RCBS Lube-O-Matic 2...

BCB · 10-22-2009, 02:09 PM

A half-dozen years or so ago I purchased an RCBS Lube-O-Matic 2 with great hopes of using it as advertised—I couldn’t get that dang thing to work at all!!!

Well I seem to have developed a few more patience in that amount of time and I just messed with it for 30 minutes and it is working quite well!!!

My questions:

1. How often do you turn the plunger screw to put pressure on the lube? A bit of a turn with every boolit that is lubed?

2. And, I have always used Liquid Alox and now I will be using stick lubes. I know this is subjective, but are the stick lubes any better than the Liquid Alox? The 45-270-SAA sure look much nicer with the lube grooves full as opposed to the Alox all over the entire boolit…

Thanks…

BCB

Leadforbrains · 10-22-2009, 02:25 PM

I have the same lubrisizer. I do a partial turn here and there to keep pressure built up. That seems to work for me. YMMV. I use white label lube companies BAC lube on my pistol boolits and it flows well without a heater.

dromia · 10-22-2009, 02:39 PM

Glad you got it working as they are fine lubesizers.

I give it tweak for each boolit or three, you want just enough to fill the lube grooves all round.

I'll usually get 2-3 boolits lubed to each tweak say an eighth of turn each time.

Liquid Alox or Xlox is OK for lower velocity, say up to 1200 fps, but stick lube is more reliable for faster velocities.

I use Xlox a lot for sub sonic rifle loads which I shoot a lot of.

I'm also a fan of white Label lubes and I've used a lot of different lube makes over the years as well as making my own.

White Label is up there with the best at a price that cannot be beat.

Experiment and you will find the technique that suits you.

All lubes are dependant on good boolit fit to get the best from them.

carpetman · 10-22-2009, 03:05 PM

BCB---If you are old enough to remember Brylcreem ads--a little dab will do you--that's how you operate the RCBS luber. Hold firm pressure on the handle while the bullet is down. Not handle bending pressure but firm. Then every so slightly add a touch of pressure. If you don't hold the handle down firmly you get lube on the base. The RCBS luber and Lyman are the same in principle but the RCBS seems to hold pressure better---you may not have to apply pressure on every bullet. Especially with smaller bullets, I get a few in between giving that slight bit of pressure. I like the ratchet style of the old RCBS and what Lyman uses. For that reason my RCBS was modified to accept the ratchet--requires a hex be milled on top of the bolt.

BCB · 10-22-2009, 04:49 PM

carpetman—yep, I am old enough to remember Brylcreme “hair styling grease!” If you put your fingers in your hair during school days and then touched your yellow writing paper, it was smudge city! I preferred Vitalis—easier to apply plus it smelled better, yet still provided the impressive grease smudge! Now to the serious side of this post. I can see where the ratchet system would give a better “feel” for the amount of pressure being applied…

According to the other posts, it appears I am getting the method O.K. I do about 1/8th turn and the size a few. Seems to work fine. I don’t know why in the heck I couldn’t get this thing working years ago—must be the patience I have learned from reading post on this website…

Now to the White Label Lube. I was going through all of my lube sticks that I purchased years ago when I was going to use the Lube-O-Matic and I see that I have some samples of White Label Lube. I think they were sent to me when I ordered a mold from NEI. I got an inch-length sample of Carnauba Red and BAC Lube *** Special Blend. Guess I will give them a try when all of the RCBS lube is out of the Lube-O-Matic…

I remain baffled as to why I couldn’t get it to work in the beginning!!! I had to go half-way around the world (UK) to get some of the help!!!...

Thanks and keep the replies comin’…

BCB

Catshooter · 10-22-2009, 05:09 PM

I have given up the liquid lube completley.

I can recomend the White Label lubes completley.

And the Lube-O-Matic is the way to go, at least for me. Carry on!

Cat

dale clawson · 10-22-2009, 06:00 PM

How much to turn the crank is very varible depending in the numher and size/depth of the lube grooves. The 22's take very little and rhe 420 gr. 45's take a lot more. You just have to experiment to find what's needed.

cajun shooter · 10-23-2009, 08:46 AM

The BAC is the best all around pistol lube which is half Carnuba Red. I use Carnuba Red for high velocity handgun and rifle bullets. The red will need a heater to flow well. Mount your RCBS on a 1/2 in plate of aluminum that is large enough to also hold a travel iron. The travel iron is smaller and the temp seems to be more accurate. Find the setting that allows the flow and lube away.

