.25 slug mold

[MrP]

I see a .25 mold at Arsenal. Wonder if those slugs would shoot straight out of a stock barrel talon p? I’ve had good luck with H and N Grizzly pellet but they are a more rounded shape with less contact with barrel. This Arsenal .25 slug is like a cylinder with a nose-cone. Not sure what to expect. 
Looks like it might have too much friction with the barrel?

http://arsenalmolds.com/products?product_id=149



also, will .257 shoot out of a .25 barrel? I had been assuming it’s wouldn’t but I read a post that made it sound like it might. 


thanks 

 

[mercado]

It might not work..to solid no groves no bands . to much drag. 

 

[T3PRanch]

Look at Bobs Boat Tail Molds at NOE. The 52 grain shoots great and NO .257 will NOT work in the .25. I also shoot .25 ACP Bullets from an old Lyman mold. Nielsen's offerings work well also.

 

[MrP]

Looks like NOE doesn’t sell molds in .25 caliber or maybe able to restock. I mean every. single. mold. is listed as “sold out”... is this normal for this company? Maybe going out of business? Panic buying of bullet molds?

There is this one Monty Python sketch where a guy walks into a cheese shop to buy cheese but the owner actually doesn’t sell any cheese, just kind of has a cheese shop. The whole skit is one guy trying to figure out what cheese is in stock (there isn’t any). That’s what the NOE site felt like to me. Slug mold shop without any slug molds, with a list of many nice looking slug molds, but nothing actually available to buy

Any well stocked mold suppliers out there, or any idea where to find a .25 cal slug mold new or used? 



thanks. 

 

[harrymoreland]

MrP, MP molds.

 

[TrinityMaker]

MrP, MP molds.

Agreed. MP-Molds 6.35mm (.25 cal) air rifle mold. 

If you're shooting it from a LW barrel with a 1:17.7 twist, the slug performs very well. The longer the barrel, the more stable the slug will be. But the slug likes the choke in the barrel. The LW barrel has a groove diameter of .254, and the largest drive band on the slug is .254. 

Don't use a .257 slug in the .25 barrel. It will NOT perform well. Don't ask me how I know.  

Link: https://www.mp-molds.com/product/635-mm-air-rifle-pellet-8-cav-mold/?currency=USD

 

[mercado]

Update mp molds have the copy of the rcbs 25 050 available in flat point and hollow point..44g..not many available..so if one is needed now is the time .. I just purchased mine..I didn't buy the boat tail one because the rcbs copy is really tight enough to have the magazine to rotate..in the cricket. 

 

[MrP]

Some folks gave me some very good advice about how to set up for production properly. I plan to take this advice as soon as I am ready to make a decent batch. But I wonder about reasonable setups with less equipment for a small test batch


Tell me what is stupid about this plan to cast maybe 8-16 slugs just as a test run:

1. melt dry, clean lead pellets in tin cup over camping stove or electric hot plate outdoors, lowest effective heat setting. skim any gunk, flux with tiny bit of candle wax, stir


2. At the same time heat bullet mold using electric hot plate on low setting (set an old pan on the hot plate and set the mold on the pan to slowly warm up)



3. use a small lead ladle to pour molten lead into the heated mold



etc..



One issue I can imagine right away is getting enough lead melted in that tin cup to actually be able to scoop it out with the ladle. I imagine it would be really nice if I had a tin/metal cup with a spout so I could just pour the lead directly. Again I am not wanting to make 5 pounds of these things, just to get a small batch made to test. 


later I may buy a specialized lead melting pot.

 

[MrP]

Success!

 

[mercado]

MrP .. those bullets looks great

 

[MrP]

Thanks! I am surprised how well it worked. Here are some better shots of one up close. Shooting at 52 fpe at a little over 700fps in my TalonP powerwheel set to low-medium. They weigh almost exactly 3 grams. About 3.06g +- 0.02 for the handful i checked. 


from mp molds. .25 airgun bullet. They have this design in .22 as well

 

[mercado]

I purchased a few bullets of those in .22 and sized to .216 they shoot great of my cricket...is really under power for that weight but they shoot straight..I'm purchasing a cricket carbine longer barrel if they shoot great to I will purchase a .25 cricket for a HP build..thanks for the pics..

 

[MrP]

Recovered one slug intact. Deep rifling marks on the drive band and fainter ones on the nose, if you look closely.

 

[MrP]

These behave quite differently from anything else I have shot with the TalonP. At 10-15m these bullets are way more penetrative and destructive than the other slugs and pellets I have. I can see why Yo is always cautioning people to be sensible with these types of projectiles.


