AmericanLongRifles Forums

General discussion => Black Powder Shooting => Topic started by: curly on July 12, 2013, 04:05:28 AM

Title: Lyman .390 ball mould?
Post by: curly on July 12, 2013, 04:05:28 AM

I've been looking for a Lyman .390 Round ball mould and haven't been able to find one any where. Does Lyman even make a .390 for a .40 cal?
Curly

Title: Re: Lyman .390 ball mould?
Post by: D. Taylor Sapergia on July 12, 2013, 04:44:33 AM

Don't think so...they make a .395 though.  Mine casts balls perfectly round (except for the sprue) that are .398" - perfect!!

Title: Re: Lyman .390 ball mould?
Post by: smokinbuck on July 12, 2013, 05:06:11 AM

I have to agree with Taylor. I have 2 green mountain and 1 Douglas .40 caliber rifles and the Lyman .395's work great.
Mark

Title: Re: Lyman .390 ball mould?
Post by: Kermit on July 12, 2013, 05:09:50 AM

I vote for .395 too.

Title: Re: Lyman .390 ball mould?
Post by: alyce-james on July 12, 2013, 05:14:10 AM

I vote .395 for a .40 cal. My .40 shoots really well,  AJ.

Title: Re: Lyman .390 ball mould?
Post by: Rich on July 12, 2013, 09:55:56 AM

I have one made by Lee.

Title: Re: Lyman .390 ball mould?
Post by: curly on July 12, 2013, 01:49:05 PM

Thanks guys........ .395 it is ;D
Curly

Title: Re: Lyman .390 ball mould?
Post by: sonny on July 12, 2013, 07:54:03 PM

the 40 cal is probably the most accurate caliber for competition. the 45 cal is next. the.395 ball was born for that cal.....sonny

Title: Re: Lyman .390 ball mould?
Post by: hanshi on July 12, 2013, 10:49:41 PM

My .40 mold is a Lee .390.  I'd prefer buying some .395s before investing in another mold.

Title: Re: Lyman .390 ball mould?
Post by: Daryl on July 14, 2013, 05:08:46 PM

Quote from: alyce-james on July 12, 2013, 05:14:10 AM

I vote .395 for a .40 cal. My .40 shoots really well,  AJ.

ditto

Title: Re: Lyman .390 ball mould?
Post by: david50 on July 15, 2013, 12:39:00 AM

.395's were realy hard to load in my .40,got me a .390 bag mold from Larry Calahan.

Title: Re: Lyman .390 ball mould?
Post by: Daryl on July 15, 2013, 02:48:07 AM

I shot my .40 today on the trail, David and we were discussing the problems some shooters have with snug combinations. With a .019" (mic) pocket drill patch and a .398" pure lead ball in my .398 bore'd .40, I loaded several without using the short starter and they were as easy as can be.  They went down to the powder easily as well. Yes- I had to choke up on the rod and actually push the patched ball down into the muzzle. I was using almost straight WWWF for lube - just a hint of Neetsfoot oil in it.  I then switched to a .0235" red/white/blue/blue mattress ticking patch, same bore sized ball and again, no problems however I did use the starter for those.
Some thing is wrong if you find them difficult to load - possible reasons for difficulty loading snug combinations:
1/. rough bore - perhaps non-flush cleaning didn't get all the fouling and it rotted some?
2/. sharp crown that is pushing a ridge of lead and not drawing & moulding the lead and patch into an easy fit?
3/. loose ball and patch combo building fouling in the bore?
4/. too little 'effort' expended in loading - it doens take some, but not much?
5/. failure to use the assistance of a starter to help get the ball started - if needed?

This crown, allows easy loading of combinations many think are too snug, yet it loads easily, once started, can be pushed home with only 2 fingers on the rod - yes, those fingers must squeeze the rod. - some.
This crown is less than 3/16" deep, is VERY smooth and allows easy swaging, drawing, moulding, whatever you want to call it, of the ball and patch into the bore. It is not a coned muzzle, which can be up to 1 1/2" to 2" deep.
(https://americanlongrifles.org/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fimg.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fv638%2FDarylS%2FMuzzle%2520Crowns%2FP6101151_zps60eb38b8.jpg&hash=fff9434dfd169f043aee01179505cd6c65ae364f) (http://smg.photobucket.com/user/DarylS/media/Muzzle%20Crowns/P6101151_zps60eb38b8.jpg.html)