Faster way to Remove Lube?

M

Mo_Zam_Beek

Private
Minuteman
Jan 21, 2002
0
7
OR_GUN
#1
I use Dillon spray lube (5 or so squirts in a plastic bag + 75 or so cases / jumble them up). The lube itself is merely Lanolin and Alcohol. I have using a Windex soaked rag and quickly wiping off each case. However I have 4,000 cases sitting here....

I know I can send them back to the vibrating tumbler with ground walnut, but I don't want the dust nor the crap in my flash holes.

What do you think I should use?

I am sort of thinking about shredding a towel and layering it through the brass and adding denatured alcohol and then letting it vibrate for 20 minutes.

Good idea or not?


Thank you
 
#2
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

Treated corn cob in the tumbler...

Not much dust, and the kernals are large enough that even if some do get stuck in flash holes, it's a simple matter of poking it out with a skinny allen wrench or other similar "poker".
 
#3
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

I put rubbing alcohol on a rag and wipe em as they come off the press. Its just another step in the procedure, I don't feel like I'm burning daylight in doing so.
 
#4
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Tripwire</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Treated corn cob in the tumbler...

Not much dust, and the kernals are large enough that even if some do get stuck in flash holes, it's a simple matter of poking it out with a skinny allen wrench or other similar "poker". </div></div>

I use corn cob and still have to poke out the corn cob in the flash hole. Was hoping to find something a bit easier to clean.
 
#5
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Powder Burns</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I put rubbing alcohol on a rag and wipe em as they come off the press. Its just another step in the procedure, I don't feel like I'm burning daylight in doing so. </div></div>


Me too, but thats when I'm just doing 50 or so. I dont ever really do big batches like your talking about. I would try an old bathtowel, put em in a big wad at a time, and grab the towel at both ends creating a kind of tube, and then shake them back and forth allowing the cases to slide between both ends of the towel( or fist to fist so to speak). After they slide around on the towel for a minute, they get pretty clean. Make sure you get an old towel though, wives dont care for case lube on their linens. at least mine doesn't.
 
#6
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

High volume rifle, ok yeah you have your work cut out for you. High volume pistol, as long as its a straight walled case you can get away with not using lube with carbide sizers.
 
#7
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

I was recently faced with the same dilemma as you. Since I started reloading I have never tumbled with corn cob or walnut, just ultrasonic or stainless media.

I purchased a tumbler and some coarse walnut media from Harbor Freight. It was 25#'s for $20. It works great and removes Imperial resize wax in 15min, but it does leave the cases dusty.

The walnut media is untreated, so I am guessing that is the problem, but I don't know what to do to the media to reduce the dust.

I know this isn't of much help, but if the dust can be solved this would be a good solution since the walnut is not small enough to get stuck in the pockets and quick enough to just remove the lube.
 
#9
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

Large towel damp with lighter fluid. Put several handfulls on the towel, pick it up rolling the ends together. Roll them from end to end for a minute or so. Place on a clean dry towel and repeat to clean the lighter fluid off.
 
#12
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

Try putting a towel down and laying the brass flat. I use mineral spirits on the towel to remove the lube. Grab both ends and rock back and forth 25 times. Lay brass flat and rub and few times. It should take 99% of the lube off.

Mineral spirits dries very fast. When you finish up the Dillon spray bottle, fill it with mineral spirits and when you lay the brass flat, spray a few pumps on the brass evenly. Then towel dry as above.

Jerry
 
#14
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

I stand mine up in a tray and hose them down with brake cleaner. then take them out and lay them on an old towel or something to dry,does not take long to dry.

Now I am using the rcbs water soluable lube, after i size I put the brass in a large pot and hot water with some dawn and let the hot water run over them for a few minutes. After that, put them in an flat pan and let them dry in the oven(lowest it will go).
 
#18
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

Any bits of loose, open texture tissue (dryer sheets) or loose weave fabric material (T-shirt) will trap media dust so it can be tossed out.

Much "media" dust is actually dried excess polish. Many people use far too much polish and it clogs their media as well as breaking down to a dusty powder. Thinking it's "worn out" they replace it and repeat the process.
 
#19
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: _9H</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Mark Walker</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Microfiber towels remove lube (Imperial at least) very well, and very quickly... </div></div>

Do you mean these?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vm03Dgu_yXA </div></div>

Hahaha. Nope, just plain microfiber towels, can be bought at wal-mart, probably cost $4 for a dozen...
 
