I’ve seen bullet casting come up a few times, so it’s clear we have some casters here.
What are some of your favorite moulds?
Me? In rifle:
.30 cal:
I like the Saeco 315 a lot. It’s sort of a Loverin type, but tapered nose to base, which might account for it doing well in so many rifles. Maybe not.
NOE Moulds makes a great copy and I always wanted to get a HP version since I’ve heard it shoots even better. The owner recently retired and the HP moulds were all sold before I knew it. That’s gonna keep me up nights.
I also like the Lyman/Ideal 311466 and the RCBS 30-165Sil.
.348 cal:
The only one I have is a Rapine 235 grain, but it is enough. It shoots really well.
.375 cal:
Like .348, I only have one .375 mould, the Saeco 373, a 265 grain FP. And like my .348 mould, it shoots really well which is all I need in a reduced .375 H&H Mag load.
.458 cal:
The old Lyman/Ideal 458122, the “Gould” 330 grain HP. I don’t need a HP, but that’s how it comes and it shoots really well in .45-70.
I’ve shot some 425 grain WFNs cast by others and they’ve done really well also.
Handgun moulds:
9mm:
An odd one, I like the Saeco 383. This is a 140 grain SWC with a long wide nose making it look strange; sort of Snoopy looking. I used to see the drawing in the Saeco catalog and think that thing would never shoot.
I was wrong. It’s the first 9mm mould I had real success with.
I only wish I had more than a two-cavity mould for it.
I have an M-P Molds 125 HP that I like also.
One more, and it’s another odd one. Lyman 356472. It’s sort of a blend of WC and SWC at 140 grains. Yes, a WC 9mm mould. It not only feeds in almost everything, it shoots really well.
BTW, I cast and size my 9mm bullets big, at .358” if they will make it. I slugged my and some other people’s 9mm gun barrels and they were all on the large side. Only one, an Sig P-210 was .355” as “common knowledge” says. Most were around .357”.
.38/.357:
My favorite in .357 is an NOE 180 grain WFP. It casts closer to 185 from wheelweights. Loaded with H110/Win296 in .357, it has shot GREAT in every gun I’ve tried. Rifle or handgun.
I haven’t tried it in .38 because I haven’t felt the need for as heavy a bullet, and data is scarce, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work.
I have shot it in the little .38 S&W in a Webley using 200 grain data and it is the best shooter I found for that gun.
For .38 Spl, I use more Lee 38-158FP than anything else. That is lucky, because the six-cavity mould makes a lot of them.
The Lyman 358156 has been another winner for me in .38 and .357.
The Lyman Keith design 358329 173 grain always shoots well.
For wadcutters, I use an H&G #50. The plain one (There were several variations made.)
.40/10mm/.38-40:
I mostly make these for 10mm. I did some experimenting with .38-40 (.38WCF) in a Colt New Service a few years ago. I shoot so little .40 S&W I’ve not loaded all that much, cast or jacketed.
The best shooter I have for the 10mm although I seldom use it is an old Lyman SWC mould of around 175 grains for the .38-40 called 40188. Too bad mine is a single cavity or I might use it more.
What I use most for 10mm (and for what little .38-40 I load now) is the RCBS 40-180CM. Meant for Cowboy Action Shooting in the .38-40, it shoots well in the 10mm.
The RCBS 40-170SWC works really well in the 10mm also.
For a heavy 10mm bullet, I have an H&G 315, which makes a TC of about 215 grains. It might shoot more accurately than any of these, but I just don’t need a bullet that heavy. More lead used up.
.41:
I haven’t shot .41 Mag in a while. I have all the Lyman .41 moulds and they did fine, but the best shooter was a Saeco 415. That one is a TC shape, which may not be the most useful in a revolver. It’s on the heavy side, at 220 grains. I almost exclusively used it in a Marlin rifle.
.44:
I have a lot of .44 moulds, and several stand out. Maybe I should list them by starting light and working my way up. I use these in .44 Spl and Magnum.
The Lyman 429105 is a weird one. It looks like half a round ball grafted to a straight section just long enough to have a lube groove and two narrow driving bands. Mine weigh only 134 grains sized and lubed.
I have one lighter- a Lee 113 WC- but that little Lyman abouts better.
I thought I would load a bunch of low velocity loads using this bullet as an “Encouragement Load” for my daughters and new shooters- extremely low recoil, accurate, but cutting a big hole to catch a better scoring ring in the target. As it worked out, I was shooting them up as fast as I could make them. I don’t know if anyone else ever got the chance to shoot any.
Lee 429-208WC. As the name implies, a 208 grain Wadcutter. It looks like a coffee can. I like large caliber wadcutters. Sort of a little hammer face. I’ve shot a lot of these.
Lyman 429215. The 215-ish grain SWC. Shoots well without the extra weight and recoil of a 240-250 grain. I have a plain based copy and gas-checked. I don’t see a need for GC at the velocities I use it. I have an HP version that shoots a little better, like HPs usually seem to do.
