Mold Adjustment Experience Back in the 1900-1910 period, this was referred to as "shuck". I came across mould adjustment in a period magazine, and I didn't save it... As always, disbelief, correction, or explanations can be sent to me HERE   There are other techniques, "Leementing", slightly breaking the top mating edge of the mold halves, "Beagling" the mold with HVAC tape, using a very fine grinding compound and a bullet to open up a cavity, and a few others. When I get to doing them, I'll add them. Lyman Mold "Tune Up" by Ben Hays  EvapoRust is a non-toxic Rust removing liquid. CAUTION! Blue is rust... Though the blocks should turn color after casting again... EvapoRust will react with the rust and place it into suspension. When item is free of rust, you can remove it from soaking. Once you rinse off the item with water, you need to either re-oil it or cast with it, since all protective substances are gone... Another good thing about EvapoRust is that once exhausted, you can pour the spent fluid down the drain, non toxic... Tightness of Sprue Plate Sprue plates should be able to swing under their own weight (or close to it). Adjust the sprue pivot screw to achieve this. Sprue Hole Spacing A while back I picked up a 287305. Things didn't seem quite right. See the replacement sprue plate holes don't quite match up with the cavity spacing. From Lyman tech support: We make two different sprue plates for double cavity moulds. Our most common plate has a .550" center to center hole spacing. This is the one that is packed in the mould rebuild kit and sounds like the same one that you have. Our other plate has a .480" hole spacing. It is part #2998331. This would be available through our customer service department at 1-800-22-lyman. Lyman Split Washer Defanging Everyone that has used the Ideal / Lyman moulds with the old school split lock washer have faced the frustration of trying to keep the sprue pivot screw from eventually working loose. No amount of tightening the set screw will keep the pivot screw from loosening. Then the plate gets too loose. Instead of finding the perfect pivot screw orientation and filing a flat on the screw for the side set screw to butt up against, sand or file the sharp ends of the lock washer down. Now the lock washer does not dig into the sprue plate. Split Lock Washer    Look at the ends of the split washer. The more you tighten the screw, the more they dig into the sprue plate. Each time the plate is opened or closed, that force is transmitted to the sprue pivot screw. No matter how wonderfully you adjusted the pivot screw, it will be apt to loosen up, usually during a casting session... Lyman Sprue Plate Notice the shiny ring created by the lock washer. Split Lock Washer Sanding   Using a belt sander to break the edge. You could use a file, sandpaper, or emery cloth. Power tools go faster... Split Lock Washer Smoothed   The sharp edges have been angled down. You don't need much. Use of Wave Washers I have tried the wave washers from Ace, and am NOT impressed. Their OD is bigger, they are a shorter height (Lyman pivot screw has a shoulder that expects a lock washer thickness), and it just doesn't seem any better than taking down the ends of a split washer. Setting Alignment Pin Height (all makes) Molds come from the factory in a mechanically suitable shape. Some molds might not close tightly, and there is no cause for alarm just yet. Take the mould halves in your hands, and try to mate them together. If the halves are tight at the top, but you can see light at the bottom edge, there might be debris on the mold face or about the alignment pins. Check for residue and use a bronze bristle brush to clean off the faces. If the halves still do not mate, it could be the pins are too high. Whip out your calipers, measure the original height of pin and block half, find a 7/32 punch (used to tap pin out), and get a 6oz brass hammer (can use different weights, will have to hit harder or softer). A little futzing, you use a smart rap to move the pin, but it won't take more than wrist and forearm movement. Set both pins to the same height, now the halves should close with no light. It doesn't take much, maybe only .005 and the mould goes from light between the halves and the blocks canting from the pins to a solid fit. “RCBS Cast Bullet Manual, Number 1”, RCBS, CCI, and Speer Research Staffs, Omark Industries, Lewiston, ID, 83501 Dec 1986. ISBN# 0-935632-07-7 ( hard Bound ) or ISBN# 0-935632-08-5 ( soft bound ) ASIN: B000V2O62U? ASIN: B000Y8AYYK MOULD ABUSE Page 40 - "As a final check, the blocks should feel "sticky" when carefully opening them with the handles" FITTING THE BLOCKS Page 41 - "Loose fitting mould blocks can be tightened up, one