Roll on or Spray on?

[cwlongshot]

I started as I was taught. Pad and sticky lube...

Progressed to spray ons in the late 1980's. Most not as good as the pad.

Moved to finger lubing with Imperial about 1990 ish when I was forming 35 Whelens and 358 Winchesters. Found some better spray and started making my own with alcohol and Lanolin.

For the last 15 ish its 75%. Imperial or Unique with fingers or for progressive my own in a zip lock baggie.

So...

1) Imperial
2) Unique
3) lanolin and Alcohol (Mine or Dillon)
4)....
5)....
6)....
7) Royal pump sprays (NOT ONE SHOT)
8)....
9)....
12)..
17)..
25) One shot.

CW

[GhostHawk]

A little smear of Imperial sizing wax on left hand thumb and forefinger. Case neck goes between them and right hand gives it maybe a third of a turn. Just takes the tiniest smear to do the job.

Prior to learning that trick I would often "dip" the case mouth into the lube just enough to get some on it. Advantage of that system is you get a little on the inside also. On the other hand it is much harder to control how much gets on. So easy to build up excess lube and get shoulder dents.

[Wayne Smith]

Bag Balm for the outside of the case. I have a pill bottle filled with shot and graphite - dip the neck in that and you have lube the neck.

[owejia]

I put them in a zip lock bag spray a shot of the alcohol/lanolin solution seal bag and tumble them a second or two dump in a ice cream bucket and as soon as the alcohol evaporates run them through sizer die. This lubricates the outside and inside bottle neck at the same time. Lanolin washes off, ready to load. Usually do >500 cases or more at a session.

[toallmy]

I'm a lube pad user for bottle necked brass resizing , my most used lube for bulk resizing is lanolin / Vaseline that a departed member hear recommend , but the cranky stuff gets imperial wax . Then a run through the tumbler .

[ioon44]

I have been using Hornady One Shot when I want to lube a lot cases and Imperial wax if I am full length sizing rifle cases, both work great if used correctly.

[Walks]

I use one shot for most handgun type cases. And .30-06, .308 & 5.56 to be fired in Semi-Auto's.
Got those Sinclair loading blocks just for spray lube.
I use a lube pad for all other rifle cases and an occasional bunch of pistol ammo.
Imperial wax is used in case forming and small batches of pistol ammo.

[Shawlerbrook]

Imperial Sizing Wax on fingers on outside and the Imperial dry lube on the beads for the necks. I have given or threw all my other lubes and pads away.

[Lloyd Smale]

depends. Some cases i know will size easily i use one shot. Its the quickest and least messy solution. If im sizing once fired brass for the first time or something like small base sizing i use anhydrous lanolin (same thing as imperial) I just put the cases in a shoe box and put a dab in the palm of my hand and run my hands through the brass real well. Never had a stuck case doing that. Couple other good lubes are rcbs and lees but a tub of lanolin is about the best and not near the cost of rcbs or lee or especially that little tin of imperial.

[Mr Peabody]

All your answers are great help, Thank You. I chased down a tub of Hornady's Unique Case lube and I'm very satisfied with it.

[alamogunr]

I started out with the RCBS pad and lube. From there I tried the Imperial wax and liked it, especially for reforming cases. I use lanolin and alcohol on pistol cases. I know! Carbide dies eliminate the need for lube but it makes it a lot easier when you have a lot to size. Only needs it about every 5-10. Throw a bunch on an old towel and spritz them. Keep them handy and pick one up when it seems one is needed.

I have a few steel sizer dies when loading for tight chambered customs like .45 Colt/.454 Casull. For these I use the Imperial.

[Cosmic_Charlie]

I really like the roll on. I use the spray to get some inside the necks too. Really cuts down on the force needed to size the case. I wash and dry the cases afterwards. I don't mind the extra effort because I don't shoot a high volume of rifle. And I don't reload .223 or 7.62 x 39. I will spray my pistol cases with One Shot before running them through the APP press too.

[1hole]

Using either Imperial wax or my own lube, all I do is dab my fingers into the lube, then rub it around on the fingers I'll be handling the cases with. Then as I grab a case, I roll it a bit between those fingers. I have to repeat the process every 8 or 10 cases. Thats it! Use good stuff and it lasts danged near forever.
Chris

Me too.

I started with a pad and RCBS (it's just STP really) but hated the gooey, hard to remove mess on the cases and my hands and the tendency to produce lube dents. Then tried sprays but it was wasn't inexpensive and it was difficult to consistently get enough on the lower body so I had aggravating stuck cases from time to time. (I hated the messy overspray too.)

Okay, I may learn slow but I do learn. Now I ONLY use Imperial or Hornady's Unique and I haven't had an accidental stuck case in years. Rolling each case in my fingers when I pick them up for resizing doesn't add any measurable time to lube them, mouth to head, and my hands are clean when finished. What's not to love? (I tossed my gummy, dirty, gritty old lube pads decades ago!)

[dverna]

I have a huge tub of coconut oil my ex-gf insisted on buying. The new lady does not use it so I will give it a try as a case lube for rifle cases. It is not quite as stiff as Imperial Sizing was, but seems slippery enough.

I like the sprays for pistol cases. But after reading some posts here, might try CO on them too.

[Three44s]

All your answers are great help, Thank You. I chased down a tub of Hornady's Unique Case lube and I'm very satisfied with it.

Very good!

That’s what I use as well.

Three44s

[bedbugbilly]

I'll probably be considered the "red headed step child" - but I just use Johnson's paste wax. I have a large square of old sheet that I fold up to ak a "pad" - take a 1" putty knife and work the wax into the top of the pad and role the casings over it. It gives a light coating and they slide in and out of the FL sizing die slick as can be. Granted, I'm only loading .223, 30-30 and 8 X 57 Mauser but ti seems to work just fine. I always de-prime all of my brass with a universal de-priming die - re-size and then tumble polish in stainless steel pins, lemon-shine and citric acid in hot water. What paste wax is on the casing seems to help a little in making them even shinier.

As far as wax buildup in the FL die - I just clean it every 500 casings or so with a little Hoppes and a bore brush - cleans them right up and ready to go again.

[MUSTANG]

I use:

For most pistol/rifle case sizing:

An RCBS Lube Pad - Place brass rows of brass on the Lube Pad depending on case size - Then spray with a Dillon spray Case Lube (or their bottle refilled from a mixture of 4 ounces NOW Solutions, Liquid Lanolin and 16 ounces of 91% Isopropyl alcohol)

For Belted Mangum sizing:

Bag Balm. I also use a Innovative Technologies BELTED MAGNUM COLLET RESIZING DIE on my belted magnum cases - the bag balm holds up better for me sizing than a spray/roll on lube

For swaging 22LR cases into .224 jackets:

I use the RCBS Lube pad and Dillon spray Case Lube.

For swaging .308 jackets from copper tubing, 9mm cases, 5.7x28 cases:

I use Corbins Swage Lube.

[PNW_Steve]

How does lanolin/alcohol compare to the others? I tried One Shot and it does NOT play well full length sizing 223 brass. Many stuck cases before I gave up. Lee lube works much better but is a pain, messy and dulls my nice shiny brass.

Would lanolin/alcohol be a good fit for sizing 223?

Thanks

[MostlyLeverGuns]

Hornady Unique - touch finger to lube, wipe on case as processing, get a couple-four cases each touch. I size and decap in one step, neck expand in another.

[sigep1764]

Dillon spray lube. I was going to make my own lanolin/alcohol spray, then saw the Dillon stuff at Graf's in St Charles. Same stuff, don't have to mix, and I shoot a lot more pistol than rifle so it made sense to just buy it.