Lubing bullets for Smith carbine

[Yakiman]

I recently picked up a Pietta Smith carbine and have cast a batch of bullets using the Lyman 518145 mold and have the red plastic cases with the brass insert. I dip lube bullets for my Sharps (Hahn tubes) but wonder how those of you shooting the Smith lube yours. Since the bullet sits so deep it seems like you'd eventually have a lube buildup in the case. Looking for some guidance on that as well as how do you prevent powder leakage from the opening in the case.

[mgmradio]

Easy as pie. Just insert the bullet nose first into a case to the first grove, then fill the groves with SPG using your finger. After lubing, push the bullet into the case up to the base. Wipe off the excess lube then squeeze the bullet out of the case. Ready to go.

[Lou Lou Lou]

I use a forcep to dip the base into the melted lube. I use metal case and the excess comes off to be reused

[Big Grit]

I run them thru my Saeco lubri-sizer same as I do all my cast bullets. I use SPG lube.

[Hal]

I pan lube mine.

If you are not familiar with pan lubing, here is what I do. I put all my bullets base down into aluminum pie pans. Keep maybe 3/16" between them. Melt your lube and pour into the pie pan until it covers all the grooves you want lubed. Let it harden. Once it's hardened, take the whole bullet/lube cake assembly out of the pie pan and push the bullets out by pressing their nose with your thumb. A couple of useful tips.... 1. Don't let the lube get completely cold before pressing the bullets out. It needs to be solidified, but still somewhat soft. You can do them cold, but they come out a bit easier of they are still just a little bit warm. Experiment. 2. Support the the base of each bullet with a finger from the other hand. I use the middle finger of my left hand against the base of the bullet I am pressing out with my right thumb. This reduces the chance of breaking the lube cake which will inevitably break across 2, 3, 4 more bullets leaving them with empty lube grooves.

[Eggman]

The way i do it is I fill the deep grooves in this fabulous little bullet cast from a low cost Lee bullet mould. I use my right index finger with a glob of Lens Lube on it to apply the lube. This is the same finger I use to pi// scratch my nose. This little bullet ahead of 28 grains fffg shoots like a champ.

[Maillemaker]

I recently picked up a Pietta Smith carbine and have cast a batch of bullets using the Lyman 518145 mold and have the red plastic cases with the brass insert. I dip lube bullets for my Sharps (Hahn tubes) but wonder how those of you shooting the Smith lube yours. Since the bullet sits so deep it seems like you'd eventually have a lube buildup in the case.

For my daughter's Pietta Smith we shoot the Eras Gone Smith bullet with 32 grains 3F Goex in the hard black plastic tubes. I pressed grommets into the flash holes to extend their lives.

To lube the bullets, I dip the bases in melted lube using needle nose pliers, and then set them on wax paper to cool off. Then we run them through a Lee .515 sizing die.


Looking for some guidance on that as well as how do you prevent powder leakage from the opening in the case.

Prior to loading, we stick a piece of painter's masking tape over each flash hole. Then we fill the cases and stick in the sized, lubricated bullets.

At the range, she plucks off the tape and stick the cartridges nose-down in her cartridge box. I 3D-printed an insert (like the wooden block) for her carbine cartridge box so each cartridge sits in its own cavity so it cannot tip over.

[musketnut]

Also you can put a small piece of 3M surgical tape over the hole say like 8mm x 8mm and the cap spark will fire right through that tape.