Tumble Lube Poll - Stands-em UP or Leave-em Lay?

[GMT210]

It is officially tied at 81 "Stands-em UP" & 81 "Lay-em Down". I stood my first batch up and then laid the rest down. I'm really surprised that this has ended up tied.

[Siggy226]

I tumble lubed over 2k of 9mm. I just poured and spread. Didn't time myself but I think I did it all in under 10 mins. Come back a few hours later to move 'em around again (if I remember). I need to tumble 2x to get good results. Tumbled a bunch 3x to see how that'll do. Speed is #1 reason why I tumble lube.

No way I'm going to stand each one up.

I'm using Liquid Xlox cut down by 25%. One bottle i have pours out like tooth paste. That'll need more cutting.

[mmorris]

I also just rollem and dumpem But a little tick I found is instead of using wax paper or whatnot I use a piece of metal lath or coarse screen or mesh.it allows the LLA to dry quicker and more evenly the entire way around the boolit without it puddling were its laying on the wax paper.

I had been using the waxed paper method and I was not happy with the uneven streaks of alox on the side that touched the paper, and I was really not happy with the job of standing them up even though they looked better (this is only a cosmetic issue, they both shoot OK). Then I read RU shooter's comment on using coarse screen and I had to do it.

I used 1/4" hardware cloth on a scrap of egg crate fluorescent light diffuser (for support and air circulation) over a piece of waxed paper on a plywood tray. It works great. Dump 'em out and shake to spread. Fast drying time, no puddles, even coating, and I can also use it to funnel the finished boolits into a plastic storage container. The pic with the standing boolits compares the waxed paper puddle boolit on the right (w/cornstarch) to the screen-dried boolit on the left.

I coat them with corn starch (not my idea, but I can't remember who I stole it from), and I really like the results. It doesn't take much corn starch, and it eliminates boolit seating die gum-up problems.

Found it... Galil5.56 over on thehighroad.org is the one I got the corn starch idea from.

[Big Country]

Let them lay.

[swheeler]

I have done it both ways, now I just let them lay until dry.

[Shiloh]

There doesn't seem to be too much of an issue if the boolits touch when drying. Some get stuck together and base to base is a pretty good bond.

WHen they get loaded and travel down the barrel, it doesn't make much difference on target if it isn't a perfect coating. NEVER had any issues od leading with a properly size alox lubed boolit.

Shiloh

[lwknight]

Just shake em up and throw em in the pan. Git r done.

[Vance in Ak]

Well I just did my 1st batch, & I let them lay down. Doesn't look like there was any puddleing to speak of.

[Shiloh]

First several batches I stood up with tweezers. Now I let them lie until they dry.

I am so glad to read this thread about letting them lay. I think standing them up is the one part of reloading that I detest. I just came in from covering my entire parts washer lid with stood up bullets and while I was doing it I was mentally whining about it. The next batch will definitely by the tumble and pour method. Thanks Don

For me standing them up is a messy, incredibly tedious waste of time.
Absolutely NO difference in performance. If folks want to stand them up, well to each their own.

Shiloh

[10 ga]

Neither, Since I'm a ML kinda guy most all of mine go in sabots or patched RBs. Do have one full bore TC maxi hunter type mold and those I lube by hand, deer tallow/beeswax/peanut oil, and store in rolled wax paper tubes.A most interesting thread. 10 ga

[Jack Stanley]

So far the only bullet I use with liquid lube is the 311466 . The use I have for it are low velocity gallery loads and it doesn't seem to care which way I do the deed . So , in the interest of getting the job done by the ammo can full , I just let them lay still untill they dry .


Jack

[Shiloh]

I tumble lubed over 2k of 9mm. I just poured and spread. Didn't time myself but I think I did it all in under 10 mins. Come back a few hours later to move 'em around again (if I remember). I need to tumble 2x to get good results. Tumbled a bunch 3x to see how that'll do. Speed is #1 reason why I tumble lube.

No way I'm going to stand each one up.

I'm using Liquid Xlox cut down by 25%. One bottle i have pours out like tooth paste. That'll need more cutting.

I can't imagine the tedious time consuming trauma of standing them up!!

I only need ONE light coat!! I have tried multiple coats. It is sticky, and I see no advantage.

[Rod B]

I take them out of the lube container with tweezers & stand them up.

I think the lube covers more evenly while they are drying.

[Archer]

I use a LLA-JPW-MS 45-45-10 mix, and just swirl, tumble a few times, and swirl again.
Then just pour them out on wax paper, and let dry. It's been working fine, and not sticky at all.

[XWrench3]

i used to stand them up to dry. but that my freind is a pita! now, especially since most all of my boolits get 2 coats, i just dump them and leave them lay. way to much work, and i never saw any real benifit. of course, most of this is on handgun boolits. on a rifle boolit, it may make a difference, but i doubt it.

[XWrench3]

Somewhere in Kenya a village is missing their IDIOT!

dont worry, i found him, he is in THE WHITE HOUSE!

[mdi]

Man, won't this thing ever go away?

[AriM]

Man, won't this thing ever go away?

I was just wondering the same thing. The poll based threads seem to stick around like a fly caught on fly paper......

[Capn Jack]

OK, my turn.

I've just been kind of "Mucking through" this tumble lube thing for the first time. I'm not a competition shooter, so I only reload about a hundred .38spl. at a time.

The sequence I've found works for me is....Cast 'em, Size 'em, Throw them in an old plastic peanut butter jar and roll them around for about 2-3 minutes with a couple teaspoons of Alox. Then I dump them into the lid a few at a time and stand them up with a pair of hemostats on a doubled-up paper towel. After a few minutes I pick them up again, wiping the base and the (Flat) nose of the bullet on the paper towel and set them on an old teflon cutting sheet to dry.

I know my process sounds "Anal" and a lot of people are rolling on the floor laughing, but I have this thing about powder contamination (wiping the base) and wiping the nose helps to control seating depth by not allowing lube build-up in the seating die.

Jack

[deerslayer]

I put them upside down in a properly sized old shell tray and cover the top with card board when full and flip and remove shellholder this allows for easy counting and they stand nice on the cardboard which also soaks the base dry and keeps the base cleaner.