Good deal on Lyman 310 boxed set in 303 Brit/30-40 Krag

[Char-Gar]

There is a heck of a deal on a good boxed set Lyman 310 tool and dies for the 303 Brit on Ebay now. This will also load the 30-40 Krag round as well. The seller has a Buy-It-Now price of $48.00 which is a smoking deal if anybody wants such a thing. I already have the same set up or it would be gone by now.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Lyman-Ideal-no-310-loading-tool-w-303-British-Dies-NO-RESERVE-/171242813903?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27deddf9cf

[Ben]

I looked at it to see the buy it now price of $48.

I must have not looked close, I didn't see that.

Ben

[Char-Gar]

I looked at it to see the buy it now price of $48.

I must have not looked close, I didn't see that.

Ben

The buy-it-now goes away when the first bid is placed.

[Ben]

OK, that explains why I didn't see it.

Ben

[Char-Gar]

The 303 British 310 stuff sell cheaper than other calibers. Most folks don't know it will reload 30-40 and 308 Winchester also. It will take a different priming die (No. 2) for the 308, but the No. 7 is the same for the 303 Brit and 30-40 as well as the 44 Special and magnum. I have not tried it, but with a No. 2 priming die, I will bet the set can load 300 Savage as well.

[btroj]

Saw one at a gun show, in original box, for 200 bucks. I didn't even bother to look at what cartridge it was for. I just gave a low whistle and kept walking.

[Ben]

btroj

I have several nice sets ( steel handles and aluminum ones ) in some of the more common calibers, ( 38 Spec., 30-06, and a rarer set in 358 Win. ) .

However at $200, I'd be just like you and pick up the pace and move on also.

Ben

[btroj]

I don't own any 310 tools. Yet. I know a guy who does and he happens to be my wife's father so I'm sure I will see some come my way in time.

I love seeing how proud some guys are of their "stuff" at gunshows.

[yman]

Be intresting to see how much the run up. I have been looking to buy a 310 tool lately (just because i dont have one). The prices on fleabay are cazy. But then again the cost of a new set from Lyman is pretty mindboggling. Seen a set sell the other day for $50 but was not in a caliber i needed. Alot of them are rusty or he deprimer is broke. That one looks pretty nice.

[Idaho Sharpshooter]

You just have to look.

In the last six weeks I have purchased complete sets, in the original boxes in 223 and 300 H&H here.

[Char-Gar]

I have watch the price of 310 tools and dies climb in the past 12 to 24 months, and I expect them to continue the climb. There are several different types of folks who buy these things.

1. There is the serious collector, who is seeking to have good condition boxed sets of every caliber ever made by Lyman/Ideal.
2. There is the casual collector and fan of old reloading tools who want them to use in their favorite calibers and I am one of those folks.
3. There is the SHTF types who realize the advantage of being able to reload on the fly with the smallest amount of space and weight.
4. There is the cowboy and nostalgia shooter who wants to do it the way it was done "back in the day" and Lyman markets new tools and dies for this crowd.

Any decent complete boxed set at under $75.00 is worth a look. Harder to find or in demand calibers will bring more and common or less desirable calibers will bring a little less. Steel handle will juice the price a bit. The price ceiling at this time seems to be about $100.00, unless it is something quite rare or their is a fool on the buying end.

Non-boxed tools and dies can be accumulated from orphan handles and dies for less, if a person is patient and takes their time.

There are of course dealers in these things who will sell you just about everything you want, but the price will be higher than market.

Anyway, as somebody who watches this stuff on a daily basis, this is my take on it. There are still good deals available on Ebay, if a fellow watches closely on a daily basis and is willing to bide his time. But the days of these things being really cheap due to no demand are over.

It is common to see these things with a little or allot of rust on the dies an/or handles. A little Kroil on fine steel wool cleans them up right nice and I have never found one rusted on the inside. Lyman still makes decapping pins so that is not a problem.

[woody1]

A 30-06 set and mebe a few random pieces will cover a lot of ground too. I've reloaded most everything from 30-06 down to I think 300 Savage with those dies. As Char-Gar said, 30-40 takes a different priming die but otherwise 30-06 will do for it too. I never let a random die go begging if it's cheap and one I don't have. For instance, I don't have a 22 hornet set but I picked up a lonesome priming die and now load the Hornet with a 218 Bee set and hornet priming die. Yes, I do sometimes find 'em cheap at gun shows. Often the guys don't even know what they have. Regards, Woody

[Green Frog]

I find 310 dies, handles and sets at shows fall into two categories, some are apparently gold plated and the others are "give me whatever you're willing to give and get it off my table." Nobody seems to price them at anything in between. I look for examples of the latter and over the last year or so have picked up a striped box 9mm set like new for $10 and an old orange box set in 32 S&W L for about $12. The bargains are out there, and if you are willing to pick up orphan dies and match them back up, they can be super cheap. Being retired, I too am super cheap! 8-)

Froggie

[Char-Gar]

I just bought a boxed 8 X 57 set on eBay for $52.00, so these things can still be had.

[3006guns]

Char-Gar, your evaluation of the situation is dead on. My first set came from a gun show in .303 Brit with another set of 8mm Mauser dies and I didn't even TRY them for over 10 years! I now have several sets of dies for my military bolt action rifles and three sets of handles. My best Ebay "score" was a brand new set of 6.5 Jap dies meant for the Truline Jr. press, but with the addition of a priming chamber and handle adapter I have a set for my Arisakas. The cost? $9.95, the opening (and only) bid. In the past five years I've learned the possibilities of the tool and managed to find most of the military calibers quite reasonably.

I too, have found them at gun shows with ridiculous asking prices and my favorites are the incomplete sets with $75-$100 prices. I just look at the guy with an innocent expression and ask him "Where's the rest of it? Do you have the other pieces?" Since most of them don't know how the tools work anyway, they're usually taken aback and the dickering can begin...

As for what the gun shops ask for the Lyman stuff, heck they're just trying to make a living so if the price is too stiff just start hunting around. There's a wonderful Lyman manual scan in the Cast Pics section of the forum that explains which dies go with which calibers, so assembling a set from random Ebay buys can be pretty affordable. I believe The 310 Shop in Texas (good guys to deal with) is starting to make some replacement parts now also.

Remember, Lyman (and Ideal) made thousands and thousands of these things over the years so they're not rare by any means. Use that as your guide when searching.

[Green Frog]

Was at a gun shop today in Fort Smith the owner had several sets complete of 310's. the one that sparked my attention was the 32-20 he had the usual 270 win, ought six, several others, as well as a box of assorted dies. Wanted 100.00 for each box majority was the aluminum handles. The 32-20 was the older steel handles but only contained the priming and seater die. If he markets them correctly I have no doubt he will get his asking price from one of the groups that Char-Gar noted above.
I wound up picking up handles, a 457122 mold(handles attached) and a box of 6mm remington brass from him great guy and got a good buy. Funds was limited so I did not get serious on the 310 which the way he spoke was made of Gold, not for any reason other than he thought they was extremely sought out.

That 32-20 set would fit right in here... I think I have most if not all of the rest of that die set stashed in my miscellaneous box. I'm not sure I would want to go $100 for the incomplete set, but as somebody already said, the prices on these things have sure gone up a lot in the last 12-24 months! :shock:

Froggie

[texassako]

Did anyone notice it went for quite a bit more than the buy it now price?

[bobkk]

A set of 310's is what I started out loading 243's with. That was in the early 70's. Still have them but don't use them. Bought some adapters to use them in a press. Looks like I've ben loading about 40 years.