Top punches for Lyman 450

[wiersy111]

I just bought a lyman 450 and am having trouble figuring out what top punches I need to get. How do I figure this out?[smilie=b:

[geargnasher]

You go to Castpics.net and click on the "top punch reference" icon on the left, choose teh brand of mould you're trying to match it to, and find the punch on the list.

Lyman and RCBS have charts showing the recommended punches for their boolits, and also you can look up the mould # on their websites and the tp is listed right there with the mould.

Gear

[Tom Trevor]

For Lyman it goes like this. Lets say bullet 311413 top punch number is 413 311329 punch is 329.

[wiersy111]

I thought that's what it was but was unsure as one of my Lyman molds is not listed. How do you figure out the top punch for a Lee Mold?

[Shiloh]

I thought that's what it was but was unsure as one of my Lyman molds is not listed. How do you figure out the top punch for a Lee Mold?

Great question.

IU went to the Lyman boolit pics and choose from that. I also did a post about it and someone with the same boolit suggesteed the proper punch.

Shiloh

[Recluse]

For Lyman it goes like this. Lets say bullet 311413 top punch number is 413 311329 punch is 329.

Well I'll be danged!

I never would've thought it to be that easy. And here I was paying a graduate student getting her PhD in math and physics to decipher the top punch numbers and formulas for me so I could hopefully get the right top punch. . .

Tom, you just saved me some money. I'm telling the girl this afternoon her overpriced calculation services are no longer needed.:drinks:

Wiersly, one thing I do for all flat nosed boolits is take a bolt (I think it's a 1/4" bolt) and grind the head down flat and use it as a "universal top punch" for appropriate-sized flat nose boolits.

:coffee:

[geargnasher]

I like the bolt idea, might have to try that for short, fat boolits.

Gear

[Ficus]

In my 450, I use a 30-caliber blank nose punch. The shank is the same as all the punches and the end supposed to fit over a bullet's point is undrilled flat. It makes my Lee 452 200-gr FP's very wide and shallow hollow points.

[gwpercle]

Lyman top punches and Lyman moulds are EASY , it's the Lee , NOE and every other mould that's not Lyman that gets tricky !
A flat punch will seat any bullet with a flat nose . A small ball of epoxy putty can be used to custom fit a boolit to a nose punch that doesn't quite fit. I turned a 45 acp RN punch into a SWC and a 9 mm RN into a flat punch with the epoxy putty trick.
Can also use it to custom fit seating stem nose in reloading dies.
Gary

[rwadley]

For Lyman it goes like this. Lets say bullet 311413 top punch number is 413 311329 punch is 329.

This is sometimes true, but usually isn't. The last 3 numbers is the cherry/cherrie that was used to make the mould.

http://reloadingtips.com/pages/lyman-mold-reference.htm