New Lyman Molds - Don't be afraid.

[Mr.skrimps]

I'm a long time reloader, but have only gotten into casting in the last year. I've learned so much from castboolits and can't thank all the members enough for what they've taught me.

I just wanted to write this because there was a time when Lyman molds weren't up to par. I went lee for my first couple molds. Price, the bad taste I always read about the size/weight lyman bullets drop left on people etc.

Out of those two Lee molds, the first 2, one never casted a good boolit. Tried scrubbing, a hot plate, variations in temperatures, etc. Don't have it anymore. But while i was struggling with the lee mold, I read sixguns. I bought a brand new lyman 358429 mold on amazon (go figure) and it cast the most beautiful bullet I'd ever casted. Since then I have added all my favorites, and all have had great results.

358429 (manufactured 2019 casts at 358.5 drops at 171)
358311 (manufactured 2019 casts at 358/.5 depending on alloy drops at 161)
358156 (manufactured 2015 casts at 358 drops at 160)
358439 HP (manufactured 2019 casts at 359 drops at 155 exactly)
314299 (manufactured 2019 casts at 314/315 drops at 201)
356637 HP (manufactured 2020 casts at 360 drops at exactly 125 with lyman #2, 117 with lead/WW)

Note that i mostly cast with lyman #2 and Missouri Bullet's magic. I am experimenting with straight lead with my HP but am no means an expert)

I did also learn to oil them after using. With the Lee molds i didn't do this and my 358156 mold showed rust after a week in the garage)

I just wanted to let new casters out there, and maybe old ones alike- don't be afraid if you find a lyman mold at a local shop. Maybe in the past couple years QC has been stepped up. I do have a couple of lee molds that work great (albeit they take longer for a good cast and they overheat faster; for me- how i cast)

I always read about how no one will buy a new Lyman mold yet I have been so happy with mine.

Thats all folks.

[dannyd]

Lyman moulds the old ones are good have not tried the new ones. Lee moulds are good but you have to work them. But most of the new aluminum moulds from NOE or some of the others work great and for price are very hard to beat. So don't limit yourself also try a Lee six cavity they work good too.

[Mr.skrimps]

i have a Lee 6 cavity 356 125 RN. It is a great mold.

I only put lee and lyman becuase when i was a new caster, these seemed like the only 2 options. Someday I will add a noe or a Mihi(probably wrong, eastern European dude with the brass multi hollow point molds) to my collection, but I already have plenty as it is.

[ioon44]

I will never buy Lyman because of their customer service.

[Big Ben]

I am glad you found some good ones.

[Walks]

Five years ago, I went through heck getting Lyman to "fix" 2 New and undersized .44cal molds.
Eventually they did get fixed. I swore that I'd never buy another New Lyman mold.
And I never have.
But a friend of mine that I do cast for wasn't so cautious. He did buy a new Lyman mold for the .38S&W , a #358430 195gr RN.

However I'm not afraid of this new mold being undersized.

Powder Coat will increase Bullet Diameter by 1-3 thousands.

Really looking forward to weighing out those teeny-tiny charges of Bullseye.

[ABJ]

My problem with Lyman is not how it cast, but the as cast size is too small with softer alloys. I think they use Lyman #2 as their alloy which is 5% tin which adds diameter to a cast boolit vs 2% tin.
For me an Accurate mold form Tom can be ordered to your alloy specs. for the basically the same money. He will do steel molds as well. I like supporting a small business which is responsive to our needs like Tom.
Tony

[Martin Luber]

Wow, Lymans back in the day, were all oversize for me. Sounds like they had badly worn cherries for some moulds.

[Mitch]

you only need to shoot yourself in the foot once.The scare lasts forever.

[Mk42gunner]

you only need to shoot yourself in the foot once.The scare lasts forever.

Truer words have not been written.

Robert

[Abidingguy]

And was really impressed with the results. I normally use Lee molds that drop boolits for pan lubing with an alox mix, but wanted to have one other "back up" 9mm mold in case things really start getting scarce under the new regime's policies.

