Lyman Moulds

[LAH]

I've posted this other places but thought you might enjoy it here. Guess the general thought on Lyman here is less than favorable so guess I got lucky on these moulds. They work for what I do. From ACWW alloy the 44 will size .430, the 38 Keith .358 & the 38 Thompson .358. Plus they all cast perfect. Here goes:

Some of my best moulds are by Lyman. Three of the herd are the 429421, 358429 & 358156. The first two have cast a few tons of bullets. The 358156 perhaps 200 pounds. They certainly work great.

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h244/Creekerpics/Loading%20Room%20101/Casting%20Equipment/DSC02054.jpg

L-429421 with a few RNFP mixed in
http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h244/Creekerpics/Loading%20Room%20101/Bullets/Picture551.jpg

L-358429
http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h244/Creekerpics/Loading%20Room%20101/Bullets/Picture138.jpg

L-358156
http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h244/Creekerpics/Loading%20Room%20101/Bullets/L-358156/DSC02049-1.jpg

[littlejack]

I have a four banger .454424 that casts very well.
We be braggards.

[LAH]

We be braggards.

YELP we be

[GLL]

Creeker:

Hope all is well back there ! :)

My older LYMAN molds all cast very nicely and to correct diameter ! I have used several newer versions of the same molds such as the 429421 and 358429 that are WAY undersized and useless! Buying new molds from LYMAN is a real crapshoot and they are unwilling to help or admit they have a very serious problem ! Buy older molds and all goes smoothly !

Jerry

[LAH]

Thanks Jerry & all is well in Hillbillyville.

[Iron Mike Golf]

I have several used Lyman molds and all work fine for me. 358477, 358429, 452460. I have steered away from new ones.

[Catshooter]

My stable is by far Ideal/Lyman. I do have some new ones, I think about eight or nine. Of those, the 429421 was usable, but just barely. It dropped 'em at .428 and the gun wanted .428, so it worked out. But that was pure luck. My older 44 needs .433 and to feed that one I went to a single cavity Ideal, perfect drop at .433 and very round too.

It's a crying shame Lyman has gone all Corporate America on us. If they were here in Florida and I had the extra $50 or $100 they're worth I'd buy 'em and fix 'em.

Isn't it odd that this is the biggest and best (by far, second place is waaaaaaaaaay down there) casting board on the web and Lyman isn't a sponsor? How odd.


Cat

[Le Loup Solitaire]

I too have several Lyman molds from yesteryear and they all work very well. The sad or intolerably annoying current state of affairs is that Lyman doesn't care about any aspect of mould customers' needs. They stubbornly refuse to alter their practices in product production and plod relentlessly ahead creating undersize and worthless molds. There is no reaction to complaints, suggestions, endless returns of goods and slumping mould sales. So eventually they will sink to a fruitless level of business and will have to cease mould operations unless someone can cut a deal with them and buy out that portion of their business. Sad in a sense and stupid in another. LLS

[fredj338]

I'v egot some old ones & new ones & have always had good results with them. I am sure the newer ones may have QC issues, few folks take their jobs seriously anymore. Pay your money & take your chances.:Fire:

[casterofboolits]

I cast only pistol boolits and I consider the Lyman four cavity mould the ideal size and weight for casting large quantities of boolits. My most recent four cavity Lyman mould purchases were two each of 40-175-TCBB and 45-250-RFBB. Both sets cast boolits within one grain of stated weight and plus .002 of size. I couldn't ask for better moulds.

[Buckshot]

Isn't it odd that this is the biggest and best (by far, second place is waaaaaaaaaay down there) casting board on the web and Lyman isn't a sponsor? How odd.


Cat

..............Cat, they were at one time. A kind of 'warmish' sponser, but IIRC they took exception to something or other that was happening here. The board had taken a kind of official stance on something (which escapes me now) and they backed out. 45Nut probably remembers.

..............Buckshot

[GaryN]

I bought a four banger 429421 Lyman mold second hand because I knew it cast undersize and I got it for a cheap deal. My revolver mics at .4325 so I had it opened up. Then I found that the sprue holes weren't deep enough. I don't know if I will every buy another Lyman mold. There are just too many good ones to pick from now. My old Lyman molds from the 70's and 80's are way better than the new stuff.

