Lachmiller Lubesizer

[tonyjones]

Is the Lachmiller lubesizer the forerunner to the RCBS LAM? Does it accept Lyman and RCBS dies or something else?

Thanks in advance,

Tony

[rodsvet]

Yes, it is the forerunner. Yes, it accepts the same dies and top punches as the RCBS. I bought mine in 1972 and have never had to replace any parts. It just keeps on running like new! I'll bet Lachmiller was more precise than RCBS in casting and machining. Watch your heating temps though. If you get the lube too hot it will leak above and below the die. Just let it cool down if this happens and it will rock and roll. I use my Star for my pistol boolits when doing larger batches, but for gas checks and rifle, I use the Lachmiller. You couldn't pry it from my cold dead fingers!! Rod

[TreeKiller]

When i bought my Lyman 450 in about 1970 it cane in a sealed Lachmiller box and is gray. Too long ago i can't remember who I got it from, proubley Herters.

[Bent Ramrod]

I have a Lachmiller as well. One of the few loading implements I bought new, because the gun store was remaindering them after Lachmiller went out of business. A very solid machine; nothing has ever broken or malfunctioned in the use I've given it. Probably got it around 1979 or so.

I use it with the more modern lubes that have to be heated to flow, as it's a heavier duty machine than my Ideals and Lymans. It's bolted to a Lyman heating plate. One thing I've noticed on it--despite the nut arrangement holding the die down concentrically with the plunger, as opposed to holding the die by the side with the set screw, it is still possible to size boolits off center with the machine if the lube is cold and not flowing well. The extra internal pressure on the sluggish cold lube seems to throw the process out of alignment. As soon as the machine is warmed up a little, the boolits go in straight and come out straight.

It normally works with Lyman, Ideal and RCBS dies, but every once in a while an individual die of any make will not fit in mine for some reason. It fits the diameter of the hole in the machine, but doesn't go in deep enough for the locknut threads to engage. Maybe there is a lump in the casting that some of the chamfers on the end of the dies aren't sufficiently far up to miss.

I don't use the automatic lube feature because it never is exactly right for the boolits I lube with it. Either the pressure builds up until the lube squirts out the die cavity under the boolit, or it doesn't keep up and the grooves have empty spots after a while. I leave it on the machine because it's kind of an interesting idea, and it's so simple, but I pull the wrench around by the feel of the pressure on the plunger.

About the only real annoyance is making sure the set screw for the top plunger is flush with or below the ram. It won't move through the whole stroke if that little Allen screw is out even a little, and might even score the inside of the machine.

[tonyjones]

Thanks for all your help! TJ