Do you spray lube pistol brass?

R

rajbcpa

New member
I have been using carbide dies for years but I always use spray lube for the pistol cases. It just makes the progressive press (dillon 550) run much smoother and it does not have any adverse effects that I have found.

I thought this was pretty standard procedure but in reading a post from another forum, apparently it is not.
 
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I have and I have not (with Carbide).

I have found that walnut media is harder on the dies and the cases and I switched to corn cob. When I changed to Lucas Metal Polish as a media additive, the brass is cleaner and I have stopped using lube on all pistol cases.
 
I use Hornady OneShot on pistol cases, but only lube about 1 in 10 that I run thru the (carbide) dies.

Yes, I know it shouldn't be necessary, especially with straight-walled cases like 45ACP, but it does make the effort much easier. This is especially true with tapered cases like 9mm.
 
When it comes to .30 Carbine cases (they are used in some handguns also), I use a drying type of spray lube. The relatively long, straight cases of the .30 Carbine are not all that easy to size even with carbide dies if it is not used. All other handgun cases, I do not bother with lube...unnecessary.
 
straight wall cartridge + carbide dies = no lube
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I hear that response from many folks that have only ever sized small caliber short length cases. Apparently rtpzwms has never sized .460 or .500 S&W or .45-70.

I reload for 9 different handgun calibers and do not lube cases for 7 of them. For the other two, not only do I do it because it makes sizing so much easier, but because several manuals recommend it. I reload all my ammo on a single stage press. I have friends that reload on a progressive and lube cases so the process is easier and they don't shake the powder outta cases with compressed or nearly compressed powder charges when operating their presses. I see lubing handgun cases as no different than when you deprime.....before or after cleaning. Just a preferred way of doing things that works for that individual. Many see never lubing brass as some sort of badge of manliness, similar to shooting loads that surpass SAAMI specs. To each their own.
 
Apparently rtpzwms has never sized .460 or .500 S&W or .45-70.
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Be careful what you assume, you just might find you're wrong. I currently do twelve pistol calibers. I do a few rifle calibers as well. I don't have much use for hand cannons, I've never been attacked by paper targets. But I've handled them enough to know that I'll leave them for someone like you who must enjoy the recoil. Nowadays I seem to prefer pistols shooting rifle cartridges mostly for 200+ yard targets.
 
Yes, I use Dillon spray lube on all handgun calibers...regardless of the fact that I use all carbide dies.....and for the reason - just like you say, it makes the press run significantly smoother ( mine is a Dillon 650)...

Spray lube is cheap and easy to use...( let the cases dry about 15 min / and dump them in the case feeder )....I use about a bottle of it every 2 or 3 yrs ..and I shoot about 20,000 rds a yr in handguns...( I spread the cleaned and sorted cases in a shallow cardboard box / like the lid off of a box of copy paper / I spread them out on their sides --spritz them a little roll them around...spritz them a 2nd time...roll them around and let them dry )....really easy...

My suggestion - if you don't think you need it ...run 110 cases thru without lube...then run 100 cases that that you lubed....and see what you think...
 
Yes. I use Hornady One Shot case lube for my pistol cases. And yes, I have carbide dies. And yes, I also have a Dillon 550 (new, just got it last week).

So yes to all of the above. Even with carbide dies, lubing the cases is a plus. It makes resizing them much easier. And in the "case" (no pun intended) of a spray lube, it also tends to get the inside of the mouth, which helps with flaring as well. A huge reduction in press effort with lubed cases tells me that's gotta be a good thing.

I only use lube because I know I'm going to tumble with SS pins afterward anyway. The wet tumble cleans off the lube, so might as well use it. Makes sense? If SS pin tumbling after case prep wasn't part of my regimen, then I wouldn't lube. But I think my process is a win-win.
 
Be careful what you assume, you just might find you're wrong.
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I doubt it, especially when it comes to those .460 and .500 calibers I mentioned. Anyone that has reloaded extensively for them, even with carbide dies, knows the advantages of lubing the brass first before resizing. Folks claiming they do not need to be lubed, have not reloaded them. Altho you do not need to lube every case, you do need to lube one every so often or you will find yourself needing to stand on the press handle. This is not opinion, but fact. 45-70 altho they look straight walled and are not a bottle neck case, are tapered and also need to be lubed.

I don't have much use for hand cannons, I've never been attacked by paper targets. But I've handled them enough to know that I'll leave them for someone like you who must enjoy the recoil. Nowadays I seem to prefer pistols shooting rifle cartridges mostly for 200+ yard targets.
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I too have never been attacked by paper targets, but then I shoot at more than just paper. I hunt with my handcannons. I see little difference in recoil from my .460 X-Frame than I do from any of the rifle cartridges I've shot in any legitimate handgun platform. But then, iffin I remember correctly, this thread is not about recoil, but about whether or not we lube our handgun cases.
 
To the OP: There's no reloading police waiting to see if you lube your pistol cases, not yet anyway.

Forums like this are great. Forums always have adherents to both sides of ANY question.

If you like the way your 550 works with lube, there's nothing on earth stopping you from using it, including someone's opinion on a forum.

For those of us with arthritic joints, carbide and lube relieve a lot of stress on the joints and make it possible to reload with minimal discomfort.
 
I decap with a universal decapper and stainless pin tumble them. Squeeky clean when I size them in the carbide die with no lube.
 
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