Lyman 45 and RCBS H die

[claudesapp]

So, refinished an old Lyman 45 sizer and tried it for the first time tonight with a RCBS sizer, is the die supposed to insert so the top is flush with the 45 body? I can't get mine in that far, the O ring is above the 45 body. Tried rifle bullets with gas checks for the first time, and seemed to get it all to work but blue lube was coming out from around the top of the die body without the O ring there to seal it.

The knockout rod and it's threaded sleeve were backed out all the way down to insert the die, but lowering the handle will still not seat the H die all the way down.

I've sized/lubed many plain base pistol bullets on my RCBS LAMII, but the old Lyman 45 has me puzzled right now.

[ultramag]

Yes, it should drop in and be flush with the top of the base of the Lyman 45. There is a set screw in the front facing you that is then tightened into the groove around the die's body and just below the o-ring.

[claudesapp]

Thanks, that's what I thought, but the die surely seems like it is bottoming out before it is flush. The set screw is there in my 45, it is backed out far enough to not be hanging up the die.

Are there some old 45 sizers that *don't* take newer dies?

[ultramag]

No, there shouldn't be. Even the old #1, the predecessor of the Lyman 45, took the same style dies and continued to be the same through the 450 and the current 4500 lubesizer. All my H&I dies are Lyman branded so I've never used an RCBS die in them but know they should work.

[Alferd Packer]

My Lyman 45 has a retaining cap that has external fine threads to fit into the 45 body and hold the die in.
The die top sticks up just a mite and the cap which has a hole in it fits over the die top and screws into the body. All my dies have the o-ring.
Sometimes hardened bullet lube will keep the die from bottoming out correctly.
It has to be scraped out . It can solidify like old caulking.
I don't see how you can keep the die in without the retaining ring/cap-my words.
I too have both RCBS and Lyman 45.
Dies are interchangeable, but not the same.
Lube holes are drilled differently.

[462]

Over the years, there have been members who have run across RCBS dies that don't fit a Lyman 45, 450, or 4500. I have only two RCBS dies and they are longer than any of the Lyman dies, however, they fit my 45 and 4500.

It may be that you have a case of mis-matched tolerances -- a too long die in a too short press body -- and the easy fix may be to shorten the die (and ejector rod, if need be).

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

So, refinished an old Lyman 45 sizer and tried it for the first time tonight with a RCBS sizer, is the die supposed to insert so the top is flush with the 45 body? I can't get mine in that far, the O ring is above the 45 body. Tried rifle bullets with gas checks for the first time, and seemed to get it all to work but blue lube was coming out from around the top of the die body without the O ring there to seal it.

The knockout rod and it's threaded sleeve were backed out all the way down to insert the die, but lowering the handle will still not seat the H die all the way down.

I've sized/lubed many plain base pistol bullets on my RCBS LAMII, but the old Lyman 45 has me puzzled right now.

Something is wrong, a die (including a RCBS die) should seat til it's flush and shouldn't leak...well, it may leak a little (depending on tolerances) but not more than a very thin ribbon.

I suspect there is paint in the casting were the bottom part of the die needs to seat...since it has been refinished.

[claudesapp]

Well, something is wrong. Had a few minutes this morning to try some other dies, and the couple I tried did fit and sit flush with the 45 body. The one RCBS die I originally tried still does not fit in the 45, and it looks identical to the RCBS die that I tried that did drop right in and fit flush. I guess I'll go through all my dies and drop them in to see what fits and what does not.

[C.F.Plinker]

Mike the OD of the bottom and see if it is greater than .702 inches. All of my Lyman and RCBS dies are between .699 and .702 and fit in the Lyman 450.

[claudesapp]

I tried all 7 dies I own and all but the RCBS from my original post fit. Of course the one that did not fit was the first that I tried in my newly refurbished 45. As a sanity check I'll get a mic on them tonight like cfplinker suggests.

[Virginia John]

When I first got my 45 I had a h___ of a time getting the die to set flush. It turned out that some old lube had hardened and had to be blasted out of the cavity to let the die seat properly. I ended up scouring it out with a dremil tool.

[.22-10-45]

I have an early Lyman 45 & have found some RCBS dies will not seat the last 1/8" or so. I also note some RCBS dies do not have the rounded groove for the 45 set screw. This is probably because the old 45 is considered "obsolete" and the newer dies are made to modern 450-4500 & or course RCBS standards. THese are hard..but can be polished to fit.

[claudesapp]

That 1/8" sticking up is exactly what I am seeing too. I measured my dies as suggested, and they were all .699" - .701", except the one that would not fit was .705" at the base. I think I might just set up that old Lyman 45 as a dedicated sizer for one bullet, be a good candidate for my favorite 38 Special boolit.

[220swiftfn]

I ran into one of those fat RCBS sizers too..... spinning it on some emery cloth will take it down to fit without too much trouble...


Dan