Putting lubed boolit through Star every 7-10?

[RG1911]

It's been some time since I used my Star, but I'm starting again.

The one annoyance I have with the Star is having to run a lubed boolit or two through the die ever 7-10 boolits, or the operation becomes very difficult.

Seeing the number of people who have automated feeders, I'm wondering how you do it. Do you have to put already-lubed boolits at intervals in the feed tube?

I'm also wondering if spraying the boolits with a light film of Hornady Case Lube would work, before putting them through the Star. The Hornady dries quickly and does not remain sticky. Has anyone already tried this?

Thank you,
Richard

[runfiverun]

that works, as does a little lanolin spray or wipe it on.

i just pick one up from the drawer and drop it in the hole when needed.
if you short stroke the handle it won't feed a boolit and you can put in a pre lubed one.
if i see a lube reject i throw it in the feeder tubes.
sometimes you don't need a lubed re-run for 30 or so boolits but you'll feel it when you do.

[ReloaderFred]

I find it makes a difference with the diameter of the bullet I'm sizing, and how much bearing surface it has. If I'm sizing and lubing a small .38 bullet, I never have to run a lubed bullet through the die. If the .38 bullet has a long bearing surface, such as a 158 gr. SWC, then it helps to drop a lubed bullet through every once in awhile.

If I'm running .45 caliber bullets, then I have to run a lubed bullet through about every 10 rounds or so, and I do use bullet feeders on three of my Star machines.

Hope this helps.

Fred

[RG1911]

These will, unfortunately, be .45s.

Three Star machines? I'm envious.

I don't know how long bullet feeders have been around, but I remember watching an operation (back in the 1970s) by a man who reloaded .38 Special practice ammo for a number of police departments in the San Diego area. He powered his Star reloaders with washing machine motors and transmissions, with micro-switches everywhere in case there was a jam. He filled incredibly long tubes with primers, cases, powder, etc., flipped a switch and went off to do something else. I watched as one Star produced a couple hundred rounds without a hitch.

He had done something similar with a couple Star lubricators. I seem to remember that the cast boolits were lubed as they came out of the tube, but I can't remember what the setup looked like. Again, I watched as a large number of boolits were processed without a single hitch.

It probably helped that he worked at Star for many years.

I bought a Star reloader from him. He had modified it to use standard 7/8 dies. Unfortunately, finances got tight some years ago and I sold it (and my BMW motorcycle). Hindsight being 20/20, I should have tightened my belt somewhere else. I have a Dillon 650 now, and it does a fine job. But it is not the poetry of beautifully-machined steel that a Star is. I'd love to get another one and keep it set up for .45ACP.

Cheers,
Richard

[astroskg]

finally got my star this last weekend and had some of the same questions. about lubeing every so often , i figured out the short stroking the handle so i could put in a lubed bullet every 10 or so bullets but am now working on temp/pressure issues, am running the temp at factory setting because i read some other users saying it was the perfect setting for them am also running pressure at 85psi but keep getting bullets that don't fill out the lube groove and end up running them thru a second time to fill it out. this fixes the first problem of having to run a lubed bullet thru every 10 to 20 slugs but doesn't fix the problem of not filling out all the way. i have double stroked the bullet several times to get it to fill out but feel this is a step backward and shouldn't have to double stroke the machine when its a one stroke operation... should i increase the temp, pressure or both have tried doing both several times but in the end after 10 or so rounds i start getting half filled grooves. equipment is a new star l/s , star auto feeder, star lube air pressure unit, star factory heater, and star Red Lube. lathesmith dies using center holes with upper and lower holes plugged . any help is greatly appreciated or if there is a link to another blog here at cast boolits covering these issues, last issue i keep getting a little lube on the bullet right above the top sized diameter of the bullet not the tip but just above the uppermost sized diameter, do i need to lower my punch just a bit? thanks guys this site is the best out there enjoy talking with others who have the same addiction i have.

[mktacop]

finally got my star this last weekend and had some of the same questions. about lubeing every so often , i figured out the short stroking the handle so i could put in a lubed bullet every 10 or so bullets but am now working on temp/pressure issues, am running the temp at factory setting because i read some other users saying it was the perfect setting for them am also running pressure at 85psi but keep getting bullets that don't fill out the lube groove and end up running them thru a second time to fill it out. this fixes the first problem of having to run a lubed bullet thru every 10 to 20 slugs but doesn't fix the problem of not filling out all the way. i have double stroked the bullet several times to get it to fill out but feel this is a step backward and shouldn't have to double stroke the machine when its a one stroke operation... should i increase the temp, pressure or both have tried doing both several times but in the end after 10 or so rounds i start getting half filled grooves. equipment is a new star l/s , star auto feeder, star lube air pressure unit, star factory heater, and star Red Lube. lathesmith dies using center holes with upper and lower holes plugged . any help is greatly appreciated or if there is a link to another blog here at cast boolits covering these issues, last issue i keep getting a little lube on the bullet right above the top sized diameter of the bullet not the tip but just above the uppermost sized diameter, do i need to lower my punch just a bit? thanks guys this site is the best out there enjoy talking with others who have the same addiction i have.

