Newbie question about Lee Liquid Alox

[TDC]

After many years of using my good old RCBS Lubri-sizer I'm using the Lee Liquid Alox lube for the first time. These will probably sound like a very dumb questions to you guys but here goes... I'm also using Lee's sizer die for the first time for a new 50 S&W and installing gas checks.

The directions from Lee indicates boolets need to have the lube dripped on them until they are covered, then rolled around in a container until fully covered. I'm used to seeing the lubrication groves completely filled with material. They don't indicate how to access the extent or thickness of the lubricants coverage and it is very transparent. Is a very thin, almost invisible film the norm and is that very fine film coverage considered adequate? Seems like simply touching the castings after they are lubed would rub it off.

I just don't want to use too much or too little.... How do you guys use it?

Thanks!!

TC

[Sprue]

When I used to use alox, I would hold the bottle under running hot water till thinned. Others cut it with Mineral spirits to thin but I never did.

It doesn't take very much to coat the boolits. Myself I would apply aprox 12-15 drops per 100 boolits then shake them in a bowl for a couple minutes. I would just leave them in the bowl to dry for 24 hrs while turning them a time or two to turn them over. If I needed to lube some more I would take those and dump them out into a pan of some sort and process some more. I never touched them till they were dry.

If your going to size them, sometimes I would use a little WD40 to lightly lube them only enough to where the sizer handle felt smooth when running them through. Sometimes I would just put a few drops of alox on them when I started to feel resistance during sizing. You don't want to gum up the sizer plus, WD40 is a lot cheapet than alox (for sizing).

ETA:

http://i258.photobucket.com/albums/hh266/spilihp_2007/IMG_1980.jpg

[Slow Elk 45/70]

Hullo TDC, I could go into detail and give you the answers, but there are threads already posted that answer all of your questions, if you are new to casting, there is a wealth of information about just about anything you may wan to know there.

The quick answer, heat the alox bottle under hot water until it sloshes a bit , 12-15 drops per 100 boolits in a container w/lid shake/roll them around until they are covered with lube.
pour them out on wax paper, not touching each other, let them dry over night, you may
find that they are sticky to the touch, depending on how much alox you have on them.

The lube groves do not need to be filled out. Size if you wish or load unsized depending on your needs. You may want to clean the alox from the noses of the boolits, they may still be tackie to the touch, some people use a little talc or baby powder when they are handling the boolits to reduce the mess.

I hope this helps, but do spend some time reading the threads, they are very informative.

Good Luck and good casting/shooting

[TDC]

Thanks Sprue and Slow Elk 45-70,

I know better than to not research stuff like this, and I guess I'd have to admit I got a bit impatient and frustrated with the poor directions I was reading tonight that were included with the sizer.

I have been reading the thread about Johnson's Floor Wax and carnauba products used as lube and I may try them also.. Thanks for taking the time to answer this ... I'll be doing what I should have done in the first place... read the pertinent threads and posts...

TC

[looseprojectile]

I have some experience with the S&W .50, in so much as my shooting partner has one.
I bought Lee's gas check mould and cast some for him. Wheel weights and a little linotype, air cooled.
I thinned the LLA down about 50% with thinner and applied a thin coat after sizing and seating the check. I use the method of heating the boolits and LLA with a heat gun in a plastic dish while rolling them around till they nearly smoke. This drives off the thinner, never had a fire yet, and as soon as they cool I apply a thin coat of paste wax using the same method.
I am able to load those boolits as soon as they cool. A fan helps here.
I have always felt that instant gratification is not quick enough.
Oh, and the .500 Smith shoots at 1300 fps with a healthy dose of H110 and no leading and good accuracy.
Damn gas checks are a nickle each. Still cheap shooting for a .500 S&W Mag.

Life is good

[snaggdit]

Yep, I concur with the info above. The only thing I would add, and I have never done it myself, is some say lube as above then size then lube lightly again. You could size first and just lube once. If using them as cast, once is fine. As they said, the grooves will not be filled. A slight coloration and slight tackyness is the only indication of being lubed. I have done this (single tumble, no sizing) with lube groove and tumble lube boolits and have yet to get any leading. I do wipe off lube from exposed boolit tips after loading to get rid of stickyness. I use lacquer thinner on a towel. Cannot speak to the 50 S&W. Recently, I tried pan lubing and sizing just to see and it worked just as good, only way more work.

