AmericanLongRifles Forums
General discussion => Black Powder Shooting => Topic started by: DMacKay on October 14, 2021, 05:47:22 PM
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I’m a little newer to black powder, there seem to be a ton of options. I’ve read a lot of historical accounts referencing bear oil. I would like to know among other questions is that a good lube or just what they had available.
What do you use and why?
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It’s probably one of the best patch lubes, but venison tallow, or mutton tallow, is a good close second.
Hungry Horse
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I would agree with HH as I have used all three, with bear oil/greese and deer my most used lube.
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I use Liquid Wrench Penetrating Oil (Oh, the HORROR). I use it because it gives me better accuracy than any of the many lubes I've tried and, as a bonus, I have no rust problems if I don't clean the bore for a day or three after shooting.
I use the "dry lube" method with it. Soak a stack of patches with it. Wrap the stack in some paper towels and squeeze the bundle to take up the excess oil. The patches will feel almost dry and are pleasant to use. And no, the fouling is no different (or less) than other lubes I've used and cleaning isn't any more difficult.
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The Mr Flintlock Lube is really good stuff for target and range work. It is a wet lube. It also does a super job as your final cleaning stage, as it gets the graphite out of the barrel. Few other cleaners will do that. Lehigh Valley Lube will also cut graphite, but they are out of business.
For hunting 100% mink oil from Track of the Wolf will not hurt your bore or contaminate the powder over the course of a day. It's obviously not a wet lube.
If you are looking for historically correct products, think about how your current barrel is made versus 250 years ago. Much of what we do now is not historically correct. Not many folks forging a wrought iron barrel from a skelp these days. Just something to ponder.
God Bless, Marc
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Marc, A very good way to look at different lubes. I have pretty much used them all. I can’t tell any difference in bear lube to mink oil. I also, like using the Wonder Lube Liquid. With care, cleaning needs to be thorough. As been said before, hot water and dawn dish liquid has been used for sometime. Thanks Marc. Jerry
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I use a dry lube approach using a 1:7 solution of Ballistol:water. I soak the strips of patches (I use pillow ticking) in the solution and lay the strips out flat on a plastic counter top or table to dry. I always end up with at least a 3” group with 1.5 X the caliber powder charge. I generally use a ball .005” under the bore size. If I have a hard time starting the ball, I go down .010”.
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3 inch group at what distance?
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3 inch group at what distance?
50 yards. I always shoot from a bench at 50 yards. Actually, my eyesight is usually the limiting factor in my groups. I have a very hard time seeing open sights. The gun almost always shoots better than I can.
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canola oil , clean shooting .
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Murphy's oil soap cut about 50% w/ water. shoots 25-30 shots w/o cleaning, cleans easily when done---and no bears to skin...
Ron
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I've been using Wonder Lube, pre-lubed and the paste. It seems to work well for target and hunting.
Have also tried Sno Seal in the past. It worked well but seemed to leave a waxy deposit in the barrel.
And don't forget to read your patches after you shoot, they will give you good information about the correct thickness and lube for your particular gun.
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I think I’ve tried about all of the popular lubes. I settled on Simple Green detergent for casual shooting and Olive or Canola oil for hunting. My eyesight is the real limitation. BJH
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JB Weld fast setting epoxy works a peach as well….
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JB Weld fast setting epoxy works a peach as well….
Don’t that gum up the barrel? ;D :o :'(
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Like most of you guys, I’ve probably tried everything under the sun. For me, I’ve settled on two…spit for range shooting, and Track’s mink oil for hunting. I’ve yet to run out of the first, and always have it with me. The second works as good as anything I’ve tried, and a tin lasts a long time.
Greg
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Same here Greg
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Tallow >>>-->mine is mutton/ lamb, melt it in double boiler dip patching squeese out extra, dry slightly greasy feel shoots great & does not go bad as other as other fats(red ;) coats/english used it for over 200 yrs)
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I've been using a Ballistol:water combination, about 1:3 or 1:4. Seems to work very well. I have some old Neats Foot Oil that still looks good, so I may try that sometime. But if it isn't broken, I see little reason to mess with it.
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I only use the oils or greases for hunting with the ML, which hasn't happened for a number of years.
I use a water soluble oil or WWWF+ a tich of Neetsfoot Oil, or spit for target work. I find ALL of those
work pretty much identically & shoot with the same loads, in my rifles, roughly 5 to 10gr. LESS than the
oils or greases used in hunting loads need.