If you are getting excess lube on the bullet forward (above) the lube groove, you should adjust your punch down a bit where the lube groove lines up with the holes in the die better. This will likely also fix your incomplete fill-out of the lube grooves issue. If not, adjust your heat up in small increments.

Personally, I'm using Thompson's Bear Lube Heat lube and am running my star at 113 degrees (PID Controlled) with 50 psi pressure on the lube cylinder.

Hope this helps

[zomby woof]

I have my star mounted to an aluminum plate. I have the plate heated. I put a little lube on the plate and it heats up and gets a little soft. I'll put a little warm lube on my fingers every once in a while and pick up an un-lubed boolit and roll it quickly in my fingers. This works quite well and you don't have to run the same boolit through twice.

[cbrick]

i start getting half filled grooves. equipment is a new star l/s , star auto feeder, star lube air pressure unit, star factory heater, and star Red Lube. lathesmith dies .

I'm not familiar with Star Red Lube but I suspect it's a hard lube and if it is it could very well need more heat and/or pressure. Also the temp in your loading room can effect the lube & pressure, if your working in a cool room you may need a bit more heat. I'm also not fond of hard lubes but since you have it the machine already try the heat/pressure, once the lube is used up you could try a softer lube and see if that doesn't go better.

Rick

[ReloaderFred]

Magma makes the same lube in red, green and blue: http://www.magmaengineering.com/products/lube/ They're all the same lube, just a different color.

Hope this helps.

Fred

[HATCH]

I sized up 1200 45 200 grain FPRN last night on my star.
I have NEVER put a lubed boolit in every x amount. I ran out of lube last night so I did send some back thru to get more lube on them but other then that I don't.
Am I missing something? What does sending a lubed boolit do??

98% of the boolits I size come from Magma Molds so they normally don't need to be sized that much.
I have had a chirp when I sized a bunch that I hand cast but I didn't worry about it. Those turned out fine too.

Also I run Magma Green, 115 degrees at 80 psi

[cbrick]

Yep HATCH, I too am a bit perplexed at needing to send a lubed boolit through every so often.

The only time I need to make sure the die is lubed is when I am not lubing the boolits, sizing/GC only for HT'ing in the oven. When doing this I use Hornady Unique case lube, a soft white paste that comes in a tub and all I need to do is keep a small amount on my finger tips. Picking up the boolit to place it in the die is all that is needed.

I have been using the Star for many years and when lubing/sizing have never once had a problem with a "dry" sizing die and it needing "extra" lube. Kinda confusing. :-?

Rick

[RG1911]

Well, at least in my case, if I don't run a lubed boolit through the die fairly frequently, it gets really hard to punch a boolit on through. This is the case with straight wheel weights, WW alloyed with linotype to fill out the mold, and with virgin linotype.

If there's some trick to avoiding this annoyance, it sounds like several of us would like to learn it.

Cheers,
Richard

[ReloaderFred]

Some bullets do, and some don't. When I lube .45-70 bullets, I have to run a lubed one through about every 4 or 5 rounds. Otherwise, the handle would bend trying to push them through. With .38 and 9mm bullets, I never have to run a lubed bullet through, but they don't have the bearing surface the larger bullets do. Some .45 bullets go through really slick, but longer ones need some lube once in awhile, again due to the longer bearing surface.

I've got 5 Star lube sizers, and about 25 sizing dies, and it doesn't make any difference which ones I'm using.

Hope this helps.

Fred

[bslim]

The majority of the bullets I run thru are 200 grn 45's and 130 grn rnfp 38's. I use Carnuba Red and I have never had to put thru a lubed bullet. I haven't run any 45-70's thru yet, but they're on my list of things to do. Might be I just learned something new which will save bending the handle on my Star.

[sergeant69]

i don't do it either, but the the instructions tell you to do it every few rds. i hate instructions.

[454PB]

Another method is to use your finger to smear a little lube (I use boot waterproofing) on the top surface of the sizing die every 5-10 boolits.

[captaint]

I just keep a spare chunk of lube nearby and rub a little on my fingers on my left hand and spin a boolit in my fingers once in a while on the way in the die. Works for me.
astrokg - that 85 lbs of pressure sounds a little steep to me. Remember, the lube is actually squirted in the gooves at the very bottom of the stroke. I had problems initially with short stroking and leaving grooves with empty spots. And, maybe a little more heat ?? enjoy Mike

[HATCH]

Pressure depends on lube temp.
Hot lube is softer the cold.
Soft lube requires less pressure.
I run 115 and 70-80 psi.
I can remove the die from the machine and each the lube flow into the opening.



sent from my mobile.

