Why buy Lyman stuff?

I've had a few reloading books in the past, and found I really like the Lyman one.

However, as I look through other reloading gear, I see that Lyman stuff is consistently quite a lot more expensive than Lee and even Hornady & RCBS. Why do people buy it? Is it obviously better quality, once a fellow has it in hand?

Is it mostly American-made? (if so, I'm on-board)

Brand loyalty from decades back?

Educate me, please.

 

Well, I'm looking at powder measures and case tumblers.

I have a Lee Pro Auto Disc powder measure, and I love how convenient it is for my single stage loading in the powder-through-expanding die. However, it leaks; spilling probably 8 flakes with each charge. I have the Lee dippers and I love them, but for pistol loads, there aren't enough of the smaller ones. (I plan to make a 0.4 cc dipper out of a 9 mm case here soon. That'll be perfect for Win 231 in 38 Spl and 45 ACP. 0.3 cc is a bit light and 0.5 cc is a bit heavy)

Before the Auto Disc Pro, I had an Auto Disc; it was even worse. Shopping now for a traditional one, even though it'll slow me down even more.

 

I like the Lyman M-type expander dies for straight wall handgun. Bullets seems to sit more squarely than with other types of expanders.

 

I have Lee,Lyman and RCBS products on my benches. Im happy with them all.

 

The Lyman M die is good for expanding the necks of straight wall handgun cases. I have several.

I have one or two Lyman die sets and I do not remember them being priced much differently than RCBS dies. Redding tend to be more premium priced than Lyman or RCBS dies.

I bought a Lyman 55 powder measure a few years ago because it has a reputation for throwing good powder charges with difficult metering powders. Unfortunately, at the same time I was transitionng most of my handgun reloading to progressives which the Lyman 55 is not easily adapable to. Someday, I’llngive it a go.

On a progressive, I use a modified Redding 10-X or an RCBS Uniflow.

Anyway, Lyman is always a backup choice if my other favorite brands are out if stock.

 

I don't have a bad Lyman tool. But I don't have many either.
I dislike Lee powder measures except for the dippers.
I like my Hornady volumetric measure.

 

I just found this trouble ticket solution for this exact problem on Lee's site. Seems like this might be Just the Thing, and won't cost a dime to try:

https://support.leeprecision.net/en...ng-auto-disk-powder-measure-fine-ball-powders

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Mark_Mark - What is the difference between a $100+ powder measure and something like the Lee Perfect Powder Measure? (besides profit margin)

If the Lee product is good, I'd rather have that, since I'm a Wisconsinite and they're based here.

Tangent: Check out their history, and especially the link to the great eulogy John Lee wrote for his dad at the bottom.

 

Well, everything is more expensive than Lee, so that's hardy surprising. I have a couple of M-dies and some other Lyman odds and ends and while they are all serviceable Lyman would never be my first choice.

 

They make a very nice chamfer and deburing hand tool. That is the only product I have from them currently. Every company has winners and loosers, I try and cherry pick the good ones.

 

They seem like cool people, but definitely one of the bigger corporations in the reloading business. I find the best stuff tends to come from smaller outfits that specialize in doing one or two things better, but might not offer a comprehensive catalog with a product for every one of your needs.

 

Often Lee equipment makes heavy use of plastic, where many of the others in the market favor metal.

 

I've been reloading for 35 years and have probably tried tools by all the major manufacturers like Lee, Lyman, RCBS, Dillon and others. Never got a bad tool any of the players. But, I prefer Lyman over Lee unless Lee makes something no one else has. Never found Lyman to be more expensive than the others except for Lee. I have no complaints about Lee but noticed that any reloading tools I had from Lee usually got replaced at a later date.

Case tumblers? I have a Thumler's Tumbler and it is still working after 35 years. I thought about replacing it with wet tumbling ten years ago but decided to wait till my current system died.

My opinion is I don't think you'd be unhappy with any reloading tools made by current manufacturers.

 

I have three Lyman tools, a case trimmer, a powder measure, and a cast press. Most of my other stuff is Hornady and RCBS, with a single set of Lee dies which were given to me. I like the case trimmer, it works well and gives me consistent trim lengths. It was one of the trimmers I was looking at, but I was leaning towards the Forster. The reason I bought it was because I stumbled across it in a brick and mortar store, otherwise I would have paid the extra for the Forster. I bought the press to swage brass, but I may also use it to deprime/size at some point.

The Lyman powder measure I have is the Brass Smith. I like it. A lot! It drops powder very consistently, even the goofy Trail Boss donuts. I weigh every charge and once I've got it set it really is spot on every throw. The only cons would be the small size and it's a bit fiddly to set your drop. The size isn't a big deal to me since I usually only do 50 rds at a sitting, sometimes 100. When I bought it I was looking at the Hornady powder measures, but the Lyman was on sale for about $48 vs $80~$90 for the Hornady IIRC. To be honest I also have three of the Hornady powder measures and they all work well too.

I have an FA tumbler that I bought four years ago when I started reloading, and it works fine. I'll continue to use it until it quits working, and then I may look into wet tumbling.

chris

 

I have used a lot of Lyman reloading gear since that first Lyman Spartan Press and 45 acp Lyman All American Dies in 1967 . Many sets of dies ... I'm in Louisiana and Lyman A-A Dies are chrome plated ... no rust . Lyman 450 Lube/sizer , Lyman bullet sizing dies , a Lyman All American Turret Press ... Lyman Bullet moulds by the score , about 30 . Lyman 55 powder measure . Neck deburring tool , primer pocket crimp removing tool , primer pocket cleaner and primer pocket uniforming tool . Lyman Case Length Gauge .
With all the Lyman Reloading and Bullet Casting equipment I've used since 1967 ... nothing has broken ... a couple small parts wore out but Lyman replaced them for free .
The reason I used Lyman all these years was they made Good products and Great Customer Service .
I have Lee Dies and I can reload ammo with them but I still prefer the quality and finish of Lyman Dies . I also prefer Lyman shell holders to any other mfg .
CH4D dies are also some of the best , just harder to come by .
Gary

 

If my only choice was between Lyman and Lee, I would buy the Lyman every time.

Having said that I stay away from Lyman because MY experience with their "Customer Service" is poor.

 

I have a multi color bench and all major brands work well for me. I have older powder drops that I use though. An older Ideal 55 (Lyman 55), a Pacific (Hornaday 10X), and an older Lee PPM from the 70's. They all work as designed for my single stage reloading and I find each has it's favorite metering propellants. The 55 meters bulky propellants better in smaller amounts but is quite fiddly to get adjusted correctly in the beginning. Generally the better measures cost more and have better features. Guess I was not really much help! Let us know how the one(s) you choose work.

 

I love watching factory tours. Gives folks a good idea of what actually happens to [produce a product
Even better is a tour of big shipping companies, Like Midway from the moment the order is received on line, all the steps to get it shipped,
When someone complains about why their order is not at their door step in 2 days, they can get a clue!, Imagine how Amazon does it!