Lyman 4 cavity 429421

[Mark]

I have been up in the air about my next mould purchase. I am under the assumption (strongly influnced by Lloyd Smale) the RCBS 250-k boolit shoots a little better than the Lyman 429421. However, I think I want a four cavity mould. I have never owned a four cavity steel mould. I have aluminum four cavity NEI moulds that I love and they cast great. How do Lyman four cavity moulds compare? Do they take a while to heat up? Second question: My Redhawk likes .432 diameter boolits. Will the Lyman drop bullets of that diameter with WW metal? Third question: Do RCBS mould handles fit the Lyman four cavity moulds?
Thanks for the help,
Mark

[45 2.1]

I have been up in the air about my next mould purchase. I am under the assumption (strongly influnced by Lloyd Smale) the RCBS 250-k boolit shoots a little better than the Lyman 429421. They seem to. However, I think I want a four cavity mould. I have never owned a four cavity steel mould. I have aluminum four cavity NEI moulds that I love and they cast great. How do Lyman four cavity moulds compare? good comparison Do they take a while to heat up? About the same, I preheat in the pot myself. Second question: My Redhawk likes .432 diameter boolits. Will the Lyman drop bullets of that diameter with WW metal? If your really lucky, but I would expect them slightly smaller than that. Third question: Do RCBS mould handles fit the Lyman four cavity moulds? No, not without lots of work.
Thanks for the help, Mark

[Shuz]

Mark--I have several 4C Lyman moulds, including 2 ea 429421's with the round grease groove and 1 ea 429421 that has the square grease groove. The round grease groove styles throw boolits that are .431-.432 and the square grease groove throws .430 minus from the same alloy. Diameter can depend on the dimensions of the cherry when the moulds were cut; therefore the different diameters from the same mould number. I don't believe the square vs round groove to be a factor here, however, I've found that the round groove designs drop from the mould with a lot less effort. I've also not found any measurable difference in how they shoot. If I were in the market for a 4C Lyman 429421, I'd lean toward the round groove, but would stilll buy a square groove if the price were right. All moulds can be "Beagled" if you wanna increase the diameter. In my opinion, a steel mould is to be preferred over aluminum every time. They do take a little longer to get up to temp, but they also maintain the ideal casting temp so you don't have to be so concerned about casting rythem. I use mine in tandem and turn out piles of boolits in a hurry. I haven't been able to do that with two aluminum moulds. Seems one or the other is cooling down too fast, etc. Hope this helps--Shuz

[lurch]

FWIW - I have a recent production 429421 4 cavity mold. It drops right at 430 or very slightly above that with WW + 2% Sn. They just clean up a little going through my 430 sizing die. My Redhawk shoots them as well as I can. They are a (for lack of a better term) tight slip fit through the cylinder throats.

[Bret4207]

I lucked out a couple years back and got a 4 banger 429421 advertised as slightly damaged for something like $25.00. It throws great boolits and heats up fairly fast. I'm well satisfied with mine. IIRC it throws .430-.431 with straight WW.

[targetshootr]

My first mold was a Lyman four cavity 429421 a year or two ago and it's hefty. I was glad when Catshooters six cavity got here. Much faster and less wear and tear on the old arm bones.

[dogdoc]

My 4 cavity cast about .429 with wheelweights and tin. Smaller than I desire

[kodiak1]

Mine gives ya a nice little pelt in the .430 to .431 range and my revolver and rifle both just love to throw them down the range.
Every gun is different but the 429421 throws a good bullet.
Ken.

[Mark]

Thanks for sharing your expirences. I may just be satisfied with a two cavity RCBS mould.
Mark

[Snapping Twig]

I've always had the 4 cavity Lyman 429421 and I like it.

Recently I upgraded all my single and dual cavity moulds to 4 or 6 cavity. Lee has the 6 and Lyman has the 4 - all the difference in the world!

I used the single and dual cavity moulds for 20+ years and the upgrade to 4 & 6 is a blessing! 2 or 3 times the output in the same amount of time!

I'm a caster through and through, but I prefer not to make a marathon out of it.