Alox for lube.

[Iroquois]

I have a question about aluminum oxide. How is it used for sandpaper and also as a lubricant. I want to mix my own bullet lube, and I need to buy the right product. Who sells aluminum oxide that can be mixed with wax for lube? Ok , that's several questions.... can anyone help.

 

[jcj54]

Alox in bullet lube is NOT aluminum oxide which is an abrasive. ALOX is a petrolium preservative product that was determined to have properties that are useful in bullet lube, among which assist the lube to adhere to the metal. LEE liquid Alox can be used as an ingredient in your own lube and is available from Amazon among other sources.

 

[Creedmoor]

I have a question about aluminum oxide. How is it used for sandpaper and also as a lubricant. I want to mix my own bullet lube, and I need to buy the right product. Who sells aluminum oxide that can be mixed with wax for lube? Ok , that's several questions.... can anyone help.

What bullets are you wanting to lube?

 

[Iroquois]

What bullets are you wanting to lube?

Cast bullets for handgun. I'm trying to replicate some liquid lube I bought in the 80s... It involved really hard wax , some powdered substance like graphite or alox, and smelled like fingernail polish remover. It coated evenly, colored the bullets charcoal grey , and was extremely hard ( not sticky) . It was way easy, and didn't involve an special equipment or an oven. Pour , shake, drain and dry.... A little bit did hundreds.....

 

[Creedmoor]

Cast bullets for handgun. I'm trying to replicate some liquid lube I bought in the 80s... It involved really hard wax , some powdered substance like graphite or alox, and smelled like fingernail polish remover. It coated evenly, colored the bullets charcoal grey , and was extremely hard ( not sticky) . It was way easy, and didn't involve an special equipment or an oven. Pour , shake, drain and dry.... A little bit did hundreds.....

I was casting in the eighty's along with a few other members here, I don't recall what you are talking about. I shifted over with any smokeless cast I load to the bake on Hi Tek powdered coatings.
Being a powder that gets hard and coats evenly? is where I get lost.

I bought a good sized confection oven at a yard sale, new in the box for like 30 bucks.
Hi Tek powder is an easy way to go nowadays.

 

[Creedmoor]

Cast bullets for handgun. I'm trying to replicate some liquid lube I bought in the 80s... It involved really hard wax , some powdered substance like graphite or alox, and smelled like fingernail polish remover. It coated evenly, colored the bullets charcoal grey , and was extremely hard ( not sticky) . It was way easy, and didn't involve an special equipment or an oven. Pour , shake, drain and dry.... A little bit did hundreds.....

I would take this post over on Castboolits.com and see what some of those old men have to say about what you are looking for. Lets see what Leadeye has to say with what you are looking for.
@Leadeye

 

[Iroquois]

I was casting in the eighty's along with a few other members here, I don't recall what you are talking about. I shifted over with any smokeless cast I load to the bake on Hi Tek powdered coatings.
Being a powder that gets hard and coats evenly? is where I get lost.

I bought a good sized confection oven at a yard sale, new in the box for like 30 bucks.
Hi Tek powder is an easy way to go nowadays.

Honestly, I suspect that the liquid was carnauba wax, diluted with acetone... I don't know what the powder was but it may have had graphite in it. The club I belonged to used to buy this stuff in Chicago, and, mix a gallon of it with "thinner" , probably more acetone. Three gallons would cover tens of thousands of bullets. I never heard a complaint about the club reloads. I bought a quart of the stuff from the club in the late 80s.. it's still good, I think. I don't know who made it and I don't have any contacts with the old club.

 

[Creedmoor]

Honestly, I suspect that the liquid was carnauba wax, diluted with acetone... I don't know what the powder was but it may have had graphite in it. The club I belonged to used to buy this stuff in Chicago, and, mix a gallon of it with "thinner" , probably more acetone. Three gallons would cover tens of thousands of bullets. I never heard a complaint about the club reloads. I bought a quart of the stuff from the club in the late 80s.. it's still good, I think. I don't know who made it and I don't have any contacts with the old club.

I believe to buy carnauba would be a bit on the expensive side now.
I've seen guys use soy wax back then with so so results. I hate to catch myself trying to reinventing the wheel when it's so easy to buy what's one the market already.
I really would post this on castboolits and see what some of the membership says.

