Best time to size/lube ?

[paralaska]

I've got a Lyman 4500 sizer/luber . . . I've yet to cast my first bullets but have been acquiring all the equipment, materials, and knowhow first.
My question is: When should I do the sizing and lubing? Soon after they are cast? Or just whenever? Will they be harder to work with after they have age hardened?
I plan on starting with some .45 ACP (200gr) first, but after I've figured things out . . . Will be doing some 300gr gas checked for my .454s.
Thanks.

[wlc]

This may be the wrong way, but is how I do it. I cast a lot of bullets when I set my stuff up. Just yesterday I cast three 20 pound pots full of various different bullets. When they cool I bag them in zip locks and they get stored away till I get the time to size and lube. I'll pull out whatever I want to load and size and lube them then. I will have to say that I either tumble lube, pan lube or smear the lube on by hand and use Lee push through sizers. I haven't noticed any difficulties in getting them to size after they have been cast for a long time. Then again I'm not casting anything out of straight linotype or heat treating or water dropping either. Those things may make a difference. I'm still fairly new to all this and I am sure someone with waaaaay more experience than me will be along shortly.

[Cmm_3940]

I size and lube my .45ACP whenever I feel like sizing and lubing. If I get the occasional 'hard case' that happened to come out of the mold a bit bigger, it isn't enough to worry about. Rifle boolits get a bit more care, but not much.

have they cooled enough to handle comfortably? :)

[kungfustyle]

45's you can size right away. If you get into rifles, cast, wait two weeks and then size/lube. You can speed things up with a push through sizer, but still run the risk of bent boolits if you gas check/lube before two weeks. Nothing worse than casting for two hours seating 200 gas checks only to find that you've bent the boolits and have to waste the time and checks.

[bobthenailer]

If you air cool your boolets you can size/lube at any time but the will age harden somewhat!

If you water drop your boolets from the mould ? as i do , i size right after casting !

If you wait up too 24 hours they will harden alot usually to 20+ bhn. and get a few points harder after some ageing up to 27 bhn with WW alloy . it will usually take alot more force to push them through the lube.sizer die, sometimes not at all, depends on as cast to sizing die dia.

[cajun shooter]

It has a lot to do with the alloy that you use also. The more BHN, the more the bullet will harden to it's final setting.
I shoot mostly BP loads with 20-1 alloy and I may cast for 4-5 days and then size and lube some but for the most part, they may sit for a few weeks before I size/lube. My bullets are dropped at .430 out of my Accurate molds and I size at .429 for my 44WCF guns. It really has never been any problem with waiting. I would not do them right after casting as they need time to settle in so to speak. Later David

[therealhitman]

I like to run em through the Star in the morning. With a cup of coffee. The caffeine helps...me not the boolits.

[timberhawk]

It depend on all of the thing mentioned above.
If your only sizing down one or two thousandths, then it probably doesn't matter when you size. More than that and you probably need to size right after casting before your bullets age harden and it becomes harder to size them down.
With the 454s, you might want to water drop or heat treat for a little harder bullet. If you wait until they have age hardened, the sizing will soften them a little and be counter productive.

[Side by Side]

I always size and lube the same day the bullets have been cast