Casting Minies

[chipmoss]

I just bought a new Pedersoli 1853 Enfield. I took it to a gunsmith to get a casting done and he says it is .58. What size mold would I need? What is the best kind to get? I see a lot of the Lee molds online.

[ms3635v]

The gunsmith is correct that is .58", the issue becomes what the actual bore diameter will be. One way to do this is to find someone who has bore gauges in .001" increments. When you find the gauge that is snug, you then want your bullets, when sized, to be .001" to .002" smaller than the bore size. For example if the bore measures .577", then you would want to use minies sized to .576" or .575". Hope this helps.

[Fred Jr]

If you are planning to do a lot of casting you might want to look at Lyman or RCBS molds. You can find used ones on ebay and also on our BB. The Lee molds are aluminum an d won't usually wear as well as the steel ones.

Fred
12TH PA

[Ron/The Old Reb]

Fred Jr. is correct. Spend the extra money for a steel Lyman or RCBS. If you take care of it it will last you a lifetime. I have some Lyman molds that are over fifty years old and still cast bullets as good as when they were new.

[Curt]

Hallo!

The gunsmith slugged it and measured it out to be .580 then??

Italian bore sizes have a history of "wandering" up and down a few thousandths over maker and years/decades. I am wondering what the new Pedersoli barrels made 'with the shooter in mind' actually are?

[ms3635v]

Moose moulds and George Gompf can provide you with oversized moulds. Or check ebay. Sometimes you can find oversized moulds up for auction or maybe someone in our organization may have one they may be willing to sell.

[Maillemaker]

I just bought a new Pedersoli 1853 Enfield. I took it to a gunsmith to get a casting done and he says it is .58. What size mold would I need? What is the best kind to get? I see a lot of the Lee molds online.

Hi, welcome to Civil War black powder shooting!

As was noted, you typically want a bullet that is .001-.002 undersize of your bore. I would be concerned about only two decimal places of precision on your bore diameter there. Is it truly .580? Or is it really .583? Or .577? This could make a big difference in getting competition accuracy out of your musket.

Typically you buy a mold that is a bit larger than you need, and then you use a sizer to size them down to the precise diameter you need. I use a Lyman Lubrisizer with sizing dies purchased from S&S firearms.

I have a Pedersoli P58 Enfield, and it likes .578 bullets. .579 will not go down the barrel. But each gun can be different even from the same manufacturer.

Once you know your size, you'll have to select what kind of bullet you want to shoot. You can shoot an original-style Minie, or you can shoot one of the modern style Minie balls. The advantage of the modern styles, like the RCBS Hodgdon bullet, is that they are typically lighter than originals, and so use less lead, and typically require less powder to make them go. The RCBS Hodgdon also has relatively huge lube rings making it a good competition bullet.

If you are wanting the period experience though you'll be wanting something like an original style Minnie and 60 grains of 2F powder. This will probably not give you your best accuracy however.

Lee molds are cheap, and hard to beat for the bang for your buck. But the Minie molds in particular, with their core pin, result in aluminum-on-aluminum rubbing, which results in galling. I much prefer steel molds like RCBS or Lyman. But you are talking $80+ vs. $20+.

Steve

[Maillemaker]

You might like this video on shooting the Pedersoli P53 Enfield:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3el1FGIu6s4

Steve