Can Boolits cast with lee molds be sized in a lyman 4500

[tackstrp]

Can Boolits cast with lee molds be sized in a lyman 4500.? I have been trying to get my Lyman 450 sizer/ lubicator working again after many years of neglect. I have a Lyman 44 mag mold that works just fine wth the Lyman sizer die. I ran a few Lee mold boolits casted at .429 thru the lyman sizer which is .430. Not sure what i am seeing. The Lee boolits measured .429 before and after. Consequently I have given up on trying to get any lee mold in 44 caliber to work with my lyman sizer at .430

As for the 38/357 caliber Lee molds, again . the two i tried out cast out at .358 and run thru the sizer/lubicator at .358. Seems to work, and product decent cast bullets.

I tried the Lee messy Alox method for about five minutes. gees the group here is not kidding about a mess, sticky ,and etc.

Trashed the Lee sizer/lubicator. will stick with what i know best my lyman 450.

The Lee Micro groove bullets that measure .430 got shaved and had smooth spots. Read the Lee instructions and gather that the micro groove bullets are not meant to be sized. Strange IMO.

[Echo]

I suppose that it is possible that your H&I dies in your 450 are REALLY old, and have a step leading into the actual sizing portion, rather than the tapered leadin common on newer H&I dies. I don't know when Lyman changed to the tapered leadin, but I'm sure it was a LONG time ago. That form of H&I die is the only way (IMHO) that you could get shaved boolits.

And I have heard that Lee TL boolits can be sized & lubed in your 450...

[Springfield]

Maybe I missed something but if the LEE bullets measured .429 as cast did you expect them to go to .430 when run through the .430 die?

[gefiltephish]

Maybe I missed something but if the LEE bullets measured .429 as cast did you expect them to go to .430 when run through the .430 die?
You and I read the same. All my Lee molds cast under size and I have to bump the bullets to get them to size properly. PIA? You betcha. Yet one more step in a long line of steps to CB nirvana. Guess I should try beagling instead.

[high standard 40]

Most of my Lee molds drop bullets a little large, not small. I did have one 44 cal mold that dropped small bullets. I lapped the cavity and it now drops bullets at
.431"
I don't use the Lee TL molds at all prefering the traditional grease groove models.
I size and lube everything in my Lyman 450.

[Bret4207]

If your boolits are .429 before sizing in a .430 sizer then they aren't going to be touched by the sizer since it's bigger than the boolit. If you want a larger diameter boolit, the sizer isn;t the best answer.

[UweJ]

maybe you should try casting with a different alloy mix to get a larger boolit.btw, my lee molds all drop undersized,had to lap them a bit to get em a bit bigger.
Uwe

[Treeman]

One of the nice things about my Lee moulds is that hey drop bullets the size I need straight from the mould. If you need larger than they are dropping then change of alloy, lapping or "beagling" are the way to go. If you like your sizer/lubricator more power to you......I'd rather skip a step and cast, tumble lube and load. However if you use traditional lube then the sizer lubricator is neater. Lee microband designs were designed to help skip the sizer lubricator but they can certainly be sized........but traditional sizers only swage down-they have no provision for bumping up.

[anachronism]

Sizers will not make small bullets larger.

[462]

I have a Lyman .359" sizer that was shaving lead. Yep, as Echo said, an older version with the step just inside the mouth. A bit of lapping removed the step and eliminated the shavings. I suspect that's the reason you're getting shavings.

My Lee moulds drop fat. I think their sales propaganda states that their moulds drop overisze to eliminate the need to size -- just tumble lube.

[madman]

None of my Lee molds come even close to what they should be in dia. I just shelved most of them some I have milled out and made slug molds out of them I have one that makes a mean 12ga .690 pointed slug.

[sturf]

Beagle the mold.

[GP100man]

if ya smoke lee molds excessively or put dropout spray on it it`ll throw skinny boolits IME

i clean mine & lap until smooth with comet cleaner then nothing in the cavitys.
i have a 44 rn that drops .431 with my current ww alloy

i have a ideal 429421 sc that drops 433 clean & smoked 4295???
they have to be bad before i add anything to the cavities

[Leftoverdj]

I have maybe 30 Lee moulds and none of them cast undersized. (Well, one group buy mould casts a thou under specs, but we specced that one fat so it casts just right.) Have several that cast right on specs which is a pain, but I can't fault them for making specs.

There sure ain't no room for mould release, though.

[O.S.O.K.]

OK, I'm reading down the thread and I see no referrence to alloy....

Tackstrp, what alloy are you casting with? 1-30 or 1-20 tin to lead?

None of my Lee molds cast undersized... I just got a brand new 310 44 mold and it drops them at .433" (or more precisely .4325-.433).

But I use wheel weight alloy for most of my handgun boolits. And that and or Linotype or a 50/50mix for rifle boolits.

Pure lead will cast the smallest diameter boolit from a given mold. Linotype or the even harder alloys will cast the largest.

So, it might be your alloy?

If you are using a soft lead/tin alloy then try some wheel weights with a little tin added or a "hard ball" type alloy.

[jonk]

"I tried the Lee messy Alox method for about five minutes. gees the group here is not kidding about a mess, sticky ,and etc.

