Lead Mold Release Spray

[cadman]

Ok so I'm not the first guy to always try new things. Also I have to thank some of the guys who posted on here about lead mold release agent. I don't know all your names so THANK YOU ALL. I am not a stubborn person (well maybe a little) but I was having a problem with one of my molds with the jigs getting stuck inside the cavities after they were poured. Well I got really frustrated (putting it mildly) and a thought came back haunting me that I should try the mold release spray the guys who pour bullets use. Well after fighting with these jigs I decided to bite the bullet and buy this stuff. I am not a big fan of a lot of hype so I had mixed emotions about paying around $10 for a small can of spray. Anyway, I bought some from Zeiner's with the molds I ordered and I tried it out for the first time. Man where have I been for the last 8 years of pouring. This stuff is sprayed on over a cleaned mold, both mold halves, all jig cavities and sprue cavities. It goes on gray and looks like flat battleship gray paint once it dries. Well to make a long story short., this stuff is the cat's a$$. It is like cooking eggs on a teflon pan. I was impressed. It definitely helps release the jigs from the mold cavity. I have not tried it on all my molds, but I will as I use them. A very good product indeed. If you've never used it you have to check it out.................................................Good Luck and Good Pouring

[psilvers]

I have dealt with them when passing through Wichita and tehy are good folks.

Does the spray also help with even pouring - kind of like blackening?

Thanks,

Pete

[smallmouthaholic]

Ok so I'm not the first guy to always try new things. Also I have to thank some of the guys who posted on here about lead mold release agent. I don't know all your names so THANK YOU ALL. I am not a stubborn person (well maybe a little) but I was having a problem with one of my molds with the jigs getting stuck inside the cavities after they were poured. Well I got really frustrated (putting it mildly) and a thought came back haunting me that I should try the mold release spray the guys who pour bullets use. Well after fighting with these jigs I decided to bite the bullet and buy this stuff. I am not a big fan of a lot of hype so I had mixed emotions about paying around $10 for a small can of spray. Anyway, I bought some from Zeiner's with the molds I ordered and I tried it out for the first time. Man where have I been for the last 8 years of pouring. This stuff is sprayed on over a cleaned mold, both mold halves, all jig cavities and sprue cavities. It goes on gray and looks like flat battleship gray paint once it dries. Well to make a long story short., this stuff is the cat's a$$. It is like cooking eggs on a teflon pan. I was impressed. It definitely helps release the jigs from the mold cavity. I have not tried it on all my molds, but I will as I use them. A very good product indeed. If you've never used it you have to check it out.................................................Good Luck and Good Pouring

Thanks for the info. I have some custom molds are a difficult to remove the finished product. I just ordered a can. It will be a God sent if it's the Cat's Meow"

[cadman]

I have dealt with them when passing through Wichita and tehy are good folks.

Does the spray also help with even pouring - kind of like blackening?

Thanks,

Pete

Pete, I really don't have very many pouring problems, but what I did notice when I poured lead in the mold, it looked to me like the lead just slid off of the coating, so I'm going to say yes it will definitely help achieve fuller pours. I have only used it so far on 2 molds and about 300 jigs. So far I like it. I will keep you guys posted especially on hard to pour molds.

Thanks for the info. I have some custom molds are a difficult to remove the finished product. I just ordered a can. It will be a God sent if it's the Cat's Meow"

Please post your thoughts and results good or bad when you get a chance to use it . I always like feed back from others as it helps all of us make things easier in our lead pouring quests.

[Ogajiga]

I was wondering, is this a one time spray on or does it require re-application?

[BBK]

I was wondering, is this a one time spray on or does it require re-application?

And how often before it wears off?

[cadman]

I was wondering, is this a one time spray on or does it require re-application?

Hawn

The stuff I got was made by Frankford Arsenal. The only info on the can is to clean existing mold with paint thinner or acetone to clean off oils and grime and let dry. Then spray on the release agent on a cool mold and let dry. Reapply as necessary to release bullets. When reapplying clean off old release agent with pain thinner or acetone. It doesn't say how often to reapply so I will call the manufacturer and see what their input is then I'll post it here. I will tell you one thing. I know you have the Cabela's Wobble Jig as I do, and that is where I would like to see how this works. Those jigs coming out of that mold are a P.I.T.A. However I think the shape of the jig in that mold and the casting is an issue all to itself. Do you have a problem with that mold as well?

Edited March 13, 2010 by cadman

[cadman]

And how often before it wears off?

You beat me to it, I guess I'll have to type faster.

