Old Cramer Mold

[Ben]

I have what " I believe to be " and old Cramer, 38/ 357 Mould ( or is it mold ) ? ? ?

The blocks don't have any markings of any type on them.

It is a 158 gr. plain base SWC. The bullets jump from the mold with no sticking.
They drop at .3595" and size out nice and round to .358 ".
A great bullet out of my 12" TC Contender 357 Mag., my Ruger GP 100, Blue 6", 357.
My Colt Officer's Model Match , 38 Spec. and I have also used it as a plinking bullet out of my 3 different 358 Win. rifles.

I've shot it from " child mild " to " full tilt ! ", A great bullet !











Notice the way the tops of the blocks are vented , no trapped air with this mold :



It doesn't take long to end up with a pile of bullets with this mold :

 

[freebullet]

Nice!

The vent lines are certainly unique.

 

[Ian]

Nice piece of functional art there, Ben. My Momma always told me that "mold" is what grows on old cheese. Dad told me that "moulds" were what we used to cast toy army men, and he has more than enough letters after his name for me to take his word for it. I have a 1905 Sears catalog repro that lists plenty of Ideal moulds, and on the same page they spell it both ways as I remember. Lyman was pretty consistent with the English spelling so that's what I use.

 

[Rick]

It's used both ways so much anymore I'm not sure it really matters. RCBS, Midway, Erik at Hollow Point Bullet Mold and many others all use "mold". If you look up the proper definition mold is a fungus and mould is a hollow container.

Nice mold Ben, I like the venting for the sprue plate.

 

[Ben]

It isn't an issue with me which way it is spelled. However, if you go to Lee's Web site, they use the word mold .

 

[358156hp]

That's a really nice looking bullet design too.

 

[Brad]

That venting looks an awful lot like what you get when you stone a small bevel on the top edge of a mould block. Imagine that.....

 

[Ben]

I wonder when this mold was made ?
Anyone want to venture a guess ?

 

[freebullet]

I'll guess 1951.

I'm certified in mold remediation.

 

[Brad]

I wonder when this mold was made ?
Anyone want to venture a guess ?

Older than me and therefore old enough for me to have no clue.

I bet 358165HP will have soemthing to say. He is into vintage moulds.

 

[Ben]

Good, I'd like to hear his take................

 

[Rick]

Glen may be able to give a clue also.

 

[358156hp]

I have a four cavity mould very similar to yours, but mine has the sprueplate marked "382", which corresponds to a SAECO mould that's still in production. Yours is likely from the fifties, as close as I've been able to match it up. I really wanted it to be a Cramer #12, which was a Keith model, but your bullet weight doesn't match. I'm guessing it's either a #25 or a #25A, but I'm not certain. Here's a pic of mine, I do like the bullet design of your mould better than mine. Oh, Glen!!!! Can you spare a moment?

 

[358156hp]

Oh, here's a page that might help: http://www.castpics.net/subsite/HistMolds/CramerMolds.html

 

[Rick]

This is SAECO 150 gr PB #382 on the left, SAECO 160 gr BB #388 on the right.



HP, that is an old style SAECO sprue plate in your photo and from the screws that I can see I would say the mold is also.

 

[Ben]

My front drive band seems to be heavier than what I'm seeing in references.

The SAECO # 382 has a middle drive band that is thick and heavy, my mold does not display that characteristic :

 

[Glen]

I will contribute later this afternoon. I'm tied up with a client all day......

 

[Charles Graff]

If sure looks like a Cramer mold. I don't know the number but it is not a No. 12. The No. 12 has a middle driving band that is wider than the other two. It may be an early SAECO/Cramer. The spru plate is not marked and both Cramer and SAECO marked the spru plate. My best guess is it is a factory replacement spru plate that was sold generic without the markings.

 

[Glen]

Ben -- I have that same mould. It is a Cramer #26. My vent lines are patterned different from yours, and the sprue plate stop is different, but it's a 3-cavity mould that is cut in the same pattern as yours, and vented across the top, like yours. It is a very accurate bullet. Cramer made bullet moulds from the late 1930s through 1951, when they were bought out by SAECO -- so your mould was made sometime in that window. I will try to post some photos later on.

358156hp -- your mould is a SAECO 382. The fat middle driving band is a tell-tale signature of that design. I HAD one just like it, but a buddy of mine talked me out of it in a moment of weakness, and now laughs at me when I try to get it back. Another excellent bullet.

 

[358156hp]

I found the #26 but couldn't see the pics clearly enough, so I stopped there to let somebody with better information get a word in edgewise.

I like Bens mould better

Thanks Glen!