By Tank Hoover

The old adage goes, “Cheap is too expensive” are words to heed. And sometimes we need to be open-minded and try new things, experiment, to widen our horizons, especially when it comes to guns, casting, handloading and different components for our favorite pastime.

Nothing tickles my casting bone more than casting beautiful lead alloy bullets from inexpensive molds made by LEE. A lot of the bullets born from my LEE molds are the most accurate bullets for many of my guns, be they sixguns, muzzleloader, leverguns or bolt guns. Sure, I love all bullet molds, no matter what lineage, or denomination, be they factory, custom, or antique. Price doesn’t intimidate me if I get what I want and it drops an accurate projectile. But deep down, I’m a cheapskate! I love bargains, deals — and having money left over to buy more gun gear.

Sure, LEE molds may be a touch finicky, but once you unlock the operational secrets to running them, you’ll be dropping bullets faster than your alloy pot can melt your secret brew — particularly when using LEE six cavity molds.

Doing It

As soon as the sprue solidifies after filling all the cavities, and the shiny alloy turns to a dull lead color, start your sprue plate action to cut the sprue puddle, while it’s still hot. Many people run several molds at once. Not me! It’s vital to cut the sprue puddle when it’s still hot and soft! When fully cooled, the alloy hardens, stressing the sprue handle of the six-cavity mold. Apply enough pressure and you can/will snap the sprue pivot arm. One of the most important adages of casting/handloading is “Do not force anything!” If there’s resistance, take a look. If you start smearing lead on top of the mold near the cavities, slow your pace down.

Or, as soon as the sprue puddle solidifies, touch the top of the mold to a damp sponge for a second, then cut the sprue. With this cycle, you will be able to empty the pot without stopping for a hot mold, cool down break. If the top of the mold does get smeared with lead, simply bring the mold up to the same temperature as the alloy, and wipe off the mold and underside of the sprue plate with a thick cotton towel. It will wipe right off, slick as a whistle.

I’m nostalgic for LEE molds. As with with many of you, my first mold was a LEE. The attractive price was no risk if I figgered casting wasn’t for me. Boy was I ever wrong thinking that! The first time I caught and swaddled my first batch of cast bullets from wheelweight alloy in a soft cotton towel, I knew I was hooked.

LEE 2-cavity molds come with their own handles and are ready to cast after a quick tune-up described by Tank.
They still cost under $20. Old Birthday candles make dandy lube for the alignment pins and sprue cutoff plate bolt.

Tank always keeps a Philips head screwdriver close by to make sure the sprue plate screw is always tight.

A few strokes of a file on the inside top halves at a 45-degree angle will make a vent for air to escape as
the cavities are being filled, preventing any voids, or air pockets in you bullets.

Tank’s Tips on Lee Molds

The following tips I’m about to divulge took me years to figure out. I may not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but I eventually figure things out the 50th time or so of trying. Just Ask Roy!

Write these down, or copy and paste them, but keep them to yourself so you can drive your buddies at the range nuts when they see you shooting the daylights out with gorgeous homecast bullets made from LEE molds.

One of the first things I do when I receive a LEE Mold is make sure all screws and bolts are snug, especially the pivot screw on 2-cavity and 7/16″ bolt on 6-cavity molds. This assures the sprue plate is held firmly down, avoiding fins on the base of the bullet. The next thing I do is take a file and give the upper inside edge a few strokes on both halves to create an air vent. This little tip is worth your time alone for pouring great bullets. This will allow air bubbles to escape, giving the bullet, good fill out, while still in the cavity, avoiding any voids, or air pockets before it solidifies. Don’t go overboard! Air doesn’t need much space to escape.

LEE molds now have alignment pins on their 2-cavity molds, and always had them for their 6-cavity molds. Any metal-on-metal contact needs some form of lubricant to avoid galling, sticking, or wear. A simple birthday candle is perfect. Just dab the alignment pins. It doesn’t take much and will last for months. When they start getting sticky again, give her a little dab. A dab on the sprue plate hinge screw, or bolt, is also good to keep things moving freely.

