Mold shopping again, got an oddball

[dubber123]

Made it to the shop again, I ended up with a OLD Ideal (no vent lines) 454190 in great shape with the early small handles, a new RCBS .44 swc gas check (240 grains), and an oddball. I thought It would work for my application but not sure now. Anyways, it is a Lyman, # 37583. This casts at .377" out of wheelweights, a good diameter for 38-55, 375 H&H, etc, but the oddball part is that it is a plainbase 2 lube groove bullet, and weighs a mere 146 grains! the only thing I can guess is it's a gallery mold for 38-55? Any ideas? I is in new condition, and casts great, but whats it good for? Thanks.

[onceabull]

D---------------: you are spot on as to the orig.intent for that mould.(38/55 Gallery.)..Can ,of course,also serve as plinker & small game load in anything where bore size is reasonable match for castings..Personal use the largest I have exp with is in the 375 H&H..Enjoy, Onceabull,

[9.3X62AL]

Dubber, old friend, you certainly find some interesting casting tools. I need to dwell in your wake for a week or so.

I am currently back in possession of a Marlin 336 action that my nephew wanted to do SOMETHING with, but lost interest in. I lust in my heart for a 38-55 repeater, and this may be the platform elected to house that fantasy. The barrel will be a .375" groove diameter, to de-complicate boolit acquisition. Be aware that existing 38-55 barrels are known to run well past .381" in their grooves. Someone with a later-series 38-55 or 375 Winchester would be interested in such a mold, I'm sure. Newer barrels are closer to nominal dimensions.

[floodgate]

dubber:

Yes, #37583 was marketed as a "short range" .38-55 bullet, 1897 - 1956.

floodgate

[dubber123]

I don't think my last post made it through, so... Deputy Al, if this one was interesting, how about an H&G 30 cal wadcutter hollowpoint. not kidding, one cavity is a 170-ish, gc flat nose, the other cavity is identical from gc forward, but ends in a wadcutter profile, with a hollow point pin. In the same shop I got the last molds from. Floodgate, I thought the Ideal/Lyman stamp cutoff was 1964? This ones a Lyman. Did Lyman carry over some of the Ideal #'s? Deputy Al, just make sure you put an octagon barrel on that 336, they just look "right" on a lever. Thanks guys.

[Bret4207]

All I ever find around here is Lee round ball moulds, those brass Italian jobs that came with C+B revolvers and the worst thing you can find- HALF of a mould you want! Half! Some folks have no respect for the good things in life.

[Lloyd Smale]

Im not on knowlege of rifle molds or even the old odd ball molds but that rcbs 240 gc mold you picked up is probably the finest 44 bullet ive ever ran across. Ive yet to find a 44 that didnt like it. Its usually the top shooting 250 class .44 bullet in everyone of my handguns and even my marlin leverguns love it.

[dubber123]

Lloyd, I hope to cast some out of that .44 mold today. I have gotten 3 or 4 Lyman 429244's trying to get a "perfect" one. I figured I'd give this RCBS a try. Besides, it's new, and I got it for 25$, which made me happy. Should be a good general purpose slug for my S&W Mountain Gun. Hope it shoots well. Bret, once I finish pillaging this stash of molds, I don't think there is much more in the area for me to find either.

[Leftoverdj]

Anyways, it is a Lyman, # 37583. This casts at .377" out of wheelweights, a good diameter for 38-55, 375 H&H, etc, but the oddball part is that it is a plainbase 2 lube groove bullet, and weighs a mere 146 grains! the only thing I can guess is it's a gallery mold for 38-55? Any ideas? I is in new condition, and casts great, but whats it good for? Thanks.

Worth trying in one of the .36 C&B revolvers.

[Lloyd Smale]

id bet a dime to a dollar that it will outshoot the 429244 in your gun.
Lloyd, I hope to cast some out of that .44 mold today. I have gotten 3 or 4 Lyman 429244's trying to get a "perfect" one. I figured I'd give this RCBS a try. Besides, it's new, and I got it for 25$, which made me happy. Should be a good general purpose slug for my S&W Mountain Gun. Hope it shoots well. Bret, once I finish pillaging this stash of molds, I don't think there is much more in the area for me to find either.

[floodgate]

dubber:

" Floodgate, I thought the Ideal/Lyman stamp cutoff was 1964? This ones a Lyman. Did Lyman carry over some of the Ideal #'s?"

Not sure just what you are asking. Lyman actually took over the Ideal line in October, 1925, but they treated it as separate from their sight, Cutts Comp., etc., business up until the '60's, and only showed reloading stuff incidentally in their standard annual catalogs. (The reloading equipment was fully covered in the Ideal Handbooks.) Around 1964, they seem to have realized that reloading and casting equipment was a major part of the business, and started showing it intheir Annual Catalogs; it was around this time that they started marking their moulds "Lyman" instead of "Ideal". The bullet mould numbers, though, continued right along through the whole period, from the start of the current ID system (caliber + "cherry number") in 1896-7 or so right down to today. I hope this capsule history helps answer your question; if not, PM me with specifics.

floodgate

[9.3X62AL]

A 170 grain, 30 caliber, WADCUTTER--one of which has hollow-point capability. I must say, with several possible platforms to use that in--I never gave a thought about a design like that.

[dubber123]

Deputy Al, I think the wadcutter 30 cal has to come home. The same shop has a "salesman sample" Lyman 4 cavity, that casts 4 different bullets. I could ID. a 358091, and a 358429, but wasn't sure about the other 2 cavities. One looked like a 358156, but was plain base, and the other cavity was a wadcutter with a very heavy base. It would be a pain to sort out the bullets after casting, but it would be a neat mold to have. I can probably get it for 50$, and it has a set of handles on it. Appears unused. 2 more weeks till I can go back.

[Baron von Trollwhack]

I have a sc 37583 that I purchased in 1967. All I ever used it in was my Navy Arms '51 Colt Navy. It shot OK but was difficult to load because Aldo should have taken off a bit more metal where the rammer went through the barrel lug below the cylinder pin and the loading clearance was tight. Real Colts had enough clearance and the cylinder chamber diameters were bigger than groove diameters then. That is why Colts shot well. Liability concerns in making copies now make it neccessary to open up chambers to get that relationship for a good shooting repro, in most cases. Pm if you have a burning desire for a mold like that. I wouldn't shoot that bullet in a fluted cylinder pocket police though. BvT