ballistol for sizing lube

[queen_stick]

I use it, and it works great, but I have a question about how to keep it out of the neck.

I had very small amounts of ballistol residue in my necks... I cleaned it off with a q-tip. When I threw the powder, I noticed the granules were sticking to the areas inside the neck that had ballistol on it, even after I 'swabbed' it out of there. I didn't think much of it, so I knocked the stuck granules down into the case, and seated some bullets. I went straight to the range after loading, and ended up with a few 'duds.' Wehn I got home I pulled the bullets on the 'duds' and saw that the powder had clumped up. Long story short, a very minimal amount of ballistol in the case neck lead to a big problem. The powder I was using was BL-C(2).

The recent article in the daily bulletin suggests ballistol as a good lube, which I agree with. However, the article states to simply wipe it off after sizing, and you're done. There's no mention of trying to keep it out of the neck, or how devastating it is to making good ammo.

So, what do you guys do to prevent sizing lubes from getting in the cases? It gets old cleaning brass, sizing, then cleaning again to make sure the lube is out of the inside of the case.

Walt

 

[284driver]

I had a couple of duds in the past. Same thing with a few granules hanging onto the inside of the neck. Best bet is to throw them back in the tumbler after all the case prep is complete. Or you could try Imperial lube as it is much easier to manage and control where it goes. I would retumble either way.

 

[artbosco]

... what do you guys do to prevent sizing lubes from getting in the cases?

Walt, I stay away from having to lube my case necks by using carbide neck sizing bushings in my dies. But then again, I'm shooting the 6PPC and 30BR. You may not. I also use conventional case lubes.

 

[queen_stick]

... what do you guys do to prevent sizing lubes from getting in the cases?

Walt, I stay away from having to lube my case necks by using carbide neck sizing bushings in my dies. But then again, I'm shooting the 6PPC and 30BR. You may not. I also use conventional case lubes.

I'm shooting a 6BR.
I tried not lubing the necks with my bushing dies, and it created excessive runout. I didn't know you could get carbide bushings though... that's interesting.

I see Sinclair makes them/sells them, but there's a very slim range to choose from (I'm guessing they're made for the ppc) - http://www.sinclairintl.com/.aspx/pid=33378/Product/Sinclair-Carbide-Sizing-Bushings

did you have your carbide bushings made, or did you buy them somewhere?

 

[queen_stick]

I had a couple of duds in the past. Same thing with a few granules hanging onto the inside of the neck. Best bet is to throw them back in the tumbler after all the case prep is complete. Or you could try Imperial lube as it is much easier to manage and control where it goes. I would retumble either way.

Appreciate your response. I'm trying to find a way to clean once, size, and load. I assumed that most people did that, and now I'm curious how they're getting away with it. Cleaning twice flat out sucks!

 

[RA]

Denatured Alcohol, toss them in a plastic jar, shake them around, drain, spread them out on a towel and most times they are dry in a half hour, use a little compressed air and they are dry sooner. Some residue remains at times but has never presented a problem with powder or primers; I reuse the same alcohol many times before discarding. In my case I use only Dillon’s case lube; it is lanolin base with an alcohol carrier, there are many imitators to Dillon’s case lube but none have compared so far.

Just my 2 cents………

Rick

 

[SteveNC]

I just rinse them is warm water after sizing. Ballistol forms an emulsion and is washed off easily... I dry first in a towel and them over an air vent overnight , works great for me.

 

[dhighlan]

I use Imperial wax when body or full sizing. If only neck sizing Imperial graphite, easy to wipe off and never a problem. I too have carbide bushings for ppc, br 6 and 30 but seem to get better neck consistency and less donuts when using graphite.

 

[in2deep]

Neat trick an old-timer taught me:

Before you leave the range throw your brass in a zip-lock baggie and spray some Ballistol in there and flop them around a few times like your breading a pork chop to get a little coating on them. The Ballistol will work it's magic and loosen up the gunk while your driving home.
When it's time to resize them take out one at a time and wipe the case clean with a paper towel or cloth and resize after reapplying more Ballistol. Don't apply the Balistol too thick or you will get those dents from hydraulic pressure around the shoulder if you look close.

Then tumble using your usual method to remove the Ballistol and as mentioned a quick dunk/rinse in alcohol gets them dried alot faster. You can even skip the tumbling and just give each case a quick turn in a cloth and they will be fairly clean then a alcohol dip rinses them off. The Balistol really seems to remove penetrated staining in the brass.