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If not using the Ballistol / water ratio and shooting a dry lube patch, how much mink / bear / deer or other substance do you apply to the patch? How "greasey" does it have to be?
Not new to shooting, just new to the Flintlock shooting. I am a proud owner of a new .54 caliber Lancaster style flinter.
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I dip a stack of pre-cut patches in melted lube, then squeeze out the excess back into the container. I do that say with my wet lubes, soaked up by a stack of patches,
then squeeze out the excess. They are wet, but not dripping. When seated flush with the muzzle, there will be a ring of lube around the top of the crown, either one
of the greases or oils, or one of the water based - same as when using spit. For years, when hunting with Track's Mink Oil, I would use a barrier patch, or a card wad
between the powder and patched ball. I stopped doing that after testing a load without the barrier wad on a target after being loaded for a week. There was no fouling
buildup, nor was there ANY point of impact change. I thus concluded the barrier was not needed.
Due to the tight loads I use and the action of shoving the patched ball down the bore, I can only assume that the excess lube is drawn up onto the bore as the patched
ball is seated, thus there is a smidgen of lube on the sides of the bore after loading, not a puddle of it on the bottom of the patched ball, which one might think, would foul
or wet the powder charge.
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I just came across two tins of Dixie Gun Works "Ole Zip Patch lube". Thats been gone for quite some time now.
I use Mr Flintlock Patch Lube, for target shooting, and TOW mink oil for hunting.
Now I get to try out the "Ole Zip Patch lube".
Dave
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Bear grease/oil is a bit gooey at warm temps, so those of us down here in the South will nearly always thicken it up with deer tallow (which is a bit hard in cool weather).
Of course if you're a spit-patcher and have a runny nose... like I've had lately ;D
The OP (Mr. MacKay) should note that we have a new "patch lube" thread about twice each Winter and I'll call this the "early one'. They go on for days/pages and there are no substances left out. If it's wet or slick someone has shoved it down a barrel, and some insist that theirs is the absolute and ultimate bestest. There is no universal best as I can tell--but only the best that you've found works for your loads in your rifle in your ways of doing things. Great luck finding your answers and satisfaction in these aspects of muzzleloading. Lube ain't the only one. ;)
If you've not found Bob's youtube channel check it out. He's the "JB Weld" commenter above and does have some good info for beginners in video form.
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...There is no universal best as I can tell--but only the best that you've found works for your loads in your rifle in your ways of doing things. Great luck finding your answers and satisfaction in these aspects of muzzleloading. Lube ain't the only one. ;)
And THAT is the truth of the matter!
Lube and lubricating concoctions are relatively cheap; experiment to your heart's content.
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Range 20/80% Ballistol/Water, Hunting coconut oil.
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I have always wondered? Why do people use different lubes for range shooting and hunting? If you lube for hunting gives fine results why not use it all the time? Practice like you play was a term we used in the fire service.
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I have been using mink oil for years and it works well but tends to turn to liquid in the Florida summers. I recently tried Frontiers patch lube with bear oil. The stuff is slippery as eel $%$!. And loads very easy with a tight patch. Also does not turn to liquid in the heat. I do not get any better accuracy from it. But loading is noticeably easier.
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The truth of the matter is any lube that comes pre-bottled with a label doesn’t have to adhere to their formula by law. So basically you don’t know what your using when you buy multi ingredient lubes. Its like pillow ticking, almost nobody uses feathers in pillows anymore, so ticking doesn’t have to be tight enough to hold them. Don’t operate on what was true in the sixties, use what frontiersmen used grease, and linen.
Hungry Horse
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I use mink oil for hunting because the gun can be left loaded if not fired. But for day to day I use Hoppes BP Lube or their Bore Cleaner. The Hoppes goes further than the mink oil and that's the $$ advantage IMHO. I do sometimes use mink oil at the range but not that often.
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I've used Hoppes for lube and Windex to swab between shots on the range. That combo has produced a consistent bore and muzzle velocities over a chronograph, particularly when I used to shoot in low humidity in Arizona. It also more closely duplicates the first shot out of a clean barrel when hunting. Any more for target shooting I need all the help I can get. Have also used Hoppes when hunting - I soak the patches in the loading block and sometimes carry that in a plastic bag to keep them moist. Usually dump my loads at night and clean with Hoppes. With a flintlock I like to start fresh and dry in the morning.
