I use Hornady and Dillon spray...essentially the same stuff. I use it on straight cases and bottleneck with carbide dies. Even makes for less work with the Dilon presses. Case go in a shoebox size plastic container spray..shake spray again...leave overnight then load after drying... wet alcohol does not lube case. I do use Imperial for rifle cases loaded on non-progressive presses. I still have some small bottles of OLD CH lube I am pretty sure contain STP. Bonanza used to sell small containers of pure lanolin with no additives that worked very well... but my wife found 'em and used 'em all up on her skin. Her skin is still pretty soft for an older(than me) woman...Hmmmm I could pay for that
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Let's talk about case lube....
- Thread starter rwsmith
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GypsmJim
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Don't you need to clean the cases afterwards? Doesn't some of the lube get inside the cases and thus mix with the powder?
I was a big fan of STP back when it first came out, mixed 50/50 with 30wt motor oil it is an excellent assembly lube, it was the go to assembly lube for early air cooled V.W. engines back in the day.
I remember adding a can to an engine while performing an oil change. I was wearing a fairly new pair of jeans and absent mindedly wiped some of the STP onto my jeans. The spot where I wiped my hands never faded, remained fresh dark blue while the rest of the jeans faded naturally.
Carbide dies for straight walled pistol cartridges.
Redding Imperial Sizing Wax for bottlenecked cartridges and .45-70.
Graphite powder for inside case necks when needed.
I overlooked this recently and started having some trouble with .44 Magnum on my progressive press. It took a while to remove all of the brass from the expander in the Lyman M-Die. The crimp die also had a ring of brass - turned out copper removing bore cleaner did a good job there.
I did buy some Hornady One-Shot Case Lube to spray inside those dies in the future. (Cabelas only had the gun lube in stock)
Redding Imperial Sizing Wax for bottlenecked cartridges and .45-70.
Graphite powder for inside case necks when needed.
I overlooked this recently and started having some trouble with .44 Magnum on my progressive press. It took a while to remove all of the brass from the expander in the Lyman M-Die. The crimp die also had a ring of brass - turned out copper removing bore cleaner did a good job there.
I did buy some Hornady One-Shot Case Lube to spray inside those dies in the future. (Cabelas only had the gun lube in stock)
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DWalt
Member
I have always used STP. I thin it a little with mineral spirits, apply it on a pad, like an ink pad. Never felt the need for anything else.
Kp321
Member
I have been loading for 60+ years and have used most of the lubes that have been mentioned. Nothing beats wax, either Imperial or the brown Hornady stuff. I use lube with carbide dies to reduce handle effort, a big deal at my age. As an aside, I have only stuck two cases in all my years of reloading and on both of them I was using spray lube. One Hornady, one Dillon.
pantannojack
US Veteran
I read long ago from one of my dog eared book manuals advice against using motor oil. A chemical within may degrade the brass.
OP
It crossed my mind today.......
....that RCBS isn't STP (Though it does resemble it) because STP is a petroleum product which isn't too good for powder and primers.
....that RCBS isn't STP (Though it does resemble it) because STP is a petroleum product which isn't too good for powder and primers.
venomballistics
Member
here's where we need to put in some effort to keep our eye on the ball.
BE Mike is from the lanolin and alcohol camp. He would seem to bypass the issue through chemestry.
I'm from the STP camp where I size and deprime before sending to the tumbler, addressing the issue through process.
One of the out in left field things I used back in the early mid 60s was Sperm oil. I still have an old metal case lube pad from RCBS with the whale oil. I used it lightly reassembling guns. I used it when making 22 Varminter brass from 30-06. Brownell's sold it BITD. Lot of work but I had gobs of 30-06 brass from Aberdeen Proving Ground. Stll have about 8 oubces of that oil left
OP
I resized..
...about 160 .223 cases last night using RCBS-2. Smooth, easy, not a hitch. I'm going to try some .38s and I'll try the Hornady One Shot again, this time shaking it better and giving them some time to dry.
...about 160 .223 cases last night using RCBS-2. Smooth, easy, not a hitch. I'm going to try some .38s and I'll try the Hornady One Shot again, this time shaking it better and giving them some time to dry.
The answer to both questions is no. At my advanced age, I agree with the phrase, "Work smarter, not harder".
stu1ritter
US Veteran
I use carbide dies but still appreciate the reduction in press arm effort from putting a wee bit of RCBS case lube on the first case I size when doing a run. When that case comes out of the resizer I wipe it down and also wipe down the next case going thru and I'm good for the next hundred cases. At that point, I refill the primer tube and relube another case. The carbide dies just take a whisper of lube to reduce press lever pressure.
Stu
Stu
DWalt
Member
After loading is complete I usually wipe down the cartridges with a piece of paper towel dampened with mineral spirits. More with rifle cartridges than handgun. Something you can do while watching TV.
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GypsmJim
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I never lube pistol cases, so regardless of what type lube is used it's a non-issue.
Also, I tumble only about half the time. Most of my spent brass is clean and shiny enough to be sized as-is.
I like the ezpeazy approach.
I was pleasantly surprised once. I bought a stuck case remover for 5 bucks Took it to a gun show put up a sifn stuck cases removed 5 dollars I removed 14 in 2 days and then sold the tool for 10 dollars. It was just a off the wall thing. I was surprised how many people had stuck cases..most of them had already bought new sets of dies> I have one die I can't get the case out of...a 300 Sav...in the freezer I have heated and frozen numerous times...still stuck
Gripgrabber
US Veteran
Call me crazy but I stumbled across using lemon pledge furniture polish as a case lubricant. It works great but dries kinda fast. Don’t knock it till you try it. Plus the wifey likes the smell.
Semper paratus
Semper paratus
bruce381
Member
I use all carbide dies for pistol no lube. Rifle i use RCBS case lube II it is NOT castor or or STP it is water soluble. I size first then rinse in warm water or tumble in wet pins.
Marksman
Member
Sizing lube...........
I have used Imperial Sizing Wax for many years now with complete satisfaction. Apply with your finger tips and remove with a microfiber cloth and rubbing alcohol.
I have used Imperial Sizing Wax for many years now with complete satisfaction. Apply with your finger tips and remove with a microfiber cloth and rubbing alcohol.
Exactly my way of doing too, ever since Redding Imperial Sizing wax hit the market. I first seen it appear in Precision Shooting Mag. back in the 90's
