Lyman All American

[garbler]

Not sure if these presses qualify as ‘ vintage ‘ but along with my Hollywoods and Stars I sure find these old turrets very handy and accurate for handgun ammo. I don’t use the primer attachment but otherwise these are stout little presses and very dependable. Wonder what their value is these days, anybody have an idea ?

Rick

[Green Frog]

Rick,
I’ve seen trashy examples for as little as $50-70, while some flea Bay vendors think theirs are made of unobtainium and as 5-6 times that much or more. I would expect to pay on the order of $100 for a nice one, and would check carefully… some have a single station over bored for the proprietary Lyman shot shell dies. If that oversized hole is present, make sure the busihng is there as well. They seem to actually be made of rhodium plated unobtainium! I once bought a Lyman Comet press just to get the bushing.
Froggie

[TNsailorman]

I actually like my Lyman All American (older-not smith) better than the Dillion 550 I had and sold. If I was going to buy another press, it would be an AA older press. my preference anyway, james

[Green Frog]

Hey TNSailorman, I feel pretty much the same way about my AA. I keep the bushing in all the time and leave it set up for my 32 revolvers… just moving the dies up and down as needed to go from S&W L to Fed Mag. It’s on a slab of 2x6 so I can just clamp it into the vise on my workbench… don’t even have to make space on the loading bench for it!
Happy New Year to you and yours!
Froggie

[John Wayne]

Yes they're vintage. I saw an ad on ebay from 1957. Those presses have a big following.

[metricmonkeywrench]

Big fan of mine as well. No primer attachment here either, it didn't come with it and I never looked for a replacement but I did get a bushing. Solely set up to do .38 Lee wadcutters (at the moment) it has a Frankenstein die set of Dillon, Lyman, RCBS and Lee dies to make all the purists eye twitch.

[salpal48]

I find The Lyman all American is an excelent working Press. In fact I have 4 mounted To my Bench. The push Button primer system is an Flawless attachment once it Is set up. Meaning one machine set for Large Primers( pistol & Rifle) and another set for small primers ( pistol & rifle). I use them all for Rifle and pistol a like

[corbinace]

I have a set of 32 S&W dies that are in All American individual cardboard boxes. I have never used them as I have Hornady carbides that I normally use.

[Green Frog]

There are two kinds of reloaders in this world, those who love their All American press(es) and those who don’t own one!

Froggie

[corbinace]

I do not know where the Lyman T-mag press fits in the succession, but I like mine for working up loads and going back and forth with the dies without having to set them up each time I switch.

The multiple holes are a nice time saver.

[georgerkahn]

Not sure if these presses qualify as ‘ vintage ‘ but along with my Hollywoods and Stars I sure find these old turrets very handy and accurate for handgun ammo. I don’t use the primer attachment but otherwise these are stout little presses and very dependable. Wonder what their value is these days, anybody have an idea ?

Rick

I have three of these , all of which I love dearly. I bought the first in the 70s from Gander Mountain when that was a mail-order-only company; the second from a buddy who updated to a Dillon for $75.00; and, the third at a garage-sale for $40.00 (seller was asking $50). Vis prices, maybe I was (I think so) lucky, as I've seen them recently going for the greater than one hundred dollar range. At a last-fall show I had eyes on "my fourth" but it went for $120.00. I guess it is a supply and demand issue, and a lot of folks do not realize what a superb press this is! Sadly, many users are not cognizant of the little screw opposite the current die holder position which needs adjustment, tight, to just allow the turret to be moved. This eliminates just about any/all wobble and, again imho, makes these presses almost perfect! If I recall, most were purveyed with a complementary Ohaus powder measure -- and I have this, too, on my three. Each is set up for one specific rifle calibre. In the picture you can see one of mine under a dust-bag at bench left. (This one is set up for .30 Remington ). As you can see -- between the Lyman and my Dillon -- is my RCBS bench primer. I, too, do not use the Lyman All-American primer attachment.
geo

[Green Frog]

georgerkahn, as I’ve probably mentioned before, I leave mine set up for the 32 family of pistol cartridges. I can FL size and decap for all lengths without making any adjustments, and the neck opening is done with Lyman’s through the die combination expander and powder drop… usually one of the late, lamented Accu-Measure tools for which I have a full set of rotors. It usually stays set up for the longest (327 FM) cases as do the rest of the die set. I like to take my 32 S&W Long cases over to the TruLine Jr to actually load them.

Anyway, the AA was and is a great press, and with all the emphasis on getting the “newest and bestest” they are often neglected… and sadly so!

