Lee Liquid Alox question & others

[max range]

As many of us are, I am casting again after a long haitus from overworking. So my questions are:

Lee Liquid Alox. Its so messy can I just swab it on the sides of the sized bullet? Say with a Q-tip?

I am not using a gas check for this particular experiment. 45acp Lyman mold # 452460. Not the best choice I know, but the pistol digests jacketed wad cutters (TC) with no problems.

Will LLA or pan lube if left on the bottom of a cast bullet, contaminate the powder?

What about sizing wax such a Imperial? I cannot find a difinitive answer here or on the mfg websites.

Thanks in advance. I am really enjoying casting when the weather is cold and my technique is vastly improved since I last cast decades ago. Although it is frightening to see the cost of molds. I am glad I saved a dozen of them.

[NuJudge]

Assuming your bullet is appropriate in diameter and other characteristics, just put 20 bullets in the bottom of an emptied and cleaned butter tub. Add a few drops of LLA, and swirl the bullets around. Pour them out on waxed paper.

No problem with powder contamination.

I've never heard of using Imperial as a bullet lube, but it might work. For low performance loads, I've seen reports of all kinds of things used as a low performance lube, such as wetting the bore with Hoppe's #9 before each shot.

[youngda9]

Look for the sticky for Recluse 45/45/10 recipe...makes TL easy and not messy.

[1Shirt]

10-4 on th 45-45-10 reciep, and if you don't want to make it LAR's White Lable sells it in bulk and it works very well, and is not overly messy (particularly for handgun boolits).
1Shirt!

[Charlie Two Tracks]

If using straight Alox, it will eventually dry but you can always put the sticky boolits in a baggie, add just a pinch of powdered Mica and it will put a light dust on them. Not sticky anymore. If you are concerned about the bottom of the boolit, you can get a rag and dampen it with mineral spirits, put the rag on the table and wipe the bottom of the boolit off.

[trixter]

I have shot quite a bunch of 45acp rounds lubed with straight LLA, and have not had a problem with the lube on the bottom of the boolit contaminating the powder. I guess in theory if it is still gooey(you have way too much) it could contaminate the powder. YMMV

[williamwaco]

I am in the minority here but I love LLA.

I used to dilute it but quit doing that. I use it straight.

Toss the Q-tip. That is just self tourture.

Put 100 to 150 of your bullets into a one quart ziplock bag.
Use a flat bladed screw driver or a letter opener to remove a blob of LLA from the bottle.
You will need a blob about the size of the last joint of your little finger.
Put the blob inside the bag and wipe it off on the inside of the bag. Zip it up, tumble the bullets back and forth from hand to hand for about two minutes.

Pour them out on a sheet of waxed paper. I put the paper on an old cookie sheet. Place the lubed bullets away to dry.
Drying time depends on the weather.
In Texas, in August, it takes two to four hours under a fan setting on the back porch.

In January, at 40 to 50 degrees it takes over night.

Notice that the lube has never touched your hands.

When dry, they may be a little sticky, usually not, but never sticky enough to come off on your skin.

That 452460 is a perfectly good bullet! I would not consider buying a new mold if I already owned that one.

Lube on the bottom of the bullet will not affect your powder. I have some .38 specials I loaded in 1972. They were lubed with 50/50 beeswax/alox. They were stored in a Texas garage for 30 years. They shoot fine.

Imperial Sizing Wax is unsurpassed for lubing cases. I use it my self. ( The Hornady wax is just as good ) Your question does not specify, if you are thinking of using it as a bullet lube, it would probably work but would be prohibitively expensive.

If you wonder about the effectiveness of LLA your can see my test results with 70 different loads with 17 different bullets here:

http://www.reloadingtips.com/pages/exp_111201a_lla_test.htm

[noylj]

Why do people make a big deal out of the simplest things?
I put up to 500 bullets, on their sides, into a glass casserole dish or chafing dish.
Squirt a little LLA into the dish.
I then shuffle the bullets around like dominoes and roll them for about 30-60 seconds.
If they are all wet and shiny looking, they are good to go.
If some aren't, I add just a little more LLA and shuffle the bullets around.
I then dump the bullets onto wax paper, parchment, or aluminum foil
There is so little LLA on the bullets that there is almost no LLA transferred to the paper.
I don't care if the bullets are tacky. They shoot just as good tacky or dry. They go from air dry to box to loading, so tacky is not an issue.
What I like is getting 500 bullets all lubed in about 10 minutes, max, and being done with it.
Since I haven't sized bullets since late '70s, this is the only step I do between casting and loading (other than sorting out bad bullets) and it is fast and easy.
If you can't get a pair of latex/nitrile gloves, the LLA washes off real easy for me in soap and water.
Since there is so little LLA on the bullets, I don't have build-up on my hands or seating stem during reloading.
If you want 45/45/10, go to White Label Lubricants. If you want more LLA, get XLox from White Label Lubricants.

