Looking to buy lubrisizer WHAT BRAND??

[steveb]

Hi guys, I have no experience with the different luberisizers, and am looking at purchasing one. Im on a limited budget and cant get top of the line but dont want lowest end model either. With these units can I just make Felix lube and pour it in?? Or does most of them take sticks of lube. Any info or recomendations I can get would be great. Or anything that I need to know about them. Thanks in advance......Steve.

[Swagerman]

SteveB, why don't your put a want to buy in a few forums classifieds on a lube-sizer press.

All of my four lube presses were acquired by that method or through the internet.

The oldest being the Lyman #45 orange job, its dies are still the same size as the 450, or 4500 models made today. The dies are also interchangeable with RCBS Lube-O-matic.

The Star lube-sizer is the cats meow, really fast with its nose down feeding and plopping out the bullets as fast as you can insert them. But you would be lucky to find a used one for $150. New ones are just under $200.

I'm getting a lot of use out of the 450 as well, so whatever you can find is going to work for you.

Warning, the Saeco is a dandy unit but its lube dies are different than the others I've mentioned.

Good luck on your quest and let us know what you decide on getting.


Jim :)

[454PB]

I bought my first lubrisizer back in the early 70's, and it was a Lyman 450. That machine sized a mountain of boolits, but I broke the handle some years ago. I bought replacement parts and fixed it, and I also came across another one at a gun show with the "newer" type handle. The newer handle is beefier, but I managed to break it as well. The breakages were my own fault, trying to size long linotype boolits too much. The Lyman uses hollow sticks of lube, but I load mine with my homemade lube by the "cut and stuff" method.....a little messy but it works. You can also melt the lube and pour it in if you like.

Recently, I acquired a Star lubrisizer. Star is out of business, but the sizer is now made by Magma. The Star sizer is faster, but takes longer to adjust. It does not have the threaded rod down the center of the reservoir, so doesn't require hollow lube sticks.

I've read that the Saeco sizer is sort of like a Star on steroids, owners say they are excellent machines.

Your usage will determine which sizer is for you. The Lyman sizers do a good job, are relatively cheap, and the dies and nose punches are easily found. The Magma and the Saeco use a different system, no nose punch, and the parts are more expensive. They push the boolit clear through the die, rather than "in and out". On the Star, the same punch can be used for several sizes of boolits.

If money is no object, and I was starting over knowing what I know now, I'd get the Star or the Saeco.

If I was only sizing 1000 boolits a year, I'd get the Lyman 4500. The RCBS sizer is similar to the Lyman and uses the same dies, but I have no experience with it.

[Maven]

steveb, To add to the above, I have 1 Lyman 450 and 2 RCBS Lub-A-Matics and haven't had a problem with any of them. Btw, the body castings of both machines appear to be identical with one exception: I believe the newer RCBS Lub-A-Matics have a solid base, which means lube cannot be forced out from there. You can also use solid lube sticks if you care to go that route. On the strength of RCBS's lifetime guarantee, I'd recommend searching E-Bay, et al. for a used one. One last point: It's a good idea to heat the body of whichever lube-sizer you purchase with a hair dryer prior to pouring in molten Felix Lube so as to minimize the odds of cracking (not a good thing!) it.

[Lloyd Smale]

star!!!

[6pt-sika]

I have two , a Lyman 45 that I rarely use now and a new Lyman 4500 with new style heater . When you discuss top punches , you should remember that Lyman and RCBS are interchangeble . Also Saeco also makes top punches for all there molds that will work in the Lyman or RCBS .
I think I want another lubrisizer and I'll probably look for a good used RCBS or Lyman 450-4500 .

[Bucks Owin]

When I was shopping for a used unit I wanted either a Lyman or RCBS simply because the size die and top punches interchange and since they are popular there are lots of used dies etc for them around.....

FWIW,

Dennis

[6pt-sika]

I have mostly Lyman and RCBS molds , so top pinches are an issue with me . I started getting Saeco molds when they started making top punchs for there molds that work in Lyman or RCBS lubrisizers .