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I've used Hoppes for lube and Windex to swab between shots ... Usually dump my loads at night and clean with Hoppes. With a flintlock I like to start fresh and dry in the morning.
Mine stays loaded from opening day until I shoot at game usually. Sometimes that means it's loaded for weeks and has gone months before being fired.
Goes off like a rifle with a prick of the charge and a fresh pan. Every time in my experience. I'm not arguing with your way, just illustrating that success can be had other ways. Greased patches or oiled--the gun speaks right up and is on target every time I've checked.
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Same here, Wade. The longest I've had a rifle loaded, was 3 months. Got out once and didn't see anything. After the season was over, I "repaired" to the range, set up a target at 100 meters
and fired 3 shots with the same patch and lube, the first one, being there for 3 months. It started a 1 1/2", 3 shot group at 100meters. The was 15 years ago, maybe 17? Dang, I wish I could still shoot that rifle, like that. :)
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Olive oil or canola oil works for me.
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Hey something else I noticed (as I perused the patch lube threads of the last dozen years here) is that somewhere someone equated sheep tallow with lanolin.
Those are not the same thing, They may shoot the same (I've ne'er tried either) but lanolin is the oily/waxy secretions that, in part, make wool such a wonderful and useful fabric. Tallow-as I know it, only comes from rendering out the fat from the carcass of the animals. Tallow comes from dead animals, lanolin is extracted from raw wool-something that wool sheep produce over and over again. I have not found any fatty acids breakdown of either
Consider that in your formulations and experimentations and when deciphering old recipes.
On that note, I have some "lanolin oil" in front of me that's begging to be soaked into a patch or three. It's a liquid lanolin that I thought might be good for my skin, but I don't find it useful there (found it on Ebay a few years back, and it's "pure organic"). I use pure waxy, thick, normal lanolin for that (finding nothing better for my hands and working outdoors every day). And now I have this 4oz of lanolin oil to dispose of. May as well shoot it. ;D
Could be a "new" recipe forthcoming! :P
But wait there's more (for those interested in lanolin history and chemistry): https://lanolin.com/about-lanolin/
From there I see that lanolin "lacks the glycerol content found in body fat". Good or bad, there it is.
Tallow is primarily triglycerides. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tallow)
Knowledgeable chemists might know even more about how these compare and what makes either a preferred substance for shooters.
Or we just shoot and see.
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Having used a lot of different patch lubes over the decades I came to a logical (for me) conclusion about them in general. If I have to shoot a bear or butcher a sheep for my lube it's not worth my time. Also, if I have to work and sweat over a boiling cauldron on a stove while my squeeze keeps complaining about the smell, I won't go there either. And as for mixing stuff together - maybe only two liquids in a bottle is a possibility - that's unnecessary as well.
What I will do is buy good lubes (Hoppes, TOW mink oil, DGW's Black Solve for example) that I've found works for me. Just not a natural experimenter I guess.
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Hanshi: You are a wise man. I either use T.O.T.W. mink or T.O.T.W mink and pure neat's-foot oil melted together in a 50/50 mix. either or both work equally well. Shoot this lube year round target, trail walk or hunting.
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Hanshi when you run out of Hoppes hit me up I still have a lifetime supply :)
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I use totw mink oil exclusively because it is easy. I've made lubes and found it too work and time inclusive and was no better than the mink oil.
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40 dawn/60 water
Just shot match for five days straight and never cleaned
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40 dawn/60 water
Just shot match for five days straight and never cleaned
Did you win any prizes? Wipe or no?
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Hanshi when you run out of Hoppes hit me up I still have a lifetime supply :)
Bassdog1, thank you my friend, I'll probably do that when I get close to running out. I'll PM you at that time. Lifetime supply, wow! I ordered this drum of Hoppes several years ago as it was so much cheaper than getting it in bottles. Can't remember where I ordered it from but happily used it for years. In our last move I had to leave it behind and it still had a little bit left in it.
(https://i.ibb.co/rvsJfMz/PICT0593-1.jpg)
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Mink oil or spit.
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40 dawn/60 water
Just shot match for five days straight and never cleaned
Did you win any prizes? Wipe or no?
Took a couple ribbons, and zero wiping
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40 dawn/60 water
Just shot match for five days straight and never cleaned
Did you win any prizes? Wipe or no?
