New bullet mould

[PJ Hardtack]

Had a casting session today with my new steel NEI 44/210 RN DC mould, a DC Lyman 427666 200 RNFP and a single cavity 50-70 mould. Good thing to do on a rainy day ....

Unlubed, the NEI bullets weighed out at 208-210 grs, depending upon which cavity they came from. Same for the Lyman bullets, which similarly weighed 208-210 grs, regardless of the nominal 200 gr they are supposed to be. I think the fuller ogive accounts for the heavier weight, at least with the alloy I was using.

Took a while to "break in" the NEI mould and it did require 'smoking' with a match a couple of times, as does the Lyman. Only moulds I have that don't require 'smoking' are made of aluminum, like the Rapine 50-70 mould used today.

I have to say that if I would NOT cast pistol bullets with a single cavity mould, and I'm quite happy to use commercial bullets for my smokeless loads. My cast bullets are intended for BP, lubed with SPG.