Dixie Round Ball Mould

[dmills]

does anyone use one of these. Or stated another way, which roundball mould works best for you?

 

All my molds are LEE.Cheap and work great.

 

[Swampman]

I like them for large musket balls. I've cast hundreds with one just like that. For rifle balls I'd prefer a Rapine.

 

[CoyoteJoe]

That was my first mould, but I soon got a Lyman. The Dixie mold gets hot and hard to handle, has no sprue cutter and casts an imperfect ball with a large seam around it. The Lee molds are much better, easier to work with, cast faster, don't rust and are much cheaper to boot.

 

[dmills]

Thanks for the info. For the the Lyman and the Rapine are too costly, at least for a beginner, who may cast a few and then decide that $x.xx for 100 roundball is worth the price afterall. So maybe I'll give the Lee a try. Do you use the single ball or double ball mould?

 

[Swampman]

"casts an imperfect ball with a large seam around it"

I didn't have this problem.

 

[twotoescharlie]

used one of these for many years, mold,trim the sprue and rolled them between two pieces of glass to get them round.
in the 50's this how turner kirkland got his start,made these in his dad's garage.
the original use for these was to heat and straighten hair for the afro-american folks. I have seen these in use and it sure smells awful when that hair burns.

TTC

 

[LRB]

I did. It would seem that the early ones were much better. I had a .680, in the seventies, that was really good. Last one, a few years ago, had problems. We used to call them Dixie Junk Works, even thirty years ago, and they ain't got no better.

 

Since yer beginning, I would stick with a single Lee mold, till you gain some experience, and skill. Don't be afraid to ask questions. A couple quick answers up front are: Clean yer new mold really, really good before your first start casting. Lube the hinge. Make sure there is no moisture, Lead, and water are not friends. Preheat yer mold before casting. Use as pure a lead as you can get. If you search the site there are a lot more tips on casting. Some of us even think it's a relaxing pastime :haha: Bill

 

[TANSTAAFL]

Ever read the story as to how Turner Kirkland came to make that mould setup?

 

[Rebel]

NO

 

[TANSTAAFL]

Turner Kirkland's first love was ML, but he started out as a traveling salesman selling out of his car, (he used to come across the river over to my home town in SE MO) one of the items he sold was a scissor like device with split cast iron blocks on the tips for Black women straightening their hair. The device was heated on the stove, opened, strand of hair was inserted, device was closed, then pulled down the strand, straightening the hair.

His story was, one day looking at the device he thought, hey, why not cherry the CI blocks and make a RB mould. And Dixie has been selling that particular bullet mould ever since.

I had the pleasure of once talking at length to Turner Kirkland back in the late 80's at a NRA convention in L.A. CA, he was a fascinating character.

 

[CoyoteJoe]

Sorry I never got to meet Mr. Kirkland. I had one of his first catalogs that was just a little shirt pocket size booklet, like a real estate brochure. Sorry also that Dixie Gun Works has gone downhill since his departure. :shake:

 

[Rebel]

Thanks for the story TANS. :hatsoff:

 

The earlier American ones are of much better quality than the the ones made with the imported Chinese pieces. I have about five of these that I use for various guns. But I would definitely suggest you have a good pair of sharp nippers to remove the sprues. Here is one that I have cleaned up to look period.

CP

 

[Russianblood]

That is a great idea for making them "period correct"! :hatsoff:

 

[paulvallandigham]

YOu can burn holes into sticks so they can be driven on the ends of the handles to get your hand away from the heat, and to give you something to hold onto that isn't so hot! Or buy handles at your hardware store that are sold to put on files, or screwdriver blades. The hand made ones fit in with the period style look of the modified mold handles.

 

[thehorn]

Sorry I never got to meet Mr. Kirkland. I had one of his first catalogs that was just a little shirt pocket size booklet, like a real estate brochure.

Here's my earliest memory of DGW: this catalog which I picked up as a kid several years after 1955. The mould ad is from the same catalog.

 

YOu can burn holes into sticks so they can be driven on the ends of the handles to get your hand away from the heat, and to give you something to hold onto that isn't so hot! Or buy handles at your hardware store that are sold to put on files, or screwdriver blades. The hand made ones fit in with the period style look of the modified mold handles.

Wrapping the arms with leather and securing that with copper wire is, yet, another option. :winking:

 

[paulvallandigham]

Clypipe: I am not very fond of the smell of burning leather, but your idea will work. I guess I would just have to sit upwind of the mold.