pin at a time, independently. It is best to remove the sprue plate. Measure and record the distance from the back of the mould to the end of the pin with a micrometer or good caliper. With a close fitting punch [ed. 7/32], drive the pin several thousandths of an inch further out. Tap lightly at first and measure until you get the "feel" for how much it takes to move the pin. Don't worry about driving it too far out, it can be tapped back just as easily. Rotate the mould block halves so that only the one alignment pin engages. It is then a simple matter of trial and error tapping the pin back and forth until it engages properly. The functional test for the single pin is that you should just barely be able to close it on a single pin with your fingers. Check against a light source. Fit the other pin in the same manner. Moulds with enlarged, out of round holes can be salvaged with the judicious use of a countersink. The operation is best left to a machinist or gunsmith. RCBS blocks may be returned to the factory for repairs." Use of Mold Prep Mold prep is sold as a quick n easy method of "smoking" the cavities. Smoking a mould makes boolits much less likely to stick. However, just as atomic power has good and evil sides, so does mold prep. Enthusiastic use can reduce the space inside a cavity. It is a non-discriminating agent, being sprayed on... even with care, it is not a precisely applied compound, instead it sprays on everything. vent lines, mold faces, alignment pins... Since there isn't much slop around the alignment pins, any build-up of residue around the pins will eventually cause issues with closing the mold. Save your money and buy kitchen matches to smoke the mold with. Smoking Molds (Smoke 'em if you got 'em) I used to grab the long nosed butane lighter to smoke with, but stopped doing it after I noticed the oily look of the soot. Kitchen matches leave dry looking soot. YMMV. Block Half Pivot Pins There are two basic styles, RCBS with separate pivot pins, and Lyman / SAECO where the screw is the pivot pin. The RCBS system is a little annoying with the need to take out the (dinky) set screws to drop the pivot pins. The strength of this system is that any torque from the mold halves pivoting on the pins -OR- vibration (ever beat on the mold handle pivot screw to drop boolits?) is NOT transmitted to the set screws. The screw is much less likely to back out.   The Lyman / SAECO pivot screws are one piece screws that the block haves pivot on. Any rotational force or vibration is transmitted to the screw. If the screw is not snugly fastened before casting, at some point you may see a mould half lying in the bucket you are using to water drop the boolits in. NOTE: Dropping a hot mould half into the water will not warp it, but it sure as heck will ruin your casting cadence...  Tell me, grasshopper, what is the sound of one mould half casting? Specialty and Replacement Mold Screws and Other Parts   Erik Ohlen over at Hollow Point Bullet Mold Service makes the old fashioned one-piece RCBS pivot screws. Instead of the long pin, held in with a small allen screw, it's all one piece. Snapped Off Sprue Pivot Pin Get a left hand stub (screw machine) drill. When you drill LH, the drill can unscrew the remains up and out (it did for me!). Choose a drill that is less than the screws' thread minor OD. Cleaning Mould Blocks You can boil the blocks in water with a shot of Joy or Dawn added. NOTE: The addition of soap will make the water foamy when it boils. Which means the top of the stove could be washed... RCBS recommends using denatured alcohol. This is fine if the mould has not been lubed or sprayed with an oily substance WD-40 seems OK... But I have had some issues with "dampness" showing up after smoking. Cast Bullets Supplement No. 1, CE Harris, pg 16 ""The mold must be clean and free of any oil or grease. I like to clean new molds by boiling in water with Ivory Flakes or Oakite. Cleaning them in Cascade with an automatic dishwasher also works well. Remove the mold blocks from the hot water and shake dry, being sure they are completely dry before using them, since any latent moisture is potentially dangerous when combined with molten lead! To avoid constant recleaning and degreasing, don't oil your molds for storage. Store them in an air-tight container, wrapped in VPI paper to protect them from rust." Do not use brake cleaner. Every time I have used it, it has left a "dampness" that will not disappear when you smoke the mould. Annoying. NOTE: "Dampness" might not be from using brake cleaner, but is actually due to using a butane lighter to smoke the cavities. Use a bronze, brass, or nylon brush to work on the face, in the cavities, and around the alignment pins.