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Thread: setting up RCBS Lub-A-Matic to lube non-GC bullets originally designed for GC?

  1. #1
    Boolit Bub
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    setting up RCBS Lub-A-Matic to lube non-GC bullets originally designed for GC?

    Gents,

    The 0.310" H&L die has finally arrived and I am want to get to the range tomorrow.

    Unfortunatly the gas checks have not arrived and my mould is designed to throw a gas checked bullet.

    Reading the sticky at the top of the forum, it seems that I can shoot them without a gas check particularly as I am using trail boss and aiming for subsonic velocities.

    From what I can see the lube sizer works by squashing the bullet into the die body whereupon a crank on the handle sends lube through the holes in the die and into the lube grooves.

    If this is done with a GC bullet that has no GC, will not the base of the bullet act like a groove and fill will with lube where the GC ought to be?

    If so how can that be stopped?

  2. #2
    Boolit Master
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    Use one of the hard lubes that require heat so that when the bullet cools down the lube in the gas check shank isn't too big a nuisance. Or clean the lube off with your finger nail before loading. I have used both strategies -- now I have a Star lube-sizer and don't have to put up with lube going where I don't want it.

  3. #3
    Boolit Master MOA's Avatar
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    Your lube only comes out at specified depths of where the holes are in the sizing die. Depending on where you set the depth of the plunger you can manipulate the area of the boolit that gets lube. You only need to crank the handle for more lube when the pressure inside the lube chamber drops from multiple boolit lubes. In other words when you get the correct depth for the boolit grooves to lube, you only have to crank the lube chamber handle every three or four boolits. If you set the depth low enough the bottom recess for the gas check should be below the lowest lube hole in the die and therefore miss lubing that GC groove.

  4. #4
    Boolit Grand Master

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    setting up RCBS Lub-A-Matic to lube non-GC bullets originally designed for GC?

    Quote Originally Posted by MOA View Post
    Your lube only comes out at specified depths of where the holes are in the sizing die. Depending on where you set the depth of the plunger you can manipulate the area of the boolit that gets lube. You only need to crank the handle for more lube when the pressure inside the lube chamber drops from multiple boolit lubes. In other words when you get the correct depth for the boolit grooves to lube, you only have to crank the lube chamber handle every three or four boolits. If you set the depth low enough the bottom recess for the gas check should be below the lowest lube hole in the die and therefore miss lubing that GC groove.
    This won't work because the lube is under constant pressure. It's not like a Star where the last bit of handle pull allows the lube to flow. As soon as you reach a hole in the die lube will start coming out w/ a LAM. I have a Star for lubing GC bullets w/ no GC installed.

  5. #5
    Boolit Master MOA's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by dragon813gt View Post
    This won't work because the lube is under constant pressure. It's not like a Star where the last bit of handle pull allows the lube to flow. As soon as you reach a hole in the die lube will start coming out w/ a LAM. I have a Star for lubing GC bullets w/ no GC installed.

    True lube will come out, and not much can be done about that, I was refering to have to crank handle each time a boolit is sized. I always use a folded paper towel next to the sizer to clean up any unwanted lube on boolit. Sometimes the sentence structure does not translate into what I am trying to say. Sorry for the confusion. Although it might be possible to size the boolit upside down if it has a flat point and thereby bypass the lube getting in the gas check area, no?
    Last edited by MOA; 10-26-2017 at 02:05 PM.

  6. #6
    Boolit Grand Master

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    Upside down will have lube all over the nose. You can try using styrofoam under the bullet. This is what people use for bevel base bullets. The workarounds are one of the reasons I bought another type of lube sizer.

  7. #7
    Boolit Buddy
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    After reading this thread it got me to thinking (dangerous). If you could drill out the end push out rod the depth of the gas check area on the bullet, then using the lube sizer to align everything put a small amount of epoxy in the drilled out area wax the gas check area of the bullet so it does not stick to the epoxy then run it into the sizing die and let it cure. It would seal the area from the lube getting into that area. I make my nose punches that way for bullets I don't have the punches for.

  8. #8
    Boolit Master MOA's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by dragon813gt View Post
    Upside down will have lube all over the nose. You can try using styrofoam under the bullet. This is what people use for bevel base bullets. The workarounds are one of the reasons I bought another type of lube sizer.
    How does that styrofoam work? do you need to punch out a bunch of disc's the dia of the boolit. I guess you could use a cartridge case with the end cut off to make a quick punch, that is a great idea, a little more steps in the operation, but only a temp fix since GC's will be available at sometime, at least it will get you to the range.

  9. #9
    Boolit Bub
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    First try last night!Click image for larger version. 

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    And with lube wiped off the base!Click image for larger version. 

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    I am now a bullet caster!

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Abbreviations used in Reloading

BP Bronze Point IMR Improved Military Rifle PTD Pointed
BR Bench Rest M Magnum RN Round Nose
BT Boat Tail PL Power-Lokt SP Soft Point
C Compressed Charge PR Primer SPCL Soft Point "Core-Lokt"
HP Hollow Point PSPCL Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" C.O.L. Cartridge Overall Length
PSP Pointed Soft Point Spz Spitzer Point SBT Spitzer Boat Tail
LRN Lead Round Nose LWC Lead Wad Cutter LSWC Lead Semi Wad Cutter
GC Gas Check