carbide dies and lube

[dinnerplate]

can anyone please confirm that a carbide sizer die does not require any lube at all, either in the die or case?

i exchanged a set of 9mm redding titanium carbide dies today, because the one i returned had a faulty sizer die. after about four rounds or so, the carbide ring popped out along with the case. there was no way to put it back in properly, so i exchanged it.

i guess i'm just wondering if i did something wrong. when i got the first die set, i disassembled it, and used some hoppes no. 9 to clean and degrease. then used a few qtips to get it dry. after screwing the dies in, i took my clean and tumbled 9mm brass and started resizing. the fourth round got stuck, and the carbide ring came out along with it.

did i do something wrong to make this happen? i'm sitting on the second die set right now because i don't want to make the same mistake, if any. thanks again, guys.

[joelogic]

Pistol carbide dies dont require lube but some people use a light coat anyway. I have heard of the carbide ring popping because of being dropped but not from normal use.

I use dillon dies and dont lube 9mm or .45 and they work just fine.

[Divernhunter]

I use RCBS and Lyman carbide dies for 9mm/357/38/44mag/454casull/45ACP and no lube. Never had a problem in many years of use.

[stewiegriffin]

You're going to hear both sides of this discussion. Some lube because it makes things run smoother, especially on a progressive. Some don't lube at all and the last time I bought dies (RCBS 45ACP), the gun store dude told me to NOT use case lube.

Manufacturers will tell you that it is not necessary, but it doesnt hurt if you do.

I lube.

[sequoia_nomad]

I've never used lube with Rcbs carbide dies and have never had any problems. Are you sure you have everything set up right? Anything odd about the cases you're loading? It seems weird for that to happen twice in a row, unless it's a user error. Or you just have terrible luck.

[dinnerplate]

it's not twice in a row, thankfully. it's just the one set of dies that did this. i'm sitting on a brand new set that i haven't installed yet, is what i meant. that WOULD be weird if it happened twice. crossing my fingers now.

i would apply case lube inside the die, just to make it smoother, but don't want to have to tumble it again. i'll chance the no lube method again. thanks!

[bohoki]

ive loaded many thousand with the lee die in 9mm

never used a lick of lube

but i do tumble with walnut and a bit of car polish which has a bit of wax makes them nice and shiny

[jwest]

I have RCBS Carbide for .44M - if you read the instructions RCBS does recommend to regularly clean and lightly lube.

[Masterdebater]

sooo rcbs>lee? rcbs is twice as much as the lee ones...worth the money?

[Sheldon]

I have some Lee die and they work fine, granted most of mine are Dillon and they work fine too. I don't bother lubing with carbide pistol dies. I know it makes it easier to size them with lube, but that's an extra step and then add an additional step to get the lube off. I don't have an issue with the little extra effort needed to pull the press handle without the case lube. There may come a time when my joints will appreciate it though....old age can be a b*tch!!

[pisarski]

i load 9mm 38 super & 45acp with lee carbide and no lube and they work great

[Diabolus]

I just started reloading 9mm, but there is a big difference between lubed brass and non-lubed. I am going to always use lube, it's easier to manipulate the machine, and I would assume that's better.

[22popnsplat]

I reload for 20+ different cartridges and often i find my self with more than one set of dies for a cartridge , I have come to the conclusion that redding is a excellent value and never had a issue with redding (they sent me a free tapered expander ball i needed for a wildcat I shoot) . I have had issues with lee dies more than once and currently will generally only use their factory crimp dies or collet neck dies.I will sometimes use lube on brass that i am running through carbide dies just because it makes it a little smoother pull of handle. Just go knock out few thousand with those redding dies , you just ended up the rare bad die from the factory.

[dinnerplate]

i figured as much. the second set is smooth as butter, and is working great so far. no complaints about redding. really nice guys, too.

[anyracoon]

I always throw my clean pistol brass into a zip lock plastic bag, give it a couple of light hits of One-Shot than into the case feeder. Just makes the Blue machine run smoother.