Old Mold Maker Buyouts ?

[jerry6stl]

I "think" that many years ago the IDEAL bullet mold company was sold/absorbed by LYMAN? Is this so? What year did this occur?

RCBS molds seem identical to old LACHMILLER molds. Did RCBS buy/absorb LACHMILLER? If so, what year did that occur?

I think NEI molds was formerly located in El Paso, TX. Then perhaps someone bought this company and moved it to Washington state or Oregon? If so when did that occur? Is this manufacturer in business today under another name?

Thanks for any info...

. jerry6stl@aol.com <

[MT Chambers]

NEI founder Walt Melander passed and left Co. to his daughter and was moved to El Paso, company on downward spiral ever since due to poor workmanship, don't know current status but prolly not good.

[codgerville@zianet.com]

I "think" that many years ago the IDEAL bullet mold company was sold/absorbed by LYMAN? Is this so? What year did this occur?

RCBS molds seem identical to old LACHMILLER molds. Did RCBS buy/absorb LACHMILLER? If so, what year did that occur?

I think NEI molds was formerly located in El Paso, TX. Then perhaps someone bought this company and moved it to Washington state or Oregon? If so when did that occur? Is this manufacturer in business today under another name?

Thanks for any info...

. jerry6stl@aol.com <

Yes, the Ideal loading tool company was bought by Lyman, don't know what year. And, RCBS bought out Lachmiller because Lachmiller was selling excellent quality loading dies for $8.50 per set and RCBS dies were $13.50. When I started reloading, (1961), I bought Lachmiller as did many others. That is where RCBS got into the bullet casting tool business, a friend of mine has a Lachmiller sizer/lubricator that is identical to the early RCBS. Walt Melander started NEI in El Paso and sold his first molds through Bob Starkeys' gun shop. He moved to Oregon for the good hunting and passed there. Don't know about the quality on NEI now, but I bought one of their early molds which dropped bullets that were seriously out of round.

[30calflash]

Unsure as the molds have been close copies of Lyman, but what about Ohaus? I've a few, less numbers to choose from but good quality iron molds.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I "think" that many years ago the IDEAL bullet mold company was sold/absorbed by LYMAN? Is this so? What year did this occur?

...SNIP
Yes, bought in 1925

more info here...
https://www.lymanproducts.com/our-history

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

SNIP...

RCBS molds seem identical to old LACHMILLER molds. Did RCBS buy/absorb LACHMILLER? If so, what year did that occur?


from Link below:

"Lachmiller of Glendale, California entered the loading tool business in 1952, and offered a complete line of reloading tools, dies, sizers, presses, etc. In 1969 Lachmiller introduced a line of well-made 2 and 3-cavity bullet moulds. Lachmiller continued to make bullet moulds into the 1970s, but then sold off their product line to RCBS in the later part of that decade.

Ohaus started offering bullet moulds in a big way in 1972, entering the market with 68 different bullet designs, as well as 19 round ball moulds. Ohaus moulds were cut with tungsten carbide cherries for durability and consistency. A few years later RCBS bought out Ohaus, and continues to produce many of these bullet moulds today."

More Info
http://www.lasc.us/Fryxell_book_chapter_1_introduction.htm

[Maven]

I have a Lachmiller .451cal. RB mold which is identical (mold blocks' size/shape; sprue cutter size/shape) to my RCBS molds, which is the good news. The bad news is that particular mold is undersized as it drops a pure Pb RB of only .447" - .448". Such a pity as it's in excellent shape and very well made.

[John Boy]

I "think" that many years ago the IDEAL bullet mold company was sold/absorbed by LYMAN?
Ad when Lyman bought Ideal - many cherries for famous accurate bullets developed by famous marksmen that were in the warehouse ... were destroyed!

[jdfoxinc]

Hensley & Gibbs bought by ballisticast which was bought by HVballistics.

[Green Frog]

Ad when Lyman bought Ideal - many cherries for famous accurate bullets developed by famous marksmen that were in the warehouse ... were destroyed!

When I talked to some of the older folks at Lyman back in the mid-90s they told me that many/most of those cherries had been stashed away in a corporate attic somewhere until some of the "Cast Bullet Handbooks" were written, at which time many were resurrected and had a few mounds cut from them. Of course if there was no perceived demand for them very few of some patterns would have been cut. It would appear that the old cherries were discarded only when too worn to continue using. Just as a FYI, Lyman continued to use the Ideal name on mounds sold long after WW II, some (perhaps old stock?) on up at least until the '60s.

Froggie

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

SNIP...

Just as a FYI, Lyman continued to use the Ideal name on mounds sold long after WW II, some (perhaps old stock?) on up at least until the '60s.
If that is true, that is A LOT of old stock.