[rintinglen]

Nobody hits a home run everytime, but Lyman Molds are not as bad as you hear. I have now bought a total of 8 over the last three years.
Only one is marginally undersized. I recently got a 429-667 (Made in 09) that casts barely .429. That will probably be too small for my Rugers, but will work fine in My S&W 544.
I think they are feeling a bit snake bit--back in the late 60's when I started casting, I remember reading complaints about Lyman Molds casting "too big." They seem to have responded by making their molds cast smaller, so now the chorus chirps "too small." Seems to me that somedays it just don't pay to get out of bed.

[Jack Stanley]

Of the last five I got from Lyman four were not right for several reasons , the one mold that would work wasn't big enough for the job Lyman suggested . Fortunately it was perfect for the next smaller caliber so I lucked out there . The other four went back to Lyman for rework and when they got back just one was worth what I paid for it . The other three , Lyman just couldn't seem to get them right or didn't really care if they did .

I have several Lyman molds some I bought new way back then and others I've had to search for . It is so odd the the rather old vintage 311299 that I bought casts at .315" is perfect for my Mosin but the 314299 I bought just recently is to small . It does balance though because I can use it in my thirty caliber milsurp rifles .

Not buying anymore new ones though .... the shipping to return them is getting expensive :-P

Jack

[LAH]

Jack I had a streak of bad luck with RCBS moulds. The worst was the 44-250-K. This went on for a period of 6 months & most my dealing were with the shop foreman. One thing I insisted on was the mould would be shipped on their dime because the problem was theirs, not mine. It worked, at least in that case.

[MtGun44]

I'm surprised on the RCBS issues. That mold is a personal favorite, one of THE best of
the Keith .44s, VERY true to Elmer's intent, and works very well indeed for me. I took the
warthog in my pic on the left with one of them, AC wwts over 20 gr of 2400 from a 6.5" 629.

I like to think that Elmer would have approved. I sure enjoyed the whole process from
casting through eating.

Bill

[beagle]

All classics and I have multiples in each design....mostly Ideals and all hollow points for over 50 years. There are no better designs in my opinion and I have a bunch loaded in each design in various calibers.

I've owned Lyman moulds all my casting career and haven't been too dissapointed. I have a few H & G s that I swear by but that's a different story as they're not available anymore.

The RCBS moulds in certain designs shoot well for me. Saecos are a sometimes thing.

Nothing wrong with Lyman moulds that can't be corrected by a little casting experience and quality at Lyman.

A new caster can't go wrong by acquiring any of these for the respective caliber./beagle

[LAH]

Bill during that process one of the moulds had vent lines cut with a dull tool so the vents were too large allowing lead to bleed into them. One would cast .427 from 92-6-2. One wouldn't drop the bullets as it was bored off center. All the while we were trying to get a business up & running.

I like many of the RCBS designs but there machine work at that time was horrible.

[1Shirt]

Probaby have over 40 Lymans, a few RCBS, a couple of Saecos and Ohaus, and over 20 Lee. Agree with Beagle on the Lyman/Ideal designs. Some are better than others, but that is true of people as well.
1Shirt!:coffee:

[cbrick]

This is a Lyman thread but since the OP brought up RCBS . . .

IMHO RCBS has for many years been the primo off the shelf mold and some of the best bullet designs available. A few years back I bought the RCBS 6.5mm 140 SPGC and it was horrible, one of the worst molds I've seen in any brand. I called RCBS and asked what the hay?? Here's what they told me, the man that had been in charge of mold production had retired and the new guy wasn't up to the quality standards with the quite old machine tools they had been using since forever. RCBS recommended that rather than returning the bad mold right away I should wait 6 months or more to give them a chance to get the new CNC machines up and running and then send it back.

About a year after that phone call I sent the mold back and in about 10 days I had a new mold in hand that is simply primo, one of the best of about 20 RCBS molds that I have. The next few RCBS molds after that have been even better. My newest RCBS, the 22 cal 55 gr FN is one of the easiest casting, best molds I have.

