Ideal Bullet Molds

Winchester’s .44 W.C.F. & Marlin / U.M.C.‘s .44- 40 

Ideal/Lyman Bullet Molds

by Bryan Austin

Ideal began to manufacture bullet molds as way back when. Their design was fairly close to Winchesters but I notice a bit more pronounced forward driving band. The Ideal No.4 tool is a combination mold and reloading tool. Below are photos of an Ideal No.4 made for the C.M.R. which was the 44 (WCF) Colt Repeating Rifle. Note the forward driving band. It is a bit more pronounced than Wincher's and appears to progress from the grease groove and taper back into the ogive bullet profile. 

Ideal finally became Lyman and eventually the molds were made separate from the handles. Lyman's 42798 is where I first notice the squared-off pronounced forward driving band. Alph Brovo Manufacturing casts some 44's using an original Lyman 42798. The forward driving band can be made out in the below photo.  Later Winchester molds had the forward driving band but rather than squared off, it tapered back into the Ogive. It is also important to not here that all of the above factory and cast bullets typically measured anywhere from .424" to .427" for early "tight bore" barrels. More on this later. 

Lyman still makes the molds today but the number is 427098. I do not know why, or what mods took place. What I have noticed is the diameter seams to be a consistent .429 and the forward driving band is more pronounced. This is the mold I use now days. A handloader crimps on or forward of the driving band. Any deformations applied to soft lead during the crimping step are almost a mute point due to the batter expansion of the soft lead into the driving bands. All of the above bullet molds are used with black powder since the base of the bullet sits on top of the powder preventing the bullet from telescoping back into the case from the rifle magtube spring tension. Crimping forward of the driving band  smooths out injection into the rifle chamber from the action lifter for finicky rifles. Cast bullets of the black powder era did not require a crimp groove, because a compressed case full of black powder prevented bullets from telescoping into the case under magazine spring compression. Crimping the case mouth over the ogive was sufficient to prevent inertial dislodgement in revolvers, because .44-40 loads have milder recoil than their modern, smokeless powder, magnum counterparts. ~Ed Harris​

Dissection of a few early bullets show only a slight roll crimp and noted only about .007" deformation from the crimp into the soft lead.

Below are a few photos of cast bullets using Lyman's 42798, 427098 and a few others I will talk about next!!! The second bullet from the left was pulled from a loaded cartridge. Note how the roll crimp slightly squeezed the forward driving band.