I have a plasticine clay ball that will stop all other pellets shot at any power out of the TalonP. These plow through it an hit HARD on the other end, hard enough to flatten and partially shatter. I added another 2” of clay. Right through.


likewise a hard cover (old edition) math textbook that stops everything else cold. Never been able to get a slug or pellet all the way through. These go right through and out the other side, even near the spine, again retaining much energy and smashing things on the other side. 


I have been trying to capture a fired slug using clay and foam - what works for any other projectile - and have not been able to stop them without something like a steel plate or a log.

 

[MrP]

Someone sells these on eBay as “varmintknockers” for I think $12 per 100 or thereabouts.

 

[dannya1a]

Looks like NOE doesn’t sell molds in .25 caliber or maybe able to restock. I mean every. single. mold. is listed as “sold out”... is this normal for this company? Maybe going out of business? Panic buying of bullet molds?

There is this one Monty Python sketch where a guy walks into a cheese shop to buy cheese but the owner actually doesn’t sell any cheese, just kind of has a cheese shop. The whole skit is one guy trying to figure out what cheese is in stock (there isn’t any). That’s what the NOE site felt like to me. Slug mold shop without any slug molds, with a list of many nice looking slug molds, but nothing actually available to buy

Any well stocked mold suppliers out there, or any idea where to find a .25 cal slug mold new or used? 



thanks.

According to NOE they will be restocking their moulds in about 8 weeks or so. this is for the .22 and .25 calibers

 

[MrP]

I’ve been using this cast iron dipper to fill the cavities in the mold. It retains heat very well and has a pour hole in the bottom that makes it very easy to use and allows you to apply a good amount of “head pressure” when filling the mold. 


basically I fill the dipper with lead and tip it back so the pour hole is horizontal. Designed to work this way... then I place the sprue hole against the dipper spout-hole and tip the whole thing together 90 degrees so the lead drops straight down into the sprue hole right beneath. At this point the entire volume of lead in the dipper is exerting pressure, as the spout kind of seals up against the indentation of the sprue. Then you just tip it back to horizontal and move on to the next cavity, tip, hold, and return. I can really crank out the pellets this way and have very little waste - the nozzle in the dipper fits the sprue holes perfectly and just a little cone of lead filing the sprue remains. 

dupper

 

[MrP]

Annnd..... I’ll just keep talking to myself here.


Did a little shopping around for molds. This MP mold is a freaking great deal given that it has eight cavities and didn’t cost as much as some of the two cavity molds being sold by other manufacturers. And I can’t imagine it being any better. As long as I heat it up properly I’m able to get eight full perfect fills in all eight cavities every time. Using a ladle with a pourspout in the bottom I’m able to produce a full tin of these in just 15 minutes or so, after the lead has heated up.


At 47 grains these pellets are a little heavy, I’d prefer something in the 30’s but they’re actually pretty much perfect for shooting in my indoor gallery. They shoot a little high compared to my JSB diablo pellets so that’s better than the alternative I suppose. Being heavy, I have to use higher PW settings to achieve decent velocities so I have to do more hand pumping, get fewer shots per fill... a small but noticeable price to pay.

Accuracy seems comparable to other pellets at the close range I shoot.

So now I can save my expensive store-bought pellets for some occasion when I need something with better accuracy or perhaps a flatter trajectory, or just get tired of pumping every 20 shots. 


I’m amazed at this thing is actually practical and kind of economical actually. It will have paid for itself after another couple of months. I’m doing this all outdoors I don’t feel like I’m really being exposed to any risk. I’m able to stay up wind... still, all the interaction with lead is aggravating just because of all the vigilance required. 

 

[I_Am_Phoenix]

MrP I agree, the MP mold is good but heavy. I am shooting them from a AEA Varmint. .25 @ 900+ . Not very accurate at all. They fall out of the barrel of my Benjerman Armada. I am looking for more of the pellet mold. 



And love the set up by the way. I am still using the old torch and spoon. (for a few more days).

 

[GeneT]

I did not realize that the Lyman pot doesn't have a spout. For a similar price Lee has a pot that pours, so you can fill directly from the pot (and it's taking lead off the 'bottom' so you don't need to worry about the junk floating on top. 

If you get an annual checkup, ask them to test your lead levels (a good idea for any shooter, but especially a caster) - it adds $0 to my checkups - that'll let you know if there's a problem or not - otherwise you're just guessing. Keeping it all outside goes a long way in the right direction. There's also a product called "Led-D-Solve" that converts lead dust to some relatively harmless compound. 

Cheers,

GsT