I picked up a single cavity Lyman .356 mold, 124gr HP that was kind of pricey, but it's all blued steel and appears to be well made...heavy too. I read that steel molds need to be warmed up well before they will start casting good boolits, and I saw this to be true. Pretty happy with the results, but now I hope they are not undersized like someone posted here. I use WW ingots, BTW.

For those who have experience with newer Lyman molds, has this "undersize" thing been an issue for you as well? If yes, have you experienced increased leading due to blow-by as a result of the boolits cast from the newer Lyman molds?

[Walks]

And was really impressed with the results. I normally use Lee molds that drop boolits for pan lubing with an alox mix, but wanted to have one other "back up" 9mm mold in case things really start getting scarce under the new regime's policies.

I picked up a single cavity Lyman .356 mold, 124gr HP that was kind of pricey, but it's all blued steel and appears to be well made...heavy too. I read that steel molds need to be warmed up well before they will start casting good boolits, and I saw this to be true. Pretty happy with the results, but now I hope they are not undersized like someone posted here. I use WW ingots, BTW.

For those who have experience with newer Lyman molds, has this "undersize" thing been an issue for you as well? If yes, have you experienced increased leading due to blow-by as a result of the boolits cast from the newer Lyman molds?

As I said above; undersized bullet diameter can be increased with Powder Coat.
That #358430 ends up at .362 with a double Powder Coat. Just the thing for a S&W Victory in .38S&W.

[Conditor22]

OK, I have had several bad experiences with Lyman molds and customer service BUT I did recently buy a Lyman 8 press the first one had paint damaged in shipping -- I sent it back to Amazon, the second one had paint damage in shipping, I got a SASE from Lyman and sent it back to them. the third one, from Lyman, had paint damage in shipping (the packaging was poorly designed so the part rubbed the press) I made a deal with Lyman to send me 2 spare turrets and some touch-up paint and I'll live with it. They sent me 2 extra turrets, :)

The customer service rep was trying to be helpful, the rest of the clowns there wouldn't listen to what I told them.

[gwpercle]

With the price of Lyman moulds being as high as they are now ... I would just as soon have an NOE mould and deal with Al "Swede" Nelson . The very few times I had a problem , dumb question or was about to order the wrong thing ... he was there to make it right .

I started casting in 1967 so I've been around the block a few times with Lyman and still have quite a few older Lyman moulds ... none from the 2000's .

Gary

[Petander]

I started casting in 1967

Gary

I was four years old at that time and didn't do much casting - but I was good at eating mud.

I've been casting only since the 90's and I have some 30-40 molds. Some older Lymans are good. But with todays excellent,dedicated mold makers like NOE, Accurate,LBT,Mihec... I only buy from them. Lee RB:s I use.

Every time I receive a great mold I feel a little regret for starting with Lee molds and wasting some years... but I believed the hype about Lee being the best ever, my bad.

It's just when you get to experience a really easy mold,raining perfect bullets hour after hour... I have one new 45 SWC Lyman, unused 4 cav iron. It will stay that way.

[samari46]

Well Lyman has never worked for me.
3 45 cal rifle molds
1 30 caliber mold 311284 which got sent back to get reamed out to a bigger diameter as it should be. Reamer never cleaned up the nose section. Only 3 molds that cast where they should. Two 314299's and 1 311316 for the 32-20. Next order will with Accurate Molds. Tired of wasting my money. Frank

[HangFireW8]

My experience with modern Lyman molds is that they cast to minimal bore size only when pressure casting with linotype or #2. If that works for you, fine.

My experience with Lyman customer service is lots of arguments from their side, when it could not be denied that their melter digital temp did not agree with their analog gauge.

My experience with their equipment is my first 4500 had over a quarter inch misalignment between the ram and the die.

My time is worth too much to bother with them any more. I would rather pay more for quality equipment.

[Petander]

Yep, it's not the quality or money that matters, it's time.

Lyman Borecam is good.

