Well I am not so pleased with the Lee tumble lube bullets that I just casted and reloaded. They scraped a good deal when they loaded into the brass even with proper case belling, not leaving much of the lube behind :mad:(I took a couple apart afterwards and inspected them. So I am going to sell that mold and get some molds with standard lube groves for .38.

But, getting back on track, I was wondering if anybody can reccommend a specific sizer/lubricator. I am looking at buying the RCBS Lube-A-Matic 2. I have checked it out on Midaway USA and read the reviews. Folks seem to like them. Any thoughts.:confused:

What is your alloy mix? That and casting temp can make a big difference in size. A cast bullet needs allot of belling, if it was just that the lube was scraped off you don't need much alox to do the job. What is in the grooves is enough for a .38. I have had good luck with the Tumble lube bullets myself have you tried shooting them yet?

Alloy is about 12 pound of WW with one or two ounces of tin plumbers solder to help it fill out the mold (had some fill out problems initally). The temperature is between 5 and 6 on the Lee Pro-4 20 pound pot (not sure what that works out to be). I'll take some pictures and post them to show you what I mean. I havent shot them yet.

As you can see on the first 3 deformed bullets, the bullets were shaved during insertion into the case. This happened about 13x out of 150 bullets loaded. Also, you can see that the lube is in some areas striped away, leaving that side unlubed. On the 4th picture you can see one that I took apart to inspect and it appears to have worked properly. (The gold looking stuff on the bullets is the lube. The damage to the tops of the bullet is the result of me taking them apart)

Take a look at this case expander die. It's what I use and I've been using Lee's tumble lube bullets since they came out with no problems. I shoot them in both 41 mag and 357/38. This is what you need to load cast bullets.

http://www.leeprecision.com/cgi/catalog/browse.cgi?1116728482.5129=/html/catalog/lubesize.html#CaseExpandingDie

10-4. Do you think that little bit of lube in the groves on the one in the fourth picture enough to properly lube the bullet when fired? if thats the case I will try to bell more. I have the powder trough expander on my Loadmaster and I dont want to replace it with a non powder trough die if I don't have to.

After looking at your pictures, I believe that it is a matter of technique with "belling" your cases. I think a bit more will get you past this and make you content? I "see" shaved lead! That will take any lube off.

"Bell them out" just enough to act as a "funnel" to the bullet. No more. The inside "edge" of the case is what you need to be watching.

Cheezywan

Cheezy got it right. Get either the Lyman or Lee cast bullet case expander and your going to have much better luck. I don't size either of my tumble lube bullets, but the bullets I do size get a double dose of tumble lube. I tumble lube them before sizing and applying the gas checks with the Lee sizer simply because it makes them so easy to size. They then get tumble lubed again before I load them.

The standard belling dies are really best for jacketed bullets and can do just what your pix show. The Lyman and Lee lead bullet expanders work much better.

Thanks a bunch for the input guys. But if I was to buy a sizer/lubricator, do you have any favorites.

if ya want to gggo with what ya are doin so far get the lee push through sizer then just lube again for best results.

I've been using the Lee push thru sizer for lots of years with great results, but keep in mind the tumble lube bullets your casting usually don't require sizing. For the bullets I do size with Lee's push thru sizer I tumble lube them, size and tumble lube them again before loading. They go thru the sizer so much easier.

I shoot a 210 grain Lee plain base tumble lube bullet in my 41 mag and a 146 grain Lee tumble lube wadcutter in my 38 and they just get tumble lubed and loaded without sizing. Lee designed this bullet for that kind of use.

Lee's sizing system is so much easier than any other that I've used.

Just shot them and they functioned fine. I will be sticking with the tumble lube bullets I guess. Did have one squib...my fault though, I guess I need to pay better attention. Time to get a hammer and a wooden rod.

Looks like some of the bullets were angled while seating so the case cut into the side of the bullet. I make a point to start seating as straight as possible after getting the same results with "regular" lubed and sized grooved bullet molds. A bit more belling or a Lyman M die helps maintain straightness while seating.
Also, do you chamfer the inside of the case mouth?

Insufficient belling of the casemouth with lead bullets will result in shaved bullets as will bullets seated at an angle. You cannot always depend on the seater die aligning the bullet to the casemouth as sometimes the bullet will still seat but the case will show a greater amount of bulge on one side than the other along with the lead shaving and smeared lube. I found it helps if I start the seating very gently to allow the bullet to straighten itself out before putting normal pressure on the press handle. I know, this cuts down on productivity a bit but if it turns out a better cartridge, I feel it time well spent. When the seated and crimped bullet comes out of the die as clean as when it went in, you know that things are going right. Just my dos centavos.

Well I am not so pleased with the Lee tumble lube bullets that I just casted and reloaded. They scraped a good deal when they loaded into the brass even with proper case belling, not leaving much of the lube behind :mad:(I took a couple apart afterwards and inspected them. So I am going to sell that mold and get some molds with standard lube groves for .38.

But, getting back on track, I was wondering if anybody can reccommend a specific sizer/lubricator. I am looking at buying the RCBS Lube-A-Matic 2. I have checked it out on Midaway USA and read the reviews. Folks seem to like them. Any thoughts.:confused:

The RCBS LAM 2 is very good product.
I run 6 of them and RCBS warrenty is one of the best in the Business.
I have sent 3 back to them for minor repairs and they sent new ones back , no questions asked !!!
The Lyman 450 are also good and the best in the batch is the Star .
They do cost a bit more for the Star but are well worth it .
I can not comment on any Lee sizers , I do not use any ...

RR