just received a bottle from Midway, it is more like a "gel" consistency than a liquid. is this old?

It helps if you stand it in a pan of warm water !

Hip

As stated just heat it a bit..

then dump some mineral spirits in.

I have bought alox from other than lee and it comes in a thick dark brown gloppy paste form.

I consider that good cause I can cut it down and use the proper amount rather than glop it everywhere and have a mess.

IF you try to warm it up in a
microwave. Make sure you open the
spout.

It would sure make one hell of a mess
if the bottle blows up. I do it in one,
but, only heat it 15-20 seconds at a time.
Take it out nd feel how warm it is. When
about as hot as I can hold in a bare hand
that's just right.

Damned good stuff. I coat a bunch of bullets
with it, then let them lay on cardboard for
a few days to dry enough they don't grow
into clusters in the bucket.

George

When I heat it in the microwave, I put the bottle in a cup half full of water. And the cap spout is open.

thanks for the tips guys I'll try it

Oh yes indeed! I can just see it now with it exploding in the microwave. Go out + buy a new one before the wife gets home, + let her know that you were buying her a gift of a new one. Better add some flowers to make it believable.

Sorry, that little bit of levity was due to a remenberence of a fellow shade tree gunsmith who set up an ad hoc bluing operation in his kitchen when his wife was gone. After several failed attempts, he gave up + poured the salt solution down the kitchen sink drain. WRONG MOVE!!! It immediately ate through the pipes + everything after that it came in contact with. Talk about a mess! Its kinda funny now in a way, but then again, not at all.

quote:

Originally posted by NormanConquest:
Oh yes indeed! I can just see it now with it exploding in the microwave. Go out + buy a new one before the wife gets home, + let her know that you were buying her a gift of a new one. Better add some flowers to make it believable.

Being married to the same women for 40+ years.

There has been a couple of times that needed that solution.

I'm currently using some that's 25 years old. All the mineral spirits had evaporated over the years. I keep it at room temperature, and added a little mineral spirits on two occasions until the consistency was what I wanted, and it works just as well as it did way back when.

Clarence

Just heated a partial bottle in the microwave a couple of days ago, using the same protocol George cited. Damned good stuff.

quote:

Originally posted by Lamar:
then dump some mineral spirits in.

This. Does it not say that right on the bottle?

Do not heat the whole bottle. Only heat what will be used. Place the alox in a tiny plastic cup. (old cap for wd40) Place in near boiling water, till it gets runny. Dump on bullets. Helps if bullets are warm also.

The keeps the whole bottle from becoming thick grease.

Only things I've ever blown up in a microwave were.
Eggs when we first got one. 'And Tried to cook chestnuts. Just about blew the oven apart with those things. Mess was almost as bad as if it had been alox.

George

First thing I ever blew up in the microwave.....
A leech. Huge one that I got while wading the river. Found it changing clothes. I was pissed, and put it in a glass half full of water and stuck it in there.
Yup, exploded leech all over the inside. I'm older now, maybe a shade smarter.

quote:

Originally posted by 243winxb:
Do not heat the whole bottle. Only heat what will be used. Place the alox in a tiny plastic cup. (old cap for wd40) Place in near boiling water, till it gets runny. Dump on bullets. Helps if bullets are warm also.

The keeps the whole bottle from becoming thick grease.

You can heat the whole bottle by removing the cap and only heating 15 seconds at a time till you have it as warm as you want it. No different than heating honey or molasses that has crystalized.