[chevyiron420]

I have heard it said before the the LLA is soooo messy. I dont get it, it's the least messy lubing proses I have ever used. I put 150 or so in a cool whip tub and squirt a little lube on them and swirl. when it looks like I have a thin light coat I dump them out on wax paper to dry. I never touch lubed boolits until I seat.

[tiwimon]

I'm with everyone else that tumble lubes with Recluse 45-45-10

I made my own first batch and loved it so much I bought a couple jugs from LARS White Label and been using it with outstanding results.

I use a griddle on lowest setting with a cookie sheet to warm the bullets just a tad so they have a chance to get covered before they set, then dump the warmed boolits in an ice cream tub and coat lightly.

I still love the Carnuba Red for the 311299 for my 300WM, but I even plan on trying to tumble lube a few just to see how they do with light loads.

[TXBRILL]

I love the 45-45-10 it takes a few minutes to make, it works great....nuff said

[jmort]

45-45-10 from LsStuff is a great deal.
http://lsstuff.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2&products_id=31

[rintinglen]

I use a plastic Folgers or Yuban coffee container, dump 4 or 5 pounds of boolits in there, give it a healty squirt of LLA or Recluse 45/45/10, rattle 'em around for about a minute, then give 'em a look see. If they seem well covered, I dump "em on an old cookie sheet and set 'em in the sun to dry. The Recluse formula dries in an hour or less, (assuming you ain't in Frost Bite Falls) while the LLA dries in a day or two. I've run 311-291 Lymans with pure LLA to chronographed 2300 fps with excellent accuracy and minimal leading in a 30-40.
It's good stuff. A light coat will do for your pistol rounds, two medium coats will take your boolits to and beyond 2000 fps. Fast, easy: what's not to like?

[292]

I started out using too much and it was messy, got on my hands, was very sticky, gunked up my seater die and the boolits stuck together in storage. Now I use the right amount (very little) and I love LLA.

[bear67]

I had never used any until I wound up with a couple of Lee TL molds. I swirl around in a cool whip container, dry overnight on a shallow baking pan, load and shoot. Shot some 45 acp today through a Ruger Blackhawk and they performed as well as my old eyes do. I don't think the barrel was any dirtier than with a similiar 230 grain bullet with large lube groove--I use lube-sizer and sometimes pan lube when I don't have the sizing die I need or the bullet casts to the bore diameter. I can not believe sometimes how far the LLA streaches when lubing. My next thing is to use it on bullets with deep groves like maybe one for .45 Colt.

[Neo]

I use Alox lube I never have any problems with stick bullets I just use a small tube to put the bullets is put a small amount of lube in first give it a swoosh around the tube if it needs more lube I just add a bit more so all the bullets are covered the I stand each one up on kitchen paper towel and this way most the lube on the base stays on the paper towel and I leave them to dry over night.:castmine:

[Larry Gibson]

I also use LLA but not exclusively as I have 3 450s which get used more. While not in "love" with LLA I find it works in numerous situations very nicely. I also use it straight. If one notices on the lube forum there are many, many more Luge and leading problem questions when LLA is mixed in some concoction. The only consistent complaint about LLA alox is that it is thick and "sticky". Simply soak the bottle of LLA in hot tap water for 10 minutes or so and it is nice and runny, if that's what you want. As to "sticky"; I like and use lots of othe soft lube (mostly the NRA 50/50 formula) and they are just as "sticky". The hard wax lubes on commercial bullets are not "sticky" and that is why many, if not most, of them cause leading. I've also found through my own trial and error with LLA is that "sticky" after 24 hours of drying time means I put too much LLA on the bullets. As per the instructions a light coat is all that is needed or use multiple coats still allowing for adequate drying between coats.

Using the ziploc bag or small tub as mentioned works very well. I use a samll or medium size peanut butter jar depending on the size of the cast bullet and the quanity. I fill the jar not more than half full of bullets, add a small amount of lube and simply roll it back and forth on my thigh for a minute or so. I then check the bullets and add small amounts of LLA until the bullets are coated exactly the way I want them. Also as mentioned I pour them out onto wax paper on and old cookie sheet and usually let dry overnight for 24+ hours. The drying can be speeded up a bit with a heat lamp or hair dryer but I found it pays to be patient and let the bullets dry completely.

LLA works just fine for me using Lee's directions and using it within the parmeters it is made for.

Larry Gibson