Lube on base of boolit

[Buckdane]

What's the best way to get any lube that happens to be on the base of the boolit cleaned off? Don't want powder to stick to it when nose down in boxes.

[AggieEE]

I use a paper towel. Fold up on the bench and a quick wipe.

[rjathon]

I put a rag on my knee and wipe them on it immediately after sizing.

That said I'm now hooked on powder coating and my wiping days appear to be over.

[dancingbear41]

164292

For plain base bullets I wipe them on a piece of denim. For bevel based bullets I have made up a punch as shown that fills the void of the bevel base preventing it from filling with lube. Hope either suggestion helps.

Simon.

[Big Dangle]

After I size em and there are as dry as they're going to get I just wipe the base while watching TV. I'm sure there are many different and easier ways just gives me something to do with my hands when I'm hanging out.

[Mixxerd]

Does lube on the base of black powder bullets affect them too? I am new to cap and ball shooting and still trying to find the perfect lube for my purposes. Thanks for the help!

[Lead Fred]

I always use a veggie wad between the powder and boolit

[John Boy]

Three options:
* Do nothing with black powder reloads. The lube will be on the wad and no effect on accuracy
* Smokeless reloads: paper towel flat on workbench - swipe the base along the paper towel
* For BP, if it bothers one with the lube on the base, do the same as smokeless
You have to remember - all lubes will melt at a temperature less than the ignition temperature of the charge
Or if you want to be scientific - shoot some groups with and without wiping for accuracy determinations

[Dan Cash]

Lube on base of BP pistol bullets, not very important. Lube on base of BP rifle bullets will stick the wad to the base of the bullet and destroy accuracy.

[Mixxerd]

Thanks guys that was helpful and informative for the kind of shooting I do. maybe I will just do a quick wipe off the base on a rag if it bothers me. Will probably print up a mess of targets and put lead downrange and see if they perform differently. All I have used for powder is Goex, and Jim Shockey's Gold so I still have a lot of powders to try and experiment with to find what works the best in my cap and ball.

[MT Chambers]

Use a STAR lubesizer.

[MIEagle]

You may find that a round ball is more accurate in your revolver than a conical. Slug your bore to determine the proper diameter. Then load powder, insert ball with sprue up or down, not cockeyed. Insure that each ball is seated to the same depth. Cover seated ball with lube ( use a strip of plastic cut from an old credit card and my lube in a musket cap tin) to lube the bullet AND PREVENT CHAIN FIRING OF THE REMAINING ROUNDS! I use 21 gr of 3F Goex, a .457 ball, and lube it. Some folks use Crisco which may be "thin" on a hot day but (presumably) you're not open carrying or rapid firing. Just keep the fouling soft. I'm in Mid-Michigan also. Hope this helps.

[Went2kck]

Pant let shirt tail. Whatever it handy. Im a simple kind of guy.

[leftiye]

Wipe 'em if ya hafta. Otherwise set your travel properly on yer lube/sizer.

[Jim K.]

Use a STAR lubesizer.
I am using a Star and still get some lube on the base!
To much pressure?.....
I shoot cowboy and am trying to switch from round ball and wad to conical.

[MT Chambers]

I am using a Star and still get some lube on the base!
To much pressure?.....
I shoot cowboy and am trying to switch from round ball and wad to conical.
Too much heat or too much pressure or bullet is too narrow for die.

[Mixxerd]

MIEagle, thanks for the tips with conical and round ball. I currently use a paste-like consistency of lube just for sealing the cylinder that is 1c olive oil and about 2/3c beeswax. I use my pocket knife to scrape it out of my mason jam jar I keep in my shooting box, then my finger to press it into each cylinder. I worry a LOT about chain fire and take precautions to avoid it. I make sure a ring is shaved off the boolit, and I seal the cylinder with wax/lube. I have some nice 45-70 cases that were modified by another forum member that I can cut out beeswax rounds and use that to cap the cylinder.

[Grump]

Too much heat or too much pressure or bullet is too narrow for die.

OR the punch is stopping a bit too short of blocking the lowest lube port.

To avoid such problems (AND lubing the ogive of a half-pointy boolit) I had to finally block two of the ports with a little bit of lead shot.

It's your tool. Make it do what you want it to do.

[BigMagShooter]

does lube on the base affect accuracy?

[Le Loup Solitaire]

I use an ordinary paper towel folded into a pad. A quick wipe is all that it takes to clean the base. Works with the bevel base bullet as well but I have to angle the bullet for that to work. LLS

[runfiverun]

lube on the base can affect a lot of things.
if it collects powder that powder isn't helping propel the round.
so you end up with a different load every time you pull the trigger.

if it melts under the pressure of the round being fired it'll put lube wherever the gas flows like up the side of the case or around the boolit and into the barrel.
now you have to deal with a varying c.o.r.e. condition every shot.

[jimofaz]

Conventional wisdom says that BP rifle loads with a wad (some folks do OK w/o an over-powder wad) need to have clean boolit bases. I use a cotton 100% shop cloth with a small amount of acetone on it and gently wipe the bases stacked upside down up in styrofoam or plastic 50-round ammo trays picked up via. dumpster-diving at my local range. .45 ACP or .40 S&W trays work very well for .45 cal BPCR boolits, while the 9mm variety trays serve well for .38-55's. Both give a close fit that keeps the boolit bases perpindicular while wiping. Don't overdo the solvent application with the styro trays! :oops: