Lee Tumble Lube bullets

[Wally]

Tried an experiment....took a Lee .38 Cal 158 SWC-TL and a .44 Cal 240 SWC-TL and lubed with liquid alox...loaded both to 1,000 FPS and carefully checked the barrels before and after in the .357 & .44 Magnum pistols. Both had more "gunk" in them than I would like. Using a LLR I cleaned them and allowed the debris to fall on Dark paper and found bits of lead. Both shot quite accurately and the gunk builds up to a point and remains about the same. Bullets were unsized and cast out at .360" & .4315"--the pistols used have groove diameters of .358 & .430" respectively. I then shot another batch with Outers Foul Out cleaned barrels===but this time I did a second coat using auto car wax on the TL bullets. The difference in barrel fouling was remarkable...much less and similar to what they'd look like using a regular cast lubed & sized bullet. The only difference is the scent of Auto wax when fired.

[pworley1]

Good information.

[tazman]

I like the tumble lube boolits in low pressure cartridges like 38 special and 45ACP. I have had issues with them in higher pressure cartridges like 9mm and 357mag.
Your experience may differ from mine. A lot depends on the individual gun.

[Tom W.]

JPW works great, too.

[Wally]

Never used them in the 9mm----with the .357 Magnum I stay at 1,000 FPS. Have used them in the .45 ACP----205 SWC-TL/230 RN-TL....they work very well with no leading and are as accurate as any regular lubed cast bullet.

I like the tumble lube boolits in low pressure cartridges like 38 special and 45ACP. I have had issues with them in higher pressure cartridges like 9mm and 357mag.
Your experience may differ from mine. A lot depends on the individual gun.

[bmortell]

do you mean carnauba wax or what kind?

[JBinMN]

I use 45/45/10 (LLA/JPW(in can)/Min.Spirits that some call, "Recluses mix") and I have no problems up to 1200fps in any handgun I use. 38Sp./.357M/.380/9mm/45ACP/44sp & 44mag..

I coat before sizing & one coat after before loading.

That is "my" experiences. YMMV of course.

[Wally]

I used a small dab of Gel Wax with Carnuba. It dries quick and is not tacky. You don't need very much. Any liquid auto wax will work.

do you mean carnauba wax or what kind?

[Wally]

32 oz of XLOX (liquid Alox) is $13.95----32 oz of 45/45/10 is $18.95....so it's a lot cheaper to buy/use the XLOX....lightly lube with it, let the bullets dry, then recoat with the liquid auto wax. The XLOX straight is $5.00 cheaper and will last much longer. IMHO two coats are better than one. I don't size any....the reason I like TL bullets is you don't have to size them.

I use 45/45/10 (LLA/JPW(in can)/Min.Spirits that some call, "Recluses mix") and I have no problems up to 1200fps in any handgun I use. 38Sp./.357M/.380/9mm/45ACP/44sp & 44mag..

I coat before sizing & one coat after before loading.

That is "my" experiences. YMMV of course.

[Rapidrob]

The best tumble lube I have found casting for 55 years is Alox ( Lee or generic) https://www.lsstuff.com/store/index....2&keyword=Alox
Johnson's Paste Wax and Odorless Mineral Spirits: 45-45-10. Heat the first two in a microwave until liquid,add the OMS,stir and dribble a small amount onto the bullets in a plastic coffee can. A little goes a very long way. The coating is "see-through" and not toffee looking coated. Most casters use way too much bullet lube and never realize they are doing so.
There will always be a few lead flakes on the first patch. Seating,crimping, forcing cones, the unburnt powder being forced into the base of the bullet as well as blow-by hot gasses and add that to the the quality of the alloy of the cast lead bullet all will allow flakes to come off the bullets when fired.
Anyone who fires revolvers will see the "blown-off" lead all around the forcing cone. This is why the Lewis-Lead-Remover was invented in the 1930's.

[JBinMN]

I used a small dab of Gel Wax with Carnuba. It dries quick and is not tacky. You don't need very much. Any liquid auto wax will work.