Lyman 429244. Sort of the larger 245-ish grain version of the 429215 SWC. I find this one of the most accurate .44 moulds. It’s gas-checked, which may not may not be necessary for the velocity you load.
NOE 432-248WC. Wadcutter at 248 grains or so. Unlike most wadcutters that are designed to be seated flush or nearly so, this one is loaded conventionally, with at least half the bullet out of the case.
Great for full power loads.
Lyman 429421. The Elmer Keith design SWC at around 250 grains. Although I think the 429244 shoots a little better, I shoot a lot more of these because no GC makes it perfect for my .44 Specials and I have a 4-cavity mould for it.
Ranch Dog 432-265RF. I like this one so much I have three versions.
My original mould was custom made by Lee through a group buy from a cast bullet forum, a 2-cavity GC. I got another one later from NOE in a 5-cavity PB, and a 2-cavity GC HP.
This is a 265 grain (267 with my wheelweights) Wide Flat Nose in a tumble lube design. I have used it tumble lubed as-cast, and sized and lubed conventionally to .431”.
It shoots great in .44 Mag revolvers and rifles I have/had.
It may be a little heavy for .44 Spl but loading data exists and it shoots well there too.
Lee C430-310RF. This is a gas checked 310 grain WFN. Probably the most useful heavy .44 bullet mould I have. It’s definitely the cheapest heavy .44 mould I have. It’s a bargain among heavy .44 moulds.
It’s shoots well; I just have a limited use for it.
SSK 429-310. Like all SSK designs I know of, it’s a TC shape, and plain based. SSK’s weight figures come from using Linotype, so the actual weight using wheelweights is in the 330s.
This is a huge bullet. I have no need for it, but am including it here because it shot well from my Ruger 77-44.
.45:
I’m throwing .45 ACP and .45 Colt together. I’ll do .45 Colt first because there is only one.
RCBS 45-255SWC. This is the only one I use for .45 Colt because it does all I need. A 255 SWC.
H&G 68. The 200 grain SWC .45 ACP bullet. This bullet got it’s reputation from IPSC shooters when the game began. It’s heavy enough to make Major power factor easily, shoots accurately, feeds well, and cuts clean holes in paper. I only wish I had more than a 2-cavity mould for it.
H&G 34. The 225-230 round nose. Mine is a six-cavity and pours bullets, but it weighs a ton. When I’m shooting a lot of .45 ACP I’ll get it out once a year and make a lot.
What are some of your favorite moulds?
Me? In rifle:
.30 cal:
I like the Saeco 315 a lot. It’s sort of a Loverin type, but tapered nose to base, which might account for it doing well in so many rifles. Maybe not.
NOE Moulds makes a great copy and I always wanted to get a HP version since I’ve heard it shoots even better. The owner recently retired and the HP moulds were all sold before I knew it. That’s gonna keep me up nights.
I also like the Lyman/Ideal 311466 and the RCBS 30-165Sil.
.348 cal:
The only one I have is a Rapine 235 grain, but it is enough. It shoots really well.
.375 cal:
Like .348, I only have one .375 mould, the Saeco 373, a 265 grain FP. And like my .348 mould, it shoots really well which is all I need in a reduced .375 H&H Mag load.
.458 cal:
The old Lyman/Ideal 458122, the “Gould” 330 grain HP. I don’t need a HP, but that’s how it comes and it shoots really well in .45-70.
I’ve shot some 425 grain WFNs cast by others and they’ve done really well also.
Handgun moulds:
9mm:
An odd one, I like the Saeco 383. This is a 140 grain SWC with a long wide nose making it look strange; sort of Snoopy looking. I used to see the drawing in the Saeco catalog and think that thing would never shoot.
I was wrong. It’s the first 9mm mould I had real success with.
I only wish I had more than a two-cavity mould for it.
I have an M-P Molds 125 HP that I like also.
One more, and it’s another odd one. Lyman 356472. It’s sort of a blend of WC and SWC at 140 grains. Yes, a WC 9mm mould. It not only feeds in almost everything, it shoots really well.
BTW, I cast and size my 9mm bullets big, at .358” if they will make it. I slugged my and some other people’s 9mm gun barrels and they were all on the large side. Only one, an Sig P-210 was .355” as “common knowledge” says. Most were around .357”.
.38/.357:
My favorite in .357 is an NOE 180 grain WFP. It casts closer to 185 from wheelweights. Loaded with H110/Win296 in .357, it has shot GREAT in every gun I’ve tried. Rifle or handgun.
I haven’t tried it in .38 because I haven’t felt the need for as heavy a bullet, and data is scarce, but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work.
I have shot it in the little .38 S&W in a Webley using 200 grain data and it is the best shooter I found for that gun.
For .38 Spl, I use more Lee 38-158FP than anything else. That is lucky, because the six-cavity mould makes a lot of them.
