Removing lube before powder coating

[blueeyephil]

I bought several hundred 357 bullets at an estate sale that are lubed. I prefer powder coating. How would you remove the lube? Melt it off? Acetone? Combo of both?

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[RKJ]

I just boiled it off some that I had that I wanted to PC. I got an old pot from Goodwill/SA and filled it with water and got out the turkey fryer. After the water is boiling pour that water out and add new until all the lube is gone. You'll most likely have to clean the goop off the top of the pot so you don't contaminate the bullets. It's easy but time consuming.

[blueeyephil]

I just boiled it off some that I had that I wanted to PC. I got an old pot from Goodwill/SA and filled it with water and got out the turkey fryer. After the water is boiling pour that water out and add new until all the lube is gone. You'll most likely have to clean the goop off the top of the pot so you don't contaminate the bullets. It's easy but time consuming.

Ok, I'll give that a try.

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[Conditor22]

Some people soak them in acetone

[hermans]

I would just load and shoot them.......

[ioon44]

Yes, I would just load them and shoot them in to a bullet trap then cast, load and shoot them again.

[fredj338]

Or just melt them down & start over. I would think the time to melt the lube off & dry the bullets, you could cast 1000.

[blueeyephil]

Or just melt them down & start over. I would think the time to melt the lube off & dry the bullets, you could cast 1000.

That's an option but it's pretty hot right now and I'm having back issues so looking for a easy option.

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[gpidaho]

I put lubed bullets aside and add them to the melt a short hand full at a time for flux. Acetone works pretty good but if you use it make sure you don't get it on your skin. It causes more liver damage than rot gut whiskey. Gp

[Atonic]

I did that with some 224 that had been liquid Alox lubed. Used mineral spirits. Cover, agitate, drain. Repeat. Have some 40s with blue wax lube. Let ehm soak for 3 hours and they're clean. Plan to give them a rinse with more spirits before coating.

[blueeyephil]

I did that with some 224 that had been liquid Alox lubed. Used mineral spirits. Cover, agitate, drain. Repeat. Have some 40s with blue wax lube. Let ehm soak for 3 hours and they're clean. Plan to give them a rinse with more spirits before coating.

Are you going to use mineral spirits or acetone on them?

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[Dimner]

I let them sit over night on lacquer thinner. Seems to work well. Then I take a old tooth brush to the lube grooves. After that, I rinse lightly in acetone. Not sure if the acetone part is necessary, but my high school Chem teacher beat the rinse in acetone final step into all chemical cleaning processes. She was way smarter than me, so I keep doing it.

[Slugster]

Boil, rinse, repeat. That method has worked well for me.

[fredj338]

I let them sit over night on lacquer thinner. Seems to work well. Then I take a old tooth brush to the lube grooves. After that, I rinse lightly in acetone. Not sure if the acetone part is necessary, but my high school Chem teacher beat the rinse in acetone final step into all chemical cleaning processes. She was way smarter than me, so I keep doing it.

That is sooo much work, I would just toss them into the pot & start over. Toothbrush each bullet, no. I can cast 600-800 an hour, depending on the mold. It would take an hour to toothbrush 200 bullets??

[Dimner]

That is sooo much work, I would just toss them into the pot & start over. Toothbrush each bullet, no. I can cast 600-800 an hour, depending on the mold. It would take an hour to toothbrush 200 bullets??

Well for me, I had to do it to about 150 bullets that I did not own the mold for. I was testing them out. When I say brush the grooves, I think it took me 10 minutes to do all 150. Put four bullets in yer hand, after they soaked over night, move them around with the tooth bush bristles, move on to 4 new ones.

I do not think I have delubed any bullets that I own a mold for. Yes, throw them right back in.

[Big Boomer]

How long since the boolits were cast? I had some .243 boolits I cast a couple of years ago that had slightly oxidized and turned a slightly darker shade of gray. They were in my reloading room, uncovered and unlubed. I put gas checks on them, powder coated them and then ran them through my Star sizing die after dropping them in water out of the convection oven. The powder coating did not take well. I suggest that you toss them in the pot and start over. Getting lube off boolits only complicates an already iffy set of circumstances. Big Boomer

[fredj338]

Work smarter not harder.

[fingers284]

How long since the boolits were cast? I had some .243 boolits I cast a couple of years ago that had slightly oxidized and turned a slightly darker shade of gray. They were in my reloading room, uncovered and unlubed. I put gas checks on them, powder coated them and then ran them through my Star sizing die after dropping them in water out of the convection oven. The powder coating did not take well. I suggest that you toss them in the pot and start over. Getting lube off boolits only complicates an already iffy set of circumstances. Big Boomer

This wasn't my experience at all. When I started messing with PC, I had an assortment of commercial hard cast slugs, both pistol & rifle that I wanted to "spearmint" with. Some of those box tail-ends could have been 15 yrs old and I got a "good stick" of the PC.

My method...submerge slugs in a pot of water and then boil for 10-15 minutes, now pour the water off the slugs,don't pour the bullets through the water...the wax lube that floats to the surface will re-contaminate the lead again...now a short swish in a methyl hydrate bath and let them dry...ready for the coating now. I have done both swirl & gun coating with equal results.

[warf73]

This wasn't my experience at all. When I started messing with PC, I had an assortment of commercial hard cast slugs, both pistol & rifle that I wanted to "spearmint" with. Some of those box tail-ends could have been 15 yrs old and I got a "good stick" of the PC.

My method...submerge slugs in a pot of water and then boil for 10-15 minutes, now pour the water off the slugs,don't pour the bullets through the water...the wax lube that floats to the surface will re-contaminate the lead again...now a short swish in a methyl hydrate bath and let them dry...ready for the coating now. I have done both swirl & gun coating with equal results.

This is the same method I use, works great.

[Three44s]

I would ‘chute’m!

Reclaim and recast!

Three44s