[Mitch]

Ok one lyman mold I own.Got ti out of the box cleaned with my usual deal hot water and Dawn good scrubbing with a brush blow dry.Good shot of break cleaner and final wipe with alcohal.Looking at it I could see the Machine work was bad.The sprue plate was all chettery and looked like a corn cob.The cavitys looked rough in spots.But I warmed it up on the hot plate and gave it a try.The sprues would not come out of the pockets.Then it was take it to work with me and use a good sharp cutter to smooth up the sprue plate.They try again no joy there either all 4 cavitys were differnt size and all were undersize by far.It is one of the best casting molds i have now but was it worth it.Like said above nope not worth my time to mess with it.

The the real fun began several emails sent to lymman no relpie for a month or so.then call and get no real person on the phone to talk to.finaly 2 month or so they sanswer the emails.they tell me to senf the mold.6 months or so total i get a pefect casting mold of the correct size.

[Anonym]

I find myself casting from a variety of mold manufacturers, whichever I can find in the profile I want for the price I could afford at the time. That being said, most of my Lyman molds are older ones, but I did recently have an experience (last year?) where I picked up a NOS 452424 mold that cast about 0.4505". I contacted Lyman and got a return number, shipped my mold back with a few samples that I cast with it, and in about 3 weeks got the mold returned to me casting a beautiful 0.454" bullet. I couldn't have been happier.

I honestly hate to say this, but you have to take into consideration that you are dealing with New Englanders, specifically from Connecticut. There is a "regional personality" that generally comes from that area that can be taken poorly, especially if you are from a more hospitable part of the country. Taken at face value, it could be perceived as "poor customer service", but they performed to my expectations and I have been somewhat cultured in my life to understand that not everyone is from southern Indiana. ;)

They are good with me.

[CeeHoo]

Here are four new Lymans Santa brought yesterday. The 358311 is 2017 production, while 358429 is 2019, and 313249 and 457125 are 2020 production. Can't comment on the boolit size they are going to drop just yet. All molds seem to be in alignment and three of them passed my initial inspection when it comes to cavity smoothness. However, the one I had been waiting for the most, the 358429, has one cavity machined roughly. It's probably serviceable but not a pretty sight in any case. I've been thinking whether I should send it back but I don't see the two cavity version listed in Lyman's website. Hopefully it's still in production.

https://img.aijaa.com/b/00624/14922714.jpg

https://img.aijaa.com/b/00715/14922711.jpg

https://img.aijaa.com/b/00437/14922712.jpg

https://img.aijaa.com/b/00371/14922713.jpg

[Teemu]

What a h... so it is true that Lyman has dived down at quality also. If You got those from Finland send it back. I would. It looks terrible. I have about 10 Lyman molds. Those are bought at least 4-5 years back and cast well, looks good and drops right diameter. I hope You get that sorted out. Yks saatanan työmaa nykyään ��

[GARD72977]

If Lyman went out of business I would not miss them.

20 something years ago I sent a lyman accu-scale (spelling) back for warranty. Talked to them on the phone and they said it had been received and would take a few weeks. A few weeks later I called back and the said they never recieved it. My reloading table lacks any Orange today!

[flyingmonkey35]

You should email them and asked if they ever received it?

It's been 20 years. I'm sure the pony express got thier by now


Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

[Jack Stanley]

you only need to shoot yourself in the foot once.The scare lasts forever.

That's the truth right there !

Of the last five molds from them , one was usable and the other four made Lee look good . That concept of "quality" I can do without .

Jack

[CeeHoo]

What a h... so it is true that Lyman has dived down at quality also. If You got those from Finland send it back. I would. It looks terrible. I have about 10 Lyman molds. Those are bought at least 4-5 years back and cast well, looks good and drops right diameter. I hope You get that sorted out. Yks saatanan työmaa nykyään ��

Yes, I got these via Asetarvike.com in Finland. I submitted my complaint immediately. They said that Lyman has promised to send me a new one but so far nothing has happened. For fun, I've been following availability of this mold on Midwayusa and it still is out of stock!

I think I'll buy a vintage 358429 mold from Ebay if I come across a decent one with international shipping.

[Buzzard II]

I see good and bad comments about Lee, Lyman, but I haven't seen any comments about RCBS, but most mold makers seem to be out of stock. I just got a beautiful mold from MP at a reasonable price, and got on a waiting list for another. I think I'll stick with MP. Good shooting to all.
Bob

[bruce381]

just got a 358429 square lube grove from ebay and works real well after cleaning and heating on hot plate drop about .358 size to .357/.358 171 gr.

