LEE bullet mold report #90387. Not Performance!

If you're dead set on your lead recipe and casting temperatures, you can lap the lee molds fairly easily. I've used everything from valve lapping compound to hand cleaner with pumice.
I feel like a little bit of tin would go a long way in this case. I have the same mold and size to .357 easily.
 
BigRobb said:
If you're dead set on your lead recipe and casting temperatures, you can lap the lee molds fairly easily. I've used everything from valve lapping compound to hand cleaner with pumice.
I feel like a little bit of tin would go a long way in this case. I have the same mold and size to .357 easily.
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Or you can by a mold with a touch of quality
 
hatman1793 said:
Thought I would try the LEE 6 cavity 9mm bullet mold. It supposedly casts a 120 grain truncated cone 9mm bullet sized to .356.
Fired out of 3 different 9mm autos, this nice little 120TC bullet tumbled about 25-30% of the time. What to do?
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I had the exact same problem with that mold and those bullets, in a vintage Hi Power. Imagining they weren't spinning fast enough to stabilize, I did-up a bunch with a little more powder, to push 'em (and therefore, spin 'em) a bit faster. LITERALLY, 0.1 gr more powder solved the problem - they're ~the most accurate, and far-and-away the cheapest bullets I can get in 9mm.

One item tho' - I don't know if it's just me, or the mold or what, but I gotta' have some alloy in the mix. I had a lot of trouble getting that pistol to shoot well; 0.356" bullets too small (I slugged the bore), 0.358" bullets too big (they won't fit in the case gauge, which means they won't chamber, says the voice of bitter experience). And how stupid is this? - my favourite 9mm cast bullet is the Lyman 147gr BT, which all my 9mm's like; I run it through a 0.358" sizer to lube it, but the bullet itself mikes-out at 0.3575" from the mold, and it chambers normally in this Hi Power.

And the note of caution? I was making bullets out of some old scuba weights somebody gave me - I'm assuming they were pure lead, since there's no need to spend extra $$ alloying scuba weights. Out of the mold with that soft lead, the Lee TC's were bigger-diameter, so much so that they would squeeze their grease-grooves shut when sized to 0.357", and not pick-up any bullet lube. I had to melt-up some more wheel weights into the mix, which solved the problem.

If you can get that bullet working for you, you'll really like it.
 
morgangrinder said:
Note when casting or loading never do a million. 20 is enough to be stung by
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Tell me about it. I learned my lesson after reloading 1000 rounds of 9mm with commercial lead boolits that turned out to be crap.

Dismantling 1K of 9 is not a fun task.

M
 
I'm watching how you resolve this -I have the same tumbling problem with that mold. Casting temp just under 700. Alloy 50:50 ww:pb. Resized to .356 did not resolve the issue in the M&P 9mm. Barrel is .355.
 
Hardness of the lead is not the issue, plus some erroneously think I am using swagged lead. I am not. (Recovered range lead is considerably harder than swagged) Powder coating my 9mm bullets creates a very hard, almost copper-like plating.
The issue is the mold casting undersize bullets & what to do about it. One of the posters suggested powder coating a second time. So here's what happened: the second powder coating sequence saw the bullets unable to pass through the micrometer set to .356.
Firing report to follow...
 
I think you're missing the point of adding tin etc. When pure lead (or close to) cures, it shrinks more than lead with tin and antimony mixed in. It's not a hardness thing, it's a shrinkage thing. It's. Commonly know as "fill out"
hatman1793 said:
Hardness of the lead is not the issue, plus some erroneously think I am using swagged lead. I am not. (Recovered range lead is considerably harder than swagged) Powder coating my 9mm bullets creates a very hard, almost copper-like plating.
The issue is the mold casting undersize bullets & what to do about it. One of the posters suggested powder coating a second time. So here's what happened: the second powder coating sequence saw the bullets unable to pass through the micrometer set to .356.
Firing report to follow...
Click to expand...
 
This whole thread really exemplifies the advantages powder coating has added to the cast boolit shooters...not nearly as much importance has to be adhered to for bullet/lead alloy...heat up whatever you have -coat it- and use it, it'll work.
 
I cannot add tin as I use what I have.

Range report: keeping readers up to speed, my original cast 120 grain Lee truncated cone 9mm bullets were powder coated out of the mold. 50% were undersize. These undersize bullets were powder coated a second time and fired. Out of 50, two completely jammed up the action. The other 48 offered flyers, some consistency, but no X ring or 10 ring accuracy.

Next up is putting the double powder coated bullets back through the Lee .356 sizer, and reloaded and fired....
 
Thank you for your kind offer Y!

Okay, final range report; recap: the undersize powder coated bullets were double coated then fired. These were not re-sized. Two seriously jammed in the barrel front. I think the extra powder coat was the cause. Abandoned that...

The next batch of the double PC 9mm's were put through the sizer. Purpose was to tame the extra PC from the double process. The bullets were seated about 1.5mm deeper also.

Final result: failure...unfortunately. Out of 20 test-fires, two key-holed. There was a nice group of 4 together at 1100 (on a B27 target) but way too far from the X ring. The other shots were all over. Accuracy failure....
 
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