Lyman older mold and handles question please help (now with pic's)

[adkmountainken]

i got a .451 Lyman mold recently in great shape, single cavity believe to be older mold. i order brand new Lyman handles that say they fit double and single Lyman molds but they do not fit this mold, very frustrating.  it leaves a small gap between blocks.  which set of handles do i need for older Lyman single cavity blocks?

[P.W.Berkuta]

Try the Lee mould handles that are on the .311 mould I sold you. You will have to drill new holes in the handle so that the Lyman blocks will work. Lee handles are MUCH cheaper than Lyman handles.

[Daryl]

Or, you could make them fit.

[adkmountainken]

unless i cut 4 inches of the handles they ain't going to fit....

[mab7]

A single ball .451 mould should use Lyman small handles. It sounds like you have a set of large.

[Daryl]

unless i cut 4 inches of the handles they ain't going to fit....

How do long handles make the tines not to fit the blocks? I don't understand.

[Bob Roller]

Try the Lee mould handles that are on the .311 mould I sold you. You will have to drill new holes in the handle so that the Lyman blocks will work. Lee handles are MUCH cheaper than Lyman handles.

I haven't bought a new mould for decades but from what I see it appears that Lyman has done a good
job of pricing itself off the market and competitors are doing well.Several years ago they told me that
new,uncut mould blocks were about $80 and the finished ones were the same price.
Lyman hasn't made the smaller blocks for a long time and all they have now are the larger sizes.
I recently got a 4 cavity IDEAL mould from an antique shop for the Elmer Keith 44 caliber pistol
bullet for $20.I didn't need it but at that price it was a bargain and in useable condition.
Bob Roller

Bob Roller

[P.W.Berkuta]

I prefer the older cast iron/steel moulds to the aluminum or other material moulds. To me they just cast better and keep the heat more consistently in the moulds. Aluminum moulds cool off fast and also heat up fast their temps fluctuate more. If you are casting a small run of bullets or have hours of time on your hands then it just does not matter - go with the aluminum moulds for the cost - they do a fine job. But if I am casting a LOT of bullets then I want a cast iron/steel mould (maybe two) with a LOT of cavities (4+). I use to cast modern pistol bullets with 6, 8, & 10 cavity H&G moulds.

[45-110]

the older lyman/ideal single cavity molds where made in two sizes, large and small blocks, and accordingly the blocks fit either the small or the large handles. Now the new molds all take the large handles as the small blocks are no longer made. so its a good idea to own both size handles so you can utilize older molds you find at gunshows for a song.

[Daryl]

I have small handles, I have large handles, I have 4 cavity and 6 cavity Lyman handles. I use whatever handles are quick to change over when
using a mould.  That means small blocks get put on large block handles and my small handles tines are all filed (sharp files are best) out to fit all
of my large blocks, which is most of them now.

I have 82 sets of mould blocks in my shop. Most are cast iron blocks.

The only blocks that will not fit on my small handles are 4 and 6 cavity moulds.

[45-110]

ok Daryl
i get what you are saying..........but if you have all those molds and handles what is so hard using the ones that fit together correctly?  small handles on large blocks gives a wide non comfortable grip angle to the handles. why bother filing the handles to get a proper fit so the blocks close? i'm in the same mold qty. as you, and handles are cheap on ebay.

[Daryl]

I've about 6 sets of handles so they get changed around quite a bit. Some I leaf on blocks that are used regularly.
I've yet to shop on E-bay. Been using all of the same handles since about 1978.  I've found the wide spacing of the handles to not bother me much.
A friend of mine used to buy scopes on E-bay even when it was against the law for US citizens or stores to ship scopes to Canada.

[adkmountainken]

unless i cut 4 inches of the handles they ain't going to fit....

How do long handles make the tines not to fit the blocks? I don't understand.

Daryl for your amusement i took pic's of old lyman handles and new with older small Lyman block.  longer handles on the "new" style Lyman does not let older blocks close all the way like the older, smaller handles did.


those were new handles

[smylee grouch]

If it were mine , I would take a belt sander after the inside of thosw handles and make them close the blocks all the way. 

[adkmountainken]

lol i thought about it a few times but in the long run i need both sets of handles for all the molds i have.

[Daryl]

Looks to me, it's the geometry of the mould tines that is different. Note the older Lyman mould tine's angle inwards towards their tips, from their major width, whereas the new tines are parallel.
That is a design fault.
I agree, without modification, they would not work.

[Daryl]

Daryl for your amusement i took pic's of old lyman handles and new with older small Lyman block.  longer handles on the "new" style Lyman does not let older blocks close all the way like the older, smaller handles did.


those were new handles

In looking at the photo of these handles and blocks. If the mould's side slots were deepened(filed) aft (towards the hinge pivot), allowing for more block rotation, the blocks would fit those handles & close properly.

[Tim May]

Ken, Bend handle tangs to get clearance.The wood handles are preventing clousure of mold blocks.Hope this helps.Tim

[Daryl]

Tim's got it. I missed the picture of the handles touching, preventing closure of the blocks. I thought the reason they wouldn't close was due to the straight tines
and slots in the blocks themselves.
Could be a few 'reasons' add up to non-closure.
I now understand why you noted the handles were too long, however I agree with Tim, the straight times are a problem.  Since the tines are cast, they might not bend
 but simply snap off if bending is attempted.  Heat should help, but perhaps someone else has experience with this.

[Dave B]

What would be wrong with filing off the extra bulk closer to the pivot point and drill new holes in that section that steps up? I have a feeling you could get the molds closed if you do that. You just need to continue the tines machined section closer to the pivot point of the handles to give you what you are missing at the current mounting point. Would you have enough opening to clear the new cast ball? I think so. Just a thought.

[Gun_Nut_73]

I would sand the inside of the wood handles until the mold closes, then just a little more.  It would not prevent you from using the handles on other molds..  You would just have to be careful not to pinch yourself when you close the handles.

[Scota4570]

"unless i cut 4 inches of the handles they ain't going to fit...."

Nah...easy solution.

Drill two new holes for the block pins.  Drill them a bit further from the hinge and a bit closer together. 

[Hungry Horse]

I am sure the correct handle are available if you do enough digging. I’ve done some handle adapting on old blocks from defunct companies, and only had marginal success. They’re more complicated than they look.

  Hungry Horse