Grocery store spray Canola oil for lubing rifle cases

steelgray

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I've tried lots of different case lubes. All are good. Some are easier to use. Some leave residue that is harder to clean off. There have been times when I was short on the stuff and had to delay a reloading job until I could buy some more.

The other day if occurred to me to use a light spray of plain ordinary grocery store spray Canola oil for lubing rifle cases. Not PAM but just any old no-name brand. I used it the same way as any commercial spray case lube - treating cases to a light over-spray. The smell seemed the same as the case lube you buy. This grocery store spray canola oil worked just like commercial spray case lube - whether I let the cases sit for a while to become tacky or whether I resized cases seconds after they'd been sprayed.

So here's are my questions. Are all of the commercial case lubes just different formulations of canola oil? Maybe even that white creamy Lee case lube just some hydrogenated form of canola oil. If so, why are we paying many times more for the stuff labeled as commercial case spray lube - and going through the hassle of buying the stuff when you can find it locally or buying commercial spray lube on-line? Why not just buy the grocery store spray Canola oil for lubing rifle cases?
 
A lot of things will work but getting it off without wrecking your polishing media is one thing.
The lube getting inside the case and contaminating the powder is another.
If you do spray lube I have found if I spray it in a ziplock bag first and then roll the cases around in it, I get very little in the inside.
I put all the lube in a bag for any pistol/rifle case lubing. Then I roll them around in a old sweat shirt with the neck and arms sewn shut to get the worst of the lube off. Then a few minutes in the tumbler and I'm good to go.
 
Interesting. Im going to follow this thread as Im wondering what answers there are to residue after wiping them off, or getting canola oil inside the case. Maybe a wet tumbler with that home made solution is the key there?
 
It's too sticky, I don't understand how it would work properly

For all those who asked. The clean up is the same as any other spray case lube. I wipe each case with a paper towel with a bit of water and dish soap. It comes off exactly as with any commercial spray case lube - that is why I wonder if spray grocery store canola oil and expensive specialty case lube sprays are REALLY JUST THE SAME STUFF.

As for powder contamination I haven't seen any evidence of that. I just put 100 cases in a 14" diameter stainless steel bowl and spray very lightly, so the occasional case would get a bit of canola in the neck (maybe just enough to lube the expander ball a tiny bit, every few cases). No drama, no issues. I like the fact that the stuff is a known common ("green") product. No unknown chemicals on your hands or in the air after you spray. The fact that it is cheap and easy to get is a BONUS.

Others should try this - and post their results. I have no skin in the game here. It just works for me.
 
I have been using the 99% isopropyl alcohol and half a bottle of Lanolin Oil with amazing success. Bottle of Iso is about $5 and the Lanolin Oil at well.ca is $21. Lasts about 5 years. I've loaded 2-3k 223 and 308 cases in that time.
 
I have been using the 99% isopropyl alcohol and half a bottle of Lanolin Oil with amazing success. Bottle of Iso is about $5 and the Lanolin Oil at well.ca is $21. Lasts about 5 years. I've loaded 2-3k 223 and 308 cases in that time.

Thats the receipt that seem to work for many. Strait spray canola oil..na.
 
Thats the receipt that seem to work for many. Strait spray canola oil..na.

I'm really not some canola salesman or something but FYI the non-synthetic two stroke oil you use in your dirt bike is CANOLA OIL. Also in Quebec, you have to use eco-safe bar oil in your chain saw if you are cutting fallen trees on the ice, in the winter, etc. Guess what that stuff is ...
 
After I posted the start of this thread, I did a quick key word search and discovered a long thread on AR15.com on the subject of "cooking spray case lube" Most posters who tried this gave favourable comments. PM me if you want the link ('cause I thinks some mods would object to me linking to another gun site here).

I'm not saying Lanoline and alcohol don't work but IMO "cooking spray case lube" also does the trick and is totally hassle-free, safe and CHEAP. You can't necessarily say that for the commercial products out there.
 
I tried it a few times. It did work, but it also left my sizing die a sticky gooey mess as I neglected to clean it out afterwards.

Auggie D.
 
Imperial wax is cheap and lasts so long and cleans up so nice I've never entertained the idea of homemade concoctions.

And you don't stick cases in the die with Imperial sizing wax. I have been asked to remove stuck cases from dies for multiple people, and not once, were they using Imperial sizing wax.
 
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