32 oz of XLOX (liquid Alox) is $13.95----32 oz of 45/45/10 is $18.95....so it's a lot cheaper to buy/use the XLOX....lightly lube with it, let the bullets dry, then recoat with the liquid auto wax. The XLOX straight is $5.00 cheaper and will last much longer. IMHO two coats are better than one. I don't size any....the reason I like TL bullets is you don't have to size them.

I am not interested in debating costs with with you, but I will ask you to consider the cost of the "Gel wax with carauba" you said you used for a second coat to get no leading, & wonder if you add that cost to the $13.95 cost of the LLA, how much the total comes to.. As well as the time to add those "dabs", vs. TL the boolits in a container.

Consider also that when you are buying the 45/45/10 pre mixed you are going to pay for someone else to mix the batch instead of you doing it yourself, like I did mine myself, thus saving the cost of someone else doing it.

Regardless, I am happy for you to have found a way to coat your boolits & keep them from causing issues.
Maybe some day when I run out of the lube I made, I will try your experimental method to see how it works for me. I can always make more 45/45/10 if/when I need to if the method you suggest does not work for me.

[asecertified]

Powder coat works wonders. Yes I powder coat tumbled lube bullets and have for over 3 years. If you are not into powder coat that is up to you. I totally understand its not for everyone.

[Bookworm]

I reloaded for many years, but never got in on shooting lead - mostly because of the lubing question.

I didn't own a lube-sizer, and the instructions from Lee for tumble lube couldn't be more ambiguous; really, what does "dribble a small amount of lube" actually mean?

It wasn't until I signed on here, and did a massive amount of reading that I started realizing the possibilities of shooting lead.
Then, through a series of coincidences, I was visited by a very experienced member of this board, and everything fell in place.

Now I use tumble lube on most of handgun loads, and even some rifle loads. 45/45/10 or BLL#2, either work just fine.

I've never tried just plain Alox/Xlox.

[Wally]

True, you can blend your own 45/45/10.... I had the Gel Wax that I use to wax my vehicles; you need to use very little. In a subsequent test I used the XLOX to coat the TL bullets, and let it dry overnight. I then sprinkled dried up paste wax from an old can of Excalibur Concourse Car Wax onto the bullets and shook---darn it it didn't coat them quite nicely with wax. For several hundred bullets only needed a wad about as big as a 1/4" ball bearing. A little goes a long way----one can them immediately load them as they were dry, with a waxy film. I have yet to test any with tumble lubed wax only.

I thank you for being happy for me----I merely started this thread to share my experiences with others and to have an open discussion.

For those that would like to see a clip as to how to make your own 45/45/10....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4Ur4NUnSM4&t=500s

And here is one that shows how another guy does it....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=miKeCJ2X6zs

I am not interested in debating costs with with you, but I will ask you to consider the cost of the "Gel wax with carauba" you said you used for a second coat to get no leading, & wonder if you add that cost to the $13.95 cost of the LLA, how much the total comes to.. As well as the time to add those "dabs", vs. TL the boolits in a container.

Consider also that when you are buying the 45/45/10 pre mixed you are going to pay for someone else to mix the batch instead of you doing it yourself, like I did mine myself, thus saving the cost of someone else doing it.

Regardless, I am happy for you to have found a way to coat your boolits & keep them from causing issues.
Maybe some day when I run out of the lube I made, I will try your experimental method to see how it works for me. I can always make more 45/45/10 if/when I need to if the method you suggest does not work for me.

[mdi]

BLL and 45-45-10 are basically/close to what you made; alox + wax (JPW, liquid Johnson wax or Auto wax. Mebbe the carnuba)...

[ThomR]

I agree with asecertified on powder coating tumble lube bullets. That's all I shoot in my handguns, and my 300 blackout AR.
I did a two day pistol class last October and ran though at least 800 rounds of powder coated 9mm. After the second day I ran a couple patches down the barrel and it was clean as can be. No scrubbing to get out lead of the barrel.