[cadman]

Ok................... Newsflash and update on Mold Release. All I have to say is that this stuff works beautifully. This is how I did some testing. I'm sure by now everyone does cold pours to make sure the mold is hot enough, and so you get full pours. Well when you do cold pours, at some point as you fill your cavity with lead (without any hooks) the cavity will fill up with lead and overpour. As I did this with a warmer mold 1/4 oz Arky Jig cavity ( sprayed with Mold release) I noticed that for about 5 seconds the lead was still pouring out of the bottom of the mold. Then when the mold really got hot, the lead continued to pour out of the bottom of the cavity as long as you held the plunger open. This tells me that the mold release is some really slick stuff. Which means that you will have less bad pours, because the cavity with the coating seems to let the lead fill all of the unoccupied spaces. This has really worked out for me, to the point that I have sprayed all of my problem molds so far. Everything seems to work better. Just my opinion. I have no stocks in any of this stuff

Now as far as how long it stays on the mold. I have used one mold on and off for about 500 pours in the same cavity and it seems to still work. I did notice that after that amount of time, the flat gray coating from the spray started to get shiny. So instead of cleaning the mold like your supposed to, I let the mold cool really well, and then I sprayed more right over the existing release agent. Let dry and started all over again. Worked like a charm. I don't know what the cleaning does, but if you get lazy, spraying over the existing release agent proved to work as well.

So far I am a very happy customer. If anyone else tries it please post your feedback here for everyone to learn.

[kelly]

Thanks I will have to give that mold release a try the next time I make an order.

[cadman]

Candle smoke makes a pretty good mold release agent. When I used to cast my own bullets for my muzzle loaders I used a dab of patch grease in each cavity. I think I used PAM cooking spray back when I used to cast my own crappie jigs.

Seems to me a good coat of soot from candle smoke is what a buddy of mine who makes and sells thousands of jigs and spinner baits uses in his molds.

Bob,

I have tried candle smoke when I first started and did not have any better results. I do know that many guys swear by it but I have had no success with it. The other thing is I hate that soot all over my molds, also it gets on your hands and everything you touch and to me it is quite a mess. This is however my own personal opinion. I have tried the mold release with much trepidation. I do not like to buy products just to buy them. But I did try this as I have a few molds that are a bear to pour and it has helped and I feel that this is by far the best stuff I tried on my molds. I would like to hear other peoples reports though as I'm curious is it just me or do others feel that their pours are much better using this product.

[cz75b]

Mold release does a couple of things. First it provides a bit of insulation keeping the metal fluid a little longer which helps fill out mold details. Second it acts as a release helping jigs, bullets or whatever was poured drop out of the mold easier. My experience is always apply to a cold, clean mold. After that, just spray over the previous coats to keep going. As I have mentioned before, check out bullet casting sites for lead pouring tips. As a bonus, mold release makes a handle/ hinge lube for molds as well. Candle soot contains waxes and oils and doesn't make as good a release as wooden match soot. For bullet casters, oil in the cavity is a deal breaker and required severe cleaning and start over. Lure pouring might be a bit more forgiving. Frankford Arsenal mold release is available at midwayusa.com Glad folks are discovering new things that work.

[cadman]

Mold release does a couple of things. First it provides a bit of insulation keeping the metal fluid a little longer which helps fill out mold details. Second it acts as a release helping jigs, bullets or whatever was poured drop out of the mold easier. My experience is always apply to a cold, clean mold. After that, just spray over the previous coats to keep going. As I have mentioned before, check out bullet casting sites for lead pouring tips. As a bonus, mold release makes a handle/ hinge lube for molds as well. Candle soot contains waxes and oils and doesn't make as good a release as wooden match soot. For bullet casters, oil in the cavity is a deal breaker and required severe cleaning and start over. Lure pouring might be a bit more forgiving. Frankford Arsenal mold release is available at midwayusa.com Glad folks are discovering new things that work.

cz,

If you were the first one to mention that here about 3 months ago, then I thank you for posting it. I don't remember who it was, but I took your (their) advice and I love to work with this stuff. Doesn't even compare to soot. Thanks again for an excellent idea.Too bad I haven't done this earlier.

[Smallie]

Mold release does a couple of things. First it provides a bit of insulation keeping the metal fluid a little longer which helps fill out mold details. Second it acts as a release helping jigs, bullets or whatever was poured drop out of the mold easier. My experience is always apply to a cold, clean mold. After that, just spray over the previous coats to keep going. As I have mentioned before, check out bullet casting sites for lead pouring tips. As a bonus, mold release makes a handle/ hinge lube for molds as well. Candle soot contains waxes and oils and doesn't make as good a release as wooden match soot. For bullet casters, oil in the cavity is a deal breaker and required severe cleaning and start over. Lure pouring might be a bit more forgiving. Frankford Arsenal mold release is available at midwayusa.com Glad folks are discovering new things that work.

