Cable Pulling Lube

[doulos]

STP is not specifically made for case lube but it's sold (at a very high price per ounce) for that purpose by RCBS and other brands too.

No offense intended but until you've tried some of the other lubes you have no valid basis for comparison.

Your probably right. I admit I haven't experimented with many other lubes. I probably haven't found it necessary because I usually don't reload rifle rounds like you guys. Only rifle round I have reloaded is 45-70. Most of my reloading is pistol ammo. And that stuff isnt to hard to resize.

[6bg6ga]

Most pistol dies nowadays are carbide and thus don't require any lube. If your still using the "old style" full length sizing dies its time to step up to the newer carbide ones.

[1hole]

Carbide dies don't "require" lube only in that the cases won't stick inside the sizers but that's not the whole story.

When carbide sizers came on the market no one perfectly cleaned their fired cases, so the light "smoke" and bullet lube residue from firing served as a very light sizing lube; it worked great "without" lube. But then case tumbler and polishers arrived and most of us happily started removing the surface contaminants we actually needed - and still need - as a case lube for better carbide sizing.

Thing about rubbing two dry metals together under heavy pressure is that the friction can surface "gall" the metals together. Galling means that bits of the softer metal welds itself to the harder; for us that's brass sticking to tungsten carbide or case hardened steel. Galling begins as microscopic bits of brass clumps. The clumps will grow and scratch each successive case until they can actually weaken the thin cases. The user's normal perception is that their sizer has been "scratched" but, carbide or case hardened steel, that is rarely true. Removing the galled clumps of brass will almost always restore the sizers to like new.

Removing sizer galling can be a PITA. It's MUCH easier to prevent it. When I have a largish batch of fresh tumbled (handgun) cases to size I'll often spray a light film of WD-40 over them. That's enough "lube" to stop carbide sizer galling and, therefore, prevents case scratches.

[Alferd Packer]

I have been told that cable pulling lube works great for sizing cases. There is a water based one that they are talking about. Is this true? Any one try this? If it was to work it would be a whole lot cheaper than the LEE lube.

ACC

Some is.
Some isn't.
Your best bet is to just get lube sold by reloading companies for resizing brass cases.
LEE has always worked for me.
I have also used RCBS sizing lube.
Also used liquid dish soap when I was out of the sizing lube.
Lanolin and mink oil creme for leather also works as will some cable lubes.
Easiest is to just get the recommended sizing stuff.
The cable lube, any or all may have a little grit contaminating it from being opened or used on a job.
That grit will get in your polished expensive sizing die and get some maybe embedded in the walls and scratch up your cases, even cutting lines in the cases to weaken them.
No, it's best to start with clean cases and cleaned sizing die and fresh sizing lube.
All imho.

[kens]

case sizing doesn't really require a lot of specialized lube.
A great many different lube can work,I think the key aspect is, so long as the case & die is NOT DRY !!
Any lube is better than no lube.
I never tried butter, but, I bet it would work.

[doulos]

Most pistol dies nowadays are carbide and thus don't require any lube. If your still using the "old style" full length sizing dies its time to step up to the newer carbide ones.

Yea I have carbide dies. But I still lube lightly. At first I never did when first using carbide dies. And I know its not necessary. But,Ive gotten in the habit over the years to have some on my fingers when sizing. I even do it when loading on my Dillon 550. It just makes every sizing operation smoother.