Messy Saeco

[bdutro]

I'm sizing .44 and .500 boolits on an early black-krinkle-paint Saeco lubrisizer. Things are working well with the exception of the bases of the bullets that are getting a coating of lube too and, not wanting to contaminate my powder charge when I seat it, I'm cleaning the bases on all my bullets as I go. You can imagine this is killing my throughput rates.

I've cleaned the dies and tried more and less lube pressure, still getting a little ribbon underneath the bullet. Is this a good reason to upgrade to a Star or Ballisticast?

[VHoward]

Is there a depth adjustment? Do the holes in the sizing die have to line up with the lube groove? If so, maybe you need to adjust that some.

But if you really want fast through put times, then the star or ballisticast machines are the way to go.

[bdutro]

Yes there is depth adjustment, but the bullets go in base first. It's a push down, pull up type sizer and it's adjusted properly (to my knowledge) because all the bands are sized and the lube groove is getting hit but the crimp groove is dry.

I've wiped my kids' butts long enough, I shouldn't have to repeat the process with bullets!

[theperfessor]

Less lube pressure and firm downward pressure at end of stroke will help. If you push down the lube has to go somewhere else, less head pressure will allow it to go back into the luber. If you get lube on the base do the next bullet w/o adding lube pressure and see how much of the groove it fills.

[VHoward]

Too much prssure could be the problem. I know with the Lyman 4500 I had, I only had to crank on the pressure screw every 5th or 6th bullet sized. You just sort of get a feeling for how much pressure is needed. I have since sold the Lyman 4500 and bought a Star with the air cylinder to keep an even pressure on the lube. I like it much better even though I need a lube heater with the star and did not with the lyman.

I just noticed that you had already tried different pressures. Another possibility is that your bullet mold is dropping the bullet with the bottom band smaller in diameter than the size being sized to and lube is flowing past. You could measure the bottom band diameter with calipers to see if that is the problem. Might have to beagle your mold.

[Ola]

I'm a Saeco user and I know the problem. The best way to deal with it is to clean the "pistons" head absolutely clean. If there is even a little bit of lube, the lube will cause a little cap under the bullet and the problem gets worse. Also, if there is even a small protruding imperfection in the base of the bullet, the result is the same.

What I do:

-I keep the "pistons" head clean
-I take a quick look at the bases of the plain base bullets and if there is a "high point", I use the Saecos gas check seater before lubeing. That will flatten the base in a second.

Btw. If you are doing GC bullet WITHOUT the GC, then the only way preventing the problem is a "piston" that has the shape of the bullets base machined in to it. I think I've seen a picture of one here in CB. Just can't remember where.

[Iron Mike Golf]

I also use a black SAECO. If you are running plain base boolits, then if the base edge is not SHARP, you are gonna get a little leakage. That'll leave a real thin coat of lube on the die walls and it will start collecting and get on the base.

Try this. Next time you lube/size, take 20 boolits with PERFECT bases and a clean die to start with. I bet those 20 will have clean bases. If not, then I think the die's center pin may be undersized.

Also, search on here about running bevel base boolits in a lubrisizer and you'll get some solutions to try, mostly about cardboard or foam underwads.

[bdutro]

Problem solved. The Saeco green lube that was in it was older than I was. After some gentle encouragement with a blowtorch, it coughed up a couple doozies and began lubing the entire bullet with less pressure and no mess under the bullet anymore. A fresh stick of BAC from White Label went in and I'm happy again.