BLL and an experimental mix
Posted: 22 Nov 2015 18:13
Forum member Ben on Castboolits came up with an improved liquid lube mix a while back that I've been meaning to try. You mix Lee Liquid Alox (LLA) and Johnsons liquid wax in a 60/40 and it's supposed to be amazing. I honestly have yet to read a negative review on the stuff. My guess is the wax dries sealing the alox to the bullet so it's good for everything you would usually use LLA in a tumble.
The experimental mix is my own shenanigans. Another Castboolits member, Lars, figured how to cook down Johnsons paste wax with LLA and thinner in a 45/45/10 mix. It works very well also and is much faster drying than plain LLA. Once again, the wax dries and holds the alox. It's not a perfect dry to touch feel though as you get a slight waxy sticky feel to them even after a few days. It's vastly improved over the usual mule snot consistency of LLA though so it doesn't cake up on the bullet seating die nearly as fast. The experiment is a 50/50 mix so far of the Lars 45/45/10 mix and the liquid wax. I'm trying to get the mix to just completely dry to the touch. If it fails I can always get another bottle to split it up and add more LLA to get it right.
BLL on the left and mystery mix on the right:
You hardly need any of this stuff on bullets so this is going to last a looooooong time. The longer it sets you may need to thin it down with some mineral spirits and I like to drop a bullet in to help shake it up. If I do have to split that mystery bottle up I'm going to have enough tumble lube for an eternity...
No matter what though, I have full faith in the BLL and recommend trying some. The 45/45/10 mix is available ready to go from White Label Lube so you don't have to buy everything and render down the paste wax on your own.
Last minute addition to this... I tumbled a small run of bullets in the BLL before I started typing this. They are already dry to the touch. There's zero sticky feel to them.
I'm already impressed.
The experimental mix is my own shenanigans. Another Castboolits member, Lars, figured how to cook down Johnsons paste wax with LLA and thinner in a 45/45/10 mix. It works very well also and is much faster drying than plain LLA. Once again, the wax dries and holds the alox. It's not a perfect dry to touch feel though as you get a slight waxy sticky feel to them even after a few days. It's vastly improved over the usual mule snot consistency of LLA though so it doesn't cake up on the bullet seating die nearly as fast. The experiment is a 50/50 mix so far of the Lars 45/45/10 mix and the liquid wax. I'm trying to get the mix to just completely dry to the touch. If it fails I can always get another bottle to split it up and add more LLA to get it right.
BLL on the left and mystery mix on the right:
You hardly need any of this stuff on bullets so this is going to last a looooooong time. The longer it sets you may need to thin it down with some mineral spirits and I like to drop a bullet in to help shake it up. If I do have to split that mystery bottle up I'm going to have enough tumble lube for an eternity...
No matter what though, I have full faith in the BLL and recommend trying some. The 45/45/10 mix is available ready to go from White Label Lube so you don't have to buy everything and render down the paste wax on your own.
Last minute addition to this... I tumbled a small run of bullets in the BLL before I started typing this. They are already dry to the touch. There's zero sticky feel to them.
I'm already impressed.