Took a couple ribbons, and zero wiping
Good shootin'! thanks for the reply
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I tend to use beef or deer tallow, triple boiled, or Pure Neatsfoot Oil. For my chunk rifle I use water soluble oil 1:5 or 1:7 oil to water then wet the fabric and then let the water evaporate. High friction lube and it shoots very well but requires wiping. Blowing in the barrel before loading I can shoot pretty much indefinitely with the tallow or NF oil. I have left the tallow in the bore for several months after hunting season pulled the loads and no sign of any corrosion. I only used a couple of drops of the oil per patch. Just enough that the patch will be uniformly oiled after a few hours. I only put tallow on one side of the patch but rubbing the patch on the tallow.
I ringed a barrel back in the 1960s with spit and stopped using it. Water based lubes cannot be left in a fouled barrel for any length of time. And the damage is cumulative. Of course I have another barrel from that time with no ring. But I think I used a lot of DGW “Old Zip” patch grease in that one.
Sperm Whale oil was a favorite back in the day and its higher friction than tallow or Neatsfoot. But its not really an oil but a liquid wax and was used until about 1970 as ATF.
But people ought to use what ever makes them happy. Just make sure you get ALL the fouling out.
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I tend to use beef or deer tallow, triple boiled, or Pure Neatsfoot Oil. For my chunk rifle I use water soluble oil 1:5 or 1:7 oil to water then wet the fabric and then let the water evaporate. High friction lube and it shoots very well but requires wiping. Blowing in the barrel before loading I can shoot pretty much indefinitely with the tallow or NF oil. I have left the tallow in the bore for several months after hunting season pulled the loads and no sign of any corrosion. I only used a couple of drops of the oil per patch. Just enough that the patch will be uniformly oiled after a few hours. I only put tallow on one side of the patch but rubbing the patch on the tallow.
I ringed a barrel back in the 1960s with spit and stopped using it. Water based lubes cannot be left in a fouled barrel for any length of time. And the damage is cumulative. Of course I have another barrel from that time with no ring. But I think I used a lot of DGW “Old Zip” patch grease in that one.
Sperm Whale oil was a favorite back in the day and its higher friction than tallow or Neatsfoot. But its not really an oil but a liquid wax and was used until about 1970 as ATF.
But people ought to use what ever makes them happy. Just make sure you get ALL the fouling out.
I should have added deer tallow too interchangeable with beef tallow made the same way.
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I have always wondered? Why do people use different lubes for range shooting and hunting? If you lube for hunting gives fine results why not use it all the time? Practice like you play was a term we used in the fire service.
IMO a high friction lube gives just a little better accuracy than a slick lube. A friend has a rifle that only shoots really well with Sperm Whale oil.
While for most uses a slick lube may work well and some loads/rifles might prefer this. In string measure matches where fractions of an inch count I use the high friction WS oil mix. And as another friend of mine stated “You don’t have to wipe every shot, but you have wipe ever shot to win”.
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I have a kibler SMR .32 ordered and it will primarily see hunting. with paper targets Only for sighting in and load testing. As a hunter I am trying to avoid water based lubes and am interested in TOTW mink vs bumblin bear but not stuck on these lubes, my only concern is it is often mentioned these lubes require a bit larger powder charge and that make sence to me if the lube is real slick, the ball will begin it's journey down the barrel before the powder charge has had a chance to make peak pressure. In a .32 the little extra powder is not a great concern $ wise but I like light loads and 35 yard shots or less as my eyes are aging. The reason I don't care for a larger charge than necessary is it seems the extra powder just makes for more fowling to clean.
My question is: is there anything to help combat needing extra powder to hit same point of impact with mink/ bear lube as compared to a spit patch or similar? I was thinking along the lines of not going to heavy on the grease and a nice snug patch/ball combo but any other tips on shooting bear type grease would be appreciated!
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Hi Hunterdude. My .32 shot about the same with a water based lube, as it did with Track's Mink Oil. What I found with the mink oil, was it loaded easier for the second through 50th shot
without wiping at any time. Not needed for this rifle when hunting small game, as you will reload immediately after shooting. My load was 35gr.3F with and without mink oil. The reason for
the 35gr. was to get decent accuracy out to 50 & even 100yards as we have some long shots on our trail. That little rifle made those with and without the Mink Oil, same load.
48" twist Bl.
For shooting only to 25yards, 20gr. of 3F put 5 into a .40 calibre hole. The hole was definitely smaller than .50 cal. I used .018" to .0235" patches. Over that range, the rifle shot about the same.
