Lyman 358477

[smokeater]

Awaiting arrival of a slightly used 358477 2 cavity mold. Be using mainly in 357 GP100. Kinda late in the ballgame but would like to hear about experiences with mold use and cast product.

[derek45]

excellent accuracy

mine is an old single cavity, or i’d use it more

[smokeater]

derek45
Thank You. That's what I was wanting to hear. Supposedly Lyman has tweaked this mold since original offering. Some say it cast 150grs while others say it cast 158 grs. Have to wait for mold to get here to find out. Was pulled between the Lyman 358156 and this one. Already have a LEE C358158swc so was looking for something with plain base for everyday plinking and for targets of opportunity. Typically run an alloy of 11- 13 bhn with nothing harder than 15. Again, appreciate your insight.

[Ed_Shot]

The 358477 is a long time proven winner in both 357 and 38 Spl. I'll bet you have a hard time finding a load that doesn't shoot well.

[MT Gianni]

For a long time a max book load for that bullet and Unique was 5.4 gr. I used it as an accuracy load for 35 cal revolvers. If it would shoot accurately it was the guns fault. Lyman downgraded that to 5.0 gr and called it + P so I did also. It still shoots well.

[45DUDE]

Mine drops a 150 grain.

[beagle]

Load thousands ever year. One of my go-to designs for use in the Ruger Blackhawk and Marlin M1894. I use Pat Marlins PB checks on mine. One cavity is HP's and that makes for a very useful combination. You got a winner./beagle

[skeettx]

One of my favorite moulds, really shoots well in my 38 specials
3.0 grains of Bullseye will outperform others for accuracy
Mike

[smokeater]

Thanks gentlemen for your replies. Sitting on pins and needles awaiting its arrival.
skeettx, was sworn into the Air Force 3 Feb 66. Basic in San Antonio from feb till middle of Mar then was bussed to Amarillo for tech school from middle Mar thru Jun66. Loved Amarillo, beautiful country. That's saying something cause I'm an mountain boy here in northest Alabama. Shipped out to Hawaii and then finished my hitch at Austin TX. Our school squadron built a pen and barn at the Amarillo Zoo and donated 2 donkeys. My job was taking care of the donkeys till their facility was built. Had a ball! USAF flew them from the Isle of Sardinia. Loved the Air Force but not the pay. Retired from Army Reserves. Thank You for your service and wish you and your a healthy and happy New Year.

[skeettx]

Thank you
Graduated High School in 1967
Graduated La. Tech Univ and was commissioned 27 May 1971,
Missile Ops and then Munitions (conventional and nuke)
We are about the same age !!

[Old Caster]

Out of all the molds in the 150 range the Lyman 358477 and the RCBS 150 were the best that my friends and I could come up with, testing them on a Ransom Rest. For me the RCBS is the best but not by much and unless you are using them in competition don't worry about it all plus a different gun could be different. I am talking about 2 inches at 50 yards to 2 1/2 plus the Lyman can be bought in 4 cavity whereas the RCBS cannot. We were shooting in Distinguished Revolver Bullseye matches that required 38 revolvers and the bullet was supposed to be a 158 SWC. At first they had to be commercial so we tried everything and they were all bad. Things changed when you could load your own and the best commercial types were swagged but none were as good as cast. My load was 3.6 grains of 231 and my friends was 3.7. Every gun is an entity to itself even if made by the same manufacturer around the same time and the differences are slim but important when your Bullseye 10 ring is right at 3 inches and you are shooting at 50 yards and you want to win.

[Jack Stanley]

My mold is an Ideal marked four cavity that drops them at a hundred fifty grains . It normally gets loaded with Unique at or near plus "P" levels . I have a small stash a fella powder coated for me and use those in a .357 results are very good .

Jack

[derek45]

https://i.imgur.com/dQAEmna.jpg

[rintinglen]

IME, the 358-477 is more accurate in the 38 or 357 than the 358-429. It is the most accurate plain-based, SWC available for the 38 Special. 3.5 grains of Bullseye or Red Dot will clump the boolits as close as you can hold them.

[Alstep]

I have the RCBS equivalent, 38-150-SWC. It's my favorite in 38 / 357. A close second is the RCBS 38-158-CM.
You're going to love it.

[tazman]

I used the 358477 for a while and found it very accurate.
I happened across an NOE 360 150 SWC mold in 5 cavities and tried that. The differences are a slightly shorter nose and a wider front driving band. In my revolvers, it shoots at least as well as the Lyman boolit so I switched.
My Lyman mold was a 2 cavity and that had a lot to do with it.
I never got hold of the RCBS equivalent to test so I can't speak about that one.

I have since run across a 2 cavity version of the NOE mold that is configured for gas checks and hollow points. I use that one with a softer alloy for social purposes.

[rbuck351]

It was the second mold I bought over 50 years ago. Mine casts 150gr and is one of the best casting molds I have. It's also the best shooting 35cal mold I have.

[Char-Gar]

IIRC 357477 was designed by Phil Sharpe. Keith hated it and downed it every chance he could. It was because he didn't design it. Keith and Donald Trump share some common traits. That said, it is a proven, reliable performer.

[Adk Mike]

I have had a double cavity for 40 years. My go to in 357 or 38

[smokeater]

Well mold arrived Friday and as seller had described was in immaculate condition. Yesterday was cold with a fair north/northeast breeze but couldn't wait to cast. While my pot warmed and melted a handful of wheelweight ingots placed the mold sprueplate down on hot plate to warm up. SOO Pleased. Never happened before but cast approx 300-350 bullets with no visible defects or flaws. Bullets after cooling average .3595, weighed 151grs and was 11bhn. This afternoon the plan is to size and lube some to see how they shoot and find their sweet spot. According to the QC slip in mold box it was produced in 2008. Really pleased and I want to Thank each member for their experience with this particular mold. I was initially drawn to this mold but others favored different molds. I have a LEE C358158swc but was looking for a good plainbase bullet.

[higgins]

I have an old style SC (my first mold) I acquired in the 1960s, a new style DC acquired in the 1980s (?) and an old style DC bought used and slightly rust-damaged on one block a few years ago. You would have to see the two styles side by side to see the difference but in simple terms the newer design has a slightly shorter, more rounded nose. The two old style molds drop bullets about .359 while the new style drops about .358. Once you get a good micrometer you realize there's a lot of "about" in bullet diameters since bullets are generally not round and also vary between the two cavities of a DC mold.

When I'm in production mode I get both DC molds going then sort by style. The distance from the crimp groove to the base is the same for both styles, but the old style is slightly longer overall, so it's just a matter of adjusting the seating stem to get the same performance from both styles as long as you're seating to the crimp groove. I "believe" the style was changed because the original style was a bit too long to work in all revolvers when loaded in .357 mag. ammo.

[Walks]

I have an old Ideal 2cav and a Lyman 4cav.
No telling how many thousands I've cast and shot in a M27 - .357Mag.
Load is more accurate then I can shoot these days. But.... I used to get 1 ragged hole; 25yd groups in My younger days.