Substitute for case lube?

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Motor oil.

There's no magic to lubing cases. I think there was a guy here who used hand-lotion. Hell, you could probably use KY in a pinch.
 
Nonstick cooking spray

And the best lube I've used bar none is weld aid wire lube for wire fed welders. This stuff makes imperial feel like sizing with dirt by comparison.


I haven't bought actual case lube in over 5 years
 
Kiwi mink oil is almost exactly the same a s Imperila die wax.
SofSole mink oil from acadamy is as good a case lube as any.
 
Real case lube is about the cheapest thing you will ever buy for reloading on a cost per/round basis.

Getsum!

First time you stick a rifle case in a die trying to use motor oil you will wish you had!

rc
 
I think that home-made case lube, bullet lube, and methods to polish your brass to a like-new condition fulfills some need in some people and is not a cost-driven effort.
I can not believe that amount of time, effort, and even money some people spend to polish brass that only needs a wipe with a clean cloth to achieve all requirements.
As long as they are happy, and not hurting anyone, they can continue to experiment and one of them might actually discover something.
Somewhere, I still have the first tube of RCBS case lube I bought about 35 years ago. I've never stuck a case, never had any need to lube case necks, and think that it may be because my rifle loads are no where near max. Never even worried about wiping off any residual case lube, since there is almost none on the case to begin with.
We all find what works for us and, as long as we are safe, that is all that matters.
 
Bag Balm

It works better than any of the commercial loading lubes I've tried including Hornady, Dillon, RCBS, Lee and several other "home brew" concoctions. I wasn't looking for a substitute, I was looking for something that worked 100% of the time with big rifle rounds.
It hasn't failed yet (no stuck cases). It wipes off easily or can be tumbled off in less than 30 minutes (maybe less, I just leave 'em in that long). $6.50 for a tin that will last forever if that's all it was used for, but it has lots of other uses around the house so I didn't feel guilty buying it.
 
Imperial die wax and Hornady's Unique are perhaps the best commercial lubes, both are soft waxes. Touch finger tips to the wax and thinly transfer it to the cases as you pick them up for sizing. Kiwi "Mink Oil" boot treatment is a virtual duplicate. Easy to get for not in Walmart's shoe department. Ditto other boot treatments such as Snow-Proof, etc. They all work very well, clean and quite easy to remove from fingers and cases.

I know KY Jelly works but, as usual, don't let it dry before insertion. Other alternates include Chapstick lip balm, Bag Balm and other nursing mothers nipple creams with lanolin, hand soaps that include lanolin, the wax rings for toilet bowls, electical wire pulling lubes (Gardner-Bender, etc.), auto door lock lube sticks, bowling alley wax, etc.

Lots of gooey, thick, sticky petroleum stuff like STP works but it's all a mess to work with and clean off. Ditto spray Pam and its twins. I never found an auto crankcase oil that worked well as case lube but I only tried three or four; they were "stuck case city" for me. ??

I once used WD-40 on handgun stuff for easy sizing in carbide dies and to avoid galling; for that it was okay. But I wouldn't suggest it for bottle neck cases unless you have a 'stuck case remover' handy.
 
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A water-based wax case lube (like the cheap Lee case lube), mixed with rubbing alcohol (1 part lube to 10-or more-parts alcohol)) and applied with a plant "mister" (very fine spray) goes through dies nicely, doesn't hurt if some gets inside the case and cleans up easily. You can clean it off or leave it on.
 
I lay a bead of mobile 1 motor oil on a rag. Every third or fourth case gets a roll on the rag and it works great. It seems like a lot less hassle than actual case lube to me and I don't have any worry about dented shoulders.
 
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I use whatever gun oil is on the bench when I load the short WCF's. Those thin cases and gentle tapers don't need much lube. Much quicker and easier than going the spray lube route.
 
The case lube I use is a spray mix that has alcohol and lanilin in it. It comes in a push spray bottle and gpoes a long way. Got it at midway in a 10oz bottle. spray on in the loading blocks and it works great. Evaporates and is very dry in seconds.
 
Dillon lube is lanolin with isotropically alcohol as an carrying agent.
So go to a health food or vitamin store (supper supplements) and get 4 oz of liquid lanolin. Go to rite aid and get a gallon of isotropically alcohol. mix it together. You now have several lifetime supplies of bullet lube.
 
Dillon lube is lanolin with isotropically alcohol as an carrying agent.
Click to expand...

I think you mean isopropyl alcohol, just so no one is running around trying to find the other to try it out.
 
Any liquid soap will work, but it is such a cheap product, why not just buy a tube and be done.
WD-40 makes a great flame thrower...but a crap lubricant
 
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