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I got very good fill out after soaking my rcbs 405GC in kroil overnight.If you can get good fill out consistantly with those boolits it will work on anything.They really started coming out good at 850 degrees but had to let mold cool a little between pours.I soaked my new rcbs 158GC mold for one hour before using and it had very good fill out and boolits popped out easy also and I didn't deburr it or do any other pre-use stuff to it.I wish I had been using this stuff sooner.I've read the fumes are to be avoided so I cast outside or have two fans going with the exhaust being sucked outside a window with one fan when I use it in my garage.Guess I have to try out the fluid film also.Where do you find that at.I got my 10 OZ. can of kroil at an auto store.
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I'm convinced that it does work-- Sprayed it on Shooters USA 00 buck mold, always had to pry them balls out by the sprue, and after treating with Kroil, all I have to do now is lightly tap the mold and everything falls out nicely. :) Same goes with the .495 ball lee mold I have.
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I've never come across this product locally, but after reading the posts I wanted to try some. I ordered a small can from Midway, but it's not aerosol. Will this stuff be OK in a plastic pump spray bottle?
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Kriol is still offering the 2 cans for $12 HERE
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Hmmmm....don't think I'll be spraying anything on my moulds possibly except Brake Cleaner if I've had them in storage for a while and that's just to make certain that they're clean from the WD40 I had on them until I used them again! And I don't let them 'air dry' after I've sprayed the Brake Cleaner on; rather I blow that off with high pressure air...for a reason! I've been casting bullets since 1948 and as long as I can cast bullets that look like this and hold within .3 to .5 grs. I'll continue to go with my Dad's advice...who was an 'old timer'!!
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b6...h_908373a5.jpg
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FPMIII- If I cast boolits that purty I wouldn't change anything either. As a new caster I am still looking for what works best for me. Maybe Kroil, maybe not, but with the recommendations from so many, I am willing to give it a try.
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Que sera, sera
Yes, there are tried and true methods that give excellent results when followed and always work, but once in a while it is good to try something different (get outside the box) as technology changes and can improve on things- even though it seems we are going backwards these days as more technology is applied to our society. :coffeecom
I think the Kroil seals the metal pores (so to speak) and probably does create a micro-thin film on the mould. Some moulds don't require the treatment, so it's not like you are changing everything you do to get good bullets. :brokenima
As each type of mould has different characteristics, so does the casting techniques, and even the casters routine changes- if it works for you "DO IT". If you don't have problems with a sticky mould then consider yourself the luckiest man on the planet. :-D
FPMIII- looks like you need to see waksupi and purchase some lube grooves. All of yours have fallen off and you're having to use paper to hold what's left on! :kidding:
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charlie sometimes
Yes sir...they're OFF for a reason!
As for being 'outside the box'......been there a few times on casting and I always came back to the original way I was taught!
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I tried Kroil on a Lee 6 cavity mold. Did not work for me, nothing but wrinkles after many throws. I ended up letting it cool, flushing with solvent and smoking again to get it back in shape and casting good bullets again.
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Thought I'd chime in. Here's my Kroil story. I've been in the casting business almost 40 years. I, too have always heard bad things about any oily substance, and moulds. I've read every post on Kroil and moulds that I could find. With an open mind, I thought I'd try it. I have a Lyman .45 round nose 225 gr. set of blocks. Cant remember the number. It has always been a little slugish dropping boolits. Takes a good amount of tapping, and sometimes a little nudge on the boolit itself to get it to drop. Quality has always been good though. Thought if an overnight soak was good, several nights would be great. Took the blocks off the handles, and took the sprue plate off. Everything went into a half pint jar, along with a generous amount of Kroil, and the jar was sealed up with the lid. About twice a day I'd roll the jar very gently to keep everything wet. Did this for about a week. Out came the blocks. Took a rag and dried everything as good as I could. The first thing I noticed was how clean the blocks were. On top of the blocks was a small area of smeared lead that had been there for a while. Nothing big, but still there. When they came out of the jar, the lead was gone. Just like when cleaning a rifle barrel. I thought, we're really up to something here. Put the handles back on after they were good and dry, and on the hot plate they went. Got the lead in the pot up to temp, and the blocks nice and warm, and went to work. I have never seen boolits fall out so fast. Only problem was the terrible wrinkles. This went on, and on, and on. I probably threw 50, to 60, and all were wrinkled, and shinny. They sure did drop well though. Kept going, and sure enough, after 15, or 20 min. the boolits started looking better. Started frosting a little, and the boolits were perfect. Guess what. Started having to tap the handles as before to get the boolits to fall, as befort the treatment. Probably threw 250 or 300 that session. Let the blocks cool. Back off the handles, and back in the jar. Only went 3 days this time. You know the drill by now. Dried blocks, back on the handles, hot plate, yada yada yada. Mirror image of the first time, except maybe even more wrinkled ones than the first time. All of a sudden, boolits started looking great, but started having to work a little to get them to drop. Just as before. I know the blocks were up to temp, because it usually only takes 4 to 5 pours before they were good. Sorry to be so long winded, but just wanted to let yall know my experience. Dont know why so many wrinkled boolits at one time. I'm a little confused. Again, I been doing this long enough to know how long it takes to get everything up to temp. What'd I do wrong? Bob
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Well Oldtimer next time get the blocks Hot before you start casting . They will produce good from about 5th drop. But they have to be hot. The Kroil will smoke when the blocks are hot. When your done casting wet the blocks on the inside while hot and let cool. There is NO mold it will not work on. If it dont work for you then you dont get the mold hot enough or you leave too much on it. I have about 40 molds and some were bought "that will not cast good" I have not found one the drops bad ones.