I also used balls from .311" to .320" with those patch thickness as well. The small ball loads easily with tight loads. It will only load hard, if your patches aren't thick enough.
The crown is quite important but easily smoothed using just the end of your thumb and some 320 grit emery or wet/dry paper.
My .32 cal. barrel's muzzle.
(https://i.ibb.co/dcGHZzD/OLYMPUS-DIGITAL-CAMERA.jpg) (https://ibb.co/CthSLTQ)
(https://i.ibb.co/xhL72W8/OLYMPUS-DIGITAL-CAMERA.jpg) (https://ibb.co/Tc2gw6q)
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Daryl, thank you for the detailed info! I think I will get 1 tin each of bear and of mink and see if I can measure a difference in accuracy and/or how they load in Michigan winter.
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I've used Track's mink oil down to -40 & it seemed to work just fine. It gets stiff, but about instantly melts in the fingers.
The gear grease I used was too hard at that temp. Bear Oil might not be, I don't know.
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I don't know if Track's Mink grease is the best patch lube out there... But for the performance I've experienced, coupled with cost and quantity, I haven't found anything better.
And, most importantly, my gun likes it.
Mike
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I agree Mike. I often mix in some Bear oil with my TOTW lube just because I have a good supply and it seems to shoot the same straight or mixed for me.
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I ordered some bear grease....just for the "cool" factor And also some have mentioned an "off" odor from mink, but I am not sure if TOTW mink lube is the smelly variety. I will get some of that to, as it is less than half the cost of the bear grease I found, them I will shoot both to see what my gun and I prefure.
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ToTW mink’s oil does tend to have a bit of a slightly rancid thing going on, but it bugs me little as I’m using it in my rifle not smearing it on toast.
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I buy my T.O.T.W. mink oil 10 tins at a time. I put 9 in the freezer and only keep 1 out at a time in an old saucepan to melt as I need. I don't notice any rancid smell but again I use it as a lube and as just as someone else said I ain't putting it on my toast.
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Track's Mink grease does have an odor... It isn't a pleasant odor. But neither is it disagreeable or offensive. It just smells "tallowy" or "greasy" to me.
It's probably the best smelling portion of a mink though. ;D
Mike
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My bear grease order came today, I was pleased it has very little smell to it, but what little I could detect was very pleasant, smelled edible but like others, I want to shoot it rather than spread on toast :D
(https://i.ibb.co/2SM45bH/20211219-192424-1.jpg) (https://ibb.co/PMWHtS0)
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That looks to me as if mixed with something, like a very dark beeswax.
My bear "grease" was white and very soft and my bear's oil is clear, like water.
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Yup, here is a quote from there website:
Bumblin Bear Grease is an all natural patch lube designed especially for the rigors of cold weather hunting. No more "punched through" frozen patches. The exclusive blend of bear grease and beeswax, plus other natural ingredients, makes this an ideal lube for traditional shooters and re-enactors, too. Comes in a 4 oz.
I guess I don't mind the beeswax, I can't smell it....wish they would say what the other natural ingredients are.
The thickness (right out of my cool 20 degree mailbox) is a little softer than a freshly opened can of Kiwi shoe polish if that helps any? I will check it again when it gets up to house room temperature. I can't wait to give it a try.
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In dry Arizona, I've been using Neatsfoot Oil this go round. Decades ago I used a more liquid lube Dixie sold. But I didn't want to rely on something I have to buy and have shipped, want something I can get or make locally. Just tired of all the "back orders" since 2019.
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That looks to me as if mixed with something, like a very dark beeswax.
My bear "grease" was white and very soft and my bear's oil is clear, like water.
Yeah, that's not pure bear grease. Ask the makers what's in it. It has the color of the beeswax I have on hand, and the name hints at it, so I concur with Daryl.
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Yeah, that's not pure bear grease. Ask the makers what's in it. It has the color of the beeswax I have on hand, and the name hints at it, so I concur with Daryl.
Hunterdude's post after mine:
"The exclusive blend of bear grease and beeswax, plus other natural ingredients, makes this an ideal lube for traditional shooters and re-enactors, too. Comes in a 4 oz."
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If its got enough bees wax to color it, it will leave a crust in the bore in hotter climates. Been there done that.
Hungry Horse
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Hanshi: You are a wise man. I either use T.O.T.W. mink or T.O.T.W mink and pure neat's-foot oil melted together in a 50/50 mix. either or both work equally well. Shoot this lube year round target, trail walk or hunting.