The Lyman 358156 has been another winner for me in .38 and .357.
The Lyman Keith design 358329 173 grain always shoots well.
For wadcutters, I use an H&G #50. The plain one (There were several variations made.)
.40/10mm/.38-40:
I mostly make these for 10mm. I did some experimenting with .38-40 (.38WCF) in a Colt New Service a few years ago. I shoot so little .40 S&W I’ve not loaded all that much, cast or jacketed.
The best shooter I have for the 10mm although I seldom use it is an old Lyman SWC mould of around 175 grains for the .38-40 called 40188. Too bad mine is a single cavity or I might use it more.
What I use most for 10mm (and for what little .38-40 I load now) is the RCBS 40-180CM. Meant for Cowboy Action Shooting in the .38-40, it shoots well in the 10mm.
The RCBS 40-170SWC works really well in the 10mm also.
For a heavy 10mm bullet, I have an H&G 315, which makes a TC of about 215 grains. It might shoot more accurately than any of these, but I just don’t need a bullet that heavy. More lead used up.
.41:
I haven’t shot .41 Mag in a while. I have all the Lyman .41 moulds and they did fine, but the best shooter was a Saeco 415. That one is a TC shape, which may not be the most useful in a revolver. It’s on the heavy side, at 220 grains. I almost exclusively used it in a Marlin rifle.
.44:
I have a lot of .44 moulds, and several stand out. Maybe I should list them by starting light and working my way up. I use these in .44 Spl and Magnum.
The Lyman 429105 is a weird one. It looks like half a round ball grafted to a straight section just long enough to have a lube groove and two narrow driving bands. Mine weigh only 134 grains sized and lubed.
I have one lighter- a Lee 113 WC- but that little Lyman abouts better.
I thought I would load a bunch of low velocity loads using this bullet as an “Encouragement Load” for my daughters and new shooters- extremely low recoil, accurate, but cutting a big hole to catch a better scoring ring in the target. As it worked out, I was shooting them up as fast as I could make them. I don’t know if anyone else ever got the chance to shoot any.
Lee 429-208WC. As the name implies, a 208 grain Wadcutter. It looks like a coffee can. I like large caliber wadcutters. Sort of a little hammer face. I’ve shot a lot of these.
Lyman 429215. The 215-ish grain SWC. Shoots well without the extra weight and recoil of a 240-250 grain. I have a plain based copy and gas-checked. I don’t see a need for GC at the velocities I use it. I have an HP version that shoots a little better, like HPs usually seem to do.
Lyman 429244. Sort of the larger 245-ish grain version of the 429215 SWC. I find this one of the most accurate .44 moulds. It’s gas-checked, which may not may not be necessary for the velocity you load.
NOE 432-248WC. Wadcutter at 248 grains or so. Unlike most wadcutters that are designed to be seated flush or nearly so, this one is loaded conventionally, with at least half the bullet out of the case.
Great for full power loads.
Lyman 429421. The Elmer Keith design SWC at around 250 grains. Although I think the 429244 shoots a little better, I shoot a lot more of these because no GC makes it perfect for my .44 Specials and I have a 4-cavity mould for it.
Ranch Dog 432-265RF. I like this one so much I have three versions.
My original mould was custom made by Lee through a group buy from a cast bullet forum, a 2-cavity GC. I got another one later from NOE in a 5-cavity PB, and a 2-cavity GC HP.
This is a 265 grain (267 with my wheelweights) Wide Flat Nose in a tumble lube design. I have used it tumble lubed as-cast, and sized and lubed conventionally to .431”.
It shoots great in .44 Mag revolvers and rifles I have/had.
It may be a little heavy for .44 Spl but loading data exists and it shoots well there too.
Lee C430-310RF. This is a gas checked 310 grain WFN. Probably the most useful heavy .44 bullet mould I have. It’s definitely the cheapest heavy .44 mould I have. It’s a bargain among heavy .44 moulds.
It’s shoots well; I just have a limited use for it.
SSK 429-310. Like all SSK designs I know of, it’s a TC shape, and plain based. SSK’s weight figures come from using Linotype, so the actual weight using wheelweights is in the 330s.
This is a huge bullet. I have no need for it, but am including it here because it shot well from my Ruger 77-44.
.45:
I’m throwing .45 ACP and .45 Colt together. I’ll do .45 Colt first because there is only one.
RCBS 45-255SWC. This is the only one I use for .45 Colt because it does all I need. A 255 SWC.
H&G 68. The 200 grain SWC .45 ACP bullet. This bullet got it’s reputation from IPSC shooters when the game began. It’s heavy enough to make Major power factor easily, shoots accurately, feeds well, and cuts clean holes in paper. I only wish I had more than a 2-cavity mould for it.
H&G 34. The 225-230 round nose. Mine is a six-cavity and pours bullets, but it weighs a ton. When I’m shooting a lot of .45 ACP I’ll get it out once a year and make a lot.
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