.69 caliber lubrisizer?

Has anyone ever tried boring out a Lyman lubrisizer and making dies for it to enable you to lubrisize bullets of .69 caliber and larger? I use a lubrisizer (Lyman or RCBS) to size all of my .58 caliber musket bullets and my .50 caliber carbine bullets, but when it comes to my .69 caliber Minies I have to lube and size in two separate, messy (relatively) steps. Seems rather inefficient.
Any of you Master Machinists out there (I know there are several!) care to comment, or peRhaps undertake such a project?

[R. McAuley 3014V]

Glenn,
Upon examining the arbor mechanism for my Lyman 4500 Sizer & Lubricator, it would appear to be possible to increase the diameter of the sizing mechanism to accept .59 thru .69 caliber (or larger) projectiles, but to do so will also require a slightly larger diameter arbour. In comparing the diameter of a .512 sizing die, it is about the same diameter as Rapine's .69 cailber wadcutter, such that because the die retaining nut is only slightly larger in diameter (0.805-inches), a new .69 caliber H die would need to be at least a diameter of 0.91-inch to have a minimum wall thickness of 0.105-inches (i.e. 0.70+0.105+0.105=0.91-inches). The diameter of the arbour on the Lyman 4500 sizer is also 0.805-inches, so in order to bore out the lower die compartment requires enlarging the arbour’s pilot hole unless you have another means of machining the lower die compartment. Although once converted, the process would likely not be reversible without considerable expense, to use any smaller diameter dies (i.e. 0.512, .535, .576, etc.), would require further modifications to accept these dies if not requiring completely new custom-made dies in these smaller sizes for use in the larger capacity sizer.

If I might suggest, perhaps if you would write Lyman and ask them what is might cost for them to customize one of their 4500 sizers to accept.69 enlongated ball, perhaps they could cite a cost to do so, particularly if you could sufficiently prove to them that such a modified product would be beneficially profitable for them. I don't know just how many skirmishers might be interested in such a device but given the fact that it is not likely that the same Lyman casting can serve all size bullets, and would require a separate press for the larger size minies (over .59 caliber), given that their MSRP for the 4500 sizer/lubricator is currently at $195 without the heating element ($212 with heater element), if Lyman isn’t interested, perhaps Lee, MEC, or RCBS would be?

Thanks, but .69 cal is bigger than the outside diameter of the usual dies. So it would require modifying the lubrisizer itself, as well as a larger sized die blank.

[pastore]

& and would require a separate press for the larger size minies (over .54 caliber), given that their MSRP for the 4500 sizer/lubricator is currently at $195 without the heating element ($212 with heater element), if Lyman isn’t interested, perhaps Lee, MEC, or RCBS would be?

I presently lube and size bullets up to .580 on an unaltered Lyman 450.

[R. McAuley 3014V]

Pastore wrote:
I presently lube and size bullets up to .580 on an unaltered Lyman 450.

Pray tell, what is the difference between the Lyman 450 and 4500 sizer/lubricizer? Which is still manufactured and sold by Lyman, and which has been discontinued? If the 450 was so popular for sizing bullets over .50 caliber, why not ask Lyman why was they discontinued making the 450? I did not receive the memo on why it was discontinued, so cannot answer that question. Sorry. I can only assume it was for a lack of sales -- which is usually why most manufactured articles are discontinued.

[R. McAuley 3014V]

Just wanted to apologize to Pastore. I guess that I already knew this but had noted that Buffalo Arms only offers custom-made sizing dies up to .54 caliber, I forgot that S&S offered custom-made dies up to .59 for the #450/4500 sizer/lubricator.