Pan lubing

[Chance]

I'll be getting into casting in a few weeks when the weather picks up - I do it outdoors. Would be interested in your pan lube methods and the constituents of your lube. If you are using branded stuff remember to translate to a UK description! 

Chance

[major]

I assume that you want to mold and lube pistol caliber bullets.  I had a friend that lubed his Black powder bullets using the pan method.  But once I demonstrated how the lubrisizer worked he converted.  Using a Lyman or RCBS lub-o-Matic sizer and luber you won't go back to pan lubing.

[Drydock]

But to actually address the questions asked:  Every once 'n awhile, I help clean my local church.  This allows me to take all the old candle stubs I want. (Catholic: Canon Law requires candles to be of natural materials, IE Beeswax)  I melt these down, and add olive oil to get the desire texture, maybe 10% of the mix.  I melt it in bread pans, one deep, for rifle bullets, one shallow for pistol rounds.  I cut the bullets out of the still warm lube with a fired case, usually a bottleneck case of the correct caliber, with the primer end cut off to allow the lubed bullets to pass thru. Might have to wiggle it a bit to break suction with the pan.  This leaves nice holes to refill, to place back on the heat until just enough melt to fill the grooves has taken place.  When done, the pans with their lube are placed in plastic bags and stored until the next round.

[Good Troy]

My method is a mess....I may have to go with Drydock's method.  But for reference (and humiliation) purposes, I will describe what I do...

I use a homemade lube of beeswax, crisco, and canola oil.  About 50/50 beeswax to crisco by weight, and add oil to make about 10% of total final weight. 

I melt this in a double boiler, and pour into a cake pan with the bullets placed in them.  I allow to cool, then remove the "bullet cake" from the pan.  I press the bullets out by hand.  Re-melt the remaining lube, and repeat.  It is messy.  I often have issues with lube getting on top of the bullet, and then that makes its way to the bullet seating step....makes a mess of the seating/crimping die.  I have to be careful, and keep this die clean, or it can build up and seat the bullet too deep. 

[greyhawk]

But to actually address the questions asked:  Every once 'n awhile, I help clean my local church.  This allows me to take all the old candle stubs I want. (Catholic: Canon Law requires candles to be of natural materials, IE Beeswax)  I melt these down, and add olive oil to get the desire texture, maybe 10% of the mix.  I melt it in bread pans, one deep, for rifle bullets, one shallow for pistol rounds.  I cut the bullets out of the still warm lube with a fired case, usually a bottleneck case of the correct caliber, with the primer end cut off to allow the lubed bullets to pass thru. Might have to wiggle it a bit to break suction with the pan.  This leaves nice holes to refill, to place back on the heat until just enough melt to fill the grooves has taken place.  When done, the pans with their lube are placed in plastic bags and stored until the next round.

What Drydock does - plus this - I use one of those electric blower heat guns like they sell for paint stripping to remelt my lube after I refill the cutout holes - started doing it to assuage the missus - she complaining about the smell of lube in the kitchen - but - hey presto!!! its way quicker and at the same time you dont burn the lube - I use an old cork placemat under the lube pan - this is just so quick and easy - discovered it completely by accident!

[ira scott]

I have found through trial and very messy error, that when you are ready to remove the bullets from the lube cake a little time in the freezer helps them pop right out! If I remember correctly my last lube recipe was 50/50 Crisco/beeswax with a dab of olive oil. I have used a lubrisizer also, but that one at a time thing gets old real quick.

[hp246]

a great resource is the forum at castboolits.gunloads.com  quite a few recipes and methods for pan loading (and every other reloading questions you might have).

[greyhawk]

I have found through trial and very messy error, that when you are ready to remove the bullets from the lube cake a little time in the freezer helps them pop right out! If I remember correctly my last lube recipe was 50/50 Crisco/beeswax with a dab of olive oil. I have used a lubrisizer also, but that one at a time thing gets old real quick.

We must be doing things different - or I am seriously misunderstanding what you write? - if I put it in the freezer for a bit and then popped the boolits out of the lube cake - most of them would end up with empty (or at least half empty) lube grooves ? I need to use a cookie cutter of some sort - like Drydock describes - to make sure I have boolits with full lube grooves - our lube mix seems like it would be similar (50% beeswax/50%neatsfoot oil?) .. I am intrigued how you are doing this???......... 

[Baltimore Ed]

I used commercial lube when I lubed this way. I also put the tray into the freezer before I used the cutter to remove them from the lube. Not messy at all. Eventually got a lubrisizer but last year I started playing with powdercoated bullets. An alternative to lube. They shoot as well as any other at cas distances and I'm using up my mystery lead I've accumulated over the years.

[Coffinmaker]

Nah.

Nah Nah.

Nah Nah Nah.

APP.  No lube at all.  No muss no fuss.  No greasy fingers.  Load yer Cap Guns and munch a Snickers at the same time.  Easy Peasy.

PS:  Note.  This post contributes absolutely NOTHING to this thread and does NOT help with the OP's query.  It's just Wednesday, it's really cold outside, it's snowing and I don't have any French Fries or Pop Corn.  So I'm being SNARKY.  You may ignore this entire entry.  Actually, you SHOULD ignore this entire entry.

PSS:  Switch to APP or Black MZ. 

