NOE Hunter pellet moulds .22 cal

[Ike the GSD]

I wasn't sure where to post this, but I was interested in trying this mould just for fun and was wondering if any of you have used one and what kind of quality I can expect from the pellets. I'm very familiar with bullet casting and lead and mould temps and such. Are these moulds even available anymore?  I can't seem to find them anywhere? Thanks guys,

Wes

[Wayne52]

Wes this should be in bullets and Pellets casting which is a child board of projectiles. I'm personally very happy about casting pellets and slugs because of the fact it's so hard to even find decent pellets available these days.  I've been doing it for quite some time and believe me the airgun molds that are available these days are A1, especially the NOE molds.

[maraudinglizard]

Wes, I have the .22 NOE mold, can't beat it for accuracy and price. I have the .25, .30, and .357 as well. They have already paid for themselves. They are available you just have to watch the NOE site or request an email for availability from NOE. Best time to buy the molds is when there is an email sale going on. Those should be popping up soon for the holidays. I use the 2 cavity aluminum blocks, they are easier on my hands and wrist weight wise. The brass is offered on the site as well. I agree with Wayne, these molds are top notch, the pellets are well formed, drop easy, and no flashing. Go for it, it's worth it.

[Ike the GSD]

Wes this should be in bullets and Pellets casting which is a child board of projectiles. I'm personally very happy about casting pellets and slugs because of the fact it's so hard to even find decent pellets available these days.  I've been doing it for quite some time and believe me the airgun molds that are available these days are A1, especially the NOE molds.

Sorry about the post location, I saw the child board area, but I thought it meant the gate was for kids and so I posted it here LOL I clicked on it after I posted this to see what the kids had came up with in regards to this mould and found all of the usual suspects aka you and a few others LOL

[Ike the GSD]

Wes, I have the .22 NOE mold, can't beat it for accuracy and price. I have the .25, .30, and .357 as well. They have already paid for themselves. They are available you just have to watch the NOE site or request an email for availability from NOE. Best time to buy the molds is when there is an email sale going on. Those should be popping up soon for the holidays. I use the 2 cavity aluminum blocks, they are easier on my hands and wrist weight wise. The brass is offered on the site as well. I agree with Wayne, these molds are top notch, the pellets are well formed, drop easy, and no flashing. Go for it, it's worth it.

Do you have a choice in pellet weights? I plan on shooting these out of my Diana 350. 23 grains seems on the heavy side for a springer, something closer to the weight of the Barracuda Hunter pellets would be better. Also, what do you lube them with? Thanks for the quick responses fellas,

Wes

[maraudinglizard]

Wes, I have the .22 NOE mold, can't beat it for accuracy and price. I have the .25, .30, and .357 as well. They have already paid for themselves. They are available you just have to watch the NOE site or request an email for availability from NOE. Best time to buy the molds is when there is an email sale going on. Those should be popping up soon for the holidays. I use the 2 cavity aluminum blocks, they are easier on my hands and wrist weight wise. The brass is offered on the site as well. I agree with Wayne, these molds are top notch, the pellets are well formed, drop easy, and no flashing. Go for it, it's worth it.

Do you have a choice in pellet weights? I plan on shooting these out of my Diana 350. 23 grains seems on the heavy side for a springer, something closer to the weight of the Barracuda Hunter pellets would be better. Also, what do you lube them with? Thanks for the quick responses fellas,

Wes

Yes, I have the different pins to make the lighter pellets. The mold is the https://noebulletmolds.com/site/product-category/224/217-24-rf-cc2-magnum-pellet/.  The target pellet may fall into what you are looking for in weight. I haven't weighed mine yet, I am reusing my lead so I will get different results than Wayne is getting with pure lead. I don't lube my pellets, no need to plus I find it messy as well.

[Back_Roads]

 This would be the mold to try, BTW these molds do not come with handles so if you do not have a handle either the LEE or the NOE handles will work, the NOE IMO is better.
https://noebulletmolds.com/site/shop/224/217-20-rf-ce6-hunter-pellet/217-20-rf-ce6-2-cavity-hb-hunter/

[Ike the GSD]

Wow, thanks a lot fellas! This looks like it's going to be fun and if these shoot well it will take some of the stress off of finding pellets. I have lots of pure lead and tin so playing around a little with lead/tin mixtures should allow for at least some weight control in addition to helping the mould fill out completely.  I'm kind of excited LOL!!