[wymanwinn]

i mostly shoot .38 cal 132gr and 158gr RNFP for Cowboy Action (1000-1500 rnds/mo)....i cast about 1000 at a time and size/lube same...can't really remember when i sent a lubed bullet through....i would imagine the larger calibers with long contact would need some type of lube.

and FTR i use both Magma Blue lube (75psi-130°) for smokeless and Springfield's BP lube (45psi-105° and i lube when the Cave is cool) for real black powder loads.

[Powersgt]

With my Star, I just run a bullet back through when it starts to get a little stiff. It really depends on the material and what diameter I am sizing too (.454 or .452 on .45LC.) On my Lube Master, I just throw a handful of lubed bullets back into the feeder (usually repeat when I see there are only a couple lubed left in the bullet feeder,) and they flow through with the rest. You have to watch out as an over lubed bullet will make a mess of things by hanging up in the feed tube and such. I have actually bent a punch in the lube master when things get jammed up.

I have been using Carnauba Red for the most part in my Star with a heater controlled by a dimmer switch; I haven't taken the time to see exactly what the Temp is but I believe it's around 80-90 deg and pressure is set at 55-60 psi. The biggest problem I have with this is keeping lube warm when I am running quickly; I have to stop and take a break and let the heat rise in the lube tube. I tried raising the temp but then I get lube too hot to start with and it makes a mess.

[engineer401]

I have the same experience as ReloaderFred. I am not bothered by occasionally pushing a lubed bullet through. My Magma sizer is still much faster and convenient than the others.

[MT Chambers]

I have the air assist but never had to run more then 60 psi, when i have any similar problems, it's usually the punch adjustment or needs more heat.

[Larry-FL]

I think the main reasons for having to run a sized and lubed boolit back through every so often are: 1) Too large a boolit for sizing die ex.(.360 boolit sized to .357), and 2) Hard alloy. Ballisti-Cast recommends as cast size of .0015 larger than final sized and lubed size.

[hermans]

I size 3 types of 45 boolits for my 45acp in large quantities. I never put a sized/lubed boolit back again. I am also somewhat confused here.......my boolits are sized down from .455/.456 to .453 without any problems. What am I missing here guys?

[rodsvet]

Your alloy must be soft enough. I use linotype for all my casting and after 12-15 boolits .455 down to .452, they begin to get hard to size. When I have run just WW alloy, I don't have to do it. My vote is that the harder the alloy the more you will encounter this. Rod

[cbrick]

Hhmmm . . . That's very possible I guess. I gave up even looking for lino several years ago, just couldn't find any and when I did they thought it was gold. Nearly all of my casting is COWW or softer and I never need to run a lubed boolit through the die. As I posted earlier when I size without lubing for oven HT is use Hornady Unique paste case lube on my fingers, just picking them up to put them in the die keeps things running smooth.

Rick

[ReloaderFred]

What it boils down to is you do what you have to do. If you can size thousands without dropping a lubed bullet through every once in awhile, then that's the way you should do it. If you need to drop one through every so often to get it to run smoothly, then that's what you need to do.

Like I posted above, some bullets I size don't need a lubed one dropped through, but some others do. I don't worry about what others say to do, just what works for me, one way or the other. I also don't take offense if someone tries to tell me I'm doing it wrong, since it's my shop, and I get to make the rules.... Now, if I could just locate that missing paymaster...........

Hope this helps.

Fred

[454PB]

I recently ran some Lee 340 RNFP boolits designed for the 45/70 through my Star. As cast, they run .460" in my alloy of 75/25 COWW and linotype, and I sized them to .452" for my .454 Casulls. I did as Rick says above, rubbing a very light touch of boot waterproofing on every third boolit. Worked just fine.

[6bg6ga]

Your alloy must be soft enough. I use linotype for all my casting and after 12-15 boolits .455 down to .452, they begin to get hard to size. When I have run just WW alloy, I don't have to do it. My vote is that the harder the alloy the more you will encounter this. Rod


I will second what Rod said. I'f I'm using a harder alloy then I may need to send a bullet thru to lube the die and if I run softer alloy thru then I don't lube at all. Water quenching makes a difference also.

[guninhand]

While sizing/lubing 38 swc nose first I had the problem of needing lube every 7 or so boolits and those that didn't get it had the lead smeared giving a bit of a skirt beyond the base. Then I tried by first lubing them according to directions given by poster named Recluse given here. It's fast and easy to do.

http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?67654-Tumble-Lubing-Made-Easy-amp-Mess-Free

It's worked fantastic for me. Just put the lube on as if you were dealing with tumble lube bullets. The amount you use is not much at all and is basically invisible. It's not sticky at all, and dries in a few hours. The main thing is swirl enough to make sure all bullets get the lube. This combined with the air feed gave me the fastest and most satisfactory size/lube session I ever had, no need to break the rythm and all strokes had the same smooth resistance force. I've only tried this recently so can't say if the very light wax/LLA coating on the boolits will give a problem like being prone to attracting dirt, but it might even be a means to stave off that white crusty oxidation that long-time-stored boolits can get.