[Coal Creek Griff]

I've been pan-lubing for smokeless for a long time.  I use a silicone 8X8 cake pan, which is very flexible.  I made a couple of wooden blocks similar to loading blocks by drilling evenly spaced holes into a square board.  It fits inside the pan.  I fill the holes with my bullets nose-down, then put the silicone pan over the top of the block upside down.  I put a thin board on top of that to hold everything in place, then turn the whole works right side up.  Then I carefully lift the wooden block off, leaving rows of bullets sitting base-down in the pan.  I melt my lube in a double-boiler consisting of a large tall tin can (from pineapple juice or something) inside an old-fashioned enamelware coffee pot (usually melting it on my wood stove since we heat with wood).  When it is good and hot, I pour the lube into the pan until it covers the lube grooves.  I like the lube to be hot so that it fills the grooves well and cools in place--it seems to stick better.  When it is cool, I can flex the silicone pan and remove the whole lube block with the bullets sticking through it.  I can then push the bullets out and the lube (mostly) stays in the grooves.  If I try to do that when it hasn't cooled enough, the lube comes out of the grooves too much.  If I wait until it is too hard, it is hard to get them out without making my fingers sore.  I have put the pan in the freezer to hasten things, but if I forget it, then it gets too cool.

As for lube, for smokeless loads, I have been using a variation of Darr Lube, which is paraffin/Vaseline with a couple of other ingredients.  I've put a little lanolin and beeswax in it too, but only because I had some and tried it on a whim.  It's been kind of like sourdough starter for me--I just add some ingredients when it starts running low, so who knows what is really all in there?  At handgun velocities, it seems to work fine.

I do have an older Lyman sizer and a .429 die left to me by my grandfather.  I set it up once when I was trying a lube with mainly beeswax and lanolin, but it was a sticky mess and I couldn't keep it from getting all over the outside of the tool.  I unbolted it from my bench when I added a second reloading press and I haven't gotten around to finding a new place for the sizer.  I went back to Lee push-through sizers (for those bullets that need it) and pan lubing.  For me it's just easier, although I will say that lubing is the only part of casting or loading that I don't enjoy...

CC Griff

[greyhawk]

I used commercial lube when I lubed this way. I also put the tray into the freezer before I used the cutter to remove them from the lube. Not messy at all. Eventually got a lubrisizer but last year I started playing with powdercoated bullets. An alternative to lube. They shoot as well as any other at cas distances and I'm using up my mystery lead I've accumulated over the years.

Ed
You used a cutter - I thought from the tone of the post that Ira Scott had some secret way of popping them out many at a time without using a cutter - I cant imagine how that works but if it did I wanna know about it !!!

[Coal Creek Griff]

I "pop them out" one at a time, but without a cutter.  I suspect that it has more to do with the consistency of the lube than any technique that makes it possible.

CC Griff

[Chance]

Thanks for all of the replies, guys.

Major, space, and to a lesser extent finances, rule out the lubrisizer. I have lots of time so pan lubing will be fast enough.

Drydock, is this Catholic rule about beeswax international? Sounds like a good source. I can buy beeswax but it's costly.

I take it that Crisco is cooking fat?

Chance

[Jefro]

Howdy Chance, are you talking about lubing for Black Powder or that smokeless stuff . If BP check out the Darksiders Den and The Dark Arts, plenty of stuff on pan lubing and Big Lube bullet molds. If it's for smokeless just get some liquid Alox, or some moly coat, or  Johnson paste wax, or several other products that only require spraying or shaking or baking ....etc..etc. Pan lubing is a total waste of time for smokeless. And when you do decide it's time for a lube-sizer the Star is the best...I have one for BP, and one for that other funny powder Good Luck

[hp246]

Howdy Chance, are you talking about lubing for Black Powder or that smokeless stuff . If BP check out the Darksiders Den and The Dark Arts, plenty of stuff on pan lubing and Big Lube bullet molds. If it's for smokeless just get some liquid Alox, or some moly coat, or  Johnson paste wax, or several other products that only require spraying or shaking or baking ....etc..etc. Pan lubing is a total waste of time for smokeless. And when you do decide it's time for a lube-sizer the Star is the best...I have one for BP, and one for that other funny powder Good Luck

Do you have any beekeeper buddies?  I have one that give me all the beeswax I want in the fall. 

[greyhawk]

I "pop them out" one at a time, but without a cutter.  I suspect that it has more to do with the consistency of the lube than any technique that makes it possible.

CC Griff

Maybe I use too much wax in my lube but its working good in the bore - so not too keen to change it !
Shape of lube grooves part of the story too maybe - maybe tht pop em idea work ok with Dicks biglube boolits ? 

[Drydock]

Yep, it's an international rule.  Crisco is hydrogenated (solidified) vegetable oil.  Cap 'n ballers have been known to smear it on straight, but the melting point is too low for good cartridge bullet lube.

What Griff is talking about, is that once the lube cake is full solid and cold, you can often tip the cake and embedded bullets out of  the pan, and then push them out of the lube FROM THE BOTTOM.  This can work well, as long as the cake remains intact.  I don't have the patience for this,  I can cycle the pans faster cutting the bullets from the still warm/soft lube.

For some of my single shot bullets, I simply dip the bullets into a tuna can filled with melted lube.  This is very fast and easy, and leaves a lovely wax gas check on the bullet base.  I then run them upside down thru an appropriate Lee Sizer.  The excess lube squeezed out of the sizer is used as flux in my lead pot.