Lyman lube sizer No. 45 ?

[FWest]

New guy here just getting into casting. A local "antique" shop has a older Lyman No. 45 lube sizer used in the box for $45. It looks pretty dirty but not rusted. Is this newb friendly and worth the $45 ?

I now have it.

[Reg]

Yes, its obsolete but still very usable . All the dies you need are still being made . About the only thing I would check is to make sure the die holding set screw has not been over tightened and cracked the casting from where the set screw is in the front to the body to where the die would drop in. It could be fixed with brass welding if it is but they always seem to ooze lube there afterwards.
If in at least fair and complete condition, $45.00 would not be out of line.

[FWest]

Thanks for your reply. Do you feel there are better tools for the same or less money ?

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

FWest,
I have a lyman 450 you might be interested in.
PM with photos sent
Jon

[NoZombies]

$45 is a pretty decent price for a lyman 45. there are a lot of people who prefer them to the later tools. I have one of each of the lyman tools except for the 4500. I can say that the 45 is just fine for most things, I wouldn't try to get too aggressive with it, like sizing .454 down to .429 or anything, but if you keep within reasonable limits, then they do great!

[old turtle]

I bought one new about 1965 and have used it ever since. I have sized 10s of thousands of boolits with it. I used it to size some .321 down to .316 but is was in wheel weights. All kinds of sizing dies are available. I find no problems with it. Good luck, purchase and enjoy.

[imashooter2]

Thanks for your reply. Do you feel there are better tools for the same or less money ?

There are better tools, but for far more money. That is a pretty good deal for a working machine. Check pictures on Google to make sure it's complete.

[HATCH]

$45 starting out isn't bad.
You can be up and running with a handful of dies and punches for under $100
I have a lyman 45 that Ken gave me.
Its 50 years old and still works great.
I recently purchased a Star Sizer because of needing a more time efficient machine.
The Lyman gets the job done but I have limited amount of time so I need to get a lot done in a little amount of time. That's why I purchased a Star.
I am still keeping the Lyman because I have a pile of sizing dies for it and plan on using it for less shot calibers.

[jcwit]

I have two that I purchased used "of course" in the last 10 years, both work perfect. As others have said all sizes of dies and top punches are available. A few parts are interchangable with newer models and can be purchased from Lyman at very reasonable cost. Mainly the pressure piston "this will upgrade the piston with the new style with O rings" and the pressure screw is still available. Most everything can be made fairly easily except for the cast parts.

I'd buy it.

Hope this helps
jcwit

[Reg]

For the money , I doubt if you could beat it. You could pay more like in the Star and yes, its a much faster machine or you could go with the Lee system and it too works very well but is slower and also each of the above have other plus and minus features but both do what their intended job was. They each have a place and a price. I think from what I have seen and used the #45 is a slightly better built machine than the #4500 but it too does what it was intended.
I think NoZombies points out a good fact in that none of these machines are capable of drastic reduction of diameter. They are not heavy loading press's and should not be considered as such.
Go more for overall condition, look for damage. If it shows any damage keep in mind parts most likely will not be available for these older machines but also consider if they are in good condition and you treat them with due respect, you will not be needing any repair parts.
The #45 as made with proper care should last several lifetimes.
At the very least it would be an excellent introduction machine and after you get more into casting you could then decide what you really wanted. Bet you could always get your $45.00 back which is more than you could say about a lot of things.

[FWest]

Went and got it at lunch. Looks to be in great shape, even the box is in fine shape. Has the ratchet wrench as well. I'll post some pictures later tonight.
Thanks for all the replies and information and I'm sure more questions will follow.

[jcwit]

In the winter I usually need a little heat for ease of operation, I use a clip-on light, we used to call them brooder lamps, with a 100 watt bulb shining on the luber/seater. This makes it work great in colder temps, or with harder lubes. I let it warm up for about 1/2 hour before using. Just a tip.

For anyone out their that might have lost their ratchet, Harbor Freight has a little kit with a ratchet and various tips that fit the # 45 for the grand cost of $2.00 to $3.00 bucks.

[FWest]

Added pictures.

[jcwit]

WOW! That might be worth more as a collector item.

[imashooter2]

That's late in production for that model. Earlier versions had a different cap and a bolt instead of a pin on the handle pivot. Great find. It will serve you very well.

[Adk Mike]

I bought one a couple years ago in Maine. I use it all the time . It seems a lot of that stuff was never used a lot. Mine is nice,but yours looks new. Great Find .

[atr]

which antique shop,,because if you dont buy it I will

[jcwit]

Read post # 11.

[Reg]

Looks like it even came with a set of dies. Bonus!!

[fryboy]

spot on ! $45 for a #45 is a deal - without the box and the wrench and the die and top punch - those are all bonuses and i hope the die and punch you can use , i've paid more for them but dont ever recall paying less , and like some suggest there are some folks who prefer them - i'm one of'em i have three :P two of them i repainted and one is stock , to be fair it had better paint left on it ( i used hi heat chevy orange for the paint because i do use heat from time to time ) which leaves me with a main thought , to clean it out many things work and work well all involve heat , the boiling water trick works but it can also mess up ye olde paint job , warming up in a oven also works as does applying something like a heat gun - all with a pan to catch the lube as it drips out , the old brass collar may or may not leak , but as stated the piston from the newer ones fit and work well and are fairly cheap from lyman , the pressure nut is SKU # 2990708 formerly part # 2990146
congrats amigo on a fine old piece of equipment ! ( and the box seems to be in great shape too -wow ) i believe either cheese or immashooter has a copy of the instructions around here somewhere in case there was none with your's ( even tho it's fairly elementary etc )