sizing and lubing dies

[lvreloader]

Hi, I,m just getting starting in making bullets and I would like all the help I can get on the lubing and sizing after I cast them. I have molds for .38 .45 .44 and .40. I would like help on finding the best lubber and sizer for me. Thanks all the help I can get would be great!

 

[454PB]

How much are you willing to invest?

Lee makes a very functional (but slow) system where the cast bullet is pushed through a sizing die mounted in a standard reloading press, then coated with Lee Liquid Alox. For a guy shooting 1000 cast bullets per year it's a good starter, and I still use this system on occasion even though I have two Lyman 450's and a Star mounted on my casting bench.

Next up the chain is the Lyman 4500and RCBS LAM II, followed by the Magma (Star).

For the average caster that shoots less than 5000 rounds a year, the Lyman or RCBS are great and will cost somewhere around $250 to $300 set up for 4 calibers. The Magma Star is for high production and is considered the Cadillac of lubrisizers. It's around $400 to $450 set up for 4 calibers, but then you can add auto feed and air pressure lube system to that. It will poop out 400 bullets an hour without much effort but is a little more complicated to set up.

I'll put it this way.....if my Son asked me what to start with I'd recommend the RCBS LAM II.......but then he uses my equipment anyway!

 

[loadedround]

Both Lyman and RCBS make lubricator/sizers. They must be used with special dies to size your bullets to the proper diameter. At the same time these machines fill the bullet's lube grooves with lubricant from a stick of lube that fits inside of the lube/sizer. It sounds complicated but is actually very easy to use once set up.

 

[ants]

Lubrisizers aren't that expensive

This year I bought a Lyman 4500 at MidwayUSA with bullet sizing dies and top punches for 45, 9mm, 38 and 40. Plus 4 sticks of lube. Total cost with shipping was less than $250.

If you buy more than one mold in the same caliber (let's say, a 230 round nose and a 200 swc for 45acp) you may need more than one top punch. But top punches are only 8.69 each.



However, nothing wrong with liquid bullet lubricant. I really like Rooster Jacket. Don't need a lubrisizer.

 

[billybob44]

Additional plus.

In addition to a better lubed bullet, you can buy under/over size dies for your luber to better tailor to your bore dia. If you "slug" your barrel, you will find the proper dia. for that particular gun-they all will vari somewhat.

 

[freakshow10mm]

Get the Star. Thank me later.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCtLi8i7tMg&feature=channel_page

 

[ReloaderFred]

I have the following sizer-lubricators:
Lyman 450 (1)
RCBS (1)
Seaco (2)
Star (4)

For ease of sizing and lubing, the Star can't be beat, but it is expensive. I believe it's money well spent if you're going to be doing a lot of bullet casting. Sizing dies are available from Magma Engineering, and original Star dies are for sale on ebay all the time, but people are bidding them up way over new die prices for some reason. With the Star you only need the flat punch, and feed the bullets through nose first. The bullet is pushed all the way through the die and drops out the bottom, so you only handle it once during this process.

The Seaco is my second favorite sizer-lubricator. It's a precision made tool, and does a great job, but like the Lyman and RCBS, it's a down and up process. You push the bullet down into the die, where it's sized and lubed. Then on the upstroke of the handle you raise the bullet back up and remove it.

The Lyman and RCBS work the same way, and the new Lyman comes with an optional base heater, so if you're sizing in cold weather, or using one of the hard lubes, you just plug it in and wait a few minutes for it to heat up.

I use both hard and soft lubes, depending on what I'm going to use the bullets for. For me, a heater is a necessity, especially for the Star machines, where I'm sizing a couple thousand at a sitting.

What it boils down to is how much are you going to be using it? If you're going to be making thousands of bullets at a time, then the Star is the way to go. If your production is going to be less than that, then any of the other machines will work for you.

Hope this helps.

Fred

 

[Walkalong]

I have a Redding/Seaco, and it is very nice.

 

[lvreloader]

thanks for all the info guys it helps.