Lee 6 Cavity 45 and 9mm Bullet Molds Perfect For Powder Coating
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- Опубліковано 3 вер 2015
- With the success of the powder coated bullets at the range, the desire to explore further possibilities leads to acquisition of bullet mold designs previously shunned...
Just getting into bullet casting and finding your videos an excellent source of information, Thx!
when casting. have a very moist towle to cool mold down with after you dump the lead. The sizzle will tell you by sound when the mold is ready for next pore.Once in the zone you can cast pounds of lead and make into true shooting projectiles. A little practice required but you will catch the grove. Yes I use a lee bottom poor.
Robert W Sieburg - A damp sponge works well also for mold cooling. Other casters use two molds alternating to allow mold cooling. Not having the alloy get too hot also helps us stay in the sweet spot longer. There are some molds that get into the sweet spot easily and stays there through the whole casting session - we want to treat those molds like gold..!! Best to ya, Steve
Thank You for the hard work you put into your demonstrations and explanations, You have done the hard work for us...Thank You Sir
Have you considered writing a book about reloading? If not, you should. You are an inspiration for sure. Thanks =)
+SomeGuyInSandy That's kind of what he is doing with UA-cam except he can actually show exactly how he does it through videos. :) I have been watching him from close to the beginning & have learned a great deal. Everything (okay, maybe not EVERYTHING but close) I know about reloading I learned from FortuneCookie. I agree, he is very inspirational.
+shananagans5 True, but many of us (myself included) would still buy his book.
Slade McCuiston I would too.
+shananagans5 -- You gals and guys are amazing!! When I started the channel, it was simply to provide information for any who might want it...but it is the great people I've met on line that have been the truly inspirational and energizing of all!! Success in all you do --
+Slade McCuiston -- You guys and gals are amazing!! When I started the channel, it was simply to provide information for any who might want it...but it is the great people I've met on line that have been the truly inspirational and energizing of all!! Success in all you do --
I so wish you would publish some r9mm reloading data for this mold..
Gotta love those Lee 6 cavity molds!
Thank you fc45lc love your videos you are awesome.
Brian Johnson - And thank you for taking the time to post comment...Happy New Year to ya, FC Steve
I have several of these molds in various calibers. It looked to me like the micro groove venting you referred to is created by the flycutter when they machine the parting surfaces flat. That is usually done before they cut the cavities. And I've broken a couple of the handles. They look like they're made from a powdered metal process or cast. Still a good product for the cost.
1990notch - If a caster uses the Lee 6 cavs enough, he or she will experience that handle break at some point or two...It's as if the best policy is for regular casters should just call Lee and have 'em send out an extra handle part just to have on hand. Best to ya, FC
That's ironic...All my Lee molds were inspected by "Shirley" also..!
Give Titan Reloading a try sometime. They are in Hartford Wisconsin just down the road from Lee.
I've stopped in their store and ordered online good pricing and quick service.
Getting ready to place another order.
Mark from Wisconsin
Mark Janness - Have known about Titan Reloading for many years, but never got around to giving them a try...did not know that they were in Hartford...that means that you can drop into Lee Precision also - fascinating..!! Have a great day to ya, Mark... FC
Great score Cookie
Fortunecookie, I've got that 200gr 45 mould in the two cavity version and it is a fantastic mould. It consistently drops the bullets right at 452 and I have yet to see any bullets drop out of round. Enjoy!
+slugmaster64 -- Thanks for your very helpful comment... I don't mean to keep ripping on the 2 cavs - they do work - just slow casting, that's all... Best to ya!!
No offense taken. I was just remarking on how well done Lee makes their TL moulds. Two cavities or six, you can't go wrong with them. Although I have to agree that the six cavity moulds are the way to go, even when ladle casting. I'm going to have to upgrade soon. 👍
+slugmaster64 - Have a great Labor Day Weekend!!
