Picked up a Lyman 450 this weekend, had a .355 die in it...

[mattw]

So, I boiled out some nasty stuff and buffer the blued parts with steel wool and PB Blaster. She looks pretty good for an old grey one. It had a .355 die in it. What is .355 used for? Way to small for 9mm.

Filled it up with 2700+ and ran a couple hundred 32 acp bullets thru it with great results. Need a block of aluminum so I can make a base heater for it.

[NyFirefighter357]

https://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/dept/reloading/pistol-bullets/-point-355-dia

[mattw]

.355 is right for jacketed 9mm, but .356 or .3565 Is right for cast. In fact some 9's slug bigger.

[eagle27]

Mine is a grey Lyman 450 too. I just direct a hair dryer at it for 10 or 15 mins, turn off and it will stay warm for quite a while while I lube and size. Only thing I have replaced in the several decades of ownership is the two O'rings on the lube piston. From memory I think they were pretty standard 1" size which I happen to have a few of. Never leaks lube and works well. Just got to adjust the bullet depth correctly in the sizing die to mate the die holes with bullet lube grooves to get best performance.

[Remmy4477]

I have 3 grey 450's. One I use for my rifle stuff, mainly BP with spg, the other is set up for pistol stuff.
Third one is waiting for me to clean it up and getting it useable again.
Have a nib 4500 were going to set up for the high speed stuff with hard lube.

.355, 357 sig? For some reason ..355 sounds familiar, have a few of those sizers.

No matter they all work good!

[Hardcast416taylor]

I have 3 grey 450's. One I use for my rifle stuff, mainly BP with spg, the other is set up for pistol stuff.
Third one is waiting for me to clean it up and getting it useable again.
Have a nib 4500 were going to set up for the high speed stuff with hard lube.

.355, 357 sig? For some reason ..355 sounds familiar, have a few of those sizers.

No matter they all work good!


I have 2 of the grey 450`s on a bench in my ammo room. I aslo have them set up for rifle and pistol use only. I have a Midway heater under the rifle sizer and a homemade heater under the pistol sizer, though I seldom use the pistol heater. I was given 1 of the 450`s as it was full of dry old black Lyman lube, took quite a while to get it out and working. The other 450 I remember I paid $25 for it at a yard sale for a deceased reloaders estate.Robert

[DonMountain]

It had a .355 die in it. What is .355 used for? Way to small for 9mm.

Filled it up with 2700+ and ran a couple hundred 32 acp bullets thru it with great results.

I have a pre-WW-II European semi-auto in 380 with a really tight chamber that needs bullets sized to 0.355". Otherwise the rounds won't even chamber. But I think if you size those 32 ACP bullets with that 0.355" die you might have trouble chambering them too.

[trapper9260]

This is what I use for my 450 https://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item/000152745885/universal-lube-heater-115-volt
I think you can use that is used the .355 lube sizer like DonMountain stated on the 380.It is too small for alot of the 9mm.

[trapper9260]

For 32 auto I use .312 for cast that I size and lube to.

[mattw]

I use .311 for the 32acp. Good fit for Kel-tec and cz70.

[mattw]

This is what I use for my 450 https://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item/000152745885/universal-lube-heater-115-volt
I think you can use that is used the .355 lube sizer like DonMountain stated on the 380.It is too small for alot of the 9mm.

Thinking about making one like that. Most sizing done in the winter, my room is around 65 so I need a little heat.

[Walks]

The .355 is just right for old Pre-War LUGERS & P-38. That's the size we used when I was a kid in the early 1960's.

[mattw]

The .355 is just right for old Pre-War LUGERS & P-38. That's the size we used when I was a kid in the early 1960's.

That makes sense. I have 1911, Sccy and FM 9mm's but none are that tight. I ought to put it up for trade... I need a .312 to finish out my 30 caliber set.

[Echo]

So, I boiled out some nasty stuff and buffer the blued parts with steel wool and PB Blaster. She looks pretty good for an old grey one. It had a .355 die in it. What is .355 used for? Way to small for 9mm.

Filled it up with 2700+ and ran a couple hundred 32 acp bullets thru it with great results. Need a block of aluminum so I can make a base heater for it.

I just used a drop light for many years until I got a Lachmiller w/heater.