Cleaning a mould.
- Thread starter uncle jimbo
- Start date
uncle jimbo
Well-Known Member
Waiting for the rain to stop so I can go out and try this mold.
Pistolero
Well-Known Member
Rally,
This works. Does not put the rust back as good metal, but removes layers of rust.
Bill
This works. Does not put the rust back as good metal, but removes layers of rust.
Bill
blackthorn
Active Member
To remove rust:---immerse rusted object in a solution of warm water with citric acid added. Wait, ---remove object----rust gone!
uncle jimbo
Well-Known Member
The weather got acceptable to cast with this mold. I thought I had it cleaned good enough and the alignment problem fixed. I cast up about hundred or so. The results were not good. The bullets look wavy, which I think was do to tempature, but when things got hot enough, it didn't seem to get much better. A lot of them look like the have small pits and are rough texture. Never did get any good looking ones. The alignment problem never did get better. No matter what I did.
The pictures are not the best. But here they are.
So I think I am going to let this one die and just buy a new one.
The pictures are not the best. But here they are.
So I think I am going to let this one die and just buy a new one.
Pistolero
Well-Known Member
One last try, as a suggestion. Drill a bullet in the base, screw in a screw, smear the bullet with the finest
lapping compound you can find and spin it in each cavity for a few seconds to just clean it up.
But, they are not expensive molds.
That design shoots very well for me.
Bill
lapping compound you can find and spin it in each cavity for a few seconds to just clean it up.
But, they are not expensive molds.
That design shoots very well for me.
Bill
Midway USA use to sell (and may still) an aerosol bullet mould release agent. I wonder if someone coated your mould more than a little with this. I think it was graphite in some sort of evaporant. If this is the case then I would use a solvent or mild abrasive as suggested above. Just another W.A.G.. Good Luck
His is a bevel-base. Hard to see except in the second photo from the top.
I agree on the "general principle" though. Won't take long to grind out the crud with a bullet and some valve-lapping compound.
I know - it's a $20 mould. If I'd been paid for the time I've put into LEE moulds, I'd have been able to buy two NOEs for every LEE I salvaged.
I agree on the "general principle" though. Won't take long to grind out the crud with a bullet and some valve-lapping compound.
I know - it's a $20 mould. If I'd been paid for the time I've put into LEE moulds, I'd have been able to buy two NOEs for every LEE I salvaged.
Pistolero
Well-Known Member
The dirt simple thing to do is what I do with all brand new Lee molds. I scrub it out with
Comet and a toothbrush. It does not harm them and gets them very clean, and tends to remove
fine burrs, too.
Can't possibly hurt that mold with it, and way easier than lapping with a bullet, like 1-2 minutes at the
sink.
If that doesn't get it out, and you are still game, then Comet and a bullet spun in the cavity is next.
Bill
Comet and a toothbrush. It does not harm them and gets them very clean, and tends to remove
fine burrs, too.
Can't possibly hurt that mold with it, and way easier than lapping with a bullet, like 1-2 minutes at the
sink.
If that doesn't get it out, and you are still game, then Comet and a bullet spun in the cavity is next.
Bill
Last edited:
uncle jimbo
Well-Known Member
I will try the lapping with a bullet and comet and see if that with help with the surface. And I don't know what to do about the alignment problem. This mold is so loose on the handles and I would say worn out. It is by far looser than any of the other 2 cavity Lee mold I have.
And it started to snow again this morning, So I have nothing better to do than work on it.
Note it does have the beveled base, Do they all have it. My 125 gr.RF mold doesn't have it. I did look at the Lyman 358-158-RF, but Waco said he did not like the one he had and they are steel which don't thrill me much.
Again thanks to all for the suggestions and ideas.
paul
And it started to snow again this morning, So I have nothing better to do than work on it.
Note it does have the beveled base, Do they all have it. My 125 gr.RF mold doesn't have it. I did look at the Lyman 358-158-RF, but Waco said he did not like the one he had and they are steel which don't thrill me much.
