How do you choose a mold

[AJC1]

Very new to this casting game and I have now bought 3 molds but my selection process was arbitrary at best. My first was zero thought just decided I wanted it and boom it was at my door. I have never used that mold. My second was the lee 230 grain 45acp cone flat point. I specifically chose that mold for its tumble lube design and the reported success with PC and the tumble lube design. So far I am happy with how it casts and the bullet perfomance in my gun along with results on target.

How do you choose. Some factors seem very important but can only be tested for like gun function. Accuracy is also very important and requires testing.

 

[mdi]

I started casting many years ago pre web, with no "internet wisdom" for "guidance". I looked at commercial cast bullets, knew what shape/weight worked in my guns, how I wanted to lube them and bought a Lee mold. My first mold was a Lee 44 cal. SWC with traditional lube grooves, and I found an old style Lee pan lube/sizing kit. After I got used to casting, it worked quite well and I used this set up for a several months before I got another mold. Now when I'm thinking about a new bullet, I'll buy some commercial cast of the shape/weight I'm thinking about and try them in my guns. If I like what's going on, I'll purchase a mold...

The single most important aspect of shooting cast bullets is bullet to gun fit. The cast bullet diameter to chamber/barrel diameter either makes or breaks accuracy and clean shooting.

What is your first mold and what's wrong with it?

 

[mstreddy]

AJC1, I'll have to look for the reference, but there is a list or book out there that had tested a bunch of molds/bullet profiles and determined which were the most accurate. From my own limited experience, I've found some bullet profiles that just didn't work for some of my guns. I have a Lyman 45 SWC mold that casts a short nose that just won't chamber well in my 1911 pistols. The H&G 68 profile works perfectly.
When I decided that I wanted to get into casting I spent some time collecting bits and pieces, molds here and there. I bought some through the forums and then a bunch from an estate sale. Then I discovered the group buys at castboolits site. Oh boy, my wallet still hasn't forgiven me.
So, like you, some haphazard beginnings at getting molds. I've since learned to notice the various profiles used by the commercial casters and pay attention to the differences.

 

[Hondo 60]

I look at what molds are available.
Then I look at what bullets I've been using (with success)

Don't worry about lubing as ALL bullets can be tumble lubed.
I know this from experience.
I don't own any lube equipment other than Alox, a bowl and a lube I found called Rooster lube.
Rooster dries faster & doesn't smoke like Alox

 

[reddog81]

I usually end up with light, medium, and heavy molds for the calibers I shoot. I usually start with something in the mid-weight range. For example 200 grain for .45 ACP or 124 grain for 9mm. From there I do a little research and figure out what has been successful for others. H&G 68 SWC is a favorite of many and any of the 124 TC variations works for 9mm and there are thousands of threads out there on those combinations.

Usually if factory ammo is made using a similar bullet you should be good to go. Either 158 grain Semi-wadcutters or round nose in .38 special are pretty popular.

Finding something that matches the bullets shown in your loading manuals can help narrow it down and make it easier when you start the loading process.

For some rifle molds It’s imperative to make sure the nose will work with your rifle’s chamber/throat and that’ll feed correctly. Usually a little online research will tell you if your mold / gun combo will work.

 

[.38 Special]

I am pretty much down to two styles of bullets for revolver shooting. My "primary" bullets are true Keith semiwadcutters. These are almost always accurate, they cut a clean hole in paper, and can be used for hunting and defense in a pinch. The square lube grooves require a bit of care in casting.

I have gotten quite a bit of use out of round nose bullets as well. In my experience these tend not to be as reliably accurate as the Keith bullets, but I have several guns that really like them. In particular, my pet Bisley flat top in .44 Special is perfectly happy with them, and I have a pair of gang molds that churn them out by the hundreds. For a day in the woods hunting pine cones and such, they can't be beat.

Beyond that, I keep a few specialty designs around, like LBT molds for heavy hunting shapes. These rarely get used, though they turn out fine bullets. The only molds I don't bother with at all anymore are the tumble lube designs. I never have been able to make them work as well as bullets with traditional deep lube grooves and actually find tumble lubing to be more annoying than lubrisizing.

 

[.308 Norma]

There are a few factors (bullet weight and style mainly) when it comes to choosing a mold for my revolver bullets. But one factor is a "no sale" for me - I don't like messing around with gas checks on my cast revolver bullets, so I don't buy molds for bullets that are designed for them. However, I might be a bit of a hypocrite about gas checks on revolver bullets - I have and use several commercially cast gas checked revolver bullets that I like a lot. I just don't like dealing with gas checks on my own cast revolver bullets.