 

[Leadeye]

I have a question about aluminum oxide. How is it used for sandpaper and also as a lubricant. I want to mix my own bullet lube, and I need to buy the right product. Who sells aluminum oxide that can be mixed with wax for lube? Ok , that's several questions.... can anyone help.

I think what you saw was aluminum stearate and not aluminum oxide, although they are both white powders to the eye, they have very different properties. The stearate is found in lubricant compounds and even feels greasy when you rub the powder in your fingers. It's also used as a dry lube in sandpaper, and a powdering agent in sanding sealers or primer.

 

[Creedmoor]

I think what you saw was aluminum stearate and not aluminum oxide, although they are both white powders to the eye, they have very different properties. The stearate is found in lubricant compounds and even feels greasy when you rub the powder in your fingers. It's also used as a dry lube in sandpaper, and a powdering agent in sanding sealers or primer.

Thanks

 

[DadSmith]

I would take this post over on Castboolits.com and see what some of those old men have to say about what you are looking for. Lets see what Leadeye has to say with what you are looking for.
@Leadeye

Did you just call @Leadeye an old man.

 

[Leadeye]

Honestly, I suspect that the liquid was carnauba wax, diluted with acetone... I don't know what the powder was but it may have had graphite in it. The club I belonged to used to buy this stuff in Chicago, and, mix a gallon of it with "thinner" , probably more acetone. Three gallons would cover tens of thousands of bullets. I never heard a complaint about the club reloads. I bought a quart of the stuff from the club in the late 80s.. it's still good, I think. I don't know who made it and I don't have any contacts with the old club.

Your powder was likely Molybdenum disulfide, a common industrial dry lubricant. The liquid part may have just been a carrier to help form a film with the moly coating. Industrial grade nitrocellulose comes to mind as a good vehicle for this purpose as it adheres well to many things but it could have been a number of materials.

 

[Leadeye]

Did you just call @Leadeye an old man.

I am an old man, I don't mind admitting it.

 

[Leadeye]

Alox in bullet lube is NOT aluminum oxide which is an abrasive. ALOX is a petrolium preservative product that was determined to have properties that are useful in bullet lube, among which assist the lube to adhere to the metal. LEE liquid Alox can be used as an ingredient in your own lube and is available from Amazon among other sources.

Alox I've always figured was made of one of the SACI sulfonate products from Daubert Chemical, probably mixed with a stearate. Another familiar sulfonate material is Ziebart.

 

[Creedmoor]

Did you just call @Leadeye an old man.

I called a few, Geriatrics the other day, wanna guess who responded?

Sorry baby Jesus.

 

[Leadeye]

Shootin' geezers are not the same as Fudds.

 

[Creedmoor]

Your powder was likely Molybdenum disulfide, a common industrial dry lubricant. The liquid part may have just been a carrier to help form a film with the moly coating. Industrial grade nitrocellulose comes to mind as a good vehicle for this purpose as it adheres well to many things but it could have been a number of materials.

What I found interesting at least to me was I have molyed for twenty five years or so.
I have found bullets that I molyed twenty years ago have corrosion on them now even being stored in a ammo can. So I assume that molly is hygroscopic?

 

[JTKelly]

I just figure it is pretty cheap to just buy it from Lee. Bought a big box of bottles the first time I used it and it has lasted long enough I don't even remember what it cost.

 

[DadSmith]

What I found interesting at least to me was I have molyed for twenty five years or so.
I have found bullets that I molyed twenty years ago have corrosion on them now even being stored in a ammo can. So I assume that molly is hygroscopic?

I read that using moly on bullets made your barrel rust because they said it attracts moisture. No clue if that's true. Just something I read when I used moly on bought bullets.

 

[Creedmoor]

I read that using moly on bullets made your barrel rust because they said it attracts moisture. No clue if that's true. Just something I read when I used moly on bought bullets.

Well with what I found last summer?? I would think for those that dont clean and store in a low humidity steel box you could have a problem. I was really surprised when I pulled a handful out of that can and the bullets felt like 220 grit sandpaper. Its been over 20 years since I had loaded them, but I didn't expect that.