Again thanks to all for the suggestions and ideas.
paul
Paul,
Try Comet first. Like Jim said, it's easier. I thought you'd done that but reread after Jim's comment.
Last new mould I bought was an Arsenal mould (VERY nice mould), which supposedly comes "clean" but I had to use boiling water to get it clean. No big deal, but it goes to show. Last mould I bought wasn't new (sure looked like it) - a used LEE, and I know the guy who used it. He's no dummy, yet I had a time of it getting that one clean too, even though it looked perfect. Boiling water to the rescue again. That's a good rinse after the comet. I BOIL a whole tea kettle of water and pour it over the loose blocks lying in the bottom of the sink - the whole pot. You can't pick them up for a while after that.
If water beads on them after Dawn, Comet, Brake Cleaner - they get the boiling water.
Try Comet first. Like Jim said, it's easier. I thought you'd done that but reread after Jim's comment.
Last new mould I bought was an Arsenal mould (VERY nice mould), which supposedly comes "clean" but I had to use boiling water to get it clean. No big deal, but it goes to show. Last mould I bought wasn't new (sure looked like it) - a used LEE, and I know the guy who used it. He's no dummy, yet I had a time of it getting that one clean too, even though it looked perfect. Boiling water to the rescue again. That's a good rinse after the comet. I BOIL a whole tea kettle of water and pour it over the loose blocks lying in the bottom of the sink - the whole pot. You can't pick them up for a while after that.
If water beads on them after Dawn, Comet, Brake Cleaner - they get the boiling water.
Pistolero
Well-Known Member
They all have the BB. I think Ben did a report on successfully removing it. I have left mine
alone, doesn't seem to hurt much. If you cut a disc from a styrofoam meat tray with an appropriate
case mouth and put it in a Lyman or RCBS lubrisizer below the bullet, the styrofoam mashes to nothing
under the base, but fills in the BB area keeping the lube out. Stays in place pretty well with a tiny dab of
bullet lube under it a glue. Eliminates the one objection to BB bullets I have, lube filling up the BB unless
you use a Star lubrisizer. Another plus for the Star.
IIRC, a 23/64 drill bit will do a pretty decent job of removing it if you can hit it exactly right.
Bill
alone, doesn't seem to hurt much. If you cut a disc from a styrofoam meat tray with an appropriate
case mouth and put it in a Lyman or RCBS lubrisizer below the bullet, the styrofoam mashes to nothing
under the base, but fills in the BB area keeping the lube out. Stays in place pretty well with a tiny dab of
bullet lube under it a glue. Eliminates the one objection to BB bullets I have, lube filling up the BB unless
you use a Star lubrisizer. Another plus for the Star.
IIRC, a 23/64 drill bit will do a pretty decent job of removing it if you can hit it exactly right.
Bill
Last edited:
uncle jimbo
Well-Known Member
So I spent the day working on this mold. I took the handles off and to discover the the block half that did not have the sprue cutter was so warn the slot was .125" wider. After I got the handles off you could see how much was worn off the slot in the block. The hole though the handle was also worn almost the edge of the handle and oblong. So I peened the hole to make it smaller and fit the pin tighter. I then made a shim to fill in the excess space on the mold. When I mounted the handles back on, I turned them over so the over sized hole was on the other block half.
After I got it together, most of the slop was gone and the mold halves fit much better.
While I had it apart I scrubbed it real good with a toothbrush and comet cleaner. After I got it back together I did the spinning bullet thing with with comet cleaner. Washed it again with hot water and comet.
Because it was snowing all day, I didn't get a chance to cast with it. So I don't know if all this work done any good.
After I got it together, most of the slop was gone and the mold halves fit much better.
While I had it apart I scrubbed it real good with a toothbrush and comet cleaner. After I got it back together I did the spinning bullet thing with with comet cleaner. Washed it again with hot water and comet.
Because it was snowing all day, I didn't get a chance to cast with it. So I don't know if all this work done any good.