So it does seem that RCBS had a problem for a time but they fixed it and the best off the shelf mold you can get is now better than ever. Now if we could just get them to fix that pesky "2 Cavity only" thing life would sure be wonderful.

Rick

[Shuz]

I believe I am very fortunate to have so many Lyman moulds that cast easily and produce boolits that shoot very well in my guns. My two favorites are both 429421, 4C round grooves that cast boolits that mic .432. When I work these two puppies in tandem, I can crank a bunch of quality boolits out in a short time. Life is grand!

[Lucas]

Question out to everyone: I have a 44mag and need to cast 0.432" to fit the throat of a RSBH Hunter, the barrel is 0.429". What off the shelf mould casts larger?

Thanks once again for this site. Great information.

Background: I bought the Lyman 429421, love the shape, hate the casting size of 0.429 when using 50/50. I also bought the Lyman devastator 44mag, and the HP pin fit was so loose that I got flashing on every bullet. I sent it back to Lyman and hoping for the best.

[Lucas]

Sorry, 50/50, WW/20:1

[cbrick]

I had such a Lyman Devastator also. I sent it off to Erik @ Hollow point Mold and had proper fitting pins of a couple of different lengths made, way worth it.

Rick

[Lucas]

Thanks cbrick,
Can Erick also enlarge current moulds? Take my Lyman 429421 to 0.434?

[cbrick]

Thanks cbrick,
Can Erick also enlarge current moulds? Take my Lyman 429421 to 0.434?

Yes, I have had him enlarge the driving bands on several molds to fit a particular firearm. Erik has done a great deal of work on many molds for me such as enlarge driving bands, remove bevel bases, remove gas check shanks, make new pins of different shapes & lengths, Cramer style HP's. In each case the work was a bit better than perfection.

Read his web site and you'll see he wants you to contact him before sending anything, that's why his address isn't on the web page.

Rick

[Lucas]

cbrick,
Fantastic. Erik has already replied. His website was a perfect site to get the dreams going. Those square HP pins look dreamy. I plan to send him two moulds to increase all three driving bands and make sharp meplat corners on a Lyman 38/357 358477 mould. Looking forward to working with him. Thanks again.

[cbrick]

The next thing you'll learn about Erik is that his turn around times are as good as the quality of his work. His gaurantee is the best in the shooting sports.

Rick

[Hank45]

Can anybody tell me what rifle this mould was made for ?, thanks hank

[Ben]

7 mm Mauser, 7 mm / 08, 7 mm Rem. mag. etc, etc

[Hank45]

Ben, can that bullet safely be used in a 28/30, brand new rifle with a 9.5 twist? Thanks, Hank

[Ben]

Are you making reference to a Moisn Nagant 28/30 ? If so, the answer is definitely NO.

[Hank45]

No, I had a ruger #1 that I rebarreled with a green mountain 7 mm . This barrel was then rechambered with a 28/30 reamer. Hank

[doctorggg]

I've just starting casting boolits in 2012. I wish I had joined this site sooner. I have purchased several new Lyman molds. I had to return a 400 grain .408 (40-65 WCF) because it rocked from top to bottom. Fish fins every time in the center of 1 side of the bullet. It's been 3 weeks since they received it (return confirmation) and I haven't heard a word from them. The others often cast smaller than advertised diameters.

I also purchased their 20 pound smelter. From the factory it wouldn't heat lead hotter than 700 degrees. Called customer service and had to wait 2 days for a return call. I was instructed to remove the control knob and turn the thermostat screw (the technician couldn't even remember if it was clockwise or counter clockwise to make it hotter) Of course I figured clockwise and was wrong. Poor customer service. I was told all units were tested before leaving the factory. BS.

[runfiverun]

28/30 is an old pope chambering, Dr. mann wrote about it quite a lot.
he was using du pont #2 powder,and soft lead at bore diameter.
you'll want something that will mimick your throats shape.
if it's cut square like a ruger something like the rcbs 145 silhouette is a good fit.