Muskrat, I have yet to try neat's-foot oil. Simply haven't gotten around to kicking some up. Sounds like a good way to stretch out the mink oil.
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If its got enough bees wax to color it, it will leave a crust in the bore in hotter climates. Been there done that.
Hungry Horse
This is exactly why I don't use beeswax in any lube concoction of mine--that and I pay for my beeswax. I have no $ in deer tallow or bear grease yet, just time and some pals with pals who kill bears.
Yeah, that's not pure bear grease...
Hunterdude's post after mine:..
Hey, sometimes I miss stuff. Or actually things get posted when I'm not lookin'. ;D
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Hanshi: go to any good farm supply or equestrian shop. Just make sure it is 100% pure not the blend stuff that just won't work. Fiebing's brand is the best, a couple of bucks a bottle more but worth it.
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My bear grease order came today, I was pleased it has very little smell to it, but what little I could detect was very pleasant, smelled edible but like others, I want to shoot it rather than spread on toast :D
(https://i.ibb.co/2SM45bH/20211219-192424-1.jpg) (https://ibb.co/PMWHtS0)
Bumblin “bear grease” is not actually pure bear’s grease but is cut with other things.
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I knew before I ordered Bumblin bear grease that it was "contaminated" with other natural ingredients, they advertise it as a cold weather formula. My primary use of it(if it performs well) will be Michigan winter squirrel hunting with temps from 11 deg F to 36 degrees F and likely average hunting day of more like 27 degrees F.
It was just the fastest easy way for me to get some bear grease content, I sometimes run into bear hunters up north when I am out Grouse hunting and they often stop and ask me if I have seen any fresh bear tracks, next time they do I hope to ask for some pure bear grease, but this gives me something to try out sooner. The bear hunters seem friendly to me and my dog, I think the average bear hunter just loves hunting dogs. :D
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Well dang y’all got me wondering what tastes like on toast. Has anyone tried lanolin, as a patch lube, not on toast.
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Well dang y’all got me wondering what tastes like on toast. Has anyone tried lanolin, as a patch lube, not on toast.
Good bear grease is excellent for cooking, But I don't grease toast anymore.
I have some pure lanolin oil that I'm going to try--mostly because I'm not using it otherwise. I use pure-firm lanolin (the standard) for my skin and cuticles this time of year. I work outside. I'll post what I think about the lanolin oil when I shoot it. I've got some patching to try as well.
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Well dang y’all got me wondering what tastes like on toast. Has anyone tried lanolin, as a patch lube, not on toast.
Scott, a cousin of mine used to use apothecary's Lanolin as a metalic-sizing lubricant. I do not know how it would work as
as patch lube.
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For hunting lube I use Tracks Mink oil. I use it whenever I leave the gun loaded. For target range work. Just a bit of Ballistol mixed with ordinary tap water. Ive never found the mixture to be critical. 1 part Ballistol to 4 parts water all the way up to 1 to 8.
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Well dang y’all got me wondering what tastes like on toast. Has anyone tried lanolin, as a patch lube, not on toast.
Purely conjecture on my part but I have a feeling that a lot of BP lubes have some amount of lanolin in them.
Mike
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I have read some old info that refer to using lanolin. Seems like Dixie gun works had some reference to it in the back of their catalog. I use mink oil and it works great. Don’t know why we all love trying different stuff. Just fun I recon.
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Ok, after seeing how many of you use the TOTW Mink Oil patch lube, I ordered a couple tins of it.
So my question is... how do you use it? Do you just rub one side of a dry patch across it? Do you put the oiled side down when laying on the muzzle?
Sorry for the green-horn questions, but I've only ever used patches lubricated in a liquid.
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If I use pre cut patches, I put a dry one on a paper plate followed by a saturated one ( i melt the lube in the micro wave ) then a dry one then a saturated one, etc. until I get what ever I need for the events shooting or hunting season. I cut mine with bear oil only because I have a good supply of the oil.
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Ok, after seeing how many of you use the TOTW Mink Oil patch lube, I ordered a couple tins of it.
So my question is... how do you use it? Do you just rub one side of a dry patch across it? Do you put the oiled side down when laying on the muzzle?
Sorry for the green-horn questions, but I've only ever used patches lubricated in a liquid.