[maraudinglizard]

Wow, thanks a lot fellas! This looks like it's going to be fun and if these shoot well it will take some of the stress off of finding pellets. I have lots of pure lead and tin so playing around a little with lead/tin mixtures should allow for at least some weight control in addition to helping the mould fill out completely.  I'm kind of excited LOL!!

Careful, that is another rabbit hole you will be going down. It is enjoyable to make your own ammo and not have to worry about running out of it. Good Luck.

[Wayne52]

Wes here's a thread on my first run with the 217-20-RF pellets that I did right after I bought the mold from NOE  https://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=152898.0

[Ike the GSD]

Wes here's a thread on my first run with the 217-20-RF pellets that I did right after I bought the mold from NOE  https://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=152898.0

Those pellets you cast look incredible holy cow! Nice 😀

[Madd Hatter]

I believe Wayne said his weight out at 19 something grains. I just spray some pledge on a rag and roll them around to evenly coat them. When I cast these I polish the pins so the pellet drops off with just a shake of the wrist.

[Ike the GSD]

I believe Wayne said his weight out at 19 something grains. I just spray some pledge on a rag and roll them around to evenly coat them. When I cast these I polish the pins so the pellet drops off with just a shake of the wrist.

So you don't think I should use Crisco like I did with my black powder Minie balls? .....Just kidding 😜 Thanks for the tip, I think I may try them dry first and see how it goes, I really don't want to lube them if I can avoid it. It's gonna be a while before I can afford the mould, I may ask my buddy if he wants to go half with me. I have all of the casting equipment and over 50lbs of lead and 10 lbs of tin. Thanks for all of the replies fellas,

Wes

[35 shooter]

Just picked up a NOE 20 gr. Mold in 22 cal. last week. It’s a 2 cavity brass mold.
It casts beautiful pellets... just keep the heat up on the mold, the sprues harden over almost immediately on those  little 20 gr. Pellets.

Accuracy is pin point out of a Benji 392 steroid.

[Ike the GSD]

Just picked up a NOE 20 gr. Mold in 22 cal. last week. It’s a 2 cavity brass mold.
It casts beautiful pellets... just keep the heat up on the mold, the sprues harden over almost immediately on those  little 20 gr. Pellets.

Accuracy is pin point out of a Benji 392 steroid.

That's so cool, I can't wait to try the mould out, I think I might opt for the brass mould too, I've had several aluminum moulds over the years and while they work well they always seemed delicate to me compared to the steel Lyman moulds.

[35 shooter]

I got the brass mold so I could easily tell it from all my al. and iron bullet molds.
It is definitely heavier than my al. molds for sure, but I like it.
I think al. heats up faster, but the brass seems to retain the heat better once it’s at casting temp.

I’m having to pour fast with my bottom pour lee pot, but i’m going to try Wayne’s pressure pour technique with a ladle next.

[Wayne52]

Steel molds are awesome, if there were airgun molds made from steel that's what I'd pic because they retain the heat better but brass will have to do.  I only use the pressure pour method myself !!!!!

[KnifeMaker]

I got the brass mold so I could easily tell it from all my al. and iron bullet molds.
It is definitely heavier than my al. molds for sure, but I like it.
I think al. heats up faster, but the brass seems to retain the heat better once it’s at casting temp.

I’m having to pour fast with my bottom pour lee pot, but i’m going to try Wayne’s pressure pour technique with a ladle next.

It is easier to pressure cast with a pot than a ladle. Allows adjustment of pressure. Start with the fill adjustment turned way down and go from there. Increase until you get whiskers and lightly back down from there. Much more consistent.

Knife

[Wayne52]

I cast up a few hundred .22 wad cutters this morning using the ladle pressure pour method.

[35 shooter]

Wayne,
Those look great. I did better yesterday with the bottom pour than the first time. About 2/3 were perfect and were jamming at 20 yds. benched and unweighted!
I think pressure pouring is going to be the trick with molding pellets though!

KnifeMaker,
I’ll give it a try both ways... ladle and bottom pour with the pressure technique.
Gotta get my reject rate down for sure. Yesterday I had to cull about 50 out of 200 poured.