[mpmarty]

I very lightly tumble lube and then push through the Lee sizer then tumble until the boolits are light golden color. Leave them overnight or a day or two, I then tumble in motor mica which stops the sticky problems. I have never had a leading problem with this system in pistols. Haven't tried it in rifles as I use a regular lubrisizer for them.

[JIMinPHX]

After I use LLA, I clean up my drying pan with mineral spirits. I then save that diluted LLA for use as a sizing lube. I dip boolits in the thinned stuff, then size them with a Lee sizer. Then, after they dry, I dip them in full strength LLA & let them dry again. Then I clean the drying plate with mineral spirits & the whole process starts all over again.

I only dip the boolits in deep enough to cover the bearing surface of the boolit. If I coat the nose & everything, then my seating die gets all gummed up with the stuff.

[Gohon]

TDC, if you stop and think about it you will realize on the LLA lubed boolit the bearing riding surfaces are already lubed with some also in the grooves. With a regular lubed boolit, the lube being only in the grooves is probable less total lube than the LLA lubed boolit. What little LLA that is scraped off or pushed off when seating the boolit is pushed into the grooves. As already mentioned by others I just heat the LLA bottle up in hot water and it pours easily and I use little. Only draw back with this stuff is like JIMinPHX stated in that it does tend to gum up the seating die and that has to occasional be cleaned. After a couple days drying I put mine in a butter tub with a half teaspoon of corn starch and swirl them around. They look like crap but the stickiness is gone and they shoot great.

[TDC]

Thanks guys,

I've spent much of the day searching and reading the many posts relating to Lee sizers and lubricant. As I mentioned before, this is my first experience using Lee lubricant and a Lee sizer die.

I processed 100 rounds of 440 gr.GC Lee boolits to try it today and I have a question about installing the gas checks. It seemed that installing the gas checks in one step as I sized the boolits should have been easy. It wasn't.... Thinking I may not have had enought lubricant in the new die I sprayed a little WD40 on a couple boolits. That didn't seem to help. I finally resized each of the boolits first, then ran them back through the sizer to install the gas checks. That worked fine but I'm wondering if that's normal?

Lots of helpful and knowledgeable people on this board who are willing to help. The resources here are amazing. I think I can speak for many of the "newbies" on this board by saying thanks to all you guys who take the time and trouble to help....:drinks:

TC

[snaggdit]

Sizing as you seat the checks before tumble lubing should work fine in one step. I have never needed any lubricant to seat checks, but have only done .309 and .311. If you are experiencing a lot of resistance, are you sizing down more than .003? You should be fine tumble lubing after seating with just the one coat. That said, JiminPHX has a good plan. I believe I will try that the next time I need to size as well as lube. I use all Lee molds and they drop around .002 over, which is fine in my pistols as far as chambering so the only sizing I do is seating checks for the rifle loads.

[TDC]

I'm using the standard .501 Lee sizer size. The boolits were well lubed but the resistance when adding the gas checks was substantial. After I sized the boolits then added the checks the boolits ran smoothly through the die and the check crimping felt like it should.

I'm using Gator checks for the first time but I'm sure they aren't the problem. I'm wondering if lining up the punch is extra critical for this setup... I was also a bit concerned running the boolits back through the die after they had been sized (removing the lubricant in the process) could cause leading in the die as the product directions indicated.

[JW6108]

With the Lee 175 TC .401 bullets, I moisten my fingers every few bullets with some Tetra Gun Grease (a little goes a long way) and size the bare bullets. I then TL.

Anything to slick them up enough to get them through the sizing die should work (JPW, etc.).

If the tackiness is an issue with your application, they can be sprinkled with baby powder. I use these in a Storm Lake barrel for a Glock 27 and they feed perfectly as they are. Good luck.jw