Ray Rapine from Rapine molds is a theif and a hack

[Maven]

No horse in this race and no direct experience with Mr. R.A. Pine, but I purchased one of his "regular" .60cal. molds not long ago, but found it cast .610" instead of .600" (like my inexpensive Dixie hair straightener mold) and was inaccurate in my GRF trade rifle to boot. The mold itself was of excellent quality, btw. Be that as it may, I don't think he's cornered the market on out-of-round or out-of-spec molds. Lee (same experience as Rifleman 1776 with the .495" mold), Lyman, and even RCBS and Saeco/Redding offer these too. The difference, however, is in how they address the problem. Usually they'll replace and/or recut the mold without much quibbling. Rapine, Inc. apparently marches to a different drummer, which may explain why R.A. Pine is now retired or about to retire.

 

[Rat Trapper]

Good post! When anyone is treated like that we all need to know about it before we too get the same. Is it any wonder why he is out of bussiness.

 

[Deadeye]

I don't have any Rapine molds but i do have about 150 molds of other brands and I don't believe any of them cast exactly what they say they do, even when you use the same alloy they say they use.
If a mold casts larger i just use a thinner patch.
I googled Rapine and found that Ellsworth (Ray???)Rapine closed his doors and retired on April 14, 2010 also found many users of his molds saying how great they were and what a great person he was to deal with. There's 2 sides to every story, would like to hear his before we condemn him and his molds.
Deadeye

 

[Many Klatch]

I recommend that you contact Jeff Tanner in England for new molds. His molds cost between $35 and $65 depending on the size. The molds are brass, do not have sprue cutters and fit Lyman handles. I find that they throw a good ball almost immediately. His contact information is http://www.jt-bullet-moulds.co.uk/moulds.htm

I usually get my new molds within 10 days from ordering.

Many Klatch

 

[hanshi]

I have one of Jeff's molds and you are correct; they are fine molds.

 

[Swtodd]

Thanks Many, for the tip. Just e-mailed an order

steve

 

[tg]

I have had several of Tanners molds and all threw very close to tolerance balls, as for primitive bag molds they are likley about as PC as one can get, many earlier smoothbores could have a bore size from .568-.577 and be considered proper for that given caliber designation and balls were often shipped several sizes in the same keg, however todays makers of primitive molds should be up front with their tolerance compared to size designation or lack of, IMHO

 

[BrownBear]

Gotta pass along a handy tool for cutting the sprues on Tanner and other molds without built in sprue cutters. Get yourself a set of flush cut nippers. I got mine from the linked source for use with my fishing tackle molds, but have since discovered they're the best ever for cutting sprues from round balls. There are probably other sources around. Just make sure they're flat on the outer edge rather than offset like conventional side cutters.

 

[Rifleman1776]

Gotta pass along a handy tool for cutting the sprues on Tanner and other molds without built in sprue cutters. Get yourself a set of flush cut nippers. I got mine from the linked source for use with my fishing tackle molds, but have since discovered they're the best ever for cutting sprues from round balls. There are probably other sources around. Just make sure they're flat on the outer edge rather than offset like conventional side cutters.

For the punkin' balls I use in my Brown Bess cast from a Dixie mould, I just cut with standard side cutters. The balls, after knocking around in a bullet pouch for a while sorta self-smooth and any roughness from cutting is gone. Besides, just how perfect does a ball for a smoothbore have to be?

 

[Stumpkiller]

As perfect as you can get it. When you eliminate all the contributors to inaccuracy you are left with . . . accuracy.

I would argue a smooth bore ball needs to be more perfect than a rifle's because it doesn't have the spin to aid accuracy and isn't forced tightly into the bore when loaded (sprue up) that partially swages out the imperfections around the seam. ;-)

 

[CoyoteJoe]

:thumbsup: Can't prove it but it makes sense to me Stumpy.

 

[BrownBear]

Gotta pass along a handy tool for cutting the sprues on Tanner and other molds without built in sprue cutters. Get yourself a set of flush cut nippers. I got mine from the linked source for use with my fishing tackle molds, but have since discovered they're the best ever for cutting sprues from round balls. There are probably other sources around. Just make sure they're flat on the outer edge rather than offset like conventional side cutters.

For the punkin' balls I use in my Brown Bess cast from a Dixie mould, I just cut with standard side cutters. The balls, after knocking around in a bullet pouch for a while sorta self-smooth and any roughness from cutting is gone. Besides, just how perfect does a ball for a smoothbore have to be?

Ha! :rotf: I never thought of using them on balls for my Bess. Heck, the sprues could be half an inch long and I probably wouldn't shoot any better or worse with it.

But when I started using it on the .290 balls for my 30 cal, group sizes immediately shrank, and the occasional mysterious fliers have disappeared.

 

[Stumpkiller]

:thumbsup: Can't prove it but it makes sense to me Stumpy.

Didn't say I could prove it. I said I'd argue it. :rotf: Sometimes hopeless causes are the most interesting ones to defend - like the guys who keep old wooden boats active. :grin:

 

[mudd turtle]

That was my exsperience with Ray Rapine when I shot North South in Winchester Va. He was good to deal with and tried hard to make sure he did good work. I found him to be an honest person. The last dealings I had with him was strangely a bag mold. At the time Ray had been having some problems with his heart. His Son in law was in the shop most of the time and according to Ray the guy didn't pay attention to details well. I still have the mold and I think I will get it out and cast a few balls and mike them to see how far they are out. Frankly I thought that Ray had died. last year I tried to get in touch with him to buy a mould but could not get in touch with him. I had thought maybe the son in law might have taken over the business . I always found Ray Rapine to be an honest man. Hope all will work out for you. Mudd Turtle.

 

[Grizzled Roberts]

I still have a bunch of double cavity Raypine moulds in a box. I used to use them many moons ago.
Now I just use Tanner moulds period. My favorite sprue cutter is a large set of curved blade toe nail clippers. A nice flush cut.

 

[paulvallandigham]

I think you are correct, Stumpy, for what that is worth. I have seen wire cutters, or nippers that have an outside curve, but I will be darned if I can find a picture of them, or what they are called. That curve, with the flush edge, is about perfect for trimming sprues off lead cast balls. It allows you to cut very close to the arc or curve of the ball, so that there aren't "Wings" sticking up on the edges of where the sprue was.

I also think that Brown Bear's experience with nipping the sprues off his .290" RB pretty much proves the point. The smaller the ball the more even a small sprue left will affect the accuracy of the ball( greater percentage by weight). I suspect that if he takes the time to sort by weight, nip the sprues, and then tumble the large balls for his Brown Bess, that he will find his groups shrink with that gun. :thumbsup: :hmm: Most people who own Brown Bess guns have NO EXPECTATION OF accuracy with those guns, so they never bother to find out its true capability. :hatsoff:

 

[bob4st]

... I once had a dispute with a vendor in St. Louis, MO... It was properly resolved when I showed up at his facility... Pricey, yes... But I'm big on principle...... Is that a possibility for you?...

 

[Rifleman1776]

... I once had a dispute with a vendor in St. Louis, MO... It was properly resolved when I showed up at his facility... Pricey, yes... But I'm big on principle...... Is that a possibility for you?...

I'm sure I know exactly who that vendor is. His reputation is well known, even behind bars. (and I don't mean the drinking kind of bars....)