#20
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

Yup,a french fry basket dipped in a five gallon bucket of the solvent of choice works nicely.Something like acetone that dries quickly and leaves no residue.Smaller amounts of brass get laid on an old towel and sprayed with something like brake cleaner or electrical contact cleaner.Pete
 
#21
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

All this is fine and good, but please abide by fire prevention protocols for anything with these flammable solvents.

Remember Richard Pryor? Don't make yourself uglier like he did.

My shop has NO gas water heater in it, I don't smoke, etc.

Even the "safety solvent" I'm familiar with burns real good with a wick, like a towel. Much easier to light up than smokeless, too.
 
#22
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

When I load .223's I do it like yourself, several thousand at a time. I'll get the hottest water I can draw in my utility sink with a healthy squirt of dawn and a bit of Lemishine, maybe 4" deep and run the cases around with my hands so that they all get exposed to the suds. Really make a sudsy frothy mess of the whole works.

Then, I'll pull the plug and let the lube and water run down the drain. Give them another good hot rinse/soak, followed by one more, and throw the still hot cases on a towel. Distribute them around some, and the hot water will evaporate pretty quickly.

This has worked for me with the Dillon, Hornady One-Shot, and the generic Midway brand lubes. Never a problem and relatively fast.
 
#23
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

Damn, this must be hard....

I usually run around 100 or so rifle cases through my vibratory tumblers at a time. In those tumblers is lyman's treated corn cob. I use Hornady One Shot for lube. To remove the lube I simply run it back in the tumblers for a half hour or so while I go do something else.

After tumbling for any reason I put the media and cases through an RCBS media seperator. A few cranks on this wonderful device knocks the shit out of the media and leaves me with only a few cases that have a kernal of cob stuck in a flash hole. I grab up as many cases as I can wrap one hand around with the case heads up. I look in there at all the flash holes and primer pockets with due dilligence for stuck media. I have a thin long allen wrench dedicated to poking these bits of cob out and confirming no media is stuck in the case body itself.

This is all a natural part of the process of reloading for me and I've never felt like I've cheated myself somehow with it. Farting around with cans of degreaser spray and towels doesn't in my opinion ensure that all the lube is off, and it sounds a ton more bothersome and expensive than just letting the tumbler do all the work while I drink a beer on the porch.

When they invented the wheel it was round, and has been all along. Not really sure if a rounder wheel is worth it, in this case, for me.....
 
#24
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body">
I usually run around 100 or so rifle cases through my vibratory tumblers at a time. In those tumblers is lyman's treated corn cob. I use Hornady One Shot for lube. To remove the lube I simply run it back in the tumblers for a half hour or so while I go do something else.

After tumbling for any reason I put the media and cases through an RCBS media seperator. A few cranks on this wonderful device knocks the shit out of the media and leaves me with only a few cases that have a kernal of cob stuck in a flash hole. I grab up as many cases as I can wrap one hand around with the case heads up. I look in there at all the flash holes and primer pockets with due dilligence for stuck media. I have a thin long allen wrench dedicated to poking these bits of cob out and confirming no media is stuck in the case body itself.
</div></div>

Same here! I don't see it getting any easier than this. I've been doing it that way forever cause it works, it's simple and I still haven't seen anything that sounds better. Just my 2 cents.
 
#25
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

There's always an old dryer sheet in the laundry room. Through one in with your walnut/corn cob media and it will take out all the dust. I tumble to clean before sizing. I tumble again to remove lube before priming, charging and loading. Works great. Throw out the dryer sheet after every couple of uses and use another one. You don't need to use a new one. Use it after it's been run through the laundry once. I also throw one down the tube on my powder measure to get rid of static before I fill it with powder.
 
#26
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

Without wasting bandwidth.
Prepping brass is a no brainer.
Corncob and some Brasso.
Ultrasonic is not the answer, unless you have a better solution.
Ground walnut will fit through primer holes.

Good way to make some rounds from range brass.

Merry Cristmas
 
#28
Re: Faster way to Remove Lube?

And you fellers in England drink warm beer too...yuk.

Can completely understand why you wouldn't want to do it my way.

Merry Christmas.....
 
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