I got a Lyman 429348 That would not cast at all. In 10 min everyone was perfect
It works
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What Shotman is saying is that you are aiming for building up a sort of "seasoning" in the cavities. I tried some kroil the last time I cast with a few stubborn molds and had about the same experience as Oldtimer. I did as Shotman recommended, though. I applied some kroil to the cavities when finished and still hot and hung the molds up. I haven't had a chance to try them since but hope to soon. I have my fingers crossed that it will improve them. If they are still sticking after wrinkling stops I will try a few more hot applications and store. Figure I don't really have anything to lose.
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You know, some moulds do not require the treatment. If they throw good bullets, have no hang ups, then you don't need to use the treatment.
Snaggdit said it- it basically is seasoning like an iron skillet, I think.
If you stop and think about it (IMHO), the metal is crystaline structure formed into a mass. All of the crystals may not be oriented in the same direction, and just like wood, end grain in the wrong place would propbably present a rougher (porous) surface that would cause sticky spots. These are probably the areas that we are trying to coat with the Kroil and seal. Some moulds might require more "seasoning" than others due to a more porous surface being present. I'm sure that the factories don't microscopically examine and orient their molds so only side grain (?) presents itself, so you get whatever presents itself in the mold face.
Shotman said it- "Get the blocks HOT before you start casting..... If it don't work for you then you don't get the mold hot enough or you leave too much on it."
I'm sold- I don't use it on every mold, though. Not all need it. Kroild cleans and seals, it seems.
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I guess I'll try and get them hotter. I'm just going by what I usually do. On the hot plate while the pot is coming up to temp. Usually 20-30 min. Usually takes 3-4 pours for the wrinkles to go away, and boolits starting to looking good, with just a little frost. Usually, if I go any hotter, have to wait a little, because will get a little smear on the blocks because they are not set. I think the second time, I probably dropped 50-60 before they started looking good. By then, they were not dropping as well. Is this something that takes several times putting the Kroil on before it works? Still confused. I'm a little uneasy about getting the blocks any hotter. Guess I'll try though. Thanks for all the help. Bob
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I tried it
I gave the Kroil a try on a new Lee Mold that casts a 255 gr. .452 bullet, a dbl cavity. I spent about an hour deburring the mold, then boiled it in soapy water for about 1/2 hour. I cast about 200 bullets with bullet lube as a mold lube and I had about 140 good bullets from the session. Bullets were sticky and required 2-3 raps on the pin to free them. Second session I sprayed aerosol Kroil on the mold and wiped most of it off with a Q tip, then the mold sit on top of the pot while about 18 lbs. of ingots melted. I removed the mold to flux the melt and started to cast. Bullets were wrinkled for about 6 casts but dropped very freely from the mold. Then the wrinkles stopped and the mold continued to drop both bullets without any persuasion. About 30 casts (I'm guessing) 60 bullets later the bullets started sticking a little, one rap on the pin and they fell out. I didn't apply additional Kroil for the rest of the session, using bullet lube as before to keep the mold lubed. But the bullets never returned to the sticky level experienced in the first session. The most significant benefit however, at least to me was the consistency of the casts in bullet weights. The first session yielded 140 bullets ranging from 257 to 261 grains. The second session yielded 178 shootable bullets with all but about 15 weighing within 1 grain of each other. I will try applying add'l Kroil during the next session instead of bullet lube and will post again with the results. So far I am quite impressed.
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I clean all my molds with Micro-90 and do not use a mold release. About 70-80% of the bullets drop freely.
I then tried the Kroils with a Lee 515-450 - Saeco 38-55-350 - Lyman 457132 - Lyman remake of the Ideal 375166 - RCBS 25-20 - 85 - Paul Jones Mini Groove and today with a Ideal #4 tool/mold 38-55 M.
I'll stay using the Micro-90 because I had to tap several times on all these molds to get the bullets to drop using the Kroils
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philthephlier, Please keep us posted with your results. I too have a Lee mold that I think I would like to try this method with. Like most, I've been a believer in Kroil oil for many years for gun cleaning and always have some around (bought a gallon about ten years ago). I have some molds that need a slight rapping to release the bullets. The Kroil treatment may help.
Regards, Red
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I'll give the multiple treatment a try as the first treatment didn't accomplish anything productive.
I have a very stubborn Loverin deisign 25 caliber and even after leaving the mould sit in the mix until the lead in the mould melted, still no luck. The blocks were so hot that I had to let them sit for a long time before I could see the lead solidify enough to cut off the sprue.
Like I said, no joy the first time but will give it further treatment and see. I know I have some moulds that the bullets practically open the mould and leap out before I can get it open but those stubborn ones sure make casting a drag.
By the way, getting the blocks up to temp by setting the mould in the mix a bit with the cavities full has been a very good way to get the mould up to temp for me since I discovered it.
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Tried it in an RCBS mold
dbl. cavity 255 gr. Keith bullet. Did not work well. I wonder if it is the mold though.
The bullets were very out of round though even before I tried the Kroil. Bullets measured .4545 down to .4508, .0037 out of round. That bullet has shot reasonably well in my 45 Colt Blackhawk. I think it would shoot a lot better if the bullet wasn't so out of round. Bullets can't be very balanced even after sizing. The Lee bullets did very poorly in the gun but I think I cast them way to hard. I can't scratch the bullet with my fingernail at all. Must have gotten too much tin in the mix.
I will try again with a softer pot.
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When I first tried Kroil, I didn't get good results (not that I thought that I would). A couple of times later I finally decided that I needed to apply the Kroil when the mould was hot so that it would get into the pores. I don't even tap the mould hinge any more, just make sure it's over the desired drop target and open it up! Cut my time in half, it did! YMMV, Good luck!
EW