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hp gregory, 9128
12-15-2010, 12:32 PM
i am in the process of working with NEI MOLDS to have some 54 cal minie molds made up. the molds will be .535 in dia. they will weigh around 425 grains. the shape will be close to a standard looking minie. these molds will be iron with a automatic base plug. they will fit standard handles. the 54 rifles are my favorite. since they are very few choices in 54 cal molds these days i thought i would have a good long lasting mold made up. these will be cherry cut so NEI would like to know what kind of interest there may be in this deal. if enough people show interest they will absorb the cherry cost. im not making a dime off any of this. i meerly want a mold that will cast a decent bullet and last while doing it.

hp gregory

stump
12-15-2010, 01:22 PM
HP,
I would be interested. Jim Fedorko, 13th Confederate Inf.

Phil Spaugy, 3475V
12-15-2010, 01:36 PM
HP....I will like to order one of your molds.

Phil

hp gregory, 9128
12-15-2010, 02:18 PM
just wanted to be clear that i am meerly asking NEI to build these molds. if i can show them its worth it to them to foot the cost of the cherry fee the molds will be cheaper. other than coming up with the idea i realy dont have anything to do with the molds. you will need to contact NEI to order these molds. at this point the project is in its early stages. im sure the molds wont be available until early next year. i hope to get the first mold and make sure that its what we want. if it passes muster then i will everyone know they are available from nei. for now im just curious as to how many may have interest in one.

hp

Phil Spaugy, 3475V
12-15-2010, 02:21 PM
Got it...just keep us posted !!!

Thanks

Jim Leinicke 7368V
12-15-2010, 02:22 PM
HP- An awful lot of us .54 shooters shoot .539-.540 barrels. These mould swould have broader interest if produced to cast about .537-.538 or so to be adaptable to all barrels. .535 seems awful small. Anyway, I would take one if they were made bigger.
Jim Leinicke

JimB
12-15-2010, 03:04 PM
HP, I would be interested but I agree with Jim. My bore is .537 and size to a .536/.5355.
Jim Baird

hp gregory, 9128
12-15-2010, 03:53 PM
this is one reason i am putting out a feeler. i wanted to see what folks thought. i shoulda asked what size was needed. i guess i had rapines 534-400 mold in mind. i think most of the barrels hoyt is making now are around 534 bore diam. or am i wrong on that. glad this came up.

hp

Mike Rouch 07791
12-15-2010, 05:55 PM
My miss. Hoyt reline takes .537 also. Are you keeping track HP ? See ya in the spring.


Mike

John Holland
12-15-2010, 06:34 PM
HP -

I am also interested in a good .54 projectile. I agree with a median diameter of somewhere around .537/.538, as I don't like sizing the .542's down to .538. The .535 Lyman was always a sloppy fit in anything I tried it in.

My other concern is that the projectile is long enough for the fast twist bores in common use today. I had a terrible time stabilizing the short Lyman .535 in a Bill Large barrel. It was extremely unforgiving, with a narrow window for the powder charge. I would also like to see a projectile with a minimum of 0.950 OAL to a maximum of 1.100 OAL. Personally, I'd like to see it around 1.080. I know there is a ratio for Diameter to OAL, but I don't recall it at this time.

JDH

DAVE FRANCE
12-15-2010, 09:18 PM
Jim Leinecke wrote articles about what Minie bullet lengths work for different twist 54 caliber and 58 caliber barrels. If he knows, or if you tell him what twist you have, he will probalby tell you what length he thinks is best.

David

Jim Leinicke 7368V
12-15-2010, 10:07 PM
Formulas for figuring bullet length for a given rate of twist and caliber get a bit screwed up when you are dealing with a hollow based bullet, because the hollow base itself acts like the fletching of an arrow and provides stability independent of rotation. Be that as it may, I had Mike Owsiak make me a .54 minie some years ago that seems to favor faster twist barrels, though that was not my intent. With the base plugs I have, it measures .992" or so in length and with a new plug could easily be made a bit longer. The nose section is less robust than on the Rapine .534400 and with the center of mass being pushed a bit further aft it seems to like more rotation than the Rapine. It shot great for me in a gain-twist barrel with a terminal twist of 1:48", and as I recollect Bill Large favored a 1:48" twist. You can try some of these if you like them, John. In fact, I may have a spare mould lying about the shop. Unfortunately, the bullets tumble out at about .542 or so and you must size them down.
Jim L

John Holland
12-16-2010, 12:38 AM
Jim -

Thanks for the offer! You can email me direct for how you want to proceed.

You are corrct, everything Bill Large cut was 1 x 48.