 

[kmw1954]

As some of you remember before I started casting I requested and received from members three different samples of 380 bullets from there I determined which worked best and that is the mold I first bought. Second mold was a 200gr SWC .452" which I found would not cycle in either on my 45acp and that mold now has a new home with another member.

 

[SQLGeek]

lube I found called Rooster lube.

Is this it?

https://roosterlab.us/products/

 

[AJC1]

What is your first mold and what's wrong with it?

It's a rcbs 180 grain siloette mold for 357 with gas check. There is nothing wrong with it I got it for a marlin lever gun to shoot steel siloette and my dad passed before I ever got a chance to use it. The range changed hands and that match is no longer held. When I go back home I will definitely use it there and see. It takes gas checks which I dont have and my one regret about the mold.

 

[Armored farmer]

Very new to this casting game and I have now bought 3 molds but my selection process was arbitrary at best. My first was zero thought just decided I wanted it and boom it was at my door. I have never used that mold. My second was the lee 230 grain 45acp cone flat point. I specifically chose that mold for its tumble lube design and the reported success with PC and the tumble lube design. So far I am happy with how it casts and the bullet perfomance in my gun along with results on target.

How do you choose. Some factors seem very important but can only be tested for like gun function. Accuracy is also very important and requires testing.

I start by choosing LEE. I have had excellent results with their molds.
My casting started out as round ball for BP rifles. Then on to .357 and .45 colt and .45acp. Then it was shotgun slugs and .309 fps rifle bullets, all from LEE equipment.
I have that same 230gr LEE truncated cone tumble lube mold. It has served me well.
My press and dies are LEE as well.

 

[AJC1]

I start by choosing LEE. I have had excellent results with their molds.
My casting started out as round ball for BP rifles. Then on to .357 and .45 colt and .45acp. Then it was shotgun slugs and .309 fps rifle bullets, all from LEE equipment.
I have that same 230gr LEE truncated cone tumble lube mold. It has served me well.
My press and dies are LEE as well.

That 45 mold is the new style and is way les temperamental than my older style 38 158 lee mold. So far the two I use regularly are both lee and aluminum. If cast iron holds more heat then I will spend a lot more time waiting on a mold to cool. It may make a bigger difference in rifle bullets but if anyone wants to talk about the difference that would be helpful.

 

[cfullgraf]

Generally, the bullets that I cast I do not drive very fast. Generally, I use them for casual shooting.

So, bullets for semi-auto handguns are RN bullets of similar profile as the jacketed variety.

I like shooting wadcutters so I have wadcutter moulds in 32, 38, 44, and 45 caliber. I shoot them at target velocities or so.

I also shoot some semi-wadcutters. I load them a bit hotter, at the high end of low pressures rounds like 38 Special, 44 Special, and 45 Colt.

So, choosing the moulds, I started many decades ago using Lee aluminum moulds. They were budget priced and I like the way they work but they do heat up quickly.

When I returned to casting recently and as I branched out to differ bullet profiles and calibers, I bought some cast iron moulds and a couple MP brass moulds of the profiles that I was looking for.

All of my moulds have square lubrication grooves. I've done some powder coating of bullets but have not tried any moulds that cast bullets designed for powder coating.

In the past, I did alot of pan lubricating of the bullets and a little tumble lubricating. Recently, I bought a lubrisizer and it was a worth while investment in my opinion..

I like to have multi cavity moulds to produce bullets faster. Four cavity is about ideal for me, six is a bit much and single and two cavity moulds are a bit slow production. But, sometimes, you can only get single or twin cavity moulds in the bullet style that you want.

 

[brewer12345]

Depends on what I want it for. If it is for handgun target shooting, I will usually ask around and see if there is a "default" choice that lots of people like and use. So in 45 ACP it seems like people either use an H&G68 clone or a 230 grain round nose bullet. If it is a rifle round, I usually have a specific application in mind. In 30-06 I mostly shoot a light recoiling, low powered training/medium game round based on the Lee 113 grain RNFP. On the other end of the spectrum I wanted a heavy for caliber bullet with a nice meplat. I found a 200 grain bullet with a huge meplat and fooled around with it until I had an accurate load,

 

[41 Mag]

I got into casting to feed a healthy appetite of my then new 454 Raging Bull. I found out real quick that buying factory ammo wasn't an option and even buying the magnum jacketed was hard on the wallet. My initial purchase was the Lee 300RF and I still use it almost exclusively. It was about as close to the factory cast as I could get.

