Lube your Brass

Temps

Temps

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A little back story, I'm new to reloading and just this week completed my first batch of 223 reloads after a lot of forum reading and video watching. I stuck with the Lee dies since that's what I've been using with pistol loads and on the first round jammed the decapping pin in the cartridge pulling the pin/rod straight out of the die.
Took some work and no major damage to the pin or die but word of advice.....lube your rifle brass regardless of the dies. Carbide is supposed to be lube free which is fine with pistol but I'll use lube going forward with all rifle loads. :cool:
 
Temps said:
A little back story, I'm new to reloading and just this week completed my first batch of 223 reloads after a lot of forum reading and video watching. I stuck with the Lee dies since that's what I've been using with pistol loads and on the first round jammed the decapping pin in the cartridge pulling the pin/rod straight out of the die.
Took some work and no major damage to the pin or die but word of advice.....lube your rifle brass regardless of the dies. Carbide is supposed to be lube free which is fine with pistol but I'll use lube going forward with all rifle loads. :cool:
Click to expand...

I found out the hard way that the method used to lube the cases makes a difference too. Rolling them on a pad still resulted in stuck cases, using the tumbling method has worked excellent since.
 
Good to know, I've seen the pads in several videos and contemplated purchasing one. If by thumbling method you mean applying the lube with my thumb and fingers....that's the method I used. Found I needed to lube every 4th or 5th round. I also read about using a cotton swap to apply a thin amount to the inside of the neck.
Can anyone confirm that, I was under the impression not to lube the inside.
 
Temps said:
Good to know, I've seen the pads in several videos and contemplated purchasing one. If by thumbling method you mean applying the lube with my thumb and fingers....that's the method I used. Found I needed to lube every 4th or 5th round. I also read about using a cotton swap to apply a thin amount to the inside of the neck.
Can anyone confirm that, I was under the impression not to lube the inside.
Click to expand...

The method I use, I learned about on here and I wish I could remember from who because it works awesomely well.

Use any kind of plastic container with a reasonably tight fitting lid. I'm using a former potato salad tub. Drop in 100 or so pieces of brass, a glob of case lube about the size of the amount of toothpaste you use, snap the lid on and shake shake shake for a couple of minutes. Remove the lid and start resizing. If the lube dries out, no problem it still works fine. Yes, lube gets on the shoulder and the neck inside and out and it causes zero problems.
Trial and error will teach you the right amount to use.
 
The Lee rifle dies as far as I know are not carbide dies. Lee pistol dies are carbide.

I've used the method that dirtybarry used as well - read it here in the forum and it seems to work. I use the lee sizing lube.

I also use the lyman case lube which works well.

I've also experience stuck case on my lee 223 dies where the shell holder rips the rim off the case head.
 
use a spray lube and you shouldnt run into any issues.
and dont get lube on the neck. You will be posting about dented cases!
cheers
 
hoochie said:
use a spray lube and you shouldnt run into any issues.
and dont get lube on the neck. You will be posting about dented cases!
cheers
Click to expand...

Hence the trial and error with the amount of lube. I over did it on my first few batches and did have some dented shoulders. But the max powder loads smoothed them right out.:p

Now I use a glob about the size of a large pea for 100-120 cases. No more dents and way less mess.
 
Temps said:
A little back story, I'm new to reloading and just this week completed my first batch of 223 reloads after a lot of forum reading and video watching. I stuck with the Lee dies since that's what I've been using with pistol loads and on the first round jammed the decapping pin in the cartridge pulling the pin/rod straight out of the die.
Took some work and no major damage to the pin or die but word of advice.....lube your rifle brass regardless of the dies. Carbide is supposed to be lube free which is fine with pistol but I'll use lube going forward with all rifle loads. :cool:
Click to expand...


The reason you pulled the expander out of the die is because the decapper clamp was not tight enough. The second reason was you did not lube the inside of the neck. I dip my case necks in dry powdered graphite and never have a problem. On a RCBS die the spindle is threaded and can not be pulled out of the die and the spindle on the Lee die is smooth and must be clamped very tightly.

