Usually my first 20 bullets look terrible but then start smoothing out and look great for the rest of the casting session. I'll give it another try tomorrow using your suggestions. Thanks for the tips. What do you clean your molds with?clean the mold pockets off with degreaser...thoroughly dry and wipe it with a towel and then lighter black/candle soot it.
warm it back up and see if repeats...usually my first few passes are ugly bullets and they go right back in the pot while I get them up to temps and establish the right rhythm on keeping them warm.
also, I leave my molds full of lead between sessions...makes it easy to tell when my molds are warmed back up and I know nothing got in there. Right way- who knows but that is how I learned to keep my molds between casting sessions.
I have been casting for about 4 years and using the same temps that I always do. I'm wondering if I have a contaminated mold. I brushed it out before I used it with a small stainless steel brush. I didn't do anything different than I always do.
I'll have to smoke the mold and up my temps and see how it plays out.If it’s colder than normal where you are casting, it’s going to take longer for the mold to reach operating temp.
I smoke my molds with an acetylene flame, personally, I wouldn’t risk scratching them internally with a stainless steel brush. I keep mine put up though, so they don’t really require any clean up. If bullets start getting “sticky” I just smoke the mold again.
I have some denatured alcohol and old tooth brushes so I'll give that a try. Just threw me when I changed molds and had this problem. Never had it before in the 4 years or so I've been casting.I clean them the first time with denatured alcohol and a toothbrush. than hit them with compressed air and finally smoke them with a lighter/candle.
I wouldn't use a stainless steel brush either.
and leave them full of lead between sessions. I keep mine in a 50 cal ammo can as well to keep them from getting any moisture.
I have Magna and Lee Molds..I keep them on a hot plate to heat up and whenever I need to stop casting for whatever reason. That way they are not cooling off as dramatically.
I have an old miners lamp to burn the gas but there are other methods that will work.