Midway has the mold release on sale for 6.99 but they add 3.00 for small order handling and the shipping to New Hampshire is 13.79 - WOW !

[BBK]

Just for the hell of it, I sprayed a mold with WD40 today. It actually worked as a temporary mold release! It only worked for the first 10-15 casts but it did in-fact help. Just got to remember to wipe it on with a rag, don't spray it on. Too much will go boom.

[cadman]

Just for the hell of it, I sprayed a mold with WD40 today. It actually worked as a temporary mold release! It only worked for the first 10-15 casts but it did in-fact help. Just got to remember to wipe it on with a rag, don't spray it on. Too much will go boom.

I have thought about that many times. The only question I have is what would that do to the jigs or weights if you were to paint them? Have you tried to paint the jigs to see what happens . I'm curious. I know WD40 evaporates and I know you can put the jigs in a degreaser, however that would be another step in the process. If you have some time and you use powder paint, paint some up with out cleaning them, just wiping them off and let us know your results. I'm sure we're all interested. I know I am. Thanks

Edited May 16, 2010 by cadman

[BBK]

I have thought about that many times. The only question I have is what would that do to the jigs or weights if you were to paint them? Have you tried to paint the jigs to see what happens . I'm curious. I know WD40 evaporates and I know you can put the jigs in a degreaser, however that would be another step in the process. If you have some time and you use powder paint, paint some up with out cleaning them, just wiping them off and let us know your results. I'm sure we're all interested. I know I am. Thanks

They are in the oven as we speak. The paint adhered fine, we'll see how it is after being cured.

[BBK]

Seems to have worked fine.

[cadman]

Seems to have worked fine.

Well I just have to Thank You for doing the testing and posting your results. This will help a lot of guys who maybe don't want to buy the spray release and use an alternative. Definitely some good info.

[JSC]

Just for the hell of it, I sprayed a mold with WD40 today. It actually worked as a temporary mold release! It only worked for the first 10-15 casts but it did in-fact help. Just got to remember to wipe it on with a rag, don't spray it on. Too much will go boom.

Thanx for the info but I think we have a big Safety Problem with using it.

JSC

[BBK]

Thanx for the info but I think we have a big Safety Problem with using it.

JSC

Have you tried it?

[BBK]

Well cadman, I can give you an honest review now. I love the release spray! I did have one problem though, on a couple of my molds I like to use different sized hooks than do-it recommends. The release spray was so good that it made the lead fill in the eye of the hook and all down the hook shank..... For anyone that has had this problem, a little steel wool removes this stuff from the places you don't want it. After a minute or so of work, I got the spray removed from the eye slot and where the hook goes, now it works perfectly.

After 900 pours, it is still holding up fairly well. A few more pours and it will need a new coat.

[cadman]

Well cadman, I can give you an honest review now. I love the release spray! I did have one problem though, on a couple of my molds I like to use different sized hooks than do-it recommends. The release spray was so good that it made the lead fill in the eye of the hook and all down the hook shank..... For anyone that has had this problem, a little steel wool removes this stuff from the places you don't want it. After a minute or so of work, I got the spray removed from the eye slot and where the hook goes, now it works perfectly.

After 900 pours, it is still holding up fairly well. A few more pours and it will need a new coat.

BBK

I'm glad you like it. It's funny because I have the same complaint although I would rather have that than half filled pours or voids in my jigs. I have a lot of customers who like smaller hooks in the Do-It molds, and like you mentioned when I pour, since the hook wire diameter is slightly smaller, the lead fills really well and some might go down the shank of the hook. It's not a really big problem, but it shows you what a little mold release spray will do for you.

**For those of you guys who haven't tried it yet, you don't know what you're missing as far as ease of pouring**

Edited May 25, 2010 by cadman

[Romeo D]

BBK

I'm glad you like it. It's funny because I have the same complaint although I would rather have that than half filled pours or voids in my jigs. I have a lot of customers who like smaller hooks in the Do-It molds, and like you mentioned when I pour, since the hook wire diameter is slightly smaller, the lead fills really well and some might go down the shank of the hook. It's not a really big problem, but it shows you what a little mold release spray will do for you.

**For those of you guys who haven't tried it yet, you don't know what you're missing as far as ease of pouring**

Ted and the person who first shared this,

Thank You. It works awesome. And as BBK said, steel wool will help remove it from the places you don't want it, especially around the eyes.

[cadman]

Ted and the person who first shared this,

Thank You. It works awesome. And as BBK said, steel wool will help remove it from the places you don't want it, especially around the eyes.

Romeo thanks for your feedback on the product and glad you like it.