Old Lyman Brass mold question

[tinsmith]

A friend gave me an old mold the other day. It is single cavity marked 452374 with attached handles. No other marks. I assume this to be Lyman as that is their number for the 45 Auto RN bullet. What is strange is that the blocks are Brass! Never seen anything like this. Any idea how old this is? Also, the original sprue plate is missing. I would like to make one to restore this old mold. What material should the sprue plate be made of and how thick should it be? Any advice would be helpful. Thanks, Jeff

[fatnhappy]

Is it marked Lyman?

As a matter of pure speculation I believe you probably don't have a lyman, it's more likely you have a mould from another maker that references the lyman numbers for ease of identifying their design, which is copied from the 452374. By way of making this point, just go down to the custom mould sections and look at all the MIHEC and NOE moulds we produce that are faithful lyman copies and are identified by lyman nomenclature. By all means post some pictures and prove me wrong. I'd be very interested to see it.

I pass on the sprue plate discussion mostly because I'd buy one of the exemplary RRR sprue plates rather than cobble my own. His are so good I can only produce something substandard in comparison.

[catskinner]

Yankee made brass molds and marked them with Lyman numbers. If it is a Yankee the handles will have a wire wrapped around the ends of the handles nearest the mold blocks rather than a metal ferrule. Only mold I know of that has that feature.

[tinsmith]

Thanks catskinner: It must be a Yankee mold as it does have wire wrapped around the end of the handles! I haven't cleaned it yet, but have not seen any markings other than "452374". A standard Lyman sprue plate is currently attached but does not fit properly. When closed, the sprue hole is way off to one side. So, a properly made & fitted plate must be fabricated.

[catskinner]

Tinsmith, It is not really dificult to make a sprue plate. I use ordinary 3/16 or 1/4 inch strap iron.Hacksaw and file to shape the plate and a hand drill. Use a 82 degree counter sink for the sprue hole. My problem is getting the pivot and sprue hole at the right spacing when the original sprue plate is not available to use as a template. Drill a 1/8 inch pilot hole for the sprue hole and then use the countersink to open it up.

[blackthorn]

Quote "My problem is getting the pivot and sprue hole at the right spacing when the original sprue plate is not available to use as a template. Drill a 1/8 inch pilot hole for the sprue hole and then use the countersink to open it up."

Try taking whatever is used as a plate now off. Now, take a soft leaded pencil and go over the top of the mould leaving a fairly heavy coating. Next, place a piece of cardboard from a cereal box over top of the mould and tap it firmly with a rubber (no-mar) hammer. This should give you a "tracing" of the mould top locating the holes for you.

[beagle]

From my experiences, once you get the sprue plate problem solved, you have a casting mould. Have several Yankees and they really cast nice despite their age./beagle

[C. Latch]

Thanks catskinner: It must be a Yankee mold as it does have wire wrapped around the end of the handles! I haven't cleaned it yet, but have not seen any markings other than "452374". A standard Lyman sprue plate is currently attached but does not fit properly. When closed, the sprue hole is way off to one side. So, a properly made & fitted plate must be fabricated.

I have a mold (recent manufacture, custom mold) that was shipped with a sprue plate that doesn't line up properly. After discussing it with the maker I decided to try casting with it anyway, and, honestly, if the offset sprue hole is hurting accuracy, I can't tell it. I say that to say that if I were you I'd try casting and shooting before going to the trouble of making a new plate.