Lee tumblelube molds and liquid alox

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  • PMD354

    Active Member
    1 have purchased Lee tumblelube molds in a few calibers. I also have a couple bottles of the Lee liquid alox.

    The questions are:
    Does anyone else use these molds?
    Does the liquid alox really work well?

    I bought the molds after reading on the Lee website that all you have to do is mold up the bullets, place them in a bowl, squirt some alox on them and ensure that all of the bullets are coated. Then let them dry and they are go to go.

    Thanks
     

    wgttgw

    Active Member
    Apr 10, 2011
    284
    Cambridge
    Yes they work. I have used Alox in gas checked designs to close to 2000 fps in a 444 Marlin. I personally prefer to pan lube with standard grease groove designs. With Alox you use very, very little. You want a very thin hazes on the bullets when dry. I cut mine with mineral spirits by just filling the unfilled portion of new bottles with mineral spirits. I also heat the alox bottle in hot water before use.
     

    Deep Creek Rock

    .._. .._ _._. _._ .._
    If you like Alox - purchase the white label lube version (Its not Lee), which is Alox is exactly, but far cheaper. For 15 bucks you get the equivalent of 8 bottles of Alox. Its sold under the name X-lox. The seller sells on Ebay, and has a website here:

    http://www.lsstuff.com/


    There is an article on Cast Boolits.com on how to make Alox non sticky when dried, by mixing it with Johnsons Paste wax.

    http://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?67654-Tumble-Lubing-Made-Easy-amp-Mess-Free

    White Label now makes a version that is already mixed & bottled, so you dont have to do it. I havent tried it yet, but plan to do so, to see if there is a difference.

    Alox does work very well. You dont have to have tumble bands to use it either. It will work fine with standard lube bands, just the Alox goes allover the bullet VS just in the lube bands. Its a tad messy but it works.

    Pay attention to lube build up in your bullet seating die when using standard Alox. You do periodically need to clean the plug in your bullet seating die, as the Alox can build up, and can cause a deeper seated bullet if enough of it gets built up.

    And the Lee molds work great. I own a bunch of them!
     

    Winterborn

    Moved to Texas
    Aug 19, 2010
    2,569
    Arlington, TX
    I only own Lee molds, and they are all tumble lube designs.

    Alox works fine, but can be time consuming (tumble, dry, size, tumble, dry, load).

    Lately I am powdercoating all of my Lee bullets with great results.
     

    John from MD

    American Patriot
    MDS Supporter
    May 12, 2005
    22,731
    Socialist State of Maryland
    I Powder Coat by shaking the bullets around in a plastic bottle with some paint powder added. It is a learning process and in the beginning you will tend to put too much on.

    Just pop them in the toaster oven for 20 min and they are ready to go, most of the time. My 300 Blackouts I have to run through a Lee .309 sizer because the bullet I use is a .312 and will get stuck in the throat if no sized.

    It beats tumble lubing and waiting for them to dry by a mile.

    John
     

    wgttgw

    Active Member
    Apr 10, 2011
    284
    Cambridge
    If you do purchase from white label as suggested in post #3 (which I would also recommend) you might want to check out their 45/45/10 mixture of the Xlox. It is 45% Xlox, 45% Johnson paste wax and 10% mineral spirits. Really makes the Tumble lube bullets much less sticker, dries way faster and works just as well as full strength Alox in pistol rounds.
     

    PMD354

    Active Member
    If you do purchase from white label as suggested in post #3 (which I would also recommend) you might want to check out their 45/45/10 mixture of the Xlox. It is 45% Xlox, 45% Johnson paste wax and 10% mineral spirits. Really makes the Tumble lube bullets much less sticker, dries way faster and works just as well as full strength Alox in pistol rounds.

    I don't think that I'm ready for powder coating. But I think that the 45/45/10 mixture may be the best way to go for me. The bullets that I will be using the mix on will be all pistol rounds:
    9mm
    38/357
    44
    45
     

    PMD354

    Active Member
    If you do purchase from white label as suggested in post #3 (which I would also recommend) you might want to check out their 45/45/10 mixture of the Xlox. It is 45% Xlox, 45% Johnson paste wax and 10% mineral spirits. Really makes the Tumble lube bullets much less sticker, dries way faster and works just as well as full strength Alox in pistol rounds.

    I went to thier website and could not find the 45/45/10 mixture.
     

    PMD354

    Active Member
    After a call to White Label I have come to the conclusion that I should no longer read web pages without my glasses. I have found the 45/45/10 mixture and will be ordering a bottle today. Thanks for the info.
     

    wgttgw

    Active Member
    Apr 10, 2011
    284
    Cambridge
    Don't feel too bad after I suggested it I looked at their page and did not see it at first. I felt kind of silly for suggesting something they did not have any more. I poked around more on the site and then I found it. IIRC it only appears in the store page and not on the products page.

    The only time I used the mixture I made it myself. I don't load anything TL anymore but if I did I would buy it from them and skip the finding/mixing ingredients.
     

    toolness1

    Ultimate Member
    Jan 5, 2014
    2,723
    BFE, Missouri
    I Powder Coat by shaking the bullets around in a plastic bottle with some paint powder added. It is a learning process and in the beginning you will tend to put too much on.

    Just pop them in the toaster oven for 20 min and they are ready to go, most of the time. My 300 Blackouts I have to run through a Lee .309 sizer because the bullet I use is a .312 and will get stuck in the throat if no sized.

    It beats tumble lubing and waiting for them to dry by a mile.

    John

    What type of Paint powder do you use?

    Sent from my XT901 using Tapatalk
     

    John from MD

    American Patriot
    MDS Supporter
    May 12, 2005
    22,731
    Socialist State of Maryland
    I use Harbor Freight red. It is not as smooth as other brands but I can get 1.5 to 2 inch groups from the bench so I don't care. The only fouling I get is behind the bolt rings and it is carbon and maybe some paint residue. I run the bolt tail on a fine wire wheel and it takes it right off. Nothing in the barrel and only a very small amount of carbon in the back of the BC.

    I was cleaning after every 200 rounds just to see what was building up. Now I clean like my .223, when it starts short stroking. :lol:

    John
     

    Winterborn

    Moved to Texas
    Aug 19, 2010
    2,569
    Arlington, TX
    I shot some of my 9mm 124grn Lee RN cast bullets, Powdercoated through my beretta last weekend.

    This particular gun hated tumble lubed lead, keyholed all over the place. Would also lead the barrel like crazy, had to buy a Lewis Lead remover for it.

    The PC bullets clanged steel at 100yds repeatedly, and when I field stripped the beretta the bore was shiny clean.

    I'm sold on Powdercoating bullets, especially for auto pistols. There is literally zero downside.
     

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