inside neck lube

[zxcvbob]

I'm resizing some .223 brass that I picked up at the range Tuesday. I've been reloading pistol cartridges for years, and I've loaded a few .30-06's, but not much. This is my first time with .223, and my first time to seriously load any bottleneck cartridge. I'm using cheap Lee dies, as is my custom. The brass was mixed headstamps, some .223 and some 5.56 NATO, so I picked out 50 "FC 223 REM"s to work with because that's what I have the most.

At first I was just lubing the outsides using Kiwi Mink Oil, but it was still taking more force than I tho't it should to raise the handle, so I switched to lubing inside the case necks with a Q-tip and a little castor oil. I didn't really lube the outsides, but my fingers were oily and just handling them was enough. They sized much easier now. (I didn't know Lee rifle dies had an expander ball)

Do I need to tumble the brass again to get the film of oil out of the case necks? How about if I use an emulsified wax in the necks next time, like GB wire-pulling lube?

I also need to trim these since I don't know where they've been, right?

 

[GLOOB]

Anything over 1.760" needs to be trimmed. You can trim down to 1.750, or even down as low as 1.740. I also put a light chamfer on all my brass the first time, even if it doesn't need to be trimmed.

I'd take out the expander ball/decapper and take a good look. Sometimes the finish on Lee's steel parts can be a little rough, but nothing a little sandpaper can't fix.

I don't inside lube my .223. I've read that lubing reduces case neck "stretch," so you don't have to trim as often. But .223 brass is pretty cheap.

Not sure about the castor oil reacting with the powder. I guess it depends on how much. A quick tumble wouldn't hurt.

 

[35 Whelen]

I've got to where I inside lube almost all my cases. I use a lube pad to lube my cases and about every third or fourth case I push the mouth of the case down into the pad and give it as twist. This usually gets enough lube on the inside of the neck.

Any oil will react with powder, so I'd clean my cases. Notice, I said clean, not re-clean. I'd suggest you lube & size, then trim & chamfer (if necessary) THEN clean the cases. I've never understood the concept of cleaning cases, and THEN putting oily lube on them which to my way of thinking gets them dirty again.

35W

 

[cfullgraf]

I've never understood the concept of cleaning cases, and THEN putting oily lube on them which to my way of thinking gets them dirty again.

I tumble my cases to get range/shooting grime off the case to protect the dies during resizing. Then tumble them again after resizing to clean off the oil and polish them.

I got tired of polishing the dies to remove brass scratching grit.

As far as neck lubricating, I use Imperial Sizing wax on a brush and lube inside the neck of every third or fourth case. It does not take much lubricant and makes the expander button slide out easier.

As said above, I tumble the cases after resizing and trimming.

 

[RainDodger]

I've used the Dillon lube, in the pump-spray bottle for decades. When I spray the cases, I aim the spray very slightly into the case mouths, so just a bit of it enters each case. No problems, and there's not enough to even need to clean out.

To expand on that, I use an old canvas shot bag (shotgun lead shot bag), laid flat on the bench. I lay down 20 5.56 cases on it, spray very lightly and then roll the cases back and forth. Perfect lube job. After years of using the same canvas "pad", there's enough lube impregnated in it that I don't have to spray each time... just roll the cases back and forth with my hand, in groups of 20.

 

[P-32]

Bob, be aware Federal 233 brass is not good brass to use in a auto loader. It might be OK for a bolt gun. The primer pockets on the Fed brass get loose pretty early compaired to other brass. Once a 223 or 5.56 case is ran though your size die, it's now the same.

 

[zxcvbob]

Bob, be aware Federal 233 brass is not good brass to use in a auto loader. It might be OK for a bolt gun. The primer pockets on the Fed brass get loose pretty early compaired to other brass. Once a 223 or 5.56 case is ran though your size die, it's now the same.

I'm separating it because I thought the 5.56 brass might be thicker and have less capacity. Also, separating by headstamp is just a habit I have from loading 1000's of .38 Specials.