Then during the shortages back in the 08' years most of the JHPs that I used in my other revolvers simply were non existent. I started searching for similar molds to replace them. About then MP molds started to turn out the 640 series which will pour a flat nose and usually a couple different HPs from the same mold. Just depends on what pins you use.

Having the ability to make my own whenever needed is a huge plus. I hunt with and shoot my revolvers and pistols year round. When I pour i pour 10-20# worth of my most used. Most all of my molds are 4-6 cavity brass or aluminum. I also have some of the classic HG molds for target loads like the 68 or 130.

It gets to you once you start hitting good accurate loads and its only costing about half. That and you then have the ability to have bullets whenever you want.

 

[Texas10mm]

1. Do I have it?

That's my basic process. It could also explain why I've got over 150 molds.

I'll take a 8 cavity over a 6 cavity over a 5 cavity....and so on.

Also the LAST mold I'll buy would be a Lee.

 

[AJC1]

1. Do I have it?

That's my basic process. It could also explain why I've got over 150 molds.

I'll take a 8 cavity over a 6 cavity over a 5 cavity....and so on.

Also the LAST mold I'll buy would be a Lee.

You may have it already but can you find it . Sounds just like my dad.

 

[blue32]

I did a lot of guessing when starting out and guessed right more than wrong. If you have no idea what profiles might work in your gun, its never a bad idea to get a few Lee two bangers. It will also help to start searching the specialized mold manufacturers websites. You'll find a lot of them do copies / upgrades of successful molds. Doing a google search of your gun + whatever mold to consider will also give you lots of info.

 

[Texas10mm]

You may have it already but can you find it . Sounds just like my dad.

I keep a fairly current list of my molds. But I have in the past purchased a copy of a mold I already have.

 

[kcofohio]

Very new to this casting game and I have now bought 3 molds but my selection process was arbitrary at best. My first was zero thought just decided I wanted it and boom it was at my door. I have never used that mold. My second was the lee 230 grain 45acp cone flat point. I specifically chose that mold for its tumble lube design and the reported success with PC and the tumble lube design. So far I am happy with how it casts and the bullet perfomance in my gun along with results on target.

How do you choose. Some factors seem very important but can only be tested for like gun function. Accuracy is also very important and requires testing.

I'm in the same boat as you. Right now I have a .309 and a .452 mold.

 

[Arkansas Paul]

I figure out what grain bullet I want and what type of bullet (RN, SWC, RNFP etc.) and then start looking at molds.

Typically, if it is something in a lower velocity that I intend to tumble lube, I go with a Lee mold. I have had great success with their molds and tumble lubing, whether the bullet is designed for TL or not.

If it is to be used in higher velocity stuff like .44 magnum or Ruger Only .45 Colt stuff, I prefer Lyman molds. Lubing the traditional way by filling up a lube groove works better for me in them. My only knock against Lee molds is that their traditional lube groove bullets have woefully shallow lube grooves, to the point of there barely being any there. I pan lube my bullets and when I use my Lee .45 Colt SWC mold, half of them go back in the pan because the lube didn't stick. Don't have that problem with the deep grooves on my Lymans.

Hope this helps.

 

[Hondo 60]

Is this it?

https://roosterlab.us/products/

Yes, that's it.
With an alox mix 45%/45%/10%
(alox, johnson paste wax, & mineral spirits) it takes 2 or 3 days to dry & is still tacky.

With Rooster lube,, less than 24 hrs later, it's hard & dry

 

[SQLGeek]

Thanks! Filed that away for future reference.

 

[kmw1954]

With an alox mix 45%/45%/10%
(alox, johnson paste wax, & mineral spirits) it takes 2 or 3 days to dry & is still tacky.

I haven't experienced that and I use 45/45/10. It's kept in a glass jar with a lid and I just heat it up in a pan of hot water until it melts into a liquid. Lube bullets, set them on wax paper and dry in the morning. Not greasy at all either.

 

[jmorris]

If I am going to be using it much, I first see what Magma has close to what I want, then try and obtain samples to work from or a good deal on them so I can sell them, if the results are not winners.

Lee molds are so cheap, it really doesn’t matter, I have spent far more money on drinks with a meal, better off skipping the booze with the steak and having another mold to cast with.