Duplicating an obsolete Lyman mould

[GSaltzman]

Mr. Veral, Is it possible to do if you have a bullet to go off of ? I know the first question would probably be why. I have several of your moulds and love the results I get with them. In fact the first time I ordered from you I went off the price of an old catalog and was a little short on my payment. You sent everything anyway an said I did not have to send you the difference. This in a hand written letter. I then ordered more moulds and sent the correct amount for those plus what I owed you from the other order. Again a hand written letter saying I did not have to do that and you included enough mould lube to last me a lifetime. I don't know if you remember this but I have always had a high opinion of you from that experience. I shoot a 400M that you made for me from a chamber cast of my Marlin 1895ss. I also have about 100 bullets left from an old gentlemen who cast them for me years ago. I'm not sure the mould number of the old Lyman. Only that they are 385 grains round nose hollow point with a gas check. They will cut one ragged hole at 100 yards with a caseful of 3031. I would never replace the big flatnosed 400M but it is just because I knew this man and I would like to be able to continue to shoot them. I would like to thank you for everything you did for me back when I first ordered from you. Back in those days we first spoke on the phone about lapping a few of my guns first before I ordered the moulds. I hope the holidays are good to you and wish you continued success.

[Veral]

  I have duplicated a few Lyman and other molds, but it is very time consuming in most cases, if I have to machine out special patterns.  If I have a sample bullet in hand I can often stack patterns which I have on hand and produce something close enough to the original that you would be fooled if you didn't have an original sample holding tight alongside the new one. 

  I cannot make a hollow point mold, but if that isn't essential to you, send a sample bullet, I'll look it over and quote you a price.  Understand that hollow points often are important to accuracy, as they take weight off a nose that would be too heavy to shoot as precisely if solid.