Here we can see the vent line where the mold halves come together. It doesn’t take much to allow the air to escape.

LEE 6-cavity molds will require you to purchase separate handles for them. They are interchangeable. Here is
a totally disassembled 6-cavity mold. It only takes a 7/16″ wrench to do it. Tank always keeps one handy during
casting in case the sprue plate bolt becomes loose.

Here’s a mold starting to smear a bit. It’s easily removed by bringing it up to temperature as your alloy and
then simply wiping it clean with a heavy cotton towel. Tank has cast thousands of bullets from this mold and wouldn’t
trade it for an expensive custom mold of his choice. It’s a proven mold, one he’s formed a close bond with. Yes,
you will get that attached to your molds!

I simply pre-heat my molds by floating the front corners in my alloy. I’ve heard the old wives tale of warping molds this way. In over 25 years it has never happened to me, be it aluminum, like LEE, brass, iron, or any other metal. I baby my molds and would never risk hurting them. When all oils are burned off, and the smoke clears from the mold, and the alloy rolls off the mold, not sticking to it, I start casting. I usually get perfect bullets on the first cycle. When I’m done casting, I soak my mold in a concoction called “Ed’s Red.” Its modified version consists of:

* 1 quart Dexron III ATF (Auto Transmission Fluid)
* 1 quart MEK
* 1 quart xylene

I keep it in a mason jar and soak the mold while still hot. I believe it penetrates the mold on a molecular level and prevents rust in my humid mid-Atlantic region. It also has the side benefit of making bullets drop out easier after it is burned out of the mold while getting pre-heated in my alloy.

Lastly, should your mold freeze up from your alloy hardening, don’t force it with the sprue cut-off handle. Place your mold in a vise and use a wooden dowel and hammer to tap your sprue plate open. Your mold will appreciate this and you can thank me later for not breaking your sprue pivot arm.

This is how to pre-heat your mold before casting. Tank also uses this method to bring the mold
to temperature for cleaning with a heavy cotton towel.

Here’s the after picture of the same mold after being wiped with a heavy cotton towel. At least
95-percent of the smeared alloy is wiped off. No sense getting anal over the last five percent, eh?

Sprue plate after being wiped off. Told you it was easy!

Now Get Casting!

There are my secrets! Hope they help you cast some bullets you think are too beautiful shoot and get you involved in the wonderfully addictive activity of casting your own bullets.

Don’t be a price snob! I wouldn’t lead you down the wrong path! I have many LEE molds I love just as much as some of my very expensive custom molds. Like anything in life, treat them right, and they’ll treat you good in return. I actually get a bigger kick out of my LEE cast bullets out-shooting anything else I’ve cast, regardless of what mold I used. It’s hard to put a price tag on quality, but we can thank LEE for that! Sometimes inexpensive isn’t cheap — it’s the best bargain out there!

A mason jar of Ed’s Red with my mold soaking. I tilt the jar so the whole mold is submerged.
Looks like I need to add some punch to the jar.

Whether the bullets are tumble-lubed with LEE Alox, sized and lubed with traditional methods, or
Tank’s favorite (Powder Coated or “PC”), LEE Molds can form some accurate bullets for a bargain!
Here is a smidgen sample of some of my LEE produced bullets. They shoot!

REJECTS. L to R If you look closely, you can barely see the fins on the seam of the bullet. This is actually not too bad. I couldn’t find a poor sample from my batch. Ha! This occurs when mold halves are not closed entirely, letting alloy seep where cavities meet. The middle slugs show bottom fins from a sprue plate being too loose. Sizing will correct this, along with tightening the sprue plate screw or bolt. Lastly, this is what happens from mold cavity contamination. Water, or oil is the usual culprit. Heat will burn it out.

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