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Moly Dry Neck Lube
- Thread starter akinswi
- Start date
In a rifle case the neck is sized down as it goes into the sizing die .
Because neck walls can vary in thickness and thus leave inside necks of varying diameters
... the expander ball on the mandrel is used to insure every case neck is the correct inside diameter ... when the ball is pulled back through the neck , that is when the neck gets it correct size and every case has the same inside diameter .
Of course if lube on the outside makes sizing a case easier ... then lube on the inside of the case neck will make pulling that ball back through the undersized neck easier also !
Any lube will do ... it makes pulling the ball out easier and it will cut down on case trimming ... Some reloaders swear that a case gets longer when you don't lube the inside of the neck ... the ball pulls the neck out just a little ...stretching it !
I find lube in the case neck does make re-sizing easier .
Most people like to use some type of dry lube , greasy lubes stick to powder ...
I like to use Lee Case Sizing Lube , white stuff in tube it's a water soluble Wax type lube , applied a thin film with a damp Q-Tip to the inside of the neck ... it dries to a dry lube filn in 30 seconds and it doesn't have to be removed , not greasy , not messy and it's dry , doesn't stain hands black like some stuff ...
... It's As Good as Any and Better Than Most !
Do use some type lube ... it does help .
Also polish mandrels and balls where they contact the case ... a super high polish job with polishing compound also helps big time !
Good Luck ,
Gary
Because neck walls can vary in thickness and thus leave inside necks of varying diameters
... the expander ball on the mandrel is used to insure every case neck is the correct inside diameter ... when the ball is pulled back through the neck , that is when the neck gets it correct size and every case has the same inside diameter .
Of course if lube on the outside makes sizing a case easier ... then lube on the inside of the case neck will make pulling that ball back through the undersized neck easier also !
Any lube will do ... it makes pulling the ball out easier and it will cut down on case trimming ... Some reloaders swear that a case gets longer when you don't lube the inside of the neck ... the ball pulls the neck out just a little ...stretching it !
I find lube in the case neck does make re-sizing easier .
Most people like to use some type of dry lube , greasy lubes stick to powder ...
I like to use Lee Case Sizing Lube , white stuff in tube it's a water soluble Wax type lube , applied a thin film with a damp Q-Tip to the inside of the neck ... it dries to a dry lube filn in 30 seconds and it doesn't have to be removed , not greasy , not messy and it's dry , doesn't stain hands black like some stuff ...
... It's As Good as Any and Better Than Most !
Do use some type lube ... it does help .
Also polish mandrels and balls where they contact the case ... a super high polish job with polishing compound also helps big time !
Good Luck ,
Gary
It's for the same basic reason you need case lube for resizing: brass under pressure tends to stick to steel, and you are trying to form an ID with the mandrel and not push down or pull out the shoulder, which enough friction could do. But you can also use motor mica dust or graphite dry neck lube. Some folks go ahead and use normal outside case lube inside the neck, too, figuring the amount is too small to significantly affect the powder. Moly neck lube is also sold by NECO with steel bearings to roll around and put traces (all you need) onto the insides of necks.
I usually use a graphite prep sold by Redding in the Imperial brand. I choose graphite because it is in most powders anyway, so I am not introducing a variable. Moly, even in small amounts, will blow into your throat during gas bypass as the bullet jumps to the throat, and that will lower the friction of engraving much as if you had moly-coated the bullet. This may lower peak pressure and velocity slightly, though it also reduces copper build-up in the throat. So there is nothing wrong with doing it. You just want to be aware that you are doing it because it could alter how commercial or other ammo shoots until you either clean or wear it out. This is an area where only testing will really tell you if you are creating a difference.
I usually use a graphite prep sold by Redding in the Imperial brand. I choose graphite because it is in most powders anyway, so I am not introducing a variable. Moly, even in small amounts, will blow into your throat during gas bypass as the bullet jumps to the throat, and that will lower the friction of engraving much as if you had moly-coated the bullet. This may lower peak pressure and velocity slightly, though it also reduces copper build-up in the throat. So there is nothing wrong with doing it. You just want to be aware that you are doing it because it could alter how commercial or other ammo shoots until you either clean or wear it out. This is an area where only testing will really tell you if you are creating a difference.
It's a dry lubricant ... Molybdenum-Disulfide Powder , it's a fancy dry lube , it's black and looks like fine powdered graphite .
Don't get it on clothes ... hard to was out of a white tee-shirt .
I would stick with a graphite dry lube for the case necks , graphite is used in powder coatings and will not contaminate anything .
I'm not sold on Molybdenum Disulfide lubes and their effects on case necks , coated bullets or rifle barrels .
Gary
Don't get it on clothes ... hard to was out of a white tee-shirt .
I would stick with a graphite dry lube for the case necks , graphite is used in powder coatings and will not contaminate anything .
I'm not sold on Molybdenum Disulfide lubes and their effects on case necks , coated bullets or rifle barrels .
Gary
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I'm a dry graphite user. I attach a .270-size Hoppes cotton swab to a RCBS screw-on plastic handle, dip it in dry graphite, and knock the excess off by tapping it side-to-side.
I hold 5 cases in one hand, mouths up, and pass the swab in and out just once. Replenish the graphite after 10-15 cases, then set them aside for case lubing and resizing.
The .270 size swab works well in .257, .264, 284 cases. For larger or smaller cases I keep swabs handy for those cases and just change them on the RCBS handle.
I hold 5 cases in one hand, mouths up, and pass the swab in and out just once. Replenish the graphite after 10-15 cases, then set them aside for case lubing and resizing.
The .270 size swab works well in .257, .264, 284 cases. For larger or smaller cases I keep swabs handy for those cases and just change them on the RCBS handle.
ChimpMunk20
New member
I purchased the moly lube kit with steel balls and tried it out for the first time on clean, tumbled brass and shot brass with carbon in the neck. I found that the clean brass would not pick up any moly on the inside of the neck, not even by using a cotton swab and rubbing it around the inside of the neck. But the carbon dirty necks would hold the moly. I ended the test there unsatisfied that I'd see any benefit over carbon only necks.
Invisible amounts of moly can still lube something. I think you'd need to test it with a seating force sensor to tell for sure. But your point reminds me that the Froggy's Lube mentioned in this article (and no longer available to buy) has been claimed by some to be nothing more than graphite in alcohol, and if you suspend a powder in alcohol, you can probably put it in place with your swab just fine, regardless of the type of powder.