pan lubing method

[rfd]

how that lube completely fills the groove and holds there while it is molten is strangely a baffling mystery to me, any certain trick to it........or voodoo? lol

P. F. M.

[Old Scribe]

I have been using the same method as rfd for years, on casts from. 223 to .45 colt.
Easy to do with no muss or fuss, YMMV.

[Oklahoma Rebel]

I guess the boolit must be cool enough to harden a thicker layer around it then I imagined, I might try that, as I have found I am sizing my boolits too small and until I get my die reamed out or replaced, I will be back to pan lubing, or dip lubing. turns out at least one boolit mold I have casts them just perfect so I need to get my star die sized so those can simply pass through, with just snug enough fit to keep lube from leaking everywhere.

[rfd]

dip lubing is FAST. dip the bullet into the lube just past its top grease groove, put it down on something flat and hard, and the bullet is immediately ready to be "cookie cut". there is no waiting for the lube in a pan full of bullets to harden because dipping puts a tad more than the right amount of lube into the grease grooves, and because it's such a small amount it solidifies immediately as it's pulled out of the dipping tin can. the small amount of excess lube gets shaved off with the brass case "cookie cutter". all excess lube goes back into the lube can.

for 45-70 and 40-65 i use 1:30 alloy that i smelt and will typically drop @ .459" and there is no need to size. for those that do require sizing, i dip lube and don't cookie cut, just run them all up a lee sizing die. the excess lube that squeezes out is easy to collect and goes back into the lube can. easy peasy.

the lubed bullets are immediately ready to push into black powder charged (wadded and compressed) brass.

bp is so easy to load and a pleasure to shoot.

[DeskPop]

dip lubing is FAST. dip the bullet into the lube just past its top grease groove, put it down on something flat and hard, and the bullet is immediately ready to be "cookie cut". there is no waiting for the lube in a pan full of bullets to harden because dipping puts a tad more than the right amount of lube into the grease grooves, and because it's such a small amount it solidifies immediately as it's pulled out of the dipping tin can. the small amount of excess lube gets shaved off with the brass case "cookie cutter". all excess lube goes back into the lube can.

for 45-70 and 40-65 i use 1:30 alloy that i smelt and will typically drop @ .459" and there is no need to size. for those that do require sizing, i dip lube and don't cookie cut, just run them all up a lee sizing die. the excess lube that squeezes out is easy to collect and goes back into the lube can. easy peasy.

the lubed bullets are immediately ready to push into black powder charged (wadded and compressed) brass.

bp is so easy to load and a pleasure to shoot.

Would you have to cookie cut them if you were putting them through a Lee pass through sizing die? That does look pretty easy!

[rfd]

Would you have to cookie cut them if you were putting them through a Lee pass through sizing die? That does look pretty easy!

nope, no cookie cutting required, just run the freshly dipped bullet into the lee sizing die. it's a bit messy, with the excess wax accumulating around the press ram. i put a small cardboard square, with a hole in the middle, around the ram to catch most the excess lube (which goes back into the lube pot). my lube of choice is the home made "gato feo", which is a soft lube for BPCR that also works well for my cast handgun bullets. it's a good lube for both the press and yer hands!

[Dale53]

I've used this method for years:

http://castpics.net/dpl/index.php/th...-piece-of-cake

It's the fastest, easiest, and most practical way I know. However, keep in mind that there is more than one way to "skin the cat". Pick the method you prefer and do a bit of it to learn how before you reject it out of hand...

P.S. I worked as a Major Case Insurance Claims Rep for thirty years. USE A DOUBLE BOILER! Grease fires happen every day in kitchens around the world. One minute's inattention and BOOM! I have seen the results and it is NOT pretty! It can also be life threatening...

FWIW;
Dale53

[John Boy]

The only issue with cookie cutters is: you have to make one for each specific bullet caliber one shoots. I my case - 22 - 32's - 40 - 43 - 43's and 45's. Remember also that every caliber casts bullets with different base diameters according to the mold used

[thegatman]

Tumble baby Tumble.

[rfd]

Tumble baby Tumble.

not at all for me and BPCR.

[gwpercle]

When I looked at the stove top photo , it looked for all the world like those boolits were standing in pans of Ragu (red gravy) sauce !

[NavyVet1959]

I've tried the dipping and running through a Lee sizing die method. I find that I end up with more lube on the base of the bullet with the dipping method. But then again, with the normal pan lubing method, although I didn't have much lube on the base of the bullet, I also didn't always get a complete filling of the lube grooves.

[rfd]

nope, i gave up on pan lubing long ago. ain't ever going back. just too many issues for me. dip lubing just about guarantees the grooves get more than filled. cookie cutting or lee sizing do the trimming job perfectly every time. i've dipped thousands of bullets and i've not found that any of the process is critical in any manner. the big plus for me is that the cured lube consistency doesn't matter at all, whether soft or hard, which can be an issue for pan lubing. cookie cutting or lee sizing can be done within seconds of dipping, whereas i gotta wait for the pan lube to acceptably harden in order to push out the bullets (without losing groove lube in the process).

the down side, as john boy noted, is that cookie cutting requires making the right size cutter out of a case, and if ya have LOTS of varied bullet sizes to lube, it will take some time and effort to build a bunch of appropriate brass case cookie cutters. or, don't bother with a cookie cutter and just push up the dipped bullets into a cheap (but very effective!) lee press sizer die and get both the lube cutting and lead sizing done at the same time.