[Teemu]

Yes, I got these via Asetarvike.com in Finland. I submitted my complaint immediately..

Well maybe on next Christmas you get new ones...:coffeecom

[Green Frog]

“Back in the day” I sought out and bought early Ideal moulds for my Schuetzen rifles… with perfect satisfaction. I seldom if ever bought new moulds from Lyman… just didn’t see the need. Now my taste in handgun bullets has become so esoteric, I just can’t find Lyman bullets that fill my needs. I bought Lyman DC moulds for 313445 and 313492 most recently, and even though I’ve had them for several years now, I had to get them used as those designs were discontinued back then. I also have the fairly current 454242 mould which is pretty much standard for my 45 Colt but I really don’t remember buying it. :???:

I would probably buy new Lyman bullet moulds today, but their prices approach those of the custom makers and their selection of designs doesn’t satisfy my needs. I don’t know whether it’s Lyman or me, but I just can’t get what I “need” from them.

Froggie

[Taterhead]

I see good and bad comments about Lee, Lyman, but I haven't seen any comments about RCBS, but most mold makers seem to be out of stock. I just got a beautiful mold from MP at a reasonable price, and got on a waiting list for another. I think I'll stick with MP. Good shooting to all.
Bob

RCBS are surprisingly good molds. I would certainly own more if they weren't maxed out at 2 cavities. The 38-150-SWC gets quite a bit of use.

[farmbif]

maybe just maybe Lyman is trying to turn things around. a look through their web site they have made quite a few changes to the lineup of stuff they offer, a lot of the stuff looks like it might just be real good quality, hopefully for the better. ive got a few old ideal and Lyman molds that are great. but seems Lyman went through a rough patch and many many molds they were making were dropping way undersized boolits. ive also got quite a few old Lyman die sets that just can't be beat with the m die included in the box. ive never gotten an RCBS mold that was less than perfect. maybe ive just been lucky.

[CeeHoo]

Well maybe on next Christmas you get new ones...:coffeecom

Well, it sure didn't make it on last Christmas and not this one either! Two years plus and counting. Not sure if Lyman has even made another production run after that as it seems that at least on MidwayUSA the status is constantly "out of stock, no backorder".

Maybe I'll just use the better cavity or hope some nice person will part his Ideal or early Lyman 358429. Haven't seen one on Ebay either even though, I suppose, it shouldn't be that rare mold.

[truckjohn]

People have been complaining about Lyman molds casting small for 20-years now.

I've got quite a few of them. Some new, some old, and I've been happy with all of them.

My advice with "Customer service" drones is to just send stuff back with a short letter explaining the problem. That often gets it solved. Calling them often gets you nowhere. It's like the medical universe.. Call the doctor and they say everything is just fine, come visit in two months. Show up and they send you to the hospital.

[Teemu]

Well, it sure didn't make it on last Christmas and not this one either! Two years plus and counting. Not sure if Lyman has even made another production run after that as it seems that at least on MidwayUSA the status is constantly "out of stock, no backorder".

Maybe I'll just use the better cavity or hope some nice person will part his Ideal or early Lyman 358429. Haven't seen one on Ebay either even though, I suppose, it shouldn't be that rare mold.

I guess it's best to forget about the possibility of getting a new mold through the Asetarvike. Have you looked at the MP-molds page, is there something similar? The other, of course, is Accuratemolds, but then it goes to pay customs and taxes. It might still be worth trying from within the EU. In Italy, France and Germany, there are a few quite large companies that may have molds from Lyman and other commercial manufacturers on the shelf. I myself found the RCBS .22-55-SP in a small company in France, which I had been looking for for a very long time.