How about Federal military brass with the little circle-cross symbol, does that hold up better? Although thinking about it, I believe the Federal military brass is stamped LC (Lake City) rather than FC.

Here's the smallest image I can find:

 

[cfullgraf]

I'm separating it because I thought the 5.56 brass might be thicker and have less capacity.

With 223 Remington/5.56 Nato, the military cases are not necessarily heavier than commercial. It depends on the brand.

Several years ago I weighed about 500 each Winchester and Lake City cases and the average weight of the Winchester was greater than the Lake City.

This myth is busted for 223 Rem/5.56 Nato.

 

[35 Whelen]

Bob, be aware Federal 233 brass is not good brass to use in a auto loader. It might be OK for a bolt gun. The primer pockets on the Fed brass get loose pretty early compaired to other brass. Once a 223 or 5.56 case is ran though your size die, it's now the same.

I've read this same thing. I have two brands of brass; PPU-11 (Prvi) that I shoot in my AR, and Federal that I shoot in my Mini. Typically when I'm working up loads for a new rifle, as my AR and Mini are, I prep 50 or so cases and keep them on the in a tray on the bench, loading 5, walking out to the bench, firing them, loading 5 more, repeat... then when those 50 are all fired, I size and clean them, then start the procedure over. The Federals I've been using in the Mini have probably been loaded 3-4 times already with no problems, but I'm watching them closely and feeling for loose primer pockets.

35W

 

[Hondo 60]

1. Tumble to clean off the burnt powder residue etc.
2. Lube, Deprime, Trim, Chamfer
3. Tumble again to remove lube
4. Reload.

Just my 2¢ YMMV

 

[zxcvbob]

I just figured out last night that talcum powder works for a dry neck lube. Just make sure it's real talc and not cornstarch, then use it like motor mica or graphite.

 

[Smokey Joe]

Inside Neck Lube...

Imperial (of Sizing Die Wax fame) also makes a Dry Neck Lube, which seems to be all graphite in a handy screw-top container abt. the size of a 35mm film canister.

Being graphite, I don't clean it out after using it--Most rifle powders are coated with graphite anyhow, so a little more graphite could hardly be a problem to the powder. Easy to use, too--You just push the neck of the case into the graphite, pull it back out, and resize. (Of course, after lubing the sides of the case with regular case lube, RCBS, Imperial, or similar.)

The Imperial Dry Neck Lube does seem to ease the passage of the expander ball into the case neck quite effectively.

Back in the day, the immortal Col. Townsend Whelen advocated the use of "just a suspicion" of anhydrous lanolin applied to the mouth of every 3rd or 4th case to be FL sized. That was before the development of today's specific-use case lubes. Before getting hold of the Imperial Dry Neck Lube, I used "just a suspicion" of RCBS case lube on the inside of the neck, and that worked perfectly well for FL resizing. Never cleaned that out, either.

I just wipe the regular case lube off the outside of the case with a rag.

 

[zxcvbob]

I just FL sized a hundred .223 cases just handling the cases with oily fingers (castor oil) to lube to bodies and dipped the case mouths in talc. It worked great until I got sloppy and got a little oil on the neck of one and it mixed with the talcum on the necks and dented the shoulders pretty bad on a couple until I figured out what was going on. After I cleaned the die, I tried just touching the case mouths against the castor oil lid liner and that worked good enough.

It really doesn't take much lube to make a big difference.

 

[Jim..]

Bottle neck case lube

I've been reloading a while. I've used the case lube pads and oil-really messy

I've used Imperial sizing die wax- works great and can be applied to the inside with a sucker stick or a Q-tip without the cotton, only takes a little and works great,but.....

My favorite way is dip/twist the case necks in a Neco graphite/moly kit and size/deprime. You can easily wipe off any excess lube with a rag, I use mechainics rags. No need to tumble again.

neconos.com

Kits last forever