Cutting Lee Liquid Alox w/ Mineral Spirits

[Airweight38]

Hey, I'm back with another question. :confused:

I've been using Lee Liquid Alox and pan-lubing (and by pan lubing I mean "shaking around in a Cool Whip tub) my cast bullets. It says that I can "cut" it with mineral spirits. Soooo, I bought a quart of mineral spirits and now I'm wondering how I should go about doing this. Should I just use part of a bottle of LLA and top it off wth mineral spirits, mixing it right in the bottle? Should I mix the LLA and MS in a separate container and then pan lube? Should I pour some of each into my lubing bowl and have it mix as I agitate the bullets?

How do I properly cut this stuff?

ALSO!

What ratio should I mix this stuff at before it becomes less effective? What works for you guys?

Thanks for any input.

/Jason

[KY_Camper]

I use about a 50/50 mix for my 45ACP. I say "about" because I just dumped about the same amount of each into the butter tub and mixed it as I shook the tub with the boolits in it. After the bottle of lube was about half gone, I filled it back up with spirits. I haven't tried it in rifle so I can't say anything about that.

[EMC45]

I too thinned Lee Alox. I found that thinned it stays tacky to the touch even after drying. Unthinned it drys like a soft varnish.

[Railbuggy]

I added a little water to mine.Seems to work OK.:-)

[Shiloh]

Hey, I'm back with another question. :confused:

I've been using Lee Liquid Alox and pan-lubing (and by pan lubing I mean "shaking around in a Cool Whip tub) my cast bullets. It says that I can "cut" it with mineral spirits. Soooo, I bought a quart of mineral spirits and now I'm wondering how I should go about doing this. Should I just use part of a bottle of LLA and top it off wth mineral spirits, mixing it right in the bottle? Should I mix the LLA and MS in a separate container and then pan lube? Should I pour some of each into my lubing bowl and have it mix as I agitate the bullets?

How do I properly cut this stuff?

ALSO!

What ratio should I mix this stuff at before it becomes less effective? What works for you guys?

Thanks for any input.

/Jason

Soooo, I bought a quart of mineral spirits and now I'm wondering how I should go about doing this. Should I just use part of a bottle of LLA and top it off wth mineral spirits, mixing it right in the bottle?

Thats what I did. If you are going to use the qt. of mineral spirits for cutting alox only, you have a lifetime supply for you and your grand kids.

What ratio should I mix this stuff at before it becomes less effective? What works for you guys?

A couple of tablespoons in the bottle. You just have to thin it a little. Don't make it like water. It is pretty forgiving. When I thought that I had it too thin, I added a little more alox from another bottle, or from what you poured out. I also think it thickens with age. I have one bottle that I had to add a little more to.

This is for my pistol boolits. I have no rifle TL molds. I shoot mostly at target or midrange velocities. Nothing hot. Some folks have driven TL boolits at some pretty impressive velocities.

Shiloh

[UweJ]

Before using a new bottle of LLA I open it up an fill up the rest of the bottle with mineral spirits. I put it in a cup with hot water let it warm up til it is getting a bit thinner and then shake it up real good, worked best for me so far.
Uwe

[pls1911]

The post above which said "it pretty forgiving" is right.... like scrambled eggs, you have work really hard to screw 'em up!
See elswhere on this sight for LARS lube... it's LLA by the quart at a fraction of the cost.
I mixed my first quart about 20-40% with mineral spirits ( Hmmm... duh.... That seems about near right...nah, give it another shot). works fine...give it 2 days to totally dry.

I use Ranch dog molds in 45-70's with this mix without leading , as well as as cast 45 colts and ACPs and .38s by the dozen... (normal lube type). It's about the only way I keep up with multiple 4 and 6 cavity molds!!!

For insurance, I also wash my .30 and .35 cal rifle bullets in the stuff and have NEVER had a trace of leading.
One note though, for .45 auto, I always polish feed ramps and heat treat bullets.... dug from a hard dry clay bank, the rifling is clear and you could wash 'em off and re shoot 'em...

Pablo

[yodar]

I added a little water to mine.Seems to work OK.:-)

Liquid alox and alox both are calcium soaps of petroleum acids, and as a soap, it HAS a water loving end and your ability to cut it with water proves that point..BUT if you add too much, soon it will start acting like salad dressing ;>)

yodar

[Baron von Trollwhack]

I have had great results by thinning LLA with lighter fluid to the point where, when dry on 25-20 boolits, there is a just visible dried film. Soft but not sticky.

It helps to drop a 1/4" nut into the Lee bottle, to help stir the mix by shaking. These cast bullets are running @ 1850 fps using smokeless. BvT