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View Full Version : Does Lyman have different sprue plate sizes?



Woodtroll
10-05-2008, 09:21 PM
Hello, folks!

I picked up a new Lyman mould last week, and it looked great until I started casting with it. I immediately noticed that the sprues were offset out towards the edge of the bullet, because the holes in the sprue plate were too far apart. They are centered over the centerline/ seam of the mould, just too far out to the outside.

This is a 375248 mould. I'm wondering if it has a large sprue plate, say for a .45-70 which would require a wider spacing, on it? Does Lyman make different size sprue plates? This is the only Lyman mould I have, as I try to stick with aluminum moulds when possible, so this probably seems like a "greenhorn" question...

Thanks, y'all, take care! Regan

Woodtroll
10-05-2008, 09:39 PM
Sorry, meant to post this in "Mould Maintenance and Design".

Le Loup Solitaire
10-05-2008, 10:27 PM
Hi, It seems more often than not lately that Lyman quality control is wandering over the edge. With the use of different size blocks for different molds it is totally possible that a sprue cutter/plate for a larger mold winds up on a somewhat smaller set of blocks. This in itself is not really bad; if the bullet base is neat and square then it doesn't really matter where the sprue "cut" is. In fact in past work with 30 cal bullet casting some casters/handloaders have not closed the sprue cutter completely in an effort to get as much of a completely flat and neat base on the bullet. Yes the cut point is off center and near to or actually part of the edge of the base, but some really good shooting resulted with that arrangement. On the Lyman#375248 the same system can be used; I have that Lyman mold and an original "1894" single cavity manufactured by Winchester which is also a 255 grain bullet. I have used the partially closed sprue cutter thing in an effort to get the clean and neat condition. Of course it worked ok except I couldn't really see a difference between rounds loaded with them either in separated lots or loading them at random. So rather than taking more time to remember to not close the sprue cutter all the way I just close them both. It might bother some casters to not have the pour hole centered over the bullet base so they might want to start tinkering with the notch and file it in the slot to allow the plate to close more, or try calling Lyman to arrange sending back the larger plate for an exchange. Its your call. A third option if you want to fool around with it...is to get/scrounge a piece of 1/8" or 1/4" thick piece of plate aluminum and make your own sprue cutter. It takes a bit of careful work tracing and filing and working with a drill and a countersink, but you'll be amazed at the results in terms of quality castings. The original workup was done by Col. Harrison in an article in one of the NRA books on handloading...titled"Aluminum sprueplate rated high". Good casting/Shooting.LLS

floodgate
10-05-2008, 10:33 PM
Woodtroll:

Since Lyman sells a "standard" 2-hole sprueplate for all such moulds, without any reference to caliber or bullet diameter, I suspect something "slipped" when that one was being machined. Hopeably it was the plate and not the mould! Check with a plate "borrowed" from another 2-cav. Lyman to see if the mis-registry persists, If it is the plate that is at fault, get one of the handy repair kits (Part No. 2680102, $7.25 in my 2008 catalog); handy to have one anyway, with the spare screws, etc.

Ackshully, if your casting technique is good, you probably won't see any effect from the off-center sprues, unless you're a serious benchrester.

Floodgate

Woodtroll
10-09-2008, 08:26 PM
Thanks, guys, for the help. I emailed Lyman, and they replied, "Sorry for the inconvenience, we will send you a replacement". No explanation at all, but today the sprue plate showed up with properly spaced holes. I'm still wondering what the difference is, but at least this one is centered.

Y'all take care! Regan