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moulds
- Thread starter muzzman
- Start date
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A short answer is.......No.
Of course it depends on how accurate you want the mold to be and how much equipment you have and how much your willing to spend on some.
The typical round ball mold is formed with a "cherry", which is just another name for a spherical mill cutter.
Having the equipment to power this cutter, and to position it in the right place relative to the blocks which are being machined is helpful.
Then there is the little thing called "shrink factor" which is the amount of oversize the cutter has to be to produce a ball of a desired size.
In other words, the cavity has to be larger than the cooled casting is going to be.
This is dependent on the "Alpha" (coefficient of thermal expansion) of the material being cast and the size of the finished casting.
Take my word for it, it's just a lot easier to buy finished mold blocks or if a special size is wanted, to pay someone who has the knowledge and equipment to build what you want.
jtmattison
70 Cal.
- Joined
- Mar 17, 2004
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Rat,
LMAO :crackup:
You beat Musketman to it.
Huntin
LMAO :crackup:
You beat Musketman to it.
Huntin
Guest
Rat,.... :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
YMHS
rollingb
Guest
Muzzman
here is a link to the discussion we are currently having on this subject . I was thinking of making one myself but after looking into the time involve and materials , then considering that the first one would probably not be satisfactory the money spent seems cheep .
http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/ubbthr...mp;page=0#54290
here is a link to the discussion we are currently having on this subject . I was thinking of making one myself but after looking into the time involve and materials , then considering that the first one would probably not be satisfactory the money spent seems cheep .
http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/ubbthr...mp;page=0#54290
Guest
A lot depends on the amount and quality of the tooling you have access too and just how "pretty you want the finished product to turn out.
Back in the olden days I worked in a machiene shop and made a lot of molds that are still producing good slugs.
I have also made simple molds of straight through design for conical slugs.
The perfectly round ball is the ultimate chalenge for the home craftsman, sort of like the holy grail of casting.
Of course you have the materials to consider, the time invested, etc. You could mow a neighbors yard and make $20 in a couple of hours.
A $20 Lee mold will cast good balls and save you a serious brain anurism.
Back in the olden days I worked in a machiene shop and made a lot of molds that are still producing good slugs.
I have also made simple molds of straight through design for conical slugs.
The perfectly round ball is the ultimate chalenge for the home craftsman, sort of like the holy grail of casting.
Of course you have the materials to consider, the time invested, etc. You could mow a neighbors yard and make $20 in a couple of hours.
A $20 Lee mold will cast good balls and save you a serious brain anurism.
robinghewitt
62 Cal.
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- Jun 26, 2004
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There's also the "expansion factor", because the mould will be hot when you use it ::
