View Full Version : Are there any alternatives to Case Lube?
McCormickDeering M
03-23-2013, 09:50
Are there any alternatives to case lube? I lost my old tub and I swear, its being hoarded like everything else...... Could not find it any where,. But does anyone know of anything else that could be used? The stuff I had could also be used as saddle soap, can saddle soap be used?
I use to use Dillon Spray Lube then I started making my own. I use a product called "Fluid Film" and alcohol solvent. The fluid film costs $10.00 per can but you mix it with a little lacquer thinner to start the mix and then add the alcohol. I think a can of the fluid film would make maybe 5 gallons of case lube. Don't use around sparks or open flame. Just pour the mix in a spray bottle and coat the cases.
broom jockey
03-23-2013, 11:26
How about powdered graphite?
Parashooter
03-23-2013, 11:30
Plain cheap castor oil is one of the slickest case lubricants available. Small bottles can be found at drugstores, larger quantities at model airplane hobby suppliers. For those who like to spray, it can be dissolved in alcohol and applied with a common pump-type spray bottle.
McCormickDeering M
03-23-2013, 12:58
Thank you guys for the help. I am going to try the castor oil because I can find it. I would love to try the graphite, but the only place I have ever found it was napa and they are out. Thank you for saving my Sunday!
PhillipM
03-23-2013, 01:04
I've heard of people using Pam veggie oil spray, but never attempted it myself.
Lanolin, STP, liquid soaps, some types of wax.
Jerry Liles
Crisco vegetable shortening, it's worked for me for years. Your wife probably has a can in the refridg or on the shelf.
Maury Krupp
03-23-2013, 04:08
PAM or any store brand equivilent.
Use sparingly; a little goes a long way. A light spray in a bag or over a tub; toss like a salad to distribute.
De-grease your die afterwards with any good solvent (eg, carb cleaner, mineral spirits, etc). The soybean oil will oxidize and gum up if left too long.
Maury
musketshooter
03-24-2013, 06:46
I use 80-90 gear oil on a stamp pad. A quart will last a lifetime. I have never stuck a case and it wipes off easily with a towel.
Maury Krupp
03-24-2013, 08:09
I've had one person tell me the mineral spirits he was using to remove the asphalt sealant from case necks worked well as lube.
He soaked the cases overnight to dissolve the sealant then ran them through the die while still wet.
I'm tempted to try this myself. Mineral spirits might be slippery enough when wet then would dry quickly on its own leaving no residue. No clean up of either brass or die.
Hmmm...
Maury
Hefights
03-24-2013, 08:43
Plain cheap castor oil is one of the slickest case lubricants available. Small bottles can be found at drugstores, larger quantities at model airplane hobby suppliers. For those who like to spray, it can be dissolved in alcohol and applied with a common pump-type spray bottle.
"Castrol" lubricant company got their name from Castor Oil. It is known as having a variety of industrial applications.
LARscout
03-25-2013, 06:28
Artillery lube. Where I found it...or why I have a couple lbs is a mystery to me.
Neats foot oil. It's great for leather, too.
Maury Krupp
03-30-2013, 09:02
Tried mineral spirits as a case lube today. No worky :(
The cases felt slippery enough but I could tell when they started to enter the die that it wasn't gonna happen.
Maybe I wasn't using the right stuff or maybe there's a trick to it.
Anyway back to PAM for me.
Maury
A lot of good ideas. I've found that by neck sizing only
you don't need a case lube. If and when I need to full length
size I'll probably try Musketshooter's idea.
holdover
03-31-2013, 08:40
I use a stamp pad and Kroil, just a bit goes a very long way and much better then anything else I have ever used in over 40 years.
Hefights
04-01-2013, 05:38
I'm using RCBS water soluble lube on a pad, works great, dont need to change to anything else, easy to clean off.
You can buy a Pam-like spray cheaply from the dollar store but I forgot how much it sells for!
Outdoors Stores sell a beeswax prep for boots called Sno-Seal. It works great as a lube. I use about a fingertip full spread around on the palm of my hand and worked for a minute or so on a frisbee full of pistol cases. You dont need 100% coverage of each case as the wax seems to stay in the die.
M1Riflenut
04-08-2013, 12:07
I've been spoiled by the RCBS lube in a spray bottle. I'll lay out a cookie sheet of cases, hit them with a couple small "spritz's" from the neck end, lift the sheet slightly so they roll a bit and then hit the other side with a squirt or two. Doing it from the neck end allows the inside of the necks to get a little lube as well and they resize easily. The stuff lasts a long time and is pretty cheap IMHO. I don't care for the various canned aerosol lubes, they cost much more, use up quickly and work like crap. Lube pads are ok but take a lot more time. Many years ago a LGS owner suggested I try the pump bottle and I've never looked back since.
Matt Anthony
04-09-2013, 02:55
There are two case lubes that are superior in my opinion, RCBS case lube you use with a pad or Imperial sizing die wax. I checked online for case lube thinking that those money grubing hoarders have a conspiracy against us and found you can buy case lube from every source. The hoarders have not caught on to case lube yet!
I just got my order from a friend who bought Green Dot from Powder Valley two days before they shut off all back orders. The 8lbs was 106.95 plus hazmat and shipping. Gun World in Germantown Wisconsin sold me 2 one pound containers of Green Dot last week for $25.00 a pound plus tax.
All retailers who raised their prices due to demand, I plan on remembering when stocks are again plentiful. I will only buy from the companies that didn't gouge us!
Matt
I've been spoiled by the RCBS lube in a spray bottle. I'll lay out a cookie sheet of cases, hit them with a couple small "spritz's" from the neck end, lift the sheet slightly so they roll a bit and then hit the other side with a squirt or two. Doing it from the neck end allows the inside of the necks to get a little lube as well and they resize easily. The stuff lasts a long time and is pretty cheap IMHO. I don't care for the various canned aerosol lubes, they cost much more, use up quickly and work like crap. Lube pads are ok but take a lot more time. Many years ago a LGS owner suggested I try the pump bottle and I've never looked back since.
I used to do it that way on a cookie sheet. I started using a gallon sise zip loc bag and spray bottle. Much faster than the cookie sheet method.
I just tried using Bag Balm in the green can and it worked great! Rub some on your lube pad and you are ready to go. I think the lanolin in it is what makes it so slippery. One small can should last a long, long time. Give it a try.
older than dirt
05-04-2013, 06:09
Hi, has anyone ever used siilicon lube in the spray cans?
Don Steele
06-11-2013, 06:57
Imperial sizing wax..AWESOME stuff
I've heard of people using Pam veggie oil spray, but never attempted it myself.
Y'all don't have popcorn in MS? The spray popcorn stuff works & smells better than Pam. :)
Down side is that I re-load to keep myself from snacking in the evenings. Popcorn topping makes me crave salty munchies.
John Kepler
06-29-2013, 06:19
PAM or any store brand equivilent.
Use sparingly; a little goes a long way. A light spray in a bag or over a tub; toss like a salad to distribute.
De-grease your die afterwards with any good solvent (eg, carb cleaner, mineral spirits, etc). The soybean oil will oxidize and gum up if left too long.
Maury
On this line, the DIY "Improoved" version is soy lecithin (available at ANY health food store like a GNC) dissolved in alcohol (as long as you aren't using it for cooking, any SD ethanol will do.......if you're going to cook with it, get a bottle of "Everclear" grain alky)!
glockbox
03-12-2014, 08:03
I make and use my own. I bought a bottle of Lanolin off of Ebay, a bottle of 90 percent alcohol and a empty spray bottle from walmart. I pour a small amount of lanolin into the spray bottle then add the alcohol. I leave and inch or two of space to allow for mixing, shake well then spray on cases, the alcohol evaporates quickly and is the best lube I have ever used. It's a lot like Dillon's case lube but a whole lot cheaper. Plus it works great for dry skin too.
This is my first post so you can call me a old new guy. I use candle wax and about 18% STP or synthetic motor oil through my sizer lubricator. All of my cast bullets are resized with the exception of black powder bullets.
This is my first post so you can call me a old new guy. I use candle wax and about 18% STP or synthetic motor oil through my sizer lubricator. All of my cast bullets are resized with the exception of black powder bullets.
This thread is about CASE lube . . . NOT bullet lube.
This thread is about CASE lube . . . NOT bullet lube.
But good to know info as well.
psteinmayer
03-31-2014, 05:13
Agreed Allen. As we all are in search of wisdom and knowledge, any new info is good info. Besides, He is a newbie, and we don't want to scare him off after his first post!
Thanks for the info Patret, and welcome to the forum!
Ops, Case lube is StP but I keep it away from the neck, Sorry about the mistake on my part. There will be more to follow. I remove the lube with media along with a tea spoon of paint thinner in my tumbler.
Varmintpopper
03-31-2014, 06:02
I use Kiwi Mink oil shoe polish, You can purchase it just about anywhere, Put the cases in a round bottom bowl of some sort,
Rub the tips of Your fingers across the polish and then stir the cases around in the bowl with them, You will soon learn how much
polish to apply, It does't take much. Most of the time You don't even need to wipe the polish off the loaded cases, but if You do,
then just roll them around on a laid out towel and they clean up real easy. It also helps to keep the cases from tarnishing.
Good Shooting
Lindy
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