A different method is spinning a case in an electric drill (using a case holder) while wiping them with a cloth sprayed with Ballistol will get them really shiney ASAP if you like the bling look and no tumbling needed with this method just a quick rinse in the alcohol. It goes surprisingly fast if you don't have too many to do at a time.

 

[H2OBUG]

I use a light coat of Royal Case lube than tumble after-place in case box and blow out each case with dry compressed air.

Perp necks , prime and load

 

[queen_stick]

I did notice that ballistol cleans the brass very well. It also keeps the dies clean and rust free, which is another reason i like using it.

SteveNC - thanks for the tip in simply rinsing them off in water.... I do that already because I use an ultrasonic cleaner. That's not a big deal to me (It's a lot better/easier than tumbling or running the cases through the ultrasonic cleaner a second time). I use a dehydrator to dry my cases after I rinse them... works awesome!

I might try the alcohol trick at some point if I don't have time (or don't feel like waiting) for the dehydrator to evaporate the water.

Thanks guys... I think I'm on the right track now.

Walt

 

[queen_stick]

I use a light coat of Royal Case lube than tumble after-place in case box and blow out each case with dry compressed air.

Perp necks , prime and load

Are you sizing your cases while they're dirty?

 

[H2OBUG]

No I do a pre polish-- prior to sizing to clean the cases as much as possible-- I do not have an ultrasonic so that is about as good as I can do

I also clean my die between batches

 

[artbosco]

I'm shooting a 6BR. I didn't know you could get carbide bushings. Did you have your carbide bushings made, or did you buy them somewhere?

I bought mine from:

Bud Mundy, Director
NBRSA, Mississippi Valley Region
5956 Old Hickory Trail
Hillsboro, MO 63050-3251
Home: 636-797-5786
Cell: 641-425-3397

Give Bud a call. He carries a lot of different sizes. If he doesn't have what you need on hand, he'll order them. Carbide saves a lot of time.

They're $30 each, but the question to ask is, is the DIFFERENCE in price, between what I'd have to pay for steel or coated bushings worth the added cost of the carbide. For me it was.

 

[bigedp51]

Just switch to the old farmers reloading trick, I never stretched a teat or a case neck yet. (99.7% lanolin) ;D

P.S. It will keep your hands utterly soft too!

 

[Forum Boss]

I recommended the spray (aerosol) Ballistol. I spray a little on a cotton patch and wipe it on the case. The carbon comes off the neck pretty well. Then run the case in the die. You only need a very small amount of lube. After sizing I wipe off with a paper towel which removes almost everything.

NOTE: for heavy case forming, necking-up necks, or sizing operations which move the case dimensions alot I still recommend a heavier lube such as imperial die wax. But for basic sizing with brass from a tight-fitting chamber and using well-fitting dies, the Ballistol works better, faster than any other lube I've tried... so far. Comes off easy. If you have a lot of residue, you're probably using too much.

Or you could try Imperial lube as it is much easier to manage and control where it goes

I think if you try the Ballistol Aerosol on a patch you have more control, and you won't need to be so careful not to apply too much. As for the Dillon lube, I've tried it and I consider it far from ideal. But to each his own.

 

[1shot]

BigEdp51 is right. Bag Balm has been around forever and works great. Now, back on topic. I tumble my cases 1st, the place a small amount of Imperial between my thumb and index finger and wipe UP the case once I've placed it in the shell holder. After my cases are sized and de-primed, I lay an old towel on the floor and put the brass on it. I then use the el'cheapo brand of aerosol brake cleaner or electrical contact cleaner, and with the stem on it and give them a 3-4 sec. blast (saves on product). Grab the 4 corners of the towel and use the same method as described by In2deep simply alternate raising one arm, then the other for 5-10 seconds and set the towel and brass back on the floor. It's all clean and dry, with any remains from your sizing process left on the towel. It's the fastest way I've found so far and the brass is completely dry and clean.
I hope this helps,
Lloyd

 

[amlevin]

I use a Lee Collet die for all my neck sizing. Clean cases stay clean, no lube anywhere after sizing. Also less work hardening. No more undersizing of the neck first then running an expander through it to bring it back to the correct size.

 

[Will]

I thought it was udderly soft ? Hmmmm ...

 

[louielouie]

It's only an udder failure if it doesn't give milk...