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Old March 29, 2009, 09:47 PM   #1
b money
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cleaning case lube off cases

Is an old rag good enough or should I re-tumble them or I guess I could put them in some water since the lube is water soluble. I'm asking because when I wipe the cases off it just seems like not all of the lube is comeing off

any other tips, pointers, etc about reloading 308win would be great to

Thanks
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Old March 29, 2009, 09:55 PM   #2
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I lube, size and deprime, roll the case on the towel on my leg and then it goes straight to the trimmer, then the loading block. Seems to work for me. they could be a little shinier but look pretty good and don't load up w/ gunk prior to my shooting them.
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Old March 29, 2009, 10:16 PM   #3
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A cotton rag always worked for me.
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Old March 29, 2009, 10:26 PM   #4
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I use denatured alcohol on a paper towel. It's cheap,(get it in paint stores), a little goes a long way and disposable. It also works to take off the sharpie marks I use to ID the loads. What's not to like?
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Old March 29, 2009, 11:25 PM   #5
FrankenMauser
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Reloading rifle cartridges is a labor of love for me. Each round is carefully hand-crafted.

I have gone to 100% Imperial Sizing Wax for lubricant. As such... I wipe each case down by hand, after sizing. This also gives me a chance to inspect each case for defects or imperfections that may have arisen during sizing.




Pistol rounds are cranked out in volume. (Not as much love, and no lube there.)
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Old March 29, 2009, 11:31 PM   #6
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I lube, size, deprime then tumble
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Old March 30, 2009, 01:29 AM   #7
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Quote:
(Not as much love, and no lube there.)
We are still talking about reloading....right????
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Old March 30, 2009, 04:06 AM   #8
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That greasy mess will get all over your dies and plunger, not to mention failing to burn completely, affecting accuracy. Use powdered graphite. -7-
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Old March 30, 2009, 07:07 AM   #9
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depends on the case... tougher ones like 5.7 X 28 or 17 Hornet pre-fireform sizing, ( these cases I use Frankford Arsonal's spray lube, & lube the cases in a plastic sandwich box, & swirl them around, insuring I get some inside th case mouth ) I ususually put in another plastic sandwich box with a little dish soap & hot water, replace the cover & shake around a little, then rinse well, & dry them off, & blow out the insides... I then stand them up & let them air dry overnight...

easier ones, I'll either tumble ( this media will get lube in / on it, & should be rotated out occasionally ), or wipe dry, depending on how they were lubed...( larger cases I roll on a pad, & use a powdered neck sizing lube ), & just wiping them off is just fine...
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Old March 30, 2009, 07:21 AM   #10
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Mr Odd Six

I tried tumbling after depriming and found the media would often block the flash hole? How do you get around this?

I now just tumble the cases (.44 mag & .44-40) with the spent primers in, then I clean and lightly lube the inside of my carbide FLSD with Inox at the beginning of each run of sizing/de-priming and then put the cases thru with no additional lube. When I finish the run I just clean and lube the inside of the FLSD so it doesnt rust before I use it again.

With a clean carbide FLSD, I dont think case lube is neccessary IMO

Works great for me, been doing it this way for years now, (since I discovered Inox)

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Last edited by Dingoboyx; March 30, 2009 at 07:23 AM. Reason: added word carbide
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Old March 30, 2009, 09:44 AM   #11
FrankenMauser
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Quote:
With a clean carbide FLSD, I dont think case lube is neccessary
For most pistol cartridges, I agree.

Some of the large pistol cartridges, and almost all rifle cartridges require lube. It matters not, that you have a Carbide die.


Quote:
We are still talking about reloading....right????
I think so.
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Old March 30, 2009, 03:37 PM   #12
James R. Burke
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I guess that will always be a pain. I just wipe each one with a old rag like you asked. When I am done loading I have a cotton rag, and give each one a buff. They dont need it, but I just like them to look really good.
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Old March 31, 2009, 05:36 PM   #13
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thanks everyone
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Old March 31, 2009, 08:15 PM   #14
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A variation on previous posts. For bottleneck rifle cases I use two medium or small towels. I fold them length wise to a width of about 8 to 10 inches while keeping them at full length. Lay 20 to 30 small rifle cases or 10 to 20 large rifle cases on the bottom towel. Adjust the rounds to point to or away from you. Place the other towel over the top and rub them back and forth for a couple of moments with your palm on the upper towel. Change the folds and repeat for the next batch. "Poof" the lube is gone and you are finished in record time. Wash the towels after every 200 to 300 rounds. You can tumble the rounds for 5 or 10 minutes if you want a perfect shine but it isn't necessary.
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Old March 31, 2009, 08:39 PM   #15
Mr Odd Six
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Quote:
I tried tumbling after depriming and found the media would often block the flash hole? How do you get around this?
As I pull them out of the tumbler I use a straight lock pick (any awl will do) and punch the media back into the case which is upside down (it falls out)
Then I hit it with a blast from my 165lb air compressor.

Then I peak thru the hole, and set it in the shell holder rack.
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Old March 31, 2009, 10:18 PM   #16
Alleykat
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I just tumbled around 400 rounds of .223s, in order to remove the case lube. Works great.
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Old March 31, 2009, 11:04 PM   #17
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I do pretty much the same thing as WmCC, with folded cotton rags to take off the excess lube. I'm using RCBS lube on a pad, the old-fashioned way, after having "learning disorders" with spray lubes.

As I'm resizing/depriming/repriming at station 1 in my press, I don't put the reprimed brass in water...
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Old April 1, 2009, 04:08 AM   #18
JT-AR-MG42
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Franken is spot on about Imperial

It is the best lube out there, bar none. I have made more than a few converts to it, simply by giving them a partial tin to try.
Now we differ on one point. Loading is a labor of necessity, not love!
I put a pile ( 50 - 200 ) of sized cases on an old cotton bath robe, hose them with some lighter fluid, grab the corners up and rub them around vigorously to remove the lube. All while not smoking! Let them dry for a bit and prime.
Don't use charcoal fluid though. The kerosene leaves a residue and smell.
My .02, JT
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Old April 1, 2009, 04:37 AM   #19
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can u tell me if i use graphite powder and then wipe off the case and make sure there is not heaps of it inside the case will there be any effects on the load or rifle?

if there will be negative effects how do i clean the inside of the case?
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Old April 1, 2009, 07:39 AM   #20
sleepercaprice1
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I load a lot of .223 and always tumble them for a few minutes when I'm done loading them.
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Old April 1, 2009, 04:23 PM   #21
chuck_in_texas
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removing lube

Some of my pistol dies are about 20+ years old, and I've been replacing them one at a time with carbide.

But when I lubed-----and had no tumbler-----here's what I did. I'd lube then immediately re-size and de-prime. I'd stop at that point. (I might do several calibers at once.)

I'd throw the cases into a bucket, add a cup of laundry detergent, and fill with hot water and let it soak overnight.

Next day I'd rinse well, pour them through an old colander and lay them out on an old worn-out cookie sheet. Pop them into a 225 degree over. (That's not hot enough to anneal them, but would dry them in a few minutes.)

Then when they cooled, I'd finish the other steps. Now the cases were never shiny, but they were clean.

I suppose I was subjecting the sizing/de-priming dies to more wear, but they lasted well over 20 years. In fact, they still work. I'm switching to carbide not becasue the old dies were worn out, but just for the convenience of not having to lube.
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Old April 1, 2009, 08:21 PM   #22
rodfac
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The only brass that I tumble is .30 Carbine or .30-06 which has been fired in a Carbine or Garand...they pick up dirt when ejected. All the rest, I lightly wipe off in the case of pistol, or lube for rifle.

Pistol/Revolver...no lube is necessary for ANY straight sided case....32 to the big .45's. Buy carbide dies, the others make no sense since you only need ONE grain of sand to ruin them. Carbide doesn't care. My .38/.357 carbide sizer was ordered from Herter's in 1965 and is still going strong. I do not clean pistol pockets but do check for high primers while handling them. I load all pistol/revolver rounds on a pair of Dillion 550Bs.

Rifle...use Imperial sizing wax VERY SPARINGLY...like a finger rubbed across the tin every 5th or 6th case and none on the shoulder or case neck. For the insides of the necks, I use a #2 pencil and run a pencil line around the neck. I've also spritzed a suitable caliber cleaning mop and run it up the case. Absolutely no drag from the expander ball that way. And DO polish your expander ball...600 grit emery is great. For rifle, I then run a nylon bore brush up the case, then wipe the exterior with an alcohol spritzed shop rag. I clean all rifle primer pockets with a Lyman brush or small screwdriver bit.

For those doubting thomas's out there, I get 1"+ loads for suitably accurate revolvers and one or two of my 1911 autos. The rifle stuff is close to MOA with the right components. I load to shoot, demand accurate rounds, but make no fetish of the process. If you really want to get into the minutia of the processes, read Zediker's book on handloading for competition. It's pretty anal.

Some of the the stuff which has not worked for me over the past 50+ years are:
1. Hornady or Midway spray lube with rifle brass...if you use enough to get the job done it's a pain to get off, and sooner or later you'll stick a rifle case in a die with dire consequences.
2. Carbide expander balls...polish your steel one it works as well and is cheap.
3. Regular RCBS or Lee decaping pins on military crimped in primers. Sooner or later you break the d....d things and usuallly without a spare handy. I decap mine with a Lyman punch. While we're talking about military brass, I don't swage the pockets, I use Sinclairs pocket uniformer after cutting the crimp out with a Wilson case trimmer accessory. A pain but the pockets are done right. A chucked up chamfer tool (using the conical end) in a drill press does about as well if you just want the crimp removed. And a cheap cordless screw driver works great when adapted with Sinclair's tool for pocket uniforming, and burr removal.
4. For cheap trimming to length, I like Lee's tool chucked in a drill press. On occasion I've had to shorten the pin with emery a cpl of thousandths, especially on the Carbine one. And the cutter head has needed a touch up every once in awhile with a diamond stick.
Guess that's it...Rodfac
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Old April 1, 2009, 08:42 PM   #23
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Is an old rag good enough or should I re-tumble them or I guess I could put them in some water since the lube is water soluble. I'm asking because when I wipe the cases off it just seems like not all of the lube is comeing off
There is your answer above in blue.

I lube my cases with a water soluble lube, then resize them.
I then wash and rinse them with water. When done, I take them out and dump them on a towel and let them air dry in the garage.
Depending on the time of year, it may just be overnight. This has worked out well for me for many years.

I am not going to wipe off each and every case. Especially when it involves several hundred pistol cases at one time.
This is why I switched to the water soluble resize lube.
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Old April 1, 2009, 08:55 PM   #24
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I use the Lee lubricant on my rifle cases, 270 and 223. I resize and then deprime. Then I use the Lee tool that I put in my drill and trim to length. After that I grab a small piece of rag and polish the case until it really shines while it is still hooked up to the drill. Is that doing any damage to the brass. My finished bullets usually look brand new.
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