I lube prior to sizing with Johnson one step, just a thin coat. This wax dries clear, hard, and isn't sticky.
I put the bullets in a plastic 1lb coffee can, pour a small amount of floor wax on top of them and stir them with a dowel rod. When sufficiently covered, they'll look wet, I dump them on wax paper to dry. I use this method on water dropped 357 158gr GC Lee SWC, that weigh 168gr with GC. from my mould. I size them down .002 to .358 in a Lee push through. I lube and seat GC. with my RCBS lube matic with Lyman Super Moly. I drive these bullets flat out in N and L frame guns without problems..
I load 15 calibres with cast G/C bullets and always use the same method.
#1 Tumble lube with LLA.
#2 Run through Lee push through sizer to size and install gas check.
#3 Apply second coat of LLA.
#4 Load.
I push G/C bullets bullets to 2000 fps+ with this method.
Works for me with minimal leading.
ukrifleman
got fed up with sticky fingers so i use disposable gloves when doing lubing and sizing.i like to stand my lubed boolits on end to dry.
I started with the directions and lubed first, sized and re-lubed. One day I decided to push a few fresh ones through without lube because the Lee push through die had to be cleaned every 50 boolits or so. To my surprise, there was -O- leading in the die. Now I size them all before lubing. Still no lead in the die and it works great.
My Hunting Bullets 357 Max Contender, 35 Bullberry Contender, 44 Super RedHawk, and 480 Ruger Super RedHawk:
Starting with hand inspected Bullets.
1. Tumble Lube
2. Seat Gas Check by hand
3. Run through Push Through Sizer Die
4. Run through RCBS LAM to apply Conventional Bullet Lube (White Label Caranuba Red until it is used up, then Ben's Red) in the Grease Groove
5. Tumble Lube again with Bens LL for a protective coating.
6. Store or Load
I will probably skip the initial Tumble Lube when I get my STAR up and running.
My LAM will cock the bullets part of the time. The initial sizing with a Push Through Sizer eliminates the cocking problem.
Bob R
What about if you were to tumble lube, then wipe the lube off of the base, then apply gas check and size, then tumble lube again? Would this give a nicer smoother surface for the gas check to seat to or just be an extra step with no benefit?
Here's what I do a lot.
Spray fresh boolits with homemade case lube. Put check on push through then tumble lube. When all is right one hole groups shall be your reward. This should get you to 1600-1700fps easily.
If you'd like to kill the tackiness of the lube add a dash of motor mica after they dry.
If you think your a hammer everything looks like a nail.
Before switching to powder coating I used Lee A-Lox to tumble lube.
My 160gr 2R TL Lee cast to 15bhn tumble lubed and gas checked worked perfectly at 1850f/s shot from a M39 Finnish Mosin Nagant. So high teens velocity with tumble lube is very doable.
I shoot the same load now using the boolits power coated but now I only need 12bhn alloy.
Motor
Mine is a tad different, but works well for me..........
1. Cast boolit
2. Lube with alox in baggy, (shake & bake) let dry over night......
3. Add Gas Check if needed, and push through size
4. Dust with small amount of "Motor Mica" ( a dry lube for shot shell cups/wads)again shake & bake Different baggy of course.
5.Load
6. Shoot
A gun in hand is worth two cops on the phone.
MOLON LABE
BP | Bronze Point | IMR | Improved Military Rifle | PTD | Pointed |
BR | Bench Rest | M | Magnum | RN | Round Nose |
BT | Boat Tail | PL | Power-Lokt | SP | Soft Point |
C | Compressed Charge | PR | Primer | SPCL | Soft Point "Core-Lokt" |
HP | Hollow Point | PSPCL | Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" | C.O.L. | Cartridge Overall Length |
PSP | Pointed Soft Point | Spz | Spitzer Point | SBT | Spitzer Boat Tail |
LRN | Lead Round Nose | LWC | Lead Wad Cutter | LSWC | Lead Semi Wad Cutter |
GC | Gas Check |