It might be a green horn question but it's a fair one... I use strips of pillow ticking and cut at the muzzle. To lube the strips I smear them across the lube in the tin and rub it in with my fingers... It usually soaks through the material so lube side up/down isn't much of a concern to me... Although I orient the patch strip on the muzzle the same way every time for the sake of consistency in loading.
I may grow up one of these days and warm the tin of lube and do the dip/wring method that others talk about.
Mike
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Bones92: There is no right or wrong way. On my small calibers I use strips and cut at the muzzle. On my larger bores I use pre-cut patches. Either way I use T.O.T.W. Mink or a 50/50mix of mink oil and pure Neatsfoot oil. I keep some in an old saucepan, when ready to do patches I slowly melt in on the stove over very low heat until just melted. If strips I dip the strip in the melted oil and pull off any extra with a pair of Needle nose pliers. If pre-cut patches I just dip a dozen at a time in the oil again using the pliers to push any extra out then lay them out on paper towels to soak up any extra. Works for me but again this is just my method, neither right or wrong. The 50/50 mix leaves the patches less "greasy" than the straight mink oil.
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Don’t overthink this, its a primitive lube for a primitive weapon. Animal grease, or spit is what the old timers used and they did pretty well.
Hungry Horse
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I always precut patches and lube a few at a time. With mink oil I just wipe 'em good on the grease and rub it in well.
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I do things a little different than most. But I'm comfortable with it at this time as I am planning on another series of tests for lubes I'm not presently using.
Down here in the deep south humidity and heat can be real problems. Some lubes just can't be used unless cleaned immediatly because they will cause a rust ring in the chamber area. And no matter how accurate those lubes might be I can't use them for my hunting patches.
I cut strips of my patching and cut all my shots at the muzzle. The hunting strips, mostly a grease type lube is rubbed in by hand and carried in a tin. My general shooting and accuracy lubes are wet lubes and are applied "per shot". I hunt with 2 rifles, both flintlocks one has a .54 caliber colerain barrel and a .40 with a Rice barrel, both of which I built. The .40 was built to be my turkey rifle as it is legal in Georgia to hunt them with a ML rifle. All the lubes I mention are the most accurate I've found for the intended purpose.
For deer hunting I load the .54 with round ball and Wonder Lube on my patches. Wonder Lube will not cause rust rings and that's important as my hunting rifles are left loaded until I shoot at game. For general shooting I use Mr. Flintlocks.
For turkey's in my .40 I use Canola oil as a patch lube. With 60 grains of 3f Canola oil will shoot the X out of a target at 50 yards. The Canola oil also will not cause rust rings. My general shooting lube is again Mr. Flintlocks.
It should be obvious but my first priority is finding a hunting lube that won't cause rust and is very accurate. I have not yet found one lube that suits my standards though several come close.
Our heat can sometimes cause a lube to become watery to the point it contaminates the powder charge. So in the spring turkey season I use wasp nest between the powder and the patch. This has stopped all contamination. So far.
And yes, the 2 lubes often shoot to different POI's. All it takes is a few taps of the rear sight and a powder charge adjustment to bring the sights back onto target.
The powder charges and any amount of sight drift has been worked out well in advance. This process has been working for me for over a decade.
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With Neetsfoot Oil or Track's Mink Oil, I dip a stack of pre-cuts into the lube, then squeeze out the excess back into the container. I then put the lubed
precuts into a tin or plastic bullet box. I've also used Track's tinder boxes as well as their snuff tins. They all work well.
Most of these are available in nickle, copper or brass.
https://www.trackofthewolf.com/List/Item.aspx/23/1
I have and use all three of these types.
I like the middle one for the .69, the best.
The top one works well with small patches for the .32 though .45.
The bottom one is good all-round.
Sucrets or other candy-tins work well, too.
(https://i.ibb.co/MGBBTfV/box-1790-b-1.jpg) (https://imgbb.com/)
(https://i.ibb.co/BqSkHY2/snuff-box-s-1.jpg) (https://imgbb.com/)
(https://i.ibb.co/CP06YrN/tinder-box-b-1.jpg) (https://ibb.co/SfvcMLW)
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I have been satisfied with using Hope’s 9 patch Lube at the range for cleaning and patch lube. For longer loaded times (hunting) I use a tallow based lube.
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After wiping the patches on the mink oil I rub it in with my fingers. The grease melts when rubbed and I like patches to be greased all the way through the material. If it's too much lube the excess scrapes off at the muzzle. When fun shooting, shooting at the range or just roaming the bush I use mainly Hoppes. But even then I sometimes use mink oil. So Hoppes, generally, and mink oil all other uses.