Old mechanics joke.

Tighten the nut until the threads start to smoke and then give it two more full turns. ;)
 
I spray lube into a big ziploc bag, put my brass in, and roll it all around. A little lube goes a long way. Never had a stuck case.
 
I use spray lube mainly because I am lazy and I resize hundreds of cases at a time. I lay to cases on an old cookie sheet all lined up and spray from the mouth towards the base, with a light amount of spray getting into the case mouth. Never stuck a case.
 
i have an old plastic tray that is about 12x12". i put 5 handfuls of .223 cases in it and use a few sprays of bootleg case lube then shake it around a few times.
ive loaded over 5000 rounds with this method and never had a stuck case.

be sure not to use too much lube or you will get dents on the shoulder.
 
If you buy a bottle of STP oil additive, you will have a lifetime supply of resizing lube. I just put it on a rag and work it into the rag, and then wipe the cases including the outside of the neck and shoulder with it. Yes, you do not want to get it on too thick or it will dent the shoulder of the case. Every once in a while you need to clean your die out too. As for the inside of the neck, I like to use a bore brush dipped in powdered graphite to clean and lube it at the same time.
 
I use something called Leather Lube for resizing:

https://www.sofsole.com/product/leather_lube

I was doing some research on homemade sizing lube and came across several references to lanolin-based lubes. I happened to have this stuff on hand and gave it a shot -- it works well.

I apply it with my fingers so that I can inspect the cases by feel to find dents and burrs. You do not need a lot of lube when doing this -- you should not see any lube on the cases; they should just end up being just a little greasy to the touch.

About every sixth case or so I scrape the mouth of the case along a finger to get a bit of lube inside the case mouth. This serves to periodically lube the expander helping to prevent expander pull-out.

I agree with what someone else said about the expander not being clamped tight enough in the die. When you get new Lee dies, look them over and make sure the expander collet is done up tight. I've had a couple of Lee dies come new out of the box with the collets not fully tightened.
 
I bought a little tub of Unique case lube a few years ago and it's still probably half full after thousands of cases. It's like a wax, I just rub my finger in it then rub my finger and thumb together to spread it out and every case gets a little rub between my fingers on it's way to the press. No stuck cases, no dented shoulders. It's cheap and lasts forever with no messy overspray or oily rags. After sizing, my brass goes on a towel and I just rub them around on it to get rid of any leftover lube. I'll spray the inside of my sizing die with brake cleaner every couple thousand rounds just to get rid of any lube or dirt (tumble your brass before sizing).
 
Temps said:
Good to know, I've seen the pads in several videos and contemplated purchasing one. If by thumbling method you mean applying the lube with my thumb and fingers....that's the method I used. Found I needed to lube every 4th or 5th round. I also read about using a cotton swap to apply a thin amount to the inside of the neck.
Can anyone confirm that, I was under the impression not to lube the inside.
Click to expand...

Unless you are only neck sizing, that's a good recipe for the fickle finger of fait to jump up and stick a case in your die. New brass is probably alright but as brass "work hardens" with subsequent firings it will get "grippier" in the die . Lube every case not being run thru a carbide die...it is less stress on you your press and for sure might save a die from ruin.
 
Carbide dies don't need lube for straight wall pistol cases. That said, I tend to tumble my 9mm brass with a shot of silicon spray lube to make things easier. It comes off when I tumble clean the cases, later.

I size thousands of 223 cases in my Lee Carbide die. Here is how I lube a hundred cases at a time:

If you are sizing a few cases, the case lube technique does not matter very much. If you have a bucket or two of brass to size, there is a fast efficient way to lube the cases. I lube 100 or so cases (rifle) at a time. Takes about 30 seconds.

I use Lee case lube. It is a water soluble cream that is easy to clean off.

Dump brass in a plastic pail that has a lid.

lubebrass1.jpg


Then take a 1" worm of lube and smear it around the top inside wall of the pail.

lubebrass.jpg


Put lid on and swirl and shake for 15 seconds. This will lube all the cases and deposit a tiny dab on the case mouth, to lube the expander button.
 
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