The only places I really buy Lee equipment anymore is FS Reloading (As in Factory Sales for Lee, the Master distributor) or sometimes Titan Reloading, another Lee Major Dist. Typically FS is the cheaper of the two and nobody else is less! Cheaper than Lee's own website, Midway, etc. They ship quick and have been great to do business with and i've bought quite a bit! Might give them a try FC45LC!
There are some other premium mold makers that have smooth sided, no lube groove molds specifically for coatings. Accurite & Hardline to name a couple and both have very nice molds as does NOE & MP Molds. I have a new NOE 4-cav Brass mold on the way for 9mm. A 147gr TC with core pins for flat nose, HP, and cup point.
+mytmousemalibu -- Since I am new to powder coating, I haven't been aware of those molds already designed for PC... I just contacted Lee with some suggestions - 1) provide molds for full weight wadcutters 2) add a 7th cavity to 38 and 9mm 6 cavity molds (like S & W offering 7 and 8 shooters) 3) do some no groove bullet designs for powder coating (seemed a reasonable idea to take advantage of the lubricity of PC - but others have already beat me to this idea) -- Andy Lee - the grandson of Richard and head of the casting department - replied to me - he is a powder coater and has some molds he made for himself but the marketing department told him they wouldn't sell enough of 'em to put it in catalog. Hmmm - the head of Lee casting is a powder coater - what does that tell us? Best Regards --
+mytmousemalibu Will have to check out FS Reloading - but my problem now is that I practically have everything Lee makes already (not their progressives though).
FortuneCookie45LC Great to here you provided Lee with ideas us casters like and that others are doing the same. Honestly, I think they are underestimating the coating specific mold market. It will continue to grow and I would bet value priced smooth/coater's molds would sell. Perhaps they will consider after the marked ripens more?
FS Reloading & Titan also carry other reloader & shooters products with a great price along with the full range of Lee's products. FS is tossing in a free MTM ammo box with orders right now. Usually some good deals going on.
Today I got a box in the mail with my new NOE brass 9mm mold, I may be spoiled for life now! It's very, very nice! I also got the new NOE Ingot mold, 4-cav, 1lb ingots, also very nice! Its all CNC machined aluminum with a really neat touch, it has lettering stamped in the bottom that when cast the ingot will have WW, Pb, LINO, OTHER lettering on it and you can stamp that letter to indicate what the ingot is made of! Very much like the no longer made Blammer mold. You will not find a nicer ingot mold! noebulletmolds.com/NV/product_info.php?cPath=95&products_id=2196
+mytmousemalibu --Nice thing about NOE molds is they have 5 cavity designs and hollow point molds...powder coated at higher velocities should expand nicely. Through the years, I've found that the non HP designs take care of all my shooting to complete satisfaction. If I need expanding bullets, then I'll shoot the JHPs at maximum loadings. Otherwise, it's the heavy wide flat point designs for crash through penetration for me... The NOE ingot mold would be nice - but I like my cast iron Lodge ($15-$18 for 6 to 8 ingots at a time) for ingots and a Sharpie pen to do any labeling I require - and that is only pure lead that I mark 100. All my other ingots are range scrap so no marking needed. Now with powder coating, might look at those NOE molds again... Have a great day
Hi FC, are you still reading the comments from these old videos? I bought this mold and the bullets it makes are not accurate in my 9m pistol. What am I doing. Wrong?
OOO looks like christmas
I have the 2 cavity version of that TL 452 Tc , and no matter what I try my bullets drop small at .450, hope you have better luck with yours! It's the only mold I have that gives me issues. I know lee would probably replace it, but I haven't gotten around to sending it in just yet.
