Rusty dies

[Maverick1911]

So I have noticed that on the outside of some of my dies there is what I assume is the beginning of rust....especially on the hornady powder check die stem. I reload in my garage for the time being....is their enough moisture to do this? Is it best practice to store dies that I am actively using as opposed to keeping them in the press? I use the lock n load progressive and my dies have bushings on them so no luck getting them back in their die case....suggestions on storage? Should I be lubing or oiling my dies...?

 

[aviator41]

YES! a quick wipe down of the outside of the dies with something like rem-oil, heck even WD40 works. you have to make sure you have a barrier between the steel and the moisture in the air.

 

[dennishoddy]

Hit them with the Hornady one shot, and brush to get the surface rust off and hit them again with the one shot. Your good to go.

My reloading area is in my shop, but its only heated when I'm out there. If your using a propane or nat gas heater that is not vented, your humidity in the shop will go up to the point that every thing metal will rust. Heat it while your in there if this is the case, and open doors and let the moisture out when your done with a fan.

I've ran into this problem in my shop that is really sealed and insulated.

 

[Maverick1911]

What about the inside of the dies..? Spray them as well ? Better if I store my dies in some sort of humidity box?

 

[Shadowrider]

If you have the Hornady die box, they are oversize so that they will still fit in with the LNL bushings on them. I know I had about 5 sets when I had my LNL AP press. Still have a few too.

What I do is "season" them inside and out with FrogLube paste. I don't know what that stuff is, but it's pretty dang good against rust and works real good on taper crimp dies for getting rid of the squeak. But yes you need to protect them with something.

See this thread

 

[dennishoddy]

Great report by Shadowrider. It answered a lot of lube questions.

Kind of related, but if you have stainless steel guns, they will rust as well without lube on the outside. The alloys in the stainless is what rusts.

 

[Maverick1911]

Does it matter if I use any lubricant or one shot, frog lube, wd40 all the same? And does this go for case gauges inside and out?

 

[Maverick1911]

Interesting you mention lubing the outside of stainless guns....I had a question about that too! Stainless steel varmint barrel on my ar 15...lube it? How do you get all the way down to the bottom of the barrel since the handguards are locked in over it?

 

[dennishoddy]

Inside and outside for the anti rust lube.

Carbide pistol dies won't rust. I don't use WD-40 for anything on a gun. In cold weather, or with excessive use in hot weather, it turns into gum.

 

[Sanford]

Lanolin - or any lube that contains it. Kiwi Mink Oil (the plain green can, not the fancy ones), Bag Balm, etc. Can also be used for case lube, and even leaves your hands soft as a baby's butt (as long as you're not allergic to the stuff). Machinists have been using it for years to prevent tool rust.