BCB · 10-23-2009, 11:55 AM

I was concidering ordering some BAC if I get some better results with this stick lube over the liquid Alox--although, I have had pretty good success with the Alox. I have RCBS stick already in the press so that is what I used--sort of as an experiment to see if I can get the Lube-O-Matic to perform--seems I can...

I also do have a heater for this luber. It is a Midway one and it works well. As I said, I started out with the best of intentions in the beginning!!! Now maybe some years down the road I can get it to work as it supposed to do...

BCB

Echo · 10-23-2009, 01:28 PM

Seems that I heard that Brylcream had other uses, as well...

TAWILDCATT · 11-01-2009, 01:54 PM

cabin tree makes unit for the lyman that spring loads its $45.

MtGun44 · 11-04-2009, 08:16 PM

I think you will find that 'real' lube is more forgiving and works over a wider range
of conditions, alloy and fit than the Lee mule snot.

Bill

Box13 · 11-04-2009, 11:27 PM

I have an rcbs luber sizer with the sliding bar on top instead of the ratchet and have built up a feel for the pressure.I just give it a little bit of a turn every couple 3 boolits and feel for the pressure to ramp up.Im guessing you can do it with the ratchet also...just a feel you get after a few hundred boolits...Robin

69daytona · 11-06-2009, 11:29 AM

I had a problem with mine keeping the O ring in the groove so I replace itwith a 1"cupped wheel seal, it holds pressure better and nothing gets by the seal to clean up when I have to add a stick of lube. I turn mine about every three-10 bullet depending on the size of the bullet and only about 1/8-1/4 of a turn.

10-22-2009, 02:09 PM	#1
BCB Boolit Master Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA Posts: 617	RCBS Lube-O-Matic 2... A half-dozen years or so ago I purchased an RCBS Lube-O-Matic 2 with great hopes of using it as advertised—I couldn’t get that dang thing to work at all!!! Well I seem to have developed a few more patience in that amount of time and I just messed with it for 30 minutes and it is working quite well!!! My questions: 1. How often do you turn the plunger screw to put pressure on the lube? A bit of a turn with every boolit that is lubed? 2. And, I have always used Liquid Alox and now I will be using stick lubes. I know this is subjective, but are the stick lubes any better than the Liquid Alox? The 45-270-SAA sure look much nicer with the lube grooves full as opposed to the Alox all over the entire boolit… Thanks… BCB

10-22-2009, 02:25 PM	#2
Leadforbrains Boolit Master Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: On the road most of the time. Some times I live TN. , but my heart is still in S.C. Posts: 604	I have the same lubrisizer. I do a partial turn here and there to keep pressure built up. That seems to work for me. YMMV. I use white label lube companies BAC lube on my pistol boolits and it flows well without a heater. __________________ Fast is fine, but accuracy is final! Will kill for food!

10-22-2009, 02:39 PM	#3
dromia Moderator Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: UK Posts: 2,040	Glad you got it working as they are fine lubesizers. I give it tweak for each boolit or three, you want just enough to fill the lube grooves all round. I'll usually get 2-3 boolits lubed to each tweak say an eighth of turn each time. Liquid Alox or Xlox is OK for lower velocity, say up to 1200 fps, but stick lube is more reliable for faster velocities. I use Xlox a lot for sub sonic rifle loads which I shoot a lot of. I'm also a fan of white Label lubes and I've used a lot of different lube makes over the years as well as making my own. White Label is up there with the best at a price that cannot be beat. Experiment and you will find the technique that suits you. All lubes are dependant on good boolit fit to get the best from them. __________________ http://milsurpafterhours.com/bb/index.php

10-22-2009, 05:09 PM	#6
Catshooter Boolit Master Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: South East South Dakota Posts: 1,368	I have given up the liquid lube completley. I can recomend the White Label lubes completley. And the Lube-O-Matic is the way to go, at least for me. Carry on! Cat __________________ Cogito, ergo armatum sum. (I think, therefore I'm armed.)

