A glass container blank mold includes a mold portion having a neck end, an opposite baffle end, and a molding surface located between the ends that partly defines the shape of an exterior surface of a glass parison formed in the mold. Axial cooling channels formed within the mold portion extend axially alongside the molding surface and radially outboard of the molding surface. Heat block channel locators are formed on one of the ends of the mold portion. Each locator is visibly discernible from the end on which the locator is formed and radially inboard of the cooling channels. Each locator has a thermally insignificant depth and is located such that, when a heat block channel having a thermally significant depth is formed at the locator, heat transfer characteristics of the mold portion are altered between the molding surface and at least one of the cooling channels.

A method includes forming a first parison in a glass blank mold, forming a first glass container from the first parison, altering thermal characteristics of the glass blank mold, and subsequently forming a second parison in the glass blank mold and a second glass container from the second parison. Altering the thermal characteristics of the glass blank mold includes forming a heat block channel at the heat block channel locator on an end of the mold or altering coolant flow characteristics of an axial cooling channel by accessing the cooling channel through a coolant deflector of the mold.