What a Fluxing nice day for Smelting!

[armoredman]

This is very true - my best dropping mold is a Lee .401...for a caliber I don't shoot anymore, BUT my landlord does.  I keep him pretty happy...

I got lead in the vent lines in my favorite Lee 9mm mold, still trying to that cleaned up, doesn't want to work right now.

[jameslovesjammie]

I got lead in the vent lines in my favorite Lee 9mm mold, still trying to that cleaned up, doesn't want to work right now.

I hate it when that happens!  What I usually do is get the mould up to operating temperature on my hot plate, then use a paint stick to press the lead out.  Usually it comes out pretty easily when the mould is warm.  Sometimes just a rag will work, too.

Are you using Bullplate lube on your mould?  It is great.  If you put it on the vent lines of your mould, lead will hardly stick at all.  If you use it on the top of the mould blocks and bottom of the sprue plate, you can even cut the sprue earlier than normal and not get that steak of leading.  Keep it out of the cavities, though!

[armoredman]

I have only a few drops of BullPlate left... I use it very sparingly on the sprue plate.

[jameslovesjammie]

I have only a few drops of BullPlate left... I use it very sparingly on the sprue plate.

Wanna know a secret?  Bullplate is synthetic two stroke oil.  That's it.  Nothing more.

[jameslovesjammie]

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/763758/frankford-arsenal-drop-out-bullet-mold-release-agent-and-lube-6-oz-aerosol

This is my maintenance choice for all my moulds, to prevent sticking/build up etc. After the 2nd spray application, I strip the mould with carb cleaner, then reapply. Hardware stores have spray on graphite, which works just as well, for a third of the cost. Or you can just do this the old fashion way and smoke your moulds. 

Man...that stuff is pricy!

I used to smoke my moulds for the first few years that I cast.  I had alright results.  I don't think the bullets were better, or dropped out faster.  What I started doing was preheating my moulds on a hot plate.  I have my hot plate and casting furnace on one surge protector.  When I am going to cast, I put the moulds I am going to use that session on the hot plate and flip the switch.  When the lead in the pot is up to temp...so are the moulds.  Bullets drop free and have perfect fillout from the first pour. 

For preheating aluminum moulds, I place them sprue plate down for better heat transfer.  Iron and brass moulds don't matter unless they are automatic hollow point casting type.  Those I set so the pins themselves are in direct contact with the coils.  Old style hollow point moulds, I will put sprue plate side down on the coil and pull the pin out and set the pin on the coil.