About to get into boolit casting....how are you guys tumble lubing?

[jamesp81]

Does tumble lubinb need to be done in a tumbler? If so, I was thinking of getting a second tumbler and using it solely for TL.

Also...I'm deciding on which equipment to buy. Should I get a lubri-sizer right away? How about a bottom pour pot? How much faster can you cast with bottom pour?

Are the Lee 6 cavity molds of good quality?

[okksu]

Read this for a how to thread: http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?t=67654

No need for a "tumbler" Depending on how many, any round plastic/moisture resistant card board container works....Think margarine container, ice cream, cottage cheese, ziploc baggie, refrig storage bowl.........

[Echo]

And use about half as much Mule Snot as you think you should. Don't ask me how I know...

I use an old salad slinger bowl. Looks like a bundt cake pan, but plastic. Works like a charm for the .38 Special popcorn loads I am putting together for DIL's tng. Lyman 358242 I think, @ 93 grs, and a PITA to try to run through ANY sizer since they are so flamin' little. As cast, tumbled w/LLA, over 3 grs 200 works just fine.

[Buckshot]

..............I thin TL with paint thinner about 50/50. Works just fine for most "Non wrist buster" pistol loads. I use one of those cheap plastic food containers with snap on lids of about 1 qt size to do the lubing. Once coated I pour them out on that freezer paper that's plastisized on one side. Once the boolits are dry and removed (next day) I fold it up and stick it in a gallon sized zip loc bag. You can use it 5-6 times. Wax paper is recomended but it's so lightweight I don't get much use out of a sheet.

What are you planning on casting for, firearm wise?

...............Buckshot

[qajaq59]

Also...I'm deciding on which equipment to buy. Should I get a lubri-sizer right away? How about a bottom pour pot? How much faster can you cast with bottom pour? I would say yes to both, but many will disagree, so it'll be your decision.


Are the Lee 6 cavity molds of good quality? I can't knock em. I have 2 of them that worked like a charm right out of the box. Some people have had problems with them though.

[BrianB]

I LLA and tumble lube bullets I shoot at lower velocities, others I use my Lube-A-Matic. When tumble lubing, I use a zip-lock bag and surgical/latex gloves to remove them from the bag for drying.

Yes. I would say get a bottom pour pot. The small Lee pot works well for me, but I don't typically cast more than a couple of hundred bullets at a time. If you plan on doing more than that, or if you plan to cast a lot of big bullets like 400-500 grainers, you might want a larger one.

[243winxb]

http://www.leeprecision.com/cgi/faq/index.cgiLiquid Alox application

Best results in applying liquid alox are when the alox is heated before applying, or thinned with paint thinner. This makes it flow more easily, and results in a more even coat. One technique is to boil water and pour it into a coffee mug, and then drop the bottle of liquid alox into the mug for about five minutes.

Place your freshly cast bullets into something about the size of a Cool Whip bowl and drop a few drops of liquid Alox on the bullets. Mix the bullets around until they are all coated. Lay the freshly coated bullets on some wax paper to dry. Liquid alox will usually dry enough overnight to reload the next day, depending upon the humidity. Tacky bullets can be dusted with powdered graphite.

If you subscribe to the "more is better" line of thought, your coated bullets may never dry. Don't go for a "golden" color but rather just a light varnish. If you discover that your bullets are sticky the next day, you can get by with using a little less the next time. Keep reducing until the "stickiness" is gone by the next day.

If you are sizing your cast bullets, it is necessary to lube them first. Because the sizer will remove some of the surface of a larger diameter bullet, you may need to re-lubricate the bullets after they have been sized.

Many of our bullets are of the "TL" or Tumble Lube design. These bullets have many shallow grooves that are perfect for allowing Liquid Alox to adhere to a great amount of surface. It has been reported that the accuracy of these bullets is high. /Get a lubri-sizer and a bottom pour pot, its a lot faster. No Lee moulds for me.

[jamesp81]

..............I thin TL with paint thinner about 50/50. Works just fine for most "Non wrist buster" pistol loads. I use one of those cheap plastic food containers with snap on lids of about 1 qt size to do the lubing. Once coated I pour them out on that freezer paper that's plastisized on one side. Once the boolits are dry and removed (next day) I fold it up and stick it in a gallon sized zip loc bag. You can use it 5-6 times. Wax paper is recomended but it's so lightweight I don't get much use out of a sheet.

What are you planning on casting for, firearm wise?

...............Buckshot

I will be casting 357 for a Ruger GP100, 9mm for a CZ P07, and 45 ACP for a 1911. In the future, I may be casting 40 S&W for an M&P40.

[jmsj]

jamesp81,
First off, welcome to the website.
+ 1 on okksu's reccomendation on reading Recluse's sticky on tumble lubing. I use that method, I can't remember if Recluse reccomended heating the boolits before tumbling or not. I have an old toaster oven that I heat the boolits to 200 degrees before I tumble lube. This speeds up the drying time.
As for jumping in and buying a lot of equipment, that's up to you. I like Lee's 6 cavity molds but they can be a little challangeing to start w/. I started casting using a 6 cavity and it was a little difficult at the beginning. After using some two cavity molds I figured some things out that I was able to apply to using 6 cavity molds. Two things I reccomend when using Lee molds (2 or 6 cavity molds), clean them really well, I have found that taking them apart and boiling them in water + dawn dish soap for 10 or fifteen minutes works best and use a hot plate to preheat the mold. Also read the sticky on "leementing molds". If you are going to use 6 cavity molds I reccomend getting a 20 pound bottom pour pot. Those 6 bangers go through the lead quickly and it is hard to ladle pour them fast enough.
There is so much great information here. Do some searches on the questions you have and ask questions. You'll find most guys here are glad to help out.
jmsj

[Rocky Raab]

Definitely get a bottom pour. If the Lee 10# one isn't enough for you, you aren't out a week's pay.

The only additional comment I can offer about tumble lubing is that "tumble" is the wrong word. You do NOT want bullets to tumble over onto themselves and get dings and dents in the bases. What you want to do is "swirl" them around the bottom of the container so they roll in the LLA. Put a single layer of bullets in the tub of your choice, squirt on a thin "N" or "M" of LLA (no more!) and then swirl the tub in a circle so the bullets roll around in the bottom. Pour gently onto waxed paper and repeat if you have lots more bullets to do.

Some guys double coat them, which isn't necessary unless you size them (again, the Lee system is great at low cost), but a sprinkle of mica or even baby powder on dried bullets does make LLA'ed bullets a lot easier to handle. Might even add to the lube factor.

[jonk]

Lee liquid alox (or Xlox, or any other brand of liquid alox).......ah yes. I wish I could say that my beautiful lubri-sizer lubed bullets shot better, I really wish I do.....but I can't. Up until you reach the most demanding applications or a rather long barrel where the tumble lube design just runs out, I've had great results. It's a bit smokey, but is easy to apply and shoots fine.

I too thin it a bit. Ignore the spout on the bottle, it gets plugged. Unscrew the top, drop enough in to a tub to coat your bullets (enough is if you see a coating over all the surfaces, including in the grooves; too much if it is pooling on the bottom of the container) swirl around, dump on wax paper, let dry.

Some stand them up so it dries evenly, I don't bother. Others wipe off the top of the bullet after it is seated so it looks better, that's your call.

Whether or not you need to size depends. Slug your bore, see if it chambers as cast. If over bore diameter as cast and it chambers, you're good to go.

[mdi]

Welcome to boolit making! It's fun, relaxing, and safe, if you use common sense.

For a new caster, I'd say K.I.S.S. A two cavity mold will get you through while learning the finer points of boolit making, (temperature control of mold and melt are essential, but not too difficult to learn). Quality first then cast for quantity.

I'd say go for a 20 lb. bottom pour pot. You can dip out of one if you aren't satisfied with bottom pouring. Lyman and RCBS ladles are good, but I used the little Lee ladle for about 1000 boolits before I was told it wouldn't work!

Alox has worked for me on my cast; 240 gr LSW, both Lee and Lyman (yes, you can use alox on standard lube groove boolits), and some Ranch Dog 265 gr LFN, both in my .44 Magnums. Just follow suggestions about thinning; a little goes a long way. I've been using straight alox w/mineral spirits but have a 45/45/10 mixture on the bench to try. Try the tub method or the ziplok bags, both work well

Slug your barrels and on the revolvers the chamber throats. Your boolits should be about .002" larger than bore dia., and the same size or .001" smaller than throat dia. BTW, I've seen a lot of prolems reported when trying to cast for the 9mm (leading and accuracy), I'd say get used to making good boolits for the other calibers first, then try the 9mm.

Try it, you'll like it. And this time next year you may just have 6 or 8 molds, a bunch of Lee Sizing Dies, three or four ladles, at least 2 pots (smelting and casting), a dozen different lubes for pan and tumble lubing, 5 or 6 ways to flux your melt, and a ton or so of alloy in ingots stashed away.[smilie=w:

BTW, Get a Lyman Cast Bullet Handbook for casting data and load data for cast bullets.

[mmorris]

I started by spreading Aloxed bullets on waxed paper, but I made a drying tray to speed up the process with better air circulation (Dries in an hour or two with a fan.).

It also helps them dry more evenly (the standing bullet on the right is the waxed paper method). I also dust them with cornstarch to reduce transfer to the seating die.

Fluorescent light diffuser grid with hardware cloth on top.

Mike

[Crash_Corrigan]

+1 on what MDI said.

If necessary to size I use a Lee push thru sizer first before lubing. I take a shallow dish with a squirt of Dawn and water and lube every 3 or 4th boolit in the mix prior to pushing thru the sizer.

It provided enuf lube to allow an easy and fast sizing operation. Then I rinse the sized boolts and when dry I give them the LLA or LLA and JPW concoction a spritz in a plastic pickle jar that I have been using for years. Once lightly coated with a varnish like layer I dump them out onto waxed paper and let them dry overnight.

The next day they get thrown into another plastic pickle jar with a tablespoon of corn starch. Then they get swirled around and then dumped into a handy container for future loading.

The CS keeps them from sticking together or from messing up my loading dies. The sealed container keeps them clean and prevents any contaminents from messing up my cast boolits.

I have jars and containers of boolts which were cast up to 3 years ago. They do not go bad without being used. However they will harden some in the first 30 days or so and I would not want to have to size them after 30 days from being cast.

[CiDirkona]

I made a drying tray to speed up the process with better air circulation (Dries in an hour or two with a fan.).
Mike

That's really creative - I like it! I may have to make something similar!

[XWrench3]

I BOUGHT MOSTLY ALL LEE STUFF WHEN I DOVE INTO CASTING. MOST OF IT IS REALLY GOOD STUFF. I DID HAVE A PROBLEM WITH ONE OF THEIR MOLDS. I SENT IT BACK, AND THEY REPLACED IT, NO TROUBLE. AS FOR THE BOTTOM POUR POT, IT IS THE ONLY WAY TO GO. I HAVE TRIED DIPPING, BUT IT IS WAY SLOWER, AND IN MY OPINION, A PAIN. ALL OF MY 6 CAVITY MOLDS CAST VERY WELL. THEY MAKE A PILE OF BOOLITS IN A SHORT TIME. BE PREPARED TO EITHER WAIT A COUPLE OF MINUTES EVERY THREE OR FOUR CASTS, OR HAVE A DAMP RAG OR SPRAY WATER BOTTLE (MIST TYPE) :Fire::cbpour:TO COOL THE MOLD OFF WITH. THE 6 CAVITY MOLDS GET HOT FAST. / AS FOR TUMBLE LUBING, I USE AN OLD LARGE PLASTIC PEANUT BUTTER JAR. I PLACE BOOLITS IN THE JAR, UP TO 2/3RDS FULL. THEN ADD THE L.L.A. USE IT SPARINGLY, IT GOES A LONG WAY. THEN I PUT THE TOP ON, AND ROTOATE AND TURN IT END FOR END AT THE SAME TIME. IT ONLY TAKES A MINUTE OR SO TO DISTRIBUTE THE LUBE ACROSS ALL THE BOOLITS. IF YOU DID NOT PUT ENOUGH ALOX IN, JUST ADD A LITTLE MORE. PUTTING TO MUCH IN WILL ONLY WASTE IT, AS IT WILL DRIP OFF WHEN YOU DUMP THE LUBED BOOLITS ONTO WAX PAPER TO DRY.:cbpour: