mold cavities. There are much better, less messy ways to do that.

Gary

Thanks, not backward when it comes to asking questions :)

Will put lubeing on top of my learning list.

Appreciate your interest & help.

Wal'

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delmarskid1 posted this 28 March 2012

Lee molds work. Mine tend to bind when I close them once they get hot. I don't like to lube my alignment pins. The grease doesn't stay put and crawls into the cavities. I use too much I guess. I lay the mold on the bench and close it slowly and it lines up fine. I also notice that the sprue cut off plate will gall the top of the molds often. I have learned to loosen the screw that tensions the plate to the mold so that it flops about. I also check the underside of the plate for burrs. I like Lee's single cavity molds the best but they seem to have stopped making them. My newest 6 cavity works like a Swiss watch. Lee pots are a great value. I like the 20 pond dip pot a lot. A thermometer is a real good idea. I was stubborn but gave up and got one. It saves me time knowing when my alloy is ready to go. The only real way to learn a hands on job like casting is to do it. If you can write left handed using a mirror or rub your tummy and pat your head at the same time you have it made. If it was hard I wouldn't do it.

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Wal posted this 29 March 2012

delmarskid1 wrote: Lee molds work. Mine tend to bind when I close them once they get hot. I don't like to lube my alignment pins. The grease doesn't stay put and crawls into the cavities. I use too much I guess. I lay the mold on the bench and close it slowly and it lines up fine. I also notice that the sprue cut off plate will gall the top of the molds often. I have learned to loosen the screw that tensions the plate to the mold so that it flops about. I also check the underside of the plate for burrs. I like Lee's single cavity molds the best but they seem to have stopped making them. My newest 6 cavity works like a Swiss watch. Lee pots are a great value. I like the 20 pond dip pot a lot. A thermometer is a real good idea. I was stubborn but gave up and got one. It saves me time knowing when my alloy is ready to go.Ã‚Â The only real way to learn a hands on job like casting is to do it.Ã‚Â If you can write left handed using a mirror or rub your tummy and pat your head at the same time you have it made. If it was hard I wouldn't do it.

From what I've gathered so far its going to be a hit & miss game until i've worked out a work flow to suit myself.

Haven't ordered a thermometer so I guess that had better go on my to do list as well,thank's.

And you are definitely right with the get in & do it theory, always worked before & should work here, :P

The hand, tummy & mirror part has got me worried though. ;)

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pat i. posted this 29 March 2012

Best advice I could give to a new caster is to remember what you're doing. If you're going to be using Lee molds you're pouring melted lead into a $20 mold. It's not rocket science. Cast em, lube em, load em without pushing too hard, and shoot em. If you like it and want to get more involved that can all come later.

It's not that hard to do and if you have questions ask otherwise ignore most of what you read on the internet. Some people on certain forums could make tying their shoes sound like brain surgery.......which maybe to them it is.

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6pt-sika posted this 30 March 2012

pat i. wrote: Best advice I could give to a new caster is to remember what you're doing. If you're going to be using Lee molds you're pouring melted lead into a $20 mold. It's not rocket science. Cast em, lube em, load em without pushing too hard, and shoot em. If you like it and want to get more involved that can all come later.

It's not that hard to do and if you have questions ask otherwise ignore most of what you read on the internet. Some people on certain forums could make tying their shoes sound like brain surgery.......which maybe to them it is.

Yep thats pretty much the way I approached it 12 short years ago .>

When i started I used the Lee molds for the 45-70 and tumble lubed the bullets without sizing them and strangely enough with aircooled wheelweights they shot rather well .

Although I gotta say the Lee 6 cavity molds or atleast the ones I get from Ranch Dog are pretty darn good .

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6pt-sika posted this 30 March 2012

onondaga wrote: There is really only two things in Lee instructions that experienced casters nearly all agree is just wrong, lubricating bullet molds with bullet lube and smoking mold cavities.

I agree with the lubricating part .

But not the smoking part .

I usually smoke aluminum , cast iron and steel molds .After I clean them with brake cleaner of course .

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onondaga posted this 30 March 2012

6pt-sika:

Yes, the smoking of molds was working for me for a lot of years. I quit that cold turkey when I learned that molten lead doesn't stick to aluminum, steel or iron unless it is severely too hot somewhere. I went the other direction and learned to fix the molds that are fixable or send them back.

Some casters actually use enough smoke soot to cover up a mold edge problem so bullets will drop out. I'd rather fix the mold so it works well. Soot also has its own contaminants that will get into your bullets as visible spots and weight variation. Soot also actually attracts moisture and has its own petroleum byproducts that cause bullet defects.

I have a mold cleaning routine with no petroleum distillates, cavity edge inspection and repair under magnification. I also polish mold cavities and never have to use a separator to keep lead from sticking to mold cavities. When I temporarily get a sticky spot during a casting session, I may scribble there with a #2 pencil. Graphite is an anti-flux and lead won't stick to it. After the session I fix the spot.

The only lube I use on my molds very sparingly on pins, pivots, plate and mold top flat is Clear Silicone Dielectric automotive grease, zero petroleum. Any place I use it, it is rubbed out to only deposit a shine and none is allowed in mold cavities.

Gary

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6pt-sika posted this 30 March 2012

onondaga wrote: 6pt-sika:

Yes, the smoking of molds was working for me for a lot of years. I quit that cold turkey when I learned that molten lead doesn't stick to aluminum, steel or iron unless it is severely too hot somewhere. I went the other direction and learned to fix the molds that are fixable or send them back.

Well I will agree to disagree with you ;)

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onondaga posted this 30 March 2012

6pt-sika:

I wish we were neighbors. I enjoy fixing molds even if they are from neighbors that disagree with me.

:D Gary

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Wal posted this 30 March 2012

Thanks guys, I think I've hit the mother lode of wisdom here & that only comes from years of experience & its all coming my way. :)

Have started a Word page & cutting & pasteing all your suggestions there, one finger typist here, can't damage it, its my trigger finger. easier to copy & paste lol :)

Again, thankyou all, keep it coming. :dude:

Wal'