[rfd]

how that lube completely fills the groove and holds there while it is molten is strangely a baffling mystery to me, any certain trick to it........or voodoo? lol

actually, the "secret" with dip lubing is to dip bullets that are not hot. in doing so, the "cool" bullet meets the hot lube and fully overfills the lube grooves. if the bullet is hot and is dipped, the lube will "film over" the grooves and might not fully fill them. since the bullets are at room temperature after cooling down from casting, this isn't even an issue.

it's either that or dip lubing is just another form of P.F.M.

[mold maker]

If we're totally honest, there will be voids in sections of a groove here and there with every method, and or lube. It's just a fact of life. It can be caused by pressure, temp, carelessness, or any number of reasons.
For the most part, it is of little consequence as it's compensated by the round before and after. If the lube is capable of the job at hand, a missing section won't matter unless it is too often present.
The method is mostly a choice made by the individual. The quality of the lube and boolit fit is much more important.

[rfd]

If we're totally honest, there will be voids in sections of a groove here and there with every method, and or lube. It's just a fact of life. It can be caused by pressure, temp, carelessness, or any number of reasons.
For the most part, it is of little consequence as it's compensated by the round before and after. If the lube is capable of the job at hand, a missing section won't matter unless it is too often present.
The method is mostly a choice made by the individual. The quality of the lube and boolit fit is much more important.

i agree for the most part, but with reservations.

if the lube is a viable well tested type and is well mixed, and has a good adhesion coefficient with lead alloy, and adheres well to the grooves, there is is never a void or loss within those grooves during a panning or dipping process. what happens after the lube some what cools in the pan cake, and is ready to push out, is an entirely different matter.

with panning, the theory is that the lube has cooled to within a sufficient temperature range as to allow the bullet to be pushed out of the panned "cake" and retain 100% of the lube within its grooves, leaving a perfect hole in the lube cake. some will argue they never have issues with losing groove lube and panning and that's not been my experience after lots of experimenting with different lubes and different cake temperatures for bullet removal, as well as varying bullet diameters and types of grooves. harder lubes have just worked better for me. softer lubes were not.

with dipping, the loss of and kind of hard or soft lube in the grooves never happens with a cutting or sizing process - a non-issue.

in both panning and dipping, what happens to an already lubed and ready-to-seat bullet before it's loaded is another matter entirely. handling, lube adhesion qualities, and temperature can play parts in those matters.

[dkf]

I use silicone baking pans (9"x9") and put them in the oven to melt the lube. I find what works best is putting the bullets in holes in the cooled lube and then putting them in the oven for the lube to melt, then take out and let cool with the bullets in the lube. I have tried melting the lube and then putting the room temperature bullets in the lube but it doesn't work as well. The lube doesn't want to stick to th ecool bullets and then it comes out of the grooves when I push it out of the lube. I don't use a cake cutter, just push out of the lube and run through the sizer. I'm using a 50/50 mix or BAC and Carnauba Red for lube.

[Nose Dive]

RFD's method looks like it makes good boolits...

I am not that handi-crafted inclined. Or...OK...OK... I AM LAZY!! (Yup..RFD is a boolit Craftsman...I am...welll...LazyBoy shooter)

I just do as FARMERSAMM does and place boolits in pan...off the stove,,pan and boolits are cold...melt lube in another pan on the stove....pour melted lube in pan where boolits are...carefully ...not to knock anything over.... fill PAST last lube grove..... then...well...I go to bed. DID I SAY I AM L-A-Z-Y?.... and my cool boolits meet up with hot lube.... just pour and go... I bump pan abit if I see bubbles...but with my HOME BREW lube I usually don't... and...just let'em sit... and as Emeril Lagacy says..."let things sit there in the pan and GET HAPPY"....

[plan B is to fill the lube pan, melt lube, take off fire, then put cold boolits in melted lube one at a time...not me...to much time and too easy to screw up...I need to keep thangs..well...LAZY...]

Next morning...with my fangers...pull boolits out of lube pan and go to the loading bench. If I gas check...I DO IT BEFORE I LUBE....here again fellas....LAZY.....

Now do my boolits look like RFD's??? HECK NO! But...they seat and crimp well. Shoot Well. and this lazy fatboy is ready to go back to the smelt pot again and again.

Nose Dive

Cheap, Fast, Good. Kindly pick two.

[DeskPop]

I use silicone baking pans (9"x9") and put them in the oven to melt the lube. I find what works best is putting the bullets in holes in the cooled lube and then putting them in the oven for the lube to melt, then take out and let cool with the bullets in the lube. I have tried melting the lube and then putting the room temperature bullets in the lube but it doesn't work as well. The lube doesn't want to stick to th ecool bullets and then it comes out of the grooves when I push it out of the lube. I don't use a cake cutter, just push out of the lube and run through the sizer. I'm using a 50/50 mix or BAC and Carnauba Red for lube.

This sounds almost exactly like what I do. With pistol bullets having a large caliber for their length, I pull the silicone baking pan along with the metal pan it sits on out of the oven after everything gets good and warmed up. I let it cool for about 25 to 30 minutes before pulling the cake out of the pan and pushing the bullets out of the cake. If it is too cool, the lube slips out of the grooves in the bullets. Too warm doesn't work either because the lube is too soft. I've had really good luck with this method. It requires a good sharp casting to cut the lube. Rounded edges don't do a good job.

.308 bullets are a little more difficult to pull out of the oven. It's good to have a set of tweezers to stand the few bullets back up that don't make it to the table. You could always let them cool in the oven if you like.

[CASTER OF LEAD]

Makeshift double-boiler setups are ridiculously easy. Mine is just a pie tin resting on a frying pan.

That is the exact same procedure i use & it is flawless. Never have i seen so much as a whisp of smoke. The "handles" of the cake pan make it extremely easy to lift the warm lube pan out of the skillet i use as well.