+spyderxtra777 -- In the past, I knew that if I ever got a Lee mold that dropped small bullets for rifle I'd just have the perfect mold for doing paper patch bullets. But for handgun shooting, small bullet dropping molds are like alkali poison in the pond - Even adjusting your alloy will not correct that much error. The reason all the Lymans and SAECO, et al, iron mold makers in the past always dropped bullets on the big side was that sizing would be done. Part of that reason was that small bullets were always disasters. Lee TL molds casted more to the dimensions we want in our pistol bullets often require no sizing. But the problem with that is the occasional mold that drops small - Yes you should definitely send that mold back - and soon, as Lee molds stored too long could get some corrosion or other degradation. 45 cal cast bullets should drop no smaller than 452" Have a great day...
I have the 2 cavity versions of both of those .45 molds. I'll be powder coating them as well. I have tried them in my 1911 but they have to be seated pretty short and don't work well with a tight chamber.
I too would be using a 1911 that DOES have a tight chamber (.001" smaller than my case gauge). I am now resizing to .451 to help with the tight chamber without powder coat. Bullets sized to .452 chamber in my 1911 but I have to pay attention to detail.
+Mr. Tolly (AKA: fatmantolly) -- I routinely do the same - seat my 45 ACPs right to the front of the SWC shoulder. Whatever functions in our gun is the right seating depth (within reason of course). My 1911s have been throated by gunsmith to feed the SWC rounds. And they do that nicely... Happy Holidays, FC
+J Sones -- .452" bullets are what is sold by the commercial bullet caster outfits. I recall seeing some sold at 451" though... Happy Holidays to ya, FC
+FortuneCookie45LC I have resized some bullets to .451 and loaded them but haven't yet been able to test how well they do. Will look at seating depth more on my 1911 especially since I am seriously considering powder coating for my 45acp loads. Thank you and Happy Holidays as well. JS
+J Sones -- Hope you get the accuracy and clean shooting you are looking for... Happy Holidays to ya, FC
The tumble lube bullets don’t appear to be suited for sizer/lubricators, rather tumble lubing. Why not buy them and tumble live them prior to powder coating?
I have been watching your videos on the powder coating process. I have the Lee 6 cavity .452 200 gr SWC H&G 68 type and these videos cause me to consider powder coat. I use the RCBS lubri-sizer and you have to do all sorts of tricks to keep lube off the bevel base-the best one so far is to have the bullet cut a card in the sizer to keep lube off the bevel base.
However, I am curious about the following as refers to sizing/lube with powder coating:
1. Does the powder coat increase bullet diameter? I would think so
2. Would it be best to size before/after powder coat?
3. If sizing after coating, is there enough coating on the bullet for proper lubrication/function of bullet in bore at discharge and would the bullets need to be size to .451 vs. .452 for example?
4. Could this all be moot due to a the characteristics of powder coating or not depending on thickness or mils of coating?
These questions are based upon this type bullet/mold vs. a Lee TL type bullet.
Have been enjoying your vids for a few years--keep up the good work.
+J Sones - appreciate you posting - it really helps to have feedback. Thanks for your thoughtful questions. Yes, that bevel base is a nasty. When you PC, there will be no more of that. Now an important thing is to mike the bullets before - the standard big grease groove designs like that fine 68 design bullet will drop around .4525 - .453" so you will be sizing back to .452" When you PC, if you get an even powder coating after tumbling, but can still see the detail of the shoulder and grease groove, you have a nice thin powder coating... Shake your screen of bullets to rid excess powder. Keep as thin as possible with coverage - slight lead show through areas will melt over and result in a thin PC. After baking, you may be surprised to have only added .0005 to .001" to your bullets. If you insist on doing 2 or 3 coats like some do to get "pretty" bullets, all bets are off. Now here is the secret -- after you seat those bullets with the shoulder even with the case mouth, run them through a Lee Factory Crimp Die to add crimp - you will get functioning and accuracy without sizing. The FCD will swedge the loaded round to spec and the compression that may occur will not hurt the bullet or the PC at all...If your molds drop at right diameter (and TL molds really do that better), you will not have to size another bullet in your shooting career - Richard Lee intended that with his integrated TL mold / FCDs - no one gives him any credit for this and he never made an issue of it either. Best Regards FC
Hello Fortune cookie,
Thank you for passing along your experience, it is much appreciated! I would like to inquire on your perfect casting temperature? I’m sure it would depend on the content of your alloy, but for this example, let’s just say approx 3% tin, 7% antimony, and 90% lead...I have been quenching and powder coating with Eastwood with great success. However, during casting, I get a mix of full shine then they become hazy over the casting session. Temperature control seems to be the issue...Thanks
Nice bullet molds. Hope you can tumble lube some of the 9mm in 45/45/10 and test them also. I thought about trying that mold.