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I used to think it did not matter much.
I have been working with a 32 cal rifle that has wide lands and narrow grooves. This is opposite of what I think is best. IT causes major friction with a ball and patch combo that gives compression in the grooves.
I tired Jojoba, moose milk, spit and others. I had high hopes for jojoba. It is supposed to be close to sperm oil. With a 310 ball and a o.018 patch I had no luck. Jojoba is a poor lubricant, the balls loaded with great difficulty. They required several wacks with a steel rod, the wood rod was impossible. The steel rod got oily and gripping it was a problem. It was messy.
On a whim I tried a mix of venison tallow and about 10% anhydrous lanolin. I made strips of cloth and dunked them in melted lube, then rolled them up. This stuff is amazing. Loading effort is reduced 90%. I can easily load a .310 ball with a 0.025" denim patch. IT is clean to work with. The consistency is waxy, not goopy or oily. It shots really clean, I swabbed every five shots because I thought I should. NO fouling build up was noticeable. As an added bonus, cutting patches at the muzzle is easier for me than centering tiny patches and balls.
I need to work up some loads off the bench and see how it goes. I shot some respectable off hand groups at the monthly club shoot, that does not mean much though. Sometime a lube can be too slick. I hope the tighter combination with tighten things up on the target.
So, patch lubes are a cut and try thing.
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.32's can be fussy. I went through every ball size, patch thickness, powder strength and lube I could think of during load development on mine. I found a .310 ball with 35 grains of Goex 3F a .020 patch and a lube of TOTW mink oil mixed with equal part pure neatsfoot oil was the magic. Might not be for yours but worked for me.
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Well dang y’all got me wondering what tastes like on toast. Has anyone tried lanolin, as a patch lube, not on toast.
Scott, a cousin of mine used to use apothecary's Lanolin as a metalic-sizing lubricant. I do not know how it would work as
as patch lube.
Tried this mixed with alcohol as a sizing lube works great but very difficult to get off the brass suppositories. So I went back to store bought.
Dan
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Dan - you have a PM.
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I still haven't figured out a good option for hunting lube here. Id happily try mink oil but postage is about $75 at the moment so not worth it to me.
I've used olive oil in the past and it's OK, but at the range I find I'm swabbing every two shots. I've got some wonderlube, it seems better in terms of more shooting at the range. But I've read about it getting clammy and sticking in the bore which I don't want.
I like to keep the same lube for hunting and target, I like consistency.and I can have my gun loaded for a few weeks at a time so I want a lube that will last in the bore ok too.
Any suggestions?
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Bushfire, using a tighter ball/patch combo MIGHT help. Also some use an bore size shot card over the powder then the patched ball. I didn't have any luck using wonderlube.
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Bushfire, using a tighter ball/patch combo MIGHT help. Also some use an bore size shot card over the powder then the patched ball. I didn't have any luck using wonderlube.
I don't know how much tighter I'd want to go, I only have 54's in round ball calibres. Use a .535 ball and a .015 patch which I need to tap down the whole way, getting it started with a short start is a bear and my palms are always sore at the end. Within a couple of shots I feel like I'm beating it down the bore.
I do have some .018 patches, I tried to use them once but couldn't even get them started.
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Mike Brooks recently taught me to combine marmots with an old wine press. I leave the patches underneath to soak up the... Oil...
Beeswax and mutton tallow. I'm about to play with jojoba oil after reading about it as a modern alternative to sperm whale oil.
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Without reading every post here: I use mutton tallow, beeswax & Bayberry wax!
Goex asked me to make this formulae available to them in the late 1990's... i Did , but they could not procured enough Mutton tallow to make it available
on the American Market in bulk!
They did dispense my mix to the US Team....but it never panned out.... Or I never heard otherwise!
Jim
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I don't know how much tighter I'd want to go, I only have 54's in round ball calibres. Use a .535 ball and a .015 patch which I need to tap down the whole way, getting it started with a short start is a bear and my palms are always sore at the end. Within a couple of shots I feel like I'm beating it down the bore.
I do have some .018 patches, I tried to use them once but couldn't even get them started.
For a hunting lube, ordinary Neetsfoot Oil works just fine, is available just about anywhere. Use it just as it comes from the can or bottle. 100% Neetsfoot Oil, not