10-23-2009, 08:46 AM	#8
cajun shooter Black Powder 100% Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Livingston, La. 20 miles east of Baton Rouge, La. Posts: 1,300	The BAC is the best all around pistol lube which is half Carnuba Red. I use Carnuba Red for high velocity handgun and rifle bullets. The red will need a heater to flow well. Mount your RCBS on a 1/2 in plate of aluminum that is large enough to also hold a travel iron. The travel iron is smaller and the temp seems to be more accurate. Find the setting that allows the flow and lube away. __________________ Shooter of the "HOLY BLACK" SASS 81805; NRA ; BOLD; WARTHOG;Deadwood Marshal;Border Vigliante; So That his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat

10-22-2009, 03:05 PM	#4
carpetman Boolit Master Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: San Angelo,Texas Posts: 3,958	BCB---If you are old enough to remember Brylcreem ads--a little dab will do you--that's how you operate the RCBS luber. Hold firm pressure on the handle while the bullet is down. Not handle bending pressure but firm. Then every so slightly add a touch of pressure. If you don't hold the handle down firmly you get lube on the base. The RCBS luber and Lyman are the same in principle but the RCBS seems to hold pressure better---you may not have to apply pressure on every bullet. Especially with smaller bullets, I get a few in between giving that slight bit of pressure. I like the ratchet style of the old RCBS and what Lyman uses. For that reason my RCBS was modified to accept the ratchet--requires a hex be milled on top of the bolt.

10-22-2009, 04:49 PM	#5
BCB Boolit Master Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA Posts: 617	carpetman—yep, I am old enough to remember Brylcreme “hair styling grease!” If you put your fingers in your hair during school days and then touched your yellow writing paper, it was smudge city! I preferred Vitalis—easier to apply plus it smelled better, yet still provided the impressive grease smudge! Now to the serious side of this post. I can see where the ratchet system would give a better “feel” for the amount of pressure being applied… According to the other posts, it appears I am getting the method O.K. I do about 1/8th turn and the size a few. Seems to work fine. I don’t know why in the heck I couldn’t get this thing working years ago—must be the patience I have learned from reading post on this website… Now to the White Label Lube. I was going through all of my lube sticks that I purchased years ago when I was going to use the Lube-O-Matic and I see that I have some samples of White Label Lube. I think they were sent to me when I ordered a mold from NEI. I got an inch-length sample of Carnauba Red and BAC Lube *** Special Blend. Guess I will give them a try when all of the RCBS lube is out of the Lube-O-Matic… I remain baffled as to why I couldn’t get it to work in the beginning!!! I had to go half-way around the world (UK) to get some of the help!!!... Thanks and keep the replies comin’… BCB

10-22-2009, 06:00 PM	#7
dale clawson Boolit Master Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Eastern panhandle,Tx Posts: 2,235	How much to turn the crank is very varible depending in the numher and size/depth of the lube grooves. The 22's take very little and rhe 420 gr. 45's take a lot more. You just have to experiment to find what's needed.

10-23-2009, 11:55 AM	#9
BCB Boolit Master Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA Posts: 617	I was concidering ordering some BAC if I get some better results with this stick lube over the liquid Alox--although, I have had pretty good success with the Alox. I have RCBS stick already in the press so that is what I used--sort of as an experiment to see if I can get the Lube-O-Matic to perform--seems I can... I also do have a heater for this luber. It is a Midway one and it works well. As I said, I started out with the best of intentions in the beginning!!! Now maybe some years down the road I can get it to work as it supposed to do... BCB

10-23-2009, 01:28 PM	#10
Echo Boolit Master Join Date: May 2008 Location: Tucson AZ Posts: 1,376	Seems that I heard that Brylcream had other uses, as well... __________________ Echo USAF Ret NRA Patron O&U

11-01-2009, 01:54 PM	#11
TAWILDCATT Boolit Master Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: MANNING SC Posts: 1,424	luber cabin tree makes unit for the lyman that spring loads its $45. __________________ WILDCATT

11-04-2009, 08:16 PM	#12
MtGun44 Boolit Master Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: eastern Kansas- suburb of KC Posts: 2,389	I think you will find that 'real' lube is more forgiving and works over a wider range of conditions, alloy and fit than the Lee mule snot. Bill __________________ If it was easy, anybody could do it.

11-04-2009, 11:27 PM	#13
Box13 Boolit Buddy Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Beavercreek oregon Posts: 52	I have an rcbs luber sizer with the sliding bar on top instead of the ratchet and have built up a feel for the pressure.I just give it a little bit of a turn every couple 3 boolits and feel for the pressure to ramp up.Im guessing you can do it with the ratchet also...just a feel you get after a few hundred boolits...Robin

11-06-2009, 11:29 AM	#14
69daytona I'm A Honcho! Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Sacramento,Ca Posts: 202	I had a problem with mine keeping the O ring in the groove so I replace itwith a 1"cupped wheel seal, it holds pressure better and nothing gets by the seal to clean up when I have to add a stick of lube. I turn mine about every three-10 bullet depending on the size of the bullet and only about 1/8-1/4 of a turn.