+bubbacrabb -- I'll do that. That was the one that Midway was out of stock on - popular bullet. I told wayne johnson that I was going to cast the TL 45 200 SWC first of the three new molds... Have a great day
FortuneCookie45LC I thought I read Dwayne Johnson first. I was like well he is out in California and has a popular channel, thought you were talking about Dwayne Johnson the wrester/actor "the Rock" lol
+bubbacrabb -- I think that's part of the reason wayne johnson keeps small caps on his Google/YT name - but I just saw the movie San Andreas starring the Rock - typical disaster/hero movie but enjoyable. Have a great day
FortuneCookie45LC; You mentioned gas checks in this video which brings the question to my mind if gas checks are needed or useful anymore with the advantages that powder coating brings. Would like to get your thoughts on that.
* EDIT: You covered this question in another video, I just found it.*
Why so many handles? Don’t they come with them?
Jack son unfortunately no, “handles sold separately”........
Thanks for all the good info. I'm getting ready to order my first molds, are the Lee 9mm truncated, bevel 124 gr. still your first choice?
Can't believe how cheap everything is in America. Love it! God bless Mr Trump 👍
Just wait
@John Beige very sad John. I think that old fool will really do some damage.
I have all 3 of them molds and use them for hi-tek coating but find the SWC or any thing with an inside corner will not coat as well
+Russell Houghton (Russ303) -- Thanks for that helpful information - good for all casters to know...Have a great day --
how did you get that fortune cookie mold! thats awesome
+Anthony Baucom -- The silver plated fortune cookie is a gift from my wife, Jan - she saw it and said I had to have it... Best to ya, FC
Check out Lee molds on Amazon, I think you'll be pleased. Got my Cowboy Action 6 Cavity mold 125 Gr. and found they have any mold you want .
+Nick Musuraca -- of course, Amazon - why have I never considered checking that out?? Best Regards to ya!!
Midway is always out of stuff you want. Stopped going there for that very reason
Dave D even today
@@psi9000 Wouldn't know. Don't even visit the site anymore.
Hey fc. I just got that exact same 45 tumble lube mold and just this morning ran a small test batch. The bullets came out .449 not .452 as i thought it would. How about yours? Is this a mold problem or operator error somehow in your opinion. I ordered a sizing die with it thinking they may be a bit oversized but turns out the opposite. I dont even know if these can be loaded successfully. Any thoughts?
Do I see a 45 auto video in the future...with those 45molds??
+Dan McCoy Yes, that TC 45 bullet is perfect for any 45acp or 45 Colt. Thanks for the suggestion...Best Regards to ya!!
I'd like to hear if your TC 45-230-TL mold casts .452 at 243 grains like mine does. Also, how much the 9mm TC casts. I really wish lee sold an equivalent 147 grain mold for 9mm TC.
I wish they made a .401 2R mold like the 9mm. I wish they also included load data for ALL the cast lead molds they make in the Lee book.
I get a Lucille mold everytime
How the accuracy on those 45 swc
where can you purchase a 6 cavity 9mm NO LUBE groove bullet mold either 115-124gr??
Robert Russo - Accurate Molds has those...Good reloadin' to ya, FC
Fast forward five years and you can't get a screw from Lee or anyone else