Trashed the Lee sizer/lubicator. will stick with what i know best my lyman 450. "

If you tried it for 5 minutes you didn't follow instructions. This stuff takes at least overnight to dry. Once dry, I've yet to find one tacky or sticky. Other than cosmetics, I've found bullets lubed in Lee liquid alox or LLA to be as good as any lubed in a lube sizer up to 1400 fps or so. After that, yes, I agree, I prefer lube sizers myself- or with any really long barrel guns.

Trashing the push through sizer? Your choice but a bullet sized from the bottom is generally more concentric and centered with less deformation, and hence more accurate.

You stick with what you know. 90% of my own loads are using a RCBS sizer very similar to your 450. But I sure don't poo-poo the Lee sizers or LLA. It's good stuff and I encourage you to do a head to head accuracy comparison of both the 450 sized and lubed bullets and LLA sized and lubed bullets.

[O.S.O.K.]

Jonk, I shoot gas check rifle boolits to 2000 fps lubed with LLA with excellent results - no leading at all. And they were all sized in Lee sizer dies too.

[Bret4207]

The Lee sizer system works fine, give it another chance.

[geargnasher]

+1, Jonk, exactly my experiences. LLA, if handled correctly, never gets on me and is far less messy than my 450.

Gear

[tackstrp]

I think the group, set me straight. I have been putting much and then some more Mold release on My LEE molds. I did get an answerback from LEE tech assistance that Lee mould should drop bullets from .000 to .003 oversized. They suggested the .429 mold should come out larager than .429.

Some one asked what am i useing for lead. Mixed of stuff that I have had for many years, including wheel weight. My hardness tester is a Phillip Head screwdriver and a ball peen hammer . I compare the impression with a known commerical bullets . Has always seemed close enough for me. I buy off of EBAY what is advertised as WW and some soft lead.

[Bret4207]

I suggest avoiding mold release except in EXTREME cases, same for smoking the mould. You're insulating the mould and making the boolit smaller with every application. Scrub the moulds out with mineral spirits,alcohol then hot soapy water and try it again.

[cajun shooter]

As Bret stated in his post, when you add to the mold surface you will make the mold smaller. If you use Lee molds long enough you will find that the quality control goes from good to terrible.You will find just as the posted answers prove that some people receive Lee molds that are dead on. Others will have no luck in ever getting one that works( I'm in this group) The Lee mold will allow you to start casting and shooting your own bullets. If you reach a point in your life where you want to pour great bullets to compete in the long range target sports,then you will not use Lee.

[TAWILDCATT]

I usd lee 312-160 TL in my 1903 spring field,with 13.5 red dot and it was just as accurate as my lyman 311291.how many are going for long range BR groups.not many I would wager.any are good for hunting and shooting.I have used H&G Saeco,lyman,MB and lee molds they all worked for me.there are custom molds that may be great but I am satisfied with what I have.most of what we use now is newer than 1950.I started in 1937 casting.pacific was the only press I knew of.
other than Ideal tools,and the win tong tool and mold I still have.If you spend time thinking most problems will be solved. all the tools made now are the result of many hands.:coffee:[smilie=1:

[O.S.O.K.]

I think the group, set me straight. I have been putting much and then some more Mold release on My LEE molds. I did get an answerback from LEE tech assistance that Lee mould should drop bullets from .000 to .003 oversized. They suggested the .429 mold should come out larager than .429.

Some one asked what am i useing for lead. Mixed of stuff that I have had for many years, including wheel weight. My hardness tester is a Phillip Head screwdriver and a ball peen hammer . I compare the impression with a known commerical bullets . Has always seemed close enough for me. I buy off of EBAY what is advertised as WW and some soft lead.

Doesn't sound like your alloy is the issue, I think you've found the issue - as said: clean em up and try again!

:drinks:

[Tazman1602]

The Lee Micro groove bullets that measure .430 got shaved and had smooth spots. Read the Lee instructions and gather that the micro groove bullets are not meant to be sized. Strange IMO.

Hey Tack,

Read the whole thread here and you've gotten some good advice, but the above leads me to believe you may have a "TL" mold, if that's the case it's a "Tumble Lube" bullet and doesn't need to be sized. I use a TL die for a .44 mag and all I've ever had to do is drop the bullets, pour some liquid alox in an old butter container, and swish them around in a sparing amount of liquid alox. Works great and I'm sure if I'm wrong someone will set me straight although this has worked for me since the late 1980's.

Art

[armyrat1970]

I have found with my Lee molds different results in diameter. When checking right at the parting lines they seem to drop as stated. When turning the boolit 1/4 turn they seem to be larger. When I size them through my sizer they come out round within +/- .001. I'm satisifed with their molds and sizers.

[Acronn]

My Lee molds all throw boolits the correct size. I've found the softer the lead the smaller the boolit, and they drop out easier too. With more wheelweights, linotype, solder in the mix - basically more tin and antimony, they will drop out of the mold harder, and their size will be just a bit larger. The Lee tumble lube system works fine, takes a few hours/overnight to dry. If your boolits are not coming out round, you might have a bit of lead between the mold, or some other reason why the mold won't close perfectly. I've had that happen to me, and several molds do it more than others. But I know how to stop it and what to look for so it doesn't cause trouble.