Lanolin case lube

General Firearms Reloading & Ammunition
1

So after years of frustration with hornady one shot… (yes i’m a slow learner) i picked up some lanolin and some isopropyl alcohol at walgreens today. The word on the internet is that you can mix the two in 8 to 1 or 12 to 1 ratios and have a spray lube…
I’m impatient, and don’t have spray bottle, so i made myself a lanolin sponge.
new dish sponge, wetted lightly with alcohol, then squeeze some lanolin (not much really, it seems to go a long way) rube the lanolin in (getting super soft fingers in the process) roll case over sponge, rub in a bit, size.

very very smooth. i’ve only done a dozen rounds or so thus far, but this looks really promising.

2

I snapped and bought 5 bottles of Dillon case lube. I get so sick of running out of that stuff and having to use One Shit.

I’m going to tape my two bottles of One Shit to a pound of Tannerite and blow them to hell. I’ll post the video when I get to it.

3

The Dillon case lube is indeed nothing more than isoproyl alcohol + lanoline (written on the label), I think I used 1-10 proportion when I made my own, and worked perfectly to spray.

Lanolin in any form is the best stuff for case lube.

4

I’ll have to make some next time I run out. 5 bottles should keep me busy for a while though.

5

softens hands while you do the cases. :sarcastic:

6

In talking with Dillon, their stuff is more than Lanolin and alcohol. However, for making it yourself, it probably does not matter.

I was told by someone there that there are some emulsifiers and stuff also.

If your stuff gets old enough and cold enough, you will eventually see some white precipitate come out of it. That is why I was asking Dillon…

7

The best mix I have found is 1:10 lanolin oil and 99% isopropyl alcohol.

The lanolin oil has the heavy fats removed. It dissolves completely and doesn’t separate out. It can be bought from outfits that supply ingredients for home made cosmetics. Just Google “lanolin oil”.

99% isopropyl alcohol can be found at most large chain pharmacies. 99% makes a cleaner solution with the lanolin oil than 95%.

I just lay the clean cases on a cookie sheet, spray them with a pump sprayer until they just barely look wet and let them dry for about a hour. After sizing I wash them in Dawn dish washing detergent and hot water then rinse in plain hot water. This leaves a light film on the brass that keeps it from tarnishing.

Added: You can just wipe the cases after sizing but I usually do about 1000 at a time. The washing and then oven drying for 3 hrs at 150*F works very well.

8

I’m pretty sure when i was loading 223 3 years ago (i was without an AR for awhile) you gave me shit for using one shot…
somehow i bought another can of it :rolleyes:

actually one shot isn’t too bad for pistol ammo if you use carbide dies. adds a little extra slickness without being messy. it’s simply unsuitable for use on any necked cartridge though.

9

I ruined a couple of resizing dies (.223,30-06) trying to remove stuck cases after using one shot…I gave up, bought 4 bottles of the dillon lube, and dillion sizing dies…One thing I love about the Dillon dies is the built in stuck case remover, I’ve had to use it twice,early on, and they really work well, and remove stuck cases without damaging the die,you don’t even have to pull the die out of the machine.The Dillon lube? well, I won’t use anything else. The only lube I’ve found that’s in the same league is Imperial sizing wax, This stuff works very well, and a little goes a long way…

10

The beauty of dillon’s stuff is you can actually size an unlubed rifle case after you’ve run some lubed cases.

It transfers to the die. So if you get a piece of brass that didn’t get a good spray of lube, you won’t even know it.

11

This isn’t specifically lanolin lube based but…

To use up some old RCBS case lube I mixed it with 90% alcohol and put into a squirt bottle. (purple hair spray pump bottle :eek:) A couple sprays into a gallon ziploc and roll them around a few seconds and it is off to the races. Not sure what is in that lube, MSDS says nothing hazardous.

If I didn’t have the stuff left from years ago when I only loaded for my bolt guns I never would have tried it.

Joe

12

+1 I found a 10-year-old bottle of Dillon lube in my garage, and it had separated. I warmed it up and shook it vigorously, and it was fine.

Given that I’ve always loaded pistol ammo using carbide dies without ANY lube, this just confirms to me that One Shot is basically worthless…

13

What’s wrong with One Shot? I finally got sick of brushing and rolling each case one at a time so I picked up a can of it today.:confused:

14

It’s the single worst product ever shat upon the reloading community.

The pump is 100% useless. Super Glue would be better.

The aerosol is mildly shitty. I’d say it’s about 70% the quality of Dillon lube.

I’m going to blow both of my bottles up with Tannerite this weekend!!

15

There are two types of One Shot. One water based in the pump bottle, and the aerosol can. The water based lube is worthless, I threw mine away. The aerosol is useful in some situations, but not enough to buy it anymore.

I whipped up a small batch of the homemade lanolin lube, and it worked really well. I’ll being using this from now on.

16

Hmmm,I guess I’m the odd one,LOL !!! I have used One Shot case Lube (Aerosol) for years,with 0 problems !! I have been going to try the Dillon Lube,but just haven’t !!! Maybe I should try it and see what I been missing !!! :smiley:

17

I’ve used both now. And the Aerosol is OK. I still found myself getting very inconsistent resizing resistance though.

The DCL is much more forgiving. It’s a little gooey feeling, and I hate getting it on my hands, but it works good.

18

Good to know markm,thanks for the info !!! I order from Dillon a couple times a year,so it looks like next time I will grab a bottle or 2 of there case lube !!! I have learned that after loading my “trray” with cases,I spray and turn and get all 4 sides and aim into the inside neck area. I have found this works very good & I never have any issues,am I using to much,:confused: I don’t think so,cuz I’m not getting and dents in the neck or case,so it must be just enough !!! I have a good buddy that uses the Lyman Spray (Pump) and swears by it,so maybe I will try that also,I can buy that Local. Thanks again for the info,I’ll get back at ya after I try the Dillon spray !!! :slight_smile:

19

the one shot works ok if i you use a lot and make sure ot let it dry.
underuse or trying to size while a case is still even slightly wet will require you to get out the hammer. :rolleyes:

the lanolin is much more forgiving. also… soft hands :dance3:

20

Just drop your cases in a plastic bag & pump a few shots of Dillon case lube in. Seal the bag, and rattle everything around for a little bit, then dump it on a clean tray or something. In a few minutes, the alcohol will evaporate, and you’re ready to begin. Even the inside of most of the case necks will be lubed. Magic!