Newb here, have moulds and looking for info

[Jcon72]

I've not posted here before but was recommended to this site about a year ago by another member.
First of all, I am a handloader but load mainly for pistol cartridges and some modern rifle cartridges. The closest thing to an antique centerfire rifle cartridge that I shoot would be 30-30 and .35 Remington, so you can see my knowledge of the old BP rifles is quite limited.
Recently I bought a box of bullet moulds and some of them appear to be right up the alley of you guys who shoot these old rifles, so it seemed natural to check here for info. Would it be acceptable to post a link to a Google Drive folder where I have pictures of all of them? To be up front, I do plan to sell them to people who can use them but would like to be a little better educated before doing so.
Thanks in advance!

[VenisonRX]

I’m not sure the etiquette for google drives. I imagine it’s fine on the forum’s end. I think that comes more down to how much you want to give the entire world access to the drive. But I’m also not any sort of expert on google drives so I’m not sure how much of a security compromise that is.

The only way to actually know what you have is cast from them and measure. Measuring the cavities themselves can give you an idea but lead alloys change size after being cast and the molds are made to give you the desired result after cooling given a specific alloy (most companies advertise “as cast with wheel weights”). So the best you can do is say it’s an 50cal round nose or whatever, you won’t be able to say it’s a .512 vs .515 which makes a difference unless it’s a mass produced mold in which case you might be able to look up the specs. There’s also so many people using custom molds without casting you may or may not be able to look it up since with them you often specify which alloy you’re using and they cut it to give you the results with your alloy. The two big companies are Lyman and Lee, you may start by browsing what they have if any of your molds are made by them.

Is your intent only to sell? If you have any that match up to what you’re currently loading for you can cast for any modern cartridge as easily as black powder ones. Also PM sent.

[Jcon72]

There shouldn't be any ethical issue posting the link to the Drive folder from Google's viewpoint, I just didn't want to violate any forum rule or expectation. The folder is set to "view-only" status and doesn't have anything in it other than pictures and a note regarding these moulds, so it's not much of a security risk, either.
Here is a link to the pictures, as well as the included note with some of my explanations/questions.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/ ... drive_link

Thanks!

[VenisonRX]

Looking through your list I don’t feel comfortable commenting on the smaller calibers but the 50 calibers you have other than the 50bmg mold are on the heavier side and if you’re looking for a use I’d say 50-90 or larger. Maybe the 500gr would be useful as a paper patch in the 50-70 but I’m not a paper patch guy and have know working knowledge. The wad cutters I can’t comment on. You’ve got a 54 caliber in there that would be a Christmas tree mold for a 54cal sharps that uses paper cartridges. I shoot such a rifle. Love it. I can’t comment on prices. If youre looking at gunbroker something to consider is it’s crazy right now and scrolling through looks like gun show prices. The trick is look at the auctions that are just ending. What people are asking and what they are getting are very different things a lot of times.

[VenisonRX]

To further clarify wrapping up my last post since looking at it I probably wasn’t clear enough. When I say look at what’s ending I mean look at the ones ending that actually have bids on them. Watch them as they end because a lot of bids happen right in the last seconds but you’ll see what I mean. An example is I’m considering selling an 03a3 Springfield but I’m unsure of the real value since there’s guys trying to get almost $2000 for them or as little as $700. The last one I watched go went for $900. The $1800 or so ones remain unbid upon. That obviously puts what I can expect much closer to the $700-900 range. And it’s not because one is a Remington and the other isn’t. They are all the same guns in about the same conditions. You probably know this but in case you didn’t I’d pass that along. From our sidebar conversation you seem to have good sense so I hope I’m not wasting your time.

[Jcon72]

Yes, I am a big believer in watching the completed prices on GB and eBay. Sometimes you see some crazy stuff that happened!