Froggie

[georgerkahn]

georgerkahn, as I’ve probably mentioned before, I leave mine set up for the 32 family of pistol cartridges. I can FL size and decap for all lengths without making any adjustments, and the neck opening is done with Lyman’s through the die combination expander and powder drop… usually one of the late, lamented Accu-Measure tools for which I have a full set of rotors. It usually stays set up for the longest (327 FM) cases as do the rest of the die set. I like to take my 32 S&W Long cases over to the TruLine Jr to actually load them.

Anyway, the AA was and is a great press, and with all the emphasis on getting the “newest and bestest” they are often neglected… and sadly so!

Froggie

My sentiments, exactly! Which is why I had my eye on that gun-show fourth, which I kind of regret not buying, but cash-flow is another challenge these (retired -- trying to live off S S retirement monthly deposit) days. In addition to the one set up for .30 Remington, my other two are .30WCF (.30-30) and .38WCF (.38-40). It is, to me, such a pleasure to simply just pour some powder in the Ohaus measure; dump a dozen or so to ascertain exact weight of charge is where it should be; grab some cases and bullets, and load away!!! I'm still kind of looking for a fourth -- most likely for .35Rem. I generally use the Dillon 550b for pistol loading, and either the Forster Co-Ax or MEC Marksman presses for all my other rifle calibres.
geo

[dverna]

Turret presses never “fit” my needs. If I wanted accurate rifle loads, the Co-Ax got the job. If I wanted pistol ammunition, the progressives got the job.

Maybe turrets are a compromise that works for people who shoot a lot more rifle rounds than I do, or a lot less pistol ammo. I have a .223 conversion for the Dillon 550 and have never used it. It will come in handy if the SHTF and I need to make ammunition for the AR’s for “the tribe”.

What works for someone is all that matters.

[georgerkahn]

Turret presses never “fit” my needs. If I wanted accurate rifle loads, the Co-Ax got the job. If I wanted pistol ammunition, the progressives got the job.

Maybe turrets are a compromise that works for people who shoot a lot more rifle rounds than I do, or a lot less pistol ammo. I have a .223 conversion for the Dillon 550 and have never used it. It will come in handy if the SHTF and I need to make ammunition for the AR’s for “the tribe”.

What works for someone is all that matters.

Just MY thoughts/way of looking at it, but I reckon that if, say, one was to produce the very, very best ammo for, say, a ninety-year old rifle -- e.g., a Model 8 Remington -- MY number one criteria, bion, is that I do not KB (kaboom) said firearm, and, I get bullet holes in an acceptable to me circle on target. Due to both age of arm and scarcity/expense of necessary brass, loads are purposely produced in the quite-mild level, too. Hence, a turret such as the Lyman All-American is, again in my opinion, a great solution. As I've writ, all I need do is (a MUST-DO!!) put powder in measure and ascertain load weight a dozen or so drops -- and then commence cranking out ammo. When finished, I just dump out powder and put an inverted plastic bag atop (to keep off dust). Period.
ON THE OTHER HAND, say, for my XP100 in .221 Fireball (as well as other arms which shoot a zillion times better than I might on a good day), I de-burr flash holes, use the bestest of dies, weigh measure using off-press trickling to exact weight desired, and use my MEC Marksman or Forster Co-Ax press. For the .221 Fireball, I use the MEC Marksman as it reduced run-out to allllmost immeasurable! Runout reduction is, to me, a "joke" on other -- including, most likely -- the turrets.
Anyhoos -- in response, I thought I'd tell you what I elect to use, and why.
BEST!
geo
P.S.: And yes, I too have a Dillon 550b, and pretty much all my pistol ammo gets cranked out on it!

[salpal48]

enclosed a Photo of mine set up

[old turtle]

i have one and it is very hand for my 32-20. Got it for free as my brother gave it to me years ago.

[georgerkahn]

i have one and it is very hand for my 32-20. Got it for free as my brother gave it to me years ago.

Great to learn of another Lyman All-American user. As most all came without any printed instructions (??), I know I used mine for more than a year before an old range sage brought that little screw opposite the relevant die in the press to my attention. Hey -- I paid no attention to its presence! BUT -- I very quickly learned, after, that snugging the top of the screw up to bottom of turret "made all the difference in the world" to the quality of my loads!
Enjoy your great press!
geo

[rbuck351]

I have an AA but I don't currently have it set up as my bench space is limited. I like the press a lot but chose to mount my 550b and a Bonanza co-ax. When I get my new shop built it will be set up as well as a few other presses.