There is one possibility to get it
http://johannsen-shop.de/LYMAN-.38-357-170-SWC-2x-Doppelkokille/218976

[ioon44]

With Accurate and NOE making great molds I would not waste time with Lyman or Lee molds. The Lyman molds I have cast under size or blocks don't line up.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

I had one Lyman mold, a two cavity cast iron 30 cal rifle mold. The mold halves were not lined up properly so the boolits had a noticeable seam on them. I sent it back to Midway for a refund. They shot o.k. after sizing though and now I wish I had kept it because it did drop boolits nicely. My favorite molds are cast iron ones, I spray them down with Birchwood Casey Sheath after using them and spray them off with Gunscrubber before I use them again. I have molds from Lee, RCBS, Accurate, Arsenal, MP and Noe. Brass, Cast Iron and Aluminum. I have enough now that I should make a list so I can remember what I have exactly.

[derek45]

The only thing I buy Lyman is the reloading books, and M-die.

https://i.imgur.com/9Ybxl8R.jpg

[justindad]

I’d rather see what color comes from a $100 bill sitting over a Bic lighter than buy another new Lyman mold.

[CeeHoo]

I guess it's best to forget about the possibility of getting a new mold through the Asetarvike. Have you looked at the MP-molds page, is there something similar? The other, of course, is Accuratemolds, but then it goes to pay customs and taxes. It might still be worth trying from within the EU. In Italy, France and Germany, there are a few quite large companies that may have molds from Lyman and other commercial manufacturers on the shelf. I myself found the RCBS .22-55-SP in a small company in France, which I had been looking for for a very long time.

There is one possibility to get it
http://johannsen-shop.de/LYMAN-.38-357-170-SWC-2x-Doppelkokille/218976

Thanks for the link. Well, so it happened that a replacement mold arrived directly from Lyman on late April. I don't know how it managed to pass customs but it did. It didn't say anything about that on the label. So far, I've just eyeballed the mold and this one appears to be machined nicely.

Before that I managed to order a six cavity brass mold 360-429 (among many others...) from Mihec so now the Keith situation appears to be fixed.

[deltaenterprizes]

you only need to shoot yourself in the foot once.The scare lasts forever.

Is this first hand knowledge from a personal experience?
LOL!🙁

[flatnose]

I posted before about my dislike of Lee molds. Actually I took all of them and threw them away as to not be tempted to waste time to try them again. The last one the gas check shank was .007" too big. That was the final straw. I bought 2 molds from MP and sadly had the same trouble. I have maybe 12 molds from Accurate that are fantastic. There was one bad one and Tom at Accurate remade it and it is close to perfection. Arsenal has been good also with one bad mold that cast oversize bullets and they will not reply. Like a previous poster Lyman has good molds in the past but now the customer service is worthless. From my experience I would buy from Accurate and Arsenal.

[Iowa Fox]

I posted before about my dislike of Lee molds. Actually I took all of them and threw them away as to not be tempted to waste time to try them again. The last one the gas check shank was .007" too big. That was the final straw. I bought 2 molds from MP and sadly had the same trouble. I have maybe 12 molds from Accurate that are fantastic. There was one bad one and Tom at Accurate remade it and it is close to perfection. Arsenal has been good also with one bad mold that cast oversize bullets and they will not reply. Like a previous poster Lyman has good molds in the past but now the customer service is worthless. From my experience I would buy from Accurate and Arsenal.

I have along with several other guys a MP mold with a .017 oversize gas check shank. The weasel won't reply to any of us. What do you do with something like that?

[flatnose]

I have along with several other guys a MP mold with a .017 oversize gas check shank. The weasel won't reply to any of us. What do you do with something like that?

Sadly I never got a reply from MP also. Gas check shanks too big and sent the wrong top punches. The only thing we can do is warn others that he wont stand behind his products. Arsenal wont stand behind theirs either but I have got some good molds and one bad one. Stick with Tom at Accurate if at all possible. This is the world we live in now.

[flatnose]

I have along with several other guys a MP mold with a .017 oversize gas check shank. The weasel won't reply to any of us. What do you do with something like that?

I wish i could throw all of them all the way to Slovenia. Correct he wont reply. Yes a weasel or other things that cant be said here. I will throw mine in the garbage with the Lees. I am tired of looking at them and being reminded of how he burned me.

[Teddy (punchie)]

Maybe a good thing I had some must trouble with the first brass mold, the mix I had acted like solder to the brass, what a pain to clean off.