casting rcbs hodgens bullilet

[Steve]

I have been casting for years and every now and then i find that when casting the base plug has a flat spot but my castings have a void. Sometimes it is just a pin hold other, a cone shaped cavern . Today no matter how i pour (fast -Slow-tilted mold) most were bad !!! Any ideas , not the first time for this . I am using good soft lead.
Steve

[John Bly]

You must keep molten lead in the sprue hole as the bullet cools and hardens. This allows the bullet to pull lead into it as it shrinks instead of shrinking within. I do this by having the dipper in contact with the sprue plate for a few seconds with the mold in a vertical position as the bullet cools. Keep the mold and dipper over the pot so any leakage or overflow goes right back into the pot. Your dipper must fit the c'sink in the sprue plate or excessive leakage will result. That's how I do it. Others will offer different solutions that may also work. My method works. I can make a bullet with a hole in it anytime I want just by not doing it my way.

[Maillemaker]

I have found the only way I can get really good weight consistency (which tells me there are no internal voids, either) is to use a ladle and start your pour with the mold horizontal and move to vertical as it fills.

Steve

[Robt. Propst]

I will give these a try. I have been doing this a long time, and still have a disappointing number of rejects when I cast Hogdens. Thanks.

[Maillemaker]

For what it's worth, both my guns that love the Hogdgon bullet also love the Moose Moulds Wilkinson 577-420. Much easier to case as it is not a hollow-base, and double-cavity so you can really crank them out!

Steve

[gjwarren]

I believe the sucker holes are partly due to the lead & mould being too hot. Either wait longer for the sore to suck in, or hold the dipper over the hole longer.

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[gjwarren]

Sprue, not sore. Spellchecker

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[jonk]

I get some voids at the top of the core pin in that mold myself. I (mostly) solved it by:

-Run the lead at 750 degrees, give or take. If you don't have a thermometer, I can say that on a Lee pot this is just a bit above 7.5, but can't say for a coleman stove or whatever.

Use a ladle with a spout. Hold the mold on it's side. Press the spout to the pour hole. Tightly. Now upend the whole works so that the mold sucks the lead in, rather than pouring it in. Once the mold is full, tip the ladle from vertical to horizontal, pulling it away, so a normal puddle forms on the sprue plate.

I think the real issue with this mold is the pour hole is too small in the sprue plate. Keeping the ladle against the plate while the lead flows in lets the mold take as much lead as it needs before that small hole freezes shut; the heat from the resevoir in the ladle keeps the hole open.

This said, I still get about 1 in 10 rejects for this very reason with this mold.

[Maillemaker]

I have found from weighing batches of bullets that with hollow-cavity bullets the weight spread is much wider from bottom-pour than if you ladle-pour.

Because of this I tend to think that there are internal voids even if you don't see them break through the hollow cavity.

I have now switched to ladle-pouring exclusively for hollow-base bullets, which is why I avoid hollow-based bullets where I can now. :)

Steve

[Lou Lou Lou]

For what it's worth. I have opened up the nozzle on my ladles to get better flow. Been shooting the RCBS 500M for 35 years with few problems

[Hal]

I agree about the ladle pouring. I really don't know why. You'd think that if you were "Pressure casting" (holding the sprue plate directly against the spout of the ladle or bottom pour pot), that there would be more pressure from the bottom pour pot than with the ladle, so I don't think it is the "Pressure" that's doing it. I think it's got something to do with tilting the mould and then turning it, but that's just speculation. I did have someone once tell me that if you got above something like 300 or 400 grains, that you really need to ladle pour. I took that advice and found I got much more consistent weights.

Also, adding just a tad of tin to the lead will help it fill out better. Yeah, I know some of you probably just cringed thinking tin will harden the lead and that's not good for a Minnie ball. I'm just talking about 1%-2%. That won't harden the lead enough to even measure, but it will help with fill out.

[Rob FreemanWBR]

Been shooting the hodgdson for years with great success.

Upfront, it IS a "touchy" round to cast and I've had to recast MANY rejects after casting sessions.

Found the "best" way - as I've seen others describe in this thread - is to hold mold in left hand, laddel in right. With mould on it's right side, hold the opening of the laddel up against the mouth of the mold's sprue and literally rotate both counter clockwise thus allowing the molten lead to pour directly into the mold.

This practice/technique takes a little getting used to, but its the most effective ways that I've found. Need to "time" the rotation/pour; too fast, and too slow both yield poor castings. Granted, mold and lead have to be HOT.

Phil Spaugy pointed me in the direction of Buffalo Arms - they sell the Rapine-type lead pot. Works wonderfully!! Large capacity and it easily achieves HIGH temps consistently.

My two cents - hope this helps!