Sizing and Lubing time frame

[slk]

Is there any recommendations as to how long you can wait to load cast boolits after they have been sized and lubed. I guess what I mean is can you size and lube them and put them in a container for loading months later, or is it recommended to load them up relatively quick?


Steve

[ShooterAZ]

You can size them as soon as they are cool. Some guys will wait for a bit as the lead may harden a bit further, but I just size them whenever I need them.

[Ed_Shot]

I store mine as-cast and size&lube them as needed for loading.

[runfiverun]

some lubes tend to hold up bettor in storage over time.
they are generally the more waxy types.
having said that I have buckets full of both way's some lube/sized and some just cast.
you/I/we probably don't need 2 buckets of lube sized boolits so I mostly just lube/size and refill the 2nd bucket as needed then re-fill the 1st cast only ones as I get to them.

[slk]

Well my main question was can you size and lube them and put them up for a rainy day perhaps 6 months down the road and then load them. I usually load them up right after sizing/lubeing them, but sometimes I might get board and want something to do, but do not have enough casing to load. So it would be nice to be able to have several hundred ready for loading when the urge hits.

Steve

[gwpercle]

There is no "best if used by " on boolits. I cast , size and lube as time permits and store them in plastic boxes for later use.
I have loaded boolits that were at least 20 years old before. They have a long shelf life.
One thing I do is to stack them neatly in boxes , side by side and two ( or three ) layers deep, separated with a sheet of thin cardboard and keep them on a closet shelf....not in hot garage. This keeps even soft lubed boolits in good condition . Some just fill up a bucket with loose boolits but I don't like to store them like that.
Gary

[wistlepig1]

What he said, its worked for me for 40+ years!


There is no "best if used by " on boolits. I cast , size and lube as time permits and store them in plastic boxes for later use.
I have loaded boolits that were at least 20 years old before. They have a long shelf life.
One thing I do is to stack them neatly in boxes , side by side and two ( or three ) layers deep, separated with a sheet of thin cardboard and keep them on a closet shelf....not in hot garage. This keeps even soft lubed boolits in good condition . Some just fill up a bucket with loose boolits but I don't like to store them like that.
Gary

[robg]

I tend to cast, let them cool ,lube and size them ,put them in sealed plastic bags in a tub then load as and when needed.

[Mitch]

pretty much do as the posts above.sotre in ammo cans or zip bags.I use White Lable.Carnuba Red and it seem sot hod up great for 4 or 5 years.i have not had any longer than that but the do just fine in that time frame.Biut the home brew BP lube I used does not store well>it dries out after a few months.So cast away and store them as you like they will be fine.

[Whitespider]

I like to lube-size as soon after casting as is practical... like within a few days (it don't always work that way).
I use a soft 'n' sticky (homemade) lube so I can't just toss them in containers for storage. I stand them up in small cardboard boxes with a strip of wax paper between the rows, and a piece of cardboard between the layers. I've stored them that way for months, even years. Just this past weekend I loaded some stored that way for 3 years, the lube had developed a (sort'a) dry, waxy skin on the outside, but they shot just fine.
*

[jsizemore]

I have cast 500 200gr 45acp and while still warm ran them through the lubesizer. They actually sized easier. I did that for 3 days in a row. I loaded 1000 pieces of brass from the first batch and the last. Shot them in my 45 over the next 4 shooting sessions with my neighbor to test barrel work done by Dougguy. No issues at all. I had an older batch that I loaded with the 2nd batch from the 3 day casting/lubesizing/loading blitz. Again no issues after another 1000 rounds between the old and new batches. I did a detail clean on the gun after the first 500 rounds and another after the next 1500. No leading.

Now when I cast, I try to lubesize right after I'm done casting. It feels "easier" to size.

[David2011]

I have commercial boolits that I got in a bulk purchase that are 25-30 years old. They still look perfectly usable.

Agreed with Jsizemore. Boolits age harden. Sometimes they get significantly harder after sitting for a couple of weeks and they're much less fun to size.

[Shiloh]

I give it about a week. Rarely do I let myself get to a point where I need them immediately.

Shiloh

[reloader28]

I store all mine unsized in coffee cans and only keep about 300 + or - of my main boolit for each caliber lubed and stacked neatly in cardboard boxes, then I lube more as needed.

[JSnover]

I'll store dry unsized boolits but I don't like to size or lube until I'm ready to load.

[dragon813gt]

I'll store dry unsized boolits but I don't like to size or lube until I'm ready to load.

I've started to do this. Mainly because my storage area is the loft area of my garage. It gets hot up there. I use ammo cans for bulk storage. 2500+ made for a tacky mess. Bullets are still useable but there was lube where it shouldn't have been. Now I just toss untouched bullets in the ammo cans and don't worry.

[fatelvis]

One thing to consider:
Boolits, I believe ones containing Antimony, will continue to "grow", as time progresses. Because of this I now size/lube well after casting, and closer to loading and shooting. After chatting with Dougguy about boolit/throat fit in revolvers, I started checking my older sized/lubed boolits in storage. It is indeed true, and measurable.

[6622729]

I cast a lot of Lee tumble lube style, no need to size, boolits. But, the other ones that do need to be sized I store as cast. Regardless of boolit design, I lube closer to the time of need and only keep a small portion of them lubed and waiting. I use 45/45/10 tumble lube. I will use that aforementioned time of boredom to cast or to lube/size/lube if a particular caliber is getting a little low in the ready to load state.

[mdi]

I size and lube as needed for a particular gun or a particular lube. I'll cast up a few hundred bullets and store them as is, (I have some RD 265 gr. 44 cal bullets I cast in 2012 waiting for use). I have 5, .44 Magnums and size to 3 different diameters so it's easier to size and lube as I need bullets for a particular gun. Same with my 38/357s and 9mm, all use the same bullet just different OD and lube. I make my own lube most of the time and I'll see something I want to try and I'll have nekkid boolits ready for sizing and lubing. My shooting isn't so precise that I need to control the BHN within a few points so if they "age harden" it don't mean much to me...

[zubrato]

I prefer to size same or next day after casting, usually next since I marathon cast to make enough for the next few trips.

A lot easier to size that way, easier on the lubesizer and faster than sizing down hardened boolits.
My understanding is that the antimonial crystals tend to continue growing and form points on the outside of the bullet, and so if you size a hardened bullet you're decreasing the BHN by breaking that internal structure.
By sizing earlier, the alloys internal structure can continue to harden and will be ready to be loaded and fired.

Most likely makes no difference, but I prefer to size my 9mms to 0.359" and cast with 50/50 coww/pure for accuracy. I fee like the extra thousandth makes up for a little case swaging that may present in mixed brass and 50/50 alloy.


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[jonp]

Cast and put in the bins. When im ready to use I size and lube

[pjames32]

Usually cast marathon sessions on a weekend. Size/lube when get a chance and store in plastic shoebox containers. I have some size/lubed bullets that are 15-20 years old for calibers I load very seldom. I use Carnuba Red.

[Aunegl]

After I fish them out of my Homer bucket and dry them. I lube and size within 24 hours.