Multi Caliber Lubesizer die ?

[Wolfdog91]

So just got my first lube sizer die today. Lil 450 I'm gonna clean up repaint ect while I getting my power coating set up collected together and running.
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Anyhow was looking at it and the individual sizer dies and I was curious . Why isn't there a mulit caliber deal made for one of these yet ? I mean I was looking at my NOE die with is basically a bushing set deal where all you do is slip a different bushing in and tighten up an Allen key.
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I mean for the price of one Lubesizer die ($36 new seem to be average)
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new I can get a few bushings. I mean the kit is only like $50 for all the basic stuff then another $5-$8 per bushing. And also $10 for the push rod but those are for the general caliber ( .22cal .30cal ect)
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Maybe I'm missing something but couldn't something like this be made for a Lubesizer possibly so you have a multi caliber deal ? Think it would work with a few tweaks and would be nice for folks who want custom sizes or just plain more variety. Maybe have a .22cal one with the assorted bushings then a .30 can ,40 cal ect. I mean I'm no tool and die make but I honestly don't see how bad it could be. Just looking at pictures a sizer die basically just looks like a bored out cylinder with some holes for the lube and an eject rod nestled inside to push the bullet back out. I'm figuring the whole thing isn't sizing. So what not just machine out the top of one some how make a sizer bushing or ring or whatever that can slide in and be secured with one or two set screws maybe and boom. When it gets pushed in, the bushing does the initial sizing to whatever as it goes in further lube is pushed into the grooves , as it's raised back up the bushing shaves off and uniforms the lube and bang it's done. And if you want a different diameter just pop the body out can't the bushing and pop it back in.
Again though never used one so I'm not sure if the specifics but seems doable I think

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[Mk42gunner]

The problem with your idea, as I see it anyway, is that you also need a close fitting center pin in the Lyman/RCBS sizing die. The part that is seldom mentioned except when they are called H&I dies. H is the sizer, I is the center pin; from an old Ideal parts breakdown of the then current lubrisizer.

That's why I usually try to find a used one when I need a new size. Otherwise I shop for the least expensive one from Lyman or RCBS.

Robert

P.S. A one inch section of ¼" rod (or bolt) will do for 90% or more of your top punch needs.

R

[Harter66]

This is exactly why I have 18-19 Lee and Lee style dies .......well that and the cost of the platform .

I have 2 older models now a serious shortage of nose punches and almost all of the dies I need .

I bought most of them here for somewhat less than market value 2-3 at a time . I think in this time we're paying for the name . If you buy a Lee kit it's $25 . Buy an H&I die and you have an anvil and a bushing same as the Lee , but , fitted to a tool that fills the lube grooves and it's $25 . The bushings are less than the others for the NOE but the die itself is about $35 and the bushings and anvils are most of $20 a set and don't lube .

The NOE version is sweet if you need only to size which is all you need with PC . $5 matters if you're on a budget and when you need 15+ sets it matters more . I have more in the Lee dies than I have in the 2 sizers and half of the H&Is .

[reddog81]

I’ve got all my Lyman dies as a package deal for cheap or of eBay for cheap for about the price of a NOE die.

[405grain]

When I started casting boolits a million years ago I was way too broke to afford a lube/sizer. I pan lubed and used a cookie cutter piece of tubing, then ran everything through a set of home made bushings with a small arbor press. Much later I started powder coating and got some sets of Lee push through sizers. These worked great, and seated gas checks 100% better than my home made rig. Finally, now that I'm a lot more experienced, I got a set of NOE size dies with posts and bushings for every caliber that I cast for. I love the NOE setup - it is very convenient and works really well. When I do lube boolits I swirl lube them after sizing, so even after I've come full circle I've never really needed a lube/sizer.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

While it is likely possible, the prices you are comparing are like apple and oranges.
The lubesizer inserts will need all the machining that a lubesizer die would need, the cost of "new" lubesizer dies are labor, not material.
Sometimes, you can find used lyman dies from alternative sources for pennies on the dollar.

[Wolfdog91]

While it is likely possible, the prices you are comparing are like apple and oranges.
The lubesizer inserts will need all the machining that a lubesizer die would need, the cost of "new" lubesizer dies are labor, not material.
Sometimes, you can find used lyman dies from alternative sources for pennies on the dollar.

Such as ? Again I'm not very familiar with the dies be if I'm looking at them right it's just a cylinder with a ejection rod and port for the lube. I guess one the top of the hole does the actual sizing so I don't get why you couldn't just machine that out to accept a little bushing that secures with a set screw or similar

[farmbif]

there was a place online I saw last year that primarily sold repackaged bulk powder but had a huge selection of used sizing dies, bullet molds and reloading dies. can't remember the website, maybe someone else saw it and knows the site.

[Geezer in NH]

Also push though doesn't lube as the Lyman 450 will at the same time. Besides just how many sizes you planning to do anyway?

I have 4 45 sizers and 2 450's, H&I sets 25 plus got all of them used for cheap money buy them when you find them cheap!

[MT Gianni]

The problem would be the messiness of the lube. I can see the lube pressure getting behind the bushing and making it slightly off center. That would result in non concentric bullet sizing.

[gwpercle]

I bet Lee could make Lyman 450/4500 H & I dies (lymans patent has to have ran out) for a lot less than freaking $36.00 . Herter's sold them for $2.79 in 1968 catalog ... and I bought several from Herter's !
Lyman just needs some H&I competition from somebody who knows how to manufacture to a "Price Point" ... that being cheaper than Lyman ... Lee busted Lymans chops on two cavity boolit moulds ! After Lee came out with it's moulds ... I never bought another new Lyman mould ever again ...
the Lyman moulds I did buy were used and discontinued moulds off e-bay .

If someone knows of an alternate cheaper source of H&I dies I would love to know about it .
Gary

[charlie b]

The difference is due to the method of handling the lube process.

The die is honed to the proper dia for the entire length of the working area. Push through dies have just a very narrow section honed to the proper dia, the rest is tapered. This is the reason for the higher cost of the lube/size die. A fitted base pin is also part of the die and is precision ground to fit the die. Push through dies have no such precision necessary.

The base pin fits the body of the die closely so the lube does not 'leak'. The base of the bullet is pushed against the base pin and both move until the bullet is sized and is in position where the lube can flow. The lube is then 'pushed' through the die into the bullet grooves. Then the bullet is pushed back out by the base pin, not all the way through the die.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

Such as ? Again I'm not very familiar with the dies be if I'm looking at them right it's just a cylinder with a ejection rod and port for the lube. I guess one the top of the hole does the actual sizing so I don't get why you couldn't just machine that out to accept a little bushing that secures with a set screw or similar
look at the number of machining step's for the NOE push through insert, and then look at your Lyman die and figure out the number of machining steps it'd take to make one. Now, you'll likely have to add a few more steps for a Lyman insert, because it will have to have some sort of keyway grooves or something, so the lube ports line up.




If someone knows of an alternate cheaper source of H&I dies I would love to know about it .
Gary
Confucius say, look to where no one else is looking ;)

[Baltimoreed]

All a lee push through die does is size a oversized pan, alox lubed or PC boolit to the correct size for the firearm your using it in, ie .454-.455 for a Webley while the lubrisizer will size and force lube into the grooves of a oversized cast boolit and size it to the correct size.