Are tumble lube grooves "required" to tumble lube?

[LouNC]

I'm considering the purchase of a Lee 401-175-TC mold but would like to use Alox tumble lube. This mold has a a single wide lube groove. (Lee doesn't offer a TC mold in .40 that has tumble lube grooves, only a SWC profile).

Is it OK to tumble lube boolits that have a "traditional" lube groove?

Thanks,
Lou

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

Short answer, no, you don't need a TL design to tumble lube, but, for high(er) pressure loads, such as 40 S&W and 9mm, LLA can be insufficient lubrication.

[44man]

I use regular lube even on TL boolits. I hate Alox.

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

To get started, I suggest pan lubing, there is a great sticky under the Lube section entitled "Can't afford one?" (referring to a lube sizer) that explains pan lubing, and you don't need gas checks (as the article may seem to imply), contact Buckshot, on this forum, he makes beautiful cake cutters (to cut the boolits out of the lube once it has cooled) at a very reasonable price. Pan lubing takes more effort than tumble lubing, but for something like 40 SW you will get much better results.

[LouNC]

Short answer, no, you don't need a TL design to tumble lube, but, for high(er) pressure loads, such as 40 S&W and 9mm, LLA can be insufficient lubrication.

Could you please expand a bit on what you mean by "insufficient lubrication"? Will it simply result in some leading (Chore Boy is already my friend :-)). Or, is there some other problem it could cause?

[P.K.]

Short answer, no, you don't need a TL design to tumble lube, but, for high(er) pressure loads, such as 40 S&W and 9mm, LLA can be insufficient lubrication.

No issues here, just tumble 'em again after sizing.

[500MAG]

I tumble lubed all my boolits with LLA for years and didn't have leading issues. Like P.K. Said, tumble them again after sizing. Size is king when your talking leading.

[Recluse]

Is it OK to tumble lube boolits that have a "traditional" lube groove?

Thanks,
Lou


Short answer, no, you don't need a TL design to tumble lube, but, for high(er) pressure loads, such as 40 S&W and 9mm, LLA can be insufficient lubrication.

[smilie=b:

:coffee:

[Nocturnal Stumblebutt]

Did I offend you Recluse? The deficiencies of the TL for some loads designs have already been covered on this forum, see for example the sticky "setting up for boolits in a new 9mm"

[mdi]

Alox is just as messy as you are, and has it's fans and haters. I've been "dip lubing" ala Ranch Dog and have no mess problems at all. While alox isn't the "end-all" for bullet lubes, it does work in many applications (I've loaded/shot several thousand .44 cal. bullets, both T/L and standard, lubed with alox). A better lube and less messy (?) is Recluse's 45-45-10 (check the stickies http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?67654-Tumble-Lubing-Made-Easy-amp-Mess-Free). 45-45-10 has worked in some Magnum velocity loads, 357 and .44, and works quite well in my 45 ACP.

Tumble lubing and dip lubing is much less involved than pan lubing; less equipment and less labor involved. With time/experienc tumble lubing is quick and clean and will work in most applications, but the pan lube is more "traditional" of the two and there are wax based lubes available (and recipes too) for any cast boolit shooting need...

[Elkins45]

I would go to great pains to avoid pan lubing. I find it incredibly tedious unless you're just doing a few boolets in some rarely fired rifle caliber.

For what I presume will be a higher volume usage in pistols I would absolute try tumble lubing first. I don't see 40S&W driving a 175 grain boolet past the capabilities of tumble lube unless you are loading to crazy high pressures.

[Muddydogs]

never mind

['74 sharps]

I cast a grease groove boolit, tumble lube, shoot. I see no compelling need to size as the accuracy of my S&W 27 is great with these boolits.

[PuppetZ]

I use a lee 230 gr 45 cal boolit with a classic lube groove. Shoot them in a Norinco 1911-A1 tumble lubed with a thin coat of a modified recipe of 45-45-10. No leading to speak of. One session I shot like 200 and got a few flakes of lead on the patch.

I'll TL everything pistol from now on. It's just so much easier. Heat the boolits with a heat gun, put a pea sized piece of 45-45-10 on them, some more heat from the heat gun, tumble, let set and voila. 100 perfectly lubed boolits in less time it took to write it.

[44man]

My concern with Alox was not leading although I found some with Lee snot.
It was accuracy testing with all lubes that showed a tremendous difference from one lube to another.
Even LBT Blue is not as good as LBT Soft Blue. The old LBT Magnum Lube is as good as Felix. Crayon lubes need color to make targets! :mrgreen:
I feel Alox has too low a flash point and burns in the bore so it needs tempered with other stuff like beeswax.
If I was going to make 45-45-10, I would most likely try safflower oil over Alox. Or peanut oil.

[VintageRifle]

I use LLA on all by bullets. 1500fps to 1600 fps. SKS, K31, 91/30, 8mm Mauser. Works well in all if them. I do relube after sizing.