Pan lubing - works.
Pan lubing - PITA !

So, I'm dipping now.

see pix

Push through "sizing" is next to leave the lube only in the grooves.

More pix.

Yes, it is a LITTLE messy, but LESS so than pan lubing and handling it LESS often.  Dip it, stick to the tray, size and then load.

At the moment I'm not sequencing them.  But this would be MUCH easier as the bullets can be stuck to the tray in order.

Two sizing dies - one not pictured is the .311 diameter Lee and the other is a .412 diameter home-made from a piece of 7/8-14 all-thread and an extended home-made ram.

Amazing.

      Joe.

I sure don't like pan lubing.  I dip also.  A lot less messy the way I do it, but I don't know that it's THE way.

I use a precision lab hotplate to hold temp, just above melting.  I use a shallow, small can filled to nearly the top with lube.  I think it came from canned green chili, and holds maybe 4 ounces.  I hold the bullet by the nose and dip it in, pull it out, dip again to fill the grooves completely.  Then, I wipe the bullet base clean on a wax paper sheet on a smooth piece of formica covered board.   Line up the bullets on one side of the wax paper, and you can keep them in order cast if that makes you happy.

Then, I take a cartridge case sized to a slip fit, push the bullet in, and it cuts off the excess lube.  Wipe it off with your finger back into the melting pot, pull the bullet back out of the case, and place the bullet into the plastic or styrofoam tray from a box of pistol bullets.  Ready to load.  Probably takes about 5 to 8 seconds each to dip, wipe and line up the bullets, and another few seconds to cut lube, wipe, and put in a tray.  Fastest and easiest way I have found to lube, and least messy.  And, never drop a pan of bullets.  When I'm done, I use a putty knife, scrape off the excess lube I wiped on the wax paper, and put it back in the can.  Put the can in a zip lock bag to keep it clean for next time. No mess, no waste, and fast and easy.  Doesn't get much better than that!

dave

I pan. Sometimes I dip. On occasion I hand lube. Bot...
Lubrisizer with oversize/correct diameter die?? Lube whatever grooves needed sans sizing. 
Mostly my bullets work with 1 groove lubed. My grease star is not as impressive as others, but no leading and accuracy is fine. 
joe b.

3.4.9 HOLES IN BULLET BASES AND CASTING SPEED

     I can cast smaller bullets in single cavity molds quickly, pouring the metal and opening the sprue plate and dropping the bullet out quickly, with no problems or bullet defects attributable to the speed.
     With 30 caliber bullets in double cavity molds, or larger caliber bullets such as 45 caliber in single cavity molds, I need to cast slower. I have to wait and let the sprue harden; else the sprue plate will pull metal away and leave holes in bullet bases. After a lengthy search I found some bullets with holes in the bases. Most of my bullets are cast perfectly. If you believe that...
Here's a picture of Wolf 45 NGG (no grease groove) bullets with holes in the bases.

It would seem that I could reduce the temperature of the alloy and get into the fast casting mode; but that doesn't work for me.  I can speed up the casting by cooling either the bottom of the mold or the top/sprue plate on a damp sponge. This works, speed is greatly increased. To summarize; to keep the bullet bases free of holes, I can wait until the mold cools down, cool the mold on a wet sponge, or cool the mold on a muffin pan. Using the wet sponge is right now my method of choice. 


From Dan Theodore
     Here's a simple tip that can speedup your casting sessions as well as improve how smooth the bullet's base is. 
     One reason that some molds produce base tears is because the sprue-plate hole is dull. What is meant is that the bottom of the hole acts like a knife when it cuts the sprue. Some molds have sprue-plate holes that are not counter-sunk all the way thereby leaving a very dull edge. That will cause base tears. 
     The quick fix is to remove the sprue-plate, make sure it is clean on the bottom. Next, take a chamfering tool, I use a Hornady, and chamfer the hole from the top side. Once a fingernail can be drug from the outside into the hole and there is a slight lip all the way around, the chamfering job is done. If no lip can be felt, keep chamferi

shovel80 wrote on Jun 25^th, 2013 at 11:04pm:


If you like it - keep doin' it! 

I get tied of sore thumbs pushing the bullets out (IF the lube is harder).  Much less (for me) bother of pouring the lube in, WAITING, punching out, remelting.