John

hp gregory, 9128
12-16-2010, 07:21 AM
all this information is very helpful. i will change the diam to .538 the length still remains undecided. any other discussion would be appreciated.i have barrels in 48, 56, and 60 twists. they all seem to shoot the rapine bullet well. but im looking for that magic bullet that will bring out their very best.

hp

Jim Leinicke 7368V
12-16-2010, 08:45 AM
The Rapine is certainly my favorite "workhouse" .54 minie, but I am also always looking for something better. My own design (Not necessarily the best by any means) is a traditional sort of minie that Mike Owsiak made up into moulds for me, and I actually always thought it more accurate than the Rapine. However, it also seems to want faster rotation for stabiity and therefore likes more powder. The Rapine with milder loads breaks birds and tiles just as efficiently and casts more quickly so I have mostly used the Rapine and reserved the other bullet for 200 + yards . Anyway, I am going to be real interested in seeing what you come up with in an NEI mould. Going to .538" is a good idea, and I will certainly buy a mould just to see how it works.

John, I will look about and see if I still have a set of those Owsiak blocks. Yancey uses this bullet exclusively with a modified base and will make you some alternate core pins if you ask him nicely.

Jim Leinicke

Phil Spaugy, 3475V
12-16-2010, 10:03 AM
Jim ...I used your 'Burton" bullet in my M1841 with a Large barrel with great success. And will again if I ever go back to that rifle.

You did well.

Phil

Phil Spaugy, 3475V
12-16-2010, 10:04 AM
HP...good move to changing the diameter to .538 !!!

Yancey von Yeast, 8073
12-16-2010, 11:52 PM
I am in for one as well. I have been shooting Jim's traditional style minie in my Common Rifles for about three years and have not found anything that will shoot better. He is right, it does like powder. I shoot about 49 grains of Swiss 2fg with it. The base plug that I have designed is very similar, albeit scaled down, to the old rapine 315 gr wadcutter. My barrels are all sized to .538. I think that if the moulds were sized to .538 it would be ideal. Those with .540 bores could possibly shoot it without sizing and it could be sized down if necessary. Mine come out to .542 and I size down to .537 in a two stage process. It is a bit of a "squedge" but it shoots one hole at 50 and about 1 1/2" off of a rest at 100 yds.

Tom Magno, 9269V
12-19-2010, 11:19 AM
Mine is a Hoyt reline .540 1:60 twist. Nothing shoots out of it as good as the Edington Wilkinson. I have tried several minnies, all sized properly, and they shoot fine - but nothing groups as tighlty as the Wilkinson. 420 grains, one wedge.

Jim Leinicke 7368V
12-19-2010, 12:43 PM
Tom, I used the single ring "picket" myself for several years with good results. What powder charge do you use, just out of curiousity, and how closely do you size the ball to the bore? I have a new Hoyt barrel in 1:60" twist and I was thinking of having another go with that bullet.

I just read an interesting article in a an ammunition collectors magazine about North Carolina issued ammo, and it seems that state issued this type of Wilkinson-style ammo for its .50, .54, and .58 rifles. It must have worked for them.

Jim Leinicke

mikea
12-19-2010, 04:27 PM
HP-
Count me in as VERY interested - would definately buy one for use in a Hoyt .54 barrel. MY Rapine 535400 won't last forever.
Mike Anderson, 24th GA Vol Inf

hp gregory, 9128
12-20-2010, 07:26 AM
i have spoken with NEI about this project and am in the process of sending them the info they will need to make a cherry in order to cut these molds. they will have to be iron molds since they are out of aluminum material. i sorta like the iron molds anyway. a little heavy but they will last with the proper care. i am asking for a .538 bullet. the length will be around an inch. i want to make sure the bullet will be able to hold enough lube to keep the fouling soft on a hot day. the hollow base will be such that it should work well with charges from 38 to 45 grains of powder. the shape will be that of a standard type minie. nothing weird here folks just a plain bullet that will have most of the features folks would like to see in a 54 cal mold. thanks to those who have offered their suggestions. i hope the mold will reflect them well.
hp

John Holland
12-20-2010, 04:30 PM
HP -

Nice job! On behalf of those of us who really like to "play" with these things....I most sincerely thank you for your efforts!

An iron mould is my first preference....I HATE aluminum...period!My other NEI moulds are bronze.

JDH

mike owsiak
12-25-2010, 02:45 PM
unfortunately my add was omitted from the last skirmish line I am still making moulds, call any time......MIKE OWSIAK.....856-596-0177

John Holland
12-25-2010, 07:27 PM
Mike -

Thanks for the update! There are quite a few of us who use moulds made by you, myself included.

John Holland

DAVE FRANCE
12-25-2010, 08:02 PM
John
I have disliked aluminum molds for a long time. When I wrote a article about casting bullets, I think I made that clear, but you said it better than I did.

John Holland
12-26-2010, 11:28 AM
Dave - Perhaps I was a bit blunt.... :roll:

JDH

DAVE FRANCE
12-26-2010, 02:08 PM
John,

What I did in the article about casting, was to point out the disadvantages of aluminum molds. But, there is sort of a cult for many things in the N-SSA, and I didn't want to get any of them mad at me.

Makers of aluminum molds mention their strength, but what they don't mention is that the strength drops sharply with temperature and they can be warped or damaged easily.

I have a friend who is a very skilled machinist. I was in his home shop one day and he had several aluminum molds to repair for other people. What a waste of time.

I am carefult to take care of molds I have. They are steel or cast iron, and they will last a long time.

David