need a little help with pan lubing

[bigboreblackhawk]

Hey guy's and gal's. Ive been reading a lot on here and watching videos on pan lubing but I'm having some trouble. I don't cast my own but was able to get some nice 45-270-saa boolits for my 45 colt blackhawk from someone who does. The lube had come off some of these and I thought I would try pan lubing to replace the old lube. I decided to try the 6661 formula but more like 1lb each beeswax, paraffin, vaseline and one bar of ivory soap.

So I think I may have gotten the mix a little to hot but not sure. I melted the paraffin and vaseline, then added the ivory flakes and then the beeswax. Then I turned around and noticed the whole house had a cloud of smoke and there was a foam like layer floating on top of the mix. I scooped up most of the foam and threw it in the trash. Then I pulled the pan from the oven that had the boolits I was heating to 170deg and put the mix in using a turkey baster. I let the pan cool for about 4 hours and when I pulled them out the lube was missing from most of them and it was a lot softer then I had hoped for.

What did I do wrong? I found a bunch of videos on how to pan lube but not that many on how to make the lube. And do you think the lube I made is still salvageable?

[Yodogsandman]

Welcome to the site!

The foam was probably the ivory soap flakes breaking down. You should have stirred the foam into the lube mixture...stirred and stirred and stirred.

You pulled the bullets out of the pan or cut them out? Cutting them out would prevent the lube from being pulled out of the grooves.

A trick is to "cut" them out of the tray using an oversized cartridge case (just larger than the bullet) with the base cut off. Slide the case over the bullet and push it down to the base of the bullet, "cutting" the bullet free of the lube. Then push out with a correct size "plunger" like a pencil or wood rod.

I think Lee sells a tool for this called a kake cutter.

[randyrat]

In addition, you will get better stick to your lead boolits by heating them up along with your lube or right in your lube. By cutting your boolits out you replace the holes with unlubed boolits and remelt and do it again.
One more thing,
I don't believe your gaining anything with the soap flakes. The so called, Steric acid/stearene is basically a hardener and does not add to the quality of your lubrication. You want your lube harder just cut back on the Vaseline. If you go too far with my suggestions you will lose the stickiness of your lube. The soap hardener won't hurt anything though, it just won't add to the quality of the lube.

[JSnover]

Emmert's is a simpler formula and I've had good luck with it. As soon as the lube is melted, set the boolits, watch the temp and give them time to warm up. Finish as described above.

[bigboreblackhawk]

Thanks for the help guys. I did pre heat the boolits in the oven to 170 before pouring the lube in, maybe I need to heat a little hotter?

I will go make a cutter today, I just twisted and pulled the boolits yesterday.

I would like to try to use the lube I've already made if it's still usable, would hate to have to throw it away. Beeswax is hard to come by locally so I ordered two pounds and have one left.

I see Emmert's is a BP lube, will it work for smokeless also? I would like to shoot some BP 45colt but one thing at a time. I don't need to be getting myself side tracked.

[JSnover]

I see Emmert's is a BP lube, will it work for smokeless also? I would like to shoot some BP 45colt but one thing at a time. I don't need to be getting myself side tracked.

It will. I've used it for both smokeless and black in my 45-70 with no trouble at all.

[fryboy]

with no cutter ( and my fav way to pan lube ...if there is such a critter :P ) is the "whack it-crack it" method , the twist you were doing is perhaps part of the culprit ( at least until you break the lube in the grooves loose from the cake ) try the method in the link below
http://goatlips.hrillc.com/goatlipst...panlubing.html

[Yodogsandman]

Before changing the lube you made, I'd try it out. Cutting them out seems like it might be all you have to change.

[Jal5]

ive done panlube for almost all my boolits now. the homemade lube worked ok in some guns but too soft for others. now i switched to lube from White label lubes a member of this site and that made all the difference. hardly any boolits that don't have lube in the grooves now! Joe

[country gent]

Twisting the bullets in the cake breaks the lube loose from the bullet. the bond to the block of lube is much greater in surface and strength than the bond to the lube grooves. The grooves slip in the cake and when pushed out the lube falls out. Push straight out or cut with a " cake cutter". A cutter can be easily made by drilling out the primer pocket straight through at 1/4". expand case neck to a slightly over bullet dia, .002-.005 and ligtly bell, sharpen edge with a deburring tool. To use set case over bullet in cake push straight down and pull straight out. with a appropriate length dowel push bullet out of cutter. The slight bell helps to push the lube into the gooves tighter the slight over size makes bullets enter and exit easier. The sharpened edge just makes it easier to push through. I use longer rifle cases in appropriate calibers when I can. for 45 cal 45 70 gives more to get ahold of and will easily do .451, .452. .454 and up to .460 or so dia bullets in many more lengths wieghts. A 35 remington case will easily do most if not all 35 cal bullets. A 444 marlin case will do most 44 cal bullets.

[John Boy]

I will go make a cutter today, I just twisted and pulled the boolits yesterday.

Bad move ... let cake harden and use a cookie cutter or PUSH them out of the cake from the nose
Good Luck next go around

[bigboreblackhawk]

Just wanted to give you guys a quick update. Got the lube all situated and did a few initial test this past weekend but I didn't really have the time to get down to the nitty gritty. First impressions where really good though, and most importantly the lube stayed on the boolits.

[country gent]

Glad to hear success is much closer now. Go slow and keep notes, that way you repeat what works and dont repeat what didnt. Most use a bigger pan than needed.