Lube goes everywhere except the grease grooves

[zxcvbob]

Couple of years ago, I bought a Lyman 4500. The tube of black moly lube that came with it worked great, but didn't last long (takes a lot of lube to prime the lubrisizer) I filled it up with a mixture of paraffin and EP chassis grease. Everything worked great until my lube made it to down to the die (my lube was pushing the moly lube thru) My homemade lube didn't stick to the boolits. So I cleaned it all out and bought an assortment of lubes from LSStuff. I started with the BPCR, and that might have been a mistake. Great lube but messy. Most of the lube ended up stuck to the bullet base, and it squeezed out all over the place.

I cleaned that out and threw it away, and tried the BAC. It feels sticky enough, and it's not all going to the bullet bases as bad as the BPCR, but it's still going everywhere except the grease grooves. I used a drill bit to clean out the holes in the sides of the sizing die, but that didn't help.

I'm pretty sure it's my fault rather than the lube (except from that stuff I mixed myself), but I dunno what to do. All my bullet molds have bevel bases, but I had no trouble with the Lyman black lube. Maybe I need to apply a little heat and a lot less pressure? I had to heat that black lube because it was so stiff and i was using it in a cold room.

Do I need to boil the press and dies clean (throw away the lube that's in it) and start over with a fresh lube stick?

I've been just using LLA and Rooster Jacket this year because I hate using the Lyman. But I need to figure this out...

[Edubya]

I've no experience with the Lyman 4500, I have SAECO an Star Lubrisizers. I would suggest that you read the instructions one more time. I'll bet you find the answer. Too many people speak highly of the 4500.

Good Luck
EW

[Heavy lead]

If all of your boolit designs are bevel base you might want to try conturing the sizer plug to it rather than the flat base it's designed for.

Or you could just have the bb removed from your moulds.
I have a 4500 and a 450 and have no trouble with either flatbase or with gas check, occasionally I'll get some under a boolit, but just clean it out and move on. Your problem is the bevel base.

I use BAC in both and it works great in the machine and as a lube.

[Dframe]

You might try plugging some of the bleed in holes on your die. I've often used BB size lead shot for this purpose when I wanted lube ONLY in certain areas. THis along with careful Depth adjustment should cure most of your ills. A little lube on the base of the bullet won't hurt a thing. I just load and shoot them.

[Sprue]

+1 What Dframe says.

Has that been done? If not, plug the excess holes with lead shot.

[tackstrp]

Things I have learned last few day about the lyman 450 and other misellanous stuff. From other people on this forum.

Boil to get old caked on lube out, Clean and boil again.

Careful clean all sizers.Use a tooth pick to cllean holes. WD 40 will lossen stuff.

Tug on the lube wench when the Handle is up. That was a big help.

Turn the bullet if only partly filled, dont just add more lube. Handle in up position.

I use blue shop towels to wipe of the botton of my bullets.

still using the ugly black Lyman lube. Will order some diffirent colors . like the blue.

Lee tumble lube micro band bullets get lubicated just fine in a Lyman 450

The six cavity lee mould and the spure cutter is easier for me to use, rather than hitting the Lyman sprue cutter with a mallet.

I am not convinced that Lee molds are as round as they should be, just an observation.

I dont believe in the many comments that i have read that Lee bullets dont need to be sized. One i read, said bullet will get in "round" in the barrel. Actuly makes sense, but I am old fashion and will size first.

I was reading on the NEI url, and for the first time, some one made a comment that I believe about bullet size on a revolver. Revolvers: The chamber mouth of the cylinder dictates the size of the bullet, not the groove size of the barrel! The bullet must be sized for a tight push fit through the cylinder. Example: Some 44s have a groove size of .429 and the cylinder mouths are .432 or more. You can read more under the NEI url go to the part about Bullet Molds--General Information and Product Data That or those comments fly in the face of the offical Lee Help page which says on the bottem line . take your pick, barrel . chamber, etc.

[jonk]

If you are getting the lube on the bottom of the bullet I suspect you either aren't applying enough pressure to the handle to squeeze it out, or the depth adjustment on your dies needs work.

[kodiak1]

Read and heed what tackstrp wrote.
You only tweak the lube as needed if you are doing small bullets you will do a few and then tweak it. Watch your bullets give them half a turn if they are short and run them again.
Lube on the bottom of the bullet generally means to much pressure on the feed spring.
The plugging a couple of the holes helps to but pressure is the biggest killer.

Good luck with your lubing.
Ken.

[zxcvbob]

I'm probably applying way too much pressure, trying to force the lube into grease-grooves that aren't lined up with the feed holes. Several things for me to work on...

Thanks.

[insanelupus]

Not sure about the 4500 I have an older Lyman 45, works great. I had to rebuild one of them because the pressure nut wasn't working right.

I find that I don't need as much pressure as I think when lubing. I turn the wrench just a little when the handle is the full down position. Then I raise the handle. Most of the time then some of the grooves aren't quite filled. To fill them, I simply lower the handle once more and bring it back up, without turning the wrench. They nearly always are full and work just fine. No problems. True each bullet may take two strokes, but I have no problems this way.

The last time I sized some 375296s though, I forgot to back the pressure off the sizer. Last week it was hot as blazes here and my shop got warmer than usual. I had a nice blue/black ribbon of lube (the old Lyman black along with the new lube, LBT Blue Soft, which I really like) on top of the sizing die. It wiped away with no problems, but I doubt I forget to back the pressure off again any time soon!

[whisler]

Tackstrp said:

"Tug on the lube wench when the Handle is up. That was a big help"

You have a lube wench? Where did you get one and does the wife know?
LOL

[Rockchucker]

Things I have learned last few day about the lyman 450 and other misellanous stuff. From other people on this forum.

Boil to get old caked on lube out, Clean and boil again.

Careful clean all sizers.Use a tooth pick to cllean holes. WD 40 will lossen stuff.

Tug on the lube wench when the Handle is up. That was a big help.

Turn the bullet if only partly filled, dont just add more lube. Handle in up position.

I use blue shop towels to wipe of the botton of my bullets.

still using the ugly black Lyman lube. Will order some diffirent colors . like the blue.

Lee tumble lube micro band bullets get lubicated just fine in a Lyman 450

The six cavity lee mould and the spure cutter is easier for me to use, rather than hitting the Lyman sprue cutter with a mallet.

I am not convinced that Lee molds are as round as they should be, just an observation.

I dont believe in the many comments that i have read that Lee bullets dont need to be sized. One i read, said bullet will get in "round" in the barrel. Actuly makes sense, but I am old fashion and will size first.

I was reading on the NEI url, and for the first time, some one made a comment that I believe about bullet size on a revolver. Revolvers: The chamber mouth of the cylinder dictates the size of the bullet, not the groove size of the barrel! The bullet must be sized for a tight push fit through the cylinder. Example: Some 44s have a groove size of .429 and the cylinder mouths are .432 or more. You can read more under the NEI url go to the part about Bullet Molds--General Information and Product Data That or those comments fly in the face of the offical Lee Help page which says on the bottem line . take your pick, barrel . chamber, etc.

Great post tackstrp, should be a sticky.