can you pan lube ALOX ?

[mikes farm]

I do not wish to have to clean the end of the boolits off after tumble lubing them.
If you pan lube ALOX then drain it off would it leave a film that is too thick ?
How about diluting it first ? Still too thick ?
Thanks
Mike

[geargnasher]

I'm assuming you've been using Liquid Alox. Which end? I used to worry about powder sticking to the bases, but when it's dry, LLA isn't very sticky and doesn't burn off completely(still find bases and grooves coated with it on recovered boolits).

If you're talking about the nose end, I only worry about cleaning the noses on my auto rounds, the rest of the time I leave it on as a preservative to prevent lead oxidation.

I don't know if you have any experience with other sizer/lubers, but even if you by a Star you will be cleaning your boolit seater punch every few dozen rounds anyway, as the lube ring formed at the case mouth from seating will accumulate and end up in your seating punch.

LLA is a little better to work with if thinned, and dries a little harder if you add Johnson's Paste Wax to it as well.

I've tried dip-lubing with LLA, and it is a messy waste of time and lube, I also used to stand them all up on waxed paper, but I found this is also a waste of time, especially if you tumble/size/tumble. Just pour 'em out and let 'em dry.

Gear

[dale2242]

I pan lube for my 45-70 with NRA formula 50/50 Alox lube. Stand your boolits base first in an appropriate sized pan. Melt the 50/50 and pour to the desired level. Make a cookie cutter from a fired case by cutting it off above the solid head. After the lube has hardened, use the case as a cookie cutter to free them. Remelt the left over lube for reuse....dale

[Recluse]

I do not wish to have to clean the end of the boolits off after tumble lubing them.
If you pan lube ALOX then drain it off would it leave a film that is too thick ?
How about diluting it first ? Still too thick ?
Thanks
Mike

Short answer is "No."

It would take a fair amount of LLA or alox to fill a pan that has a sufficient amount of boolits in it. That is problem number one.

Problem number two is that the thicker and increased amount of LLA used, the longer it takes to dry.

Problem number three, it will never completely dry when used in that mass and quantity. Maybe in TL grooves, but with traditional lube grooves, it's gonna take a while. You might could bake it a bit to try and dry it, but then you'd be messing with the BHN of your boolits.

Ranch Dog used to have a page on how he dipped his custom-mould boolits. He had a great technique and his results were inarguable. But even then, there is quite a difference between dipping and pan-lubing.

If you mixed some beeswax in with the alox, you could pan-lube. But before I did that, I'd simply buy some NRA lube which is 50/50 to begin with.

And, if you're dead-set on pan-lubing, I'd stay away from the alox and look at traditional stick/solid lubes.

Basically, you're trying to take one type of lube and make it work in an application it simply is not suited for and never will be due to its structure.

:coffee:

[Shiloh]

I do not wish to have to clean the end of the boolits off after tumble lubing them.
If you pan lube ALOX then drain it off would it leave a film that is too thick ?
How about diluting it first ? Still too thick ?
Thanks
Mike

It'd be way to thick. Put it on thin to begin with and the lube on the nose isn't too bad. It does leave a residue on feed ramps and magazine followers.

Good idea to clean up the seating and crimp dies once in a while.
Especially on progressive presses.

Shiloh

[yodar]

It'd be way to thick. Put it on thin to begin with and the lube on the nose isn't too bad. It does leave a residue on feed ramps and magazine followers.

Good idea to clean up the seating and crimp dies once in a while.
Especially on progressive presses.

Shiloh

I pour LLA into a 2 L soda bottle cap and dip the bullet groves ONLY into the LLA and stand it on end on wax paper

Repeat the next day

I do this for .323 only cause I don't have an H & I die to do it the right way with my home made SAECO GREEN lube. I shoot mebbe 100 rounds of 8 mm a year

yodar

[Recluse]

I pour LLA into a 2 L soda bottle cap and dip the bullet groves ONLY into the LLA and stand it on end on wax paper.

yodar

That is a GREAT solution for dipping boolits!

Muchas gracias.

:coffee: