Home Forums Reloading Big Game Rifles Neck lubrication

I always get the forum equivalent of a blank stare, but........

I use Imperial Sizing Die Wax. I keep several tins in the fridge. I stick the neck of case into the cold wax, and dab a little on my finger from the tin and lube the body. This keeps the lube off the shoulder.

Then I drop the cases into a parts bucket (the type with a basket that fits inside a bucket) filled with lacquer thinner. Let soak for a few, take the case out, run a neck brush into the necks, drop the basket full of cases back into the thinner, take 'em out and blow them dry wiyh compressed air.

First, if using any kind of exapander with conventional dies, lubing the neck goes a LONG way towards reducing the "pull" on the necks--which is one important factor in the concentricity issue.

Secondly, I don't like lube residue ANYWHERE on my caes, inside or out. I have a friend who sectioned some of his cases and found lube--after being fired--in the bottom corners of some of his cases, covered with a thin layer of carbon-like stuff. Most reloaders don't seem to pay much attention to residual lube. The lacquer thinner "kills" even water based lubes/oils.

About 10 years ago, I bought a decapper and started decapping my cases and throwing them into the case cleaner before sizing--it keeps crud from messing up the dies and just seems to make the sizing process better.

I have recently helped a buddy who was using the spray lube, although a big improvement over many of the earlier lubes, I still prefer the "Imperial Way" --but I concede their is often more than one way to skin a cat.......do what works for you.

As an aside, if you're loading for a hunting rifle--Partial Full Length Resizing (PFLR) is usually the way to go when making accurate and reliable feeding ammo--again, there are exceptions.

Casey