LyMan vs Lee Molds

[Mike Pierce]

Group
Any dfiference or preference of one mold vs the other. Looking to puchase a 58 cal mold for my Parker Hale. Big difference in price. Any help or comment appreciated.
Mike

 

[Iron Jim Rackham]

Buy the Lyman 575213PH or 575213. The Lee mould's are much cheaper because they are made from aluminum and simply don't perform as well.

Size your cast bullets to .575 and lube with a 50/50 mix of beeswax and wonderlube (or SPG or Crisco)

Glass bed the barrel, replace the front sight with a taller skirmish sight, and you should be good to go. Plan on cutting the X out of the target off a bench at 50 yards. At 100 you should be able be able to shoot a 2-3" group.

A load of 45 grains of FFG powder should give you optimum accuracy. If the gun is sighted in at 50 yards, it will shoot several inches high at 100 when you raise the ladder to the first step. You may have to reduce the height of the first step to have it shoot dead on a 100. It's well worth the work however to have a musket that is spot on at 50 and can be instantly elevated for 100 yard accuracy.

 

[jdstrang]

I'd say it depends on how much casting you plan to do. Fifty or so minies a year won't tax the Lee, but it will hardly get the Lyman warm.

But if you're going to do 1500 to 2000 a year - about a regular production season for a skirmisher - then the Lyman is the way to go. The iron molds hold heat better (for more uniform casting) and last much longer than the aluminum molds. And I personally like the detached core pin of the Lyman. It provides a handy tool to flick the occasionally recalcitrant hot one from one side or the other of the mold onto the cooling towel.

Yes, it costs more, And if you're a light caster, it's probably sufficient. But somebody smart once said, "You get what you pay for." If you want long years of service, then Lyman's the way to go. My 2 cents...

 

[Rat Trapper]

You will find the difference in price is due to quality or lack of it on the part of LEE.

 

[mbw907]

You folks go easy, now. Us poor boys hafta play with the toys we can afford. But someday when I grow up and get a "real job", well then, I can get me some big boy toys. But seriously, the Lee works well for the price if you just want some weekend lead to shoot occasionally. :hatsoff:

 

[Joel Boyles]

I've run several thousand pistol bullets from Lee molds, in .41, .45 ACP, and .45 Colt configurations, and they still work just fine for me. The aluminum is easier to mar, if you aren't careful, and it will overheat faster than the steel molds from Lyman, but mine have given good service for quite a while.

Just my opinion.

Enjoy today,

Joel

 

[R. Miller]

I use two lee moulds at a time for round balls. It keeps them from getting to hot and still less than half the price of Lyman.I have a.440 rb mould that I have had for better than 10 years. you must use some care with them..stickwalker

 

[merdean]

How much casting you do at one sitting is the key. I own about 25 molds. 1 is RCBS, 2 are Lyman, the rest are Lee. As long as you leave a ball or bullet in the Lee and let it cool slowly at the end of your session, you will be OK. Try and borrow a couple of molds and try them. Or get someone to let you watch them cast. I find the lighter Lee molds are less taxing ing the arm but you can overheat them in a hurry. Then you have to take the time to let them cool down. Takes longer to overheat a Lyman. If you can. Good luck on your choice.

 

[silverfox]

Mike: Iron Jim has the right mold number if you go with Lyman and not lee. Now the molds the Lee's are good for light work and the lymans for production a rapine is even better. Which ever you choose don't size your bullets until you shoot some. I know they claim .575 but your rifle like mine is .577 and mine likes unsized minnies better than sized ones.
When you start casting you will need to get both the mold and the lead hot. Your first 10 to 20 bullets may have to be recasted until your get the temperature right. Also I would suggest on minnies you use a good sized ladle as you are moveing a lot of lead I like a bottom pour ladle best. Not the little dippers from Lee or Lyman.
Lee's work good IMHO for RB below .58 Above .58 I like steel molds.
For lube if you can't find a good one on here with search PM me and I'll tell you what and how I do mine. Sorry to be so long winded.
Fox :hatsoff:

 

[cowpoke1955]

I have used Lee's molds for over 15 years with no problems. Round balls, Lee R.E.A.L., and a couple of .45 ACP. All Lee molds come with handles and are still less than 1/2 the price of Lyman blocks. :thumbsup: Here is where I get mine:[url] http://www.fmreloading.com/[/url] .

 

[torn moc]

Everbody has an opinion.....you know the saying right? I have aboue 30 mold and all are lee.
the only Lyman I have is for the .58 minnie...and I curse it EVERYTIME I use it!!!!!
I end up casting my Minnies with the LEE.
I can cast 200-300 in one day and no probs with a lee.... The idea of buying separate handles aint too good on my wallet neither....po boy ya know?

 

[omgb]

You get what you pay for. Lee makes cheap moulds that work most of the time. Every once in a while one buys a real dog, bullets out of round, mold doesn't fill properly, sprue plate is warped etc. That is all pretty rare for Lyman. That being said, I use Lee moulds and like most of them. For serious casting as in my centerfire guns and my BPCRs, I use LBT, Paul Jones, Rapine, Lyman in that order. I can't count on Lee bullets being real accurate in other than MLs. So, if you're just starting out and on a budget, go with the Lee. If however, you do volume casting or are looking for a perfect bullet fit, you've got to go custom.

 

[omgb]

I figured I'd add one tidbit more. Lee moulds are fragile. They won't rust but drop one or slam one shut and you're toast. They occasionally do not drop bullets any closer than .003" to the claimed size which can be a headache. lee will tell you that they cannot affordably make moulds that hold to tighter tollerances for the price they charge (I've actually spoken with R Lee on that one and he says the same thing) so you have to know that each mould is unique unto itself and a real crap shoot. Still, at the price charged, I can afford to have an occasional dog so I still buy them. Now if LBT or Paul Jones sent me a mould that was not as requested, well, that would be a whole nuther matter. For the price of an LBT or Paul Jones, I can buy 5 maybe six Lee moulds ...with handles.

 

[rebel727]

Lotta Lee bashing going on here but I've got several and never had any problems with them. Got one round ball mold I've been using for 38 years, makes nice true balls with no seam showing and it's been treated pretty rough over the years. Got a Lyman minie ball mold and had to open the sprue hole up a smidge to get the mold to fill.

 

[spottedpony]

The only Lee molds i have are a couple for rb's, & my main complaint is the aluminum heats and cools fast enough, its tough to maintain a constant mold temp. i usually end up recycling about 50% of what i cast because the mold cools so quickly. (i think thats why at least) the other thing ive noticed, occasionally i get a bit of lead in the v grooves, so the mold doesnt close tightly, and i get a little flashing around the ball, or the mold halves dont line up exactly then, but a quick wipe with a rag usually removes it.

in this winter weather, casting in an uhheated garage, unless i heat the mold after every second or third ball, i get wrinkles, & i'm fairly certain its not lead temp itself as i run my lead hot enough it just starts to get that purple cast on the surface. Thats the temp that seems most consistant.

 

[mark_fare]

As a mold maker by profession, I can say that I don't see any quality difference in worksmanship between Lyman and Lee molds. I have both, in .58 cal minie and find the Lee much easier to use. It heats up quickly and is easier to control the heat. With the Lyman it takes about 5 casts to get it up to temp to make proper bullets; but once you get it there you had better keep casting! I first bought the Lyman mold because they were made out of steel, versus the aluminum of the Lee. A shooting buddy of mine had a Lee mold for Maxie balls, and he had no problems casting with it, although I always had all kinds of problems with my Lyman. I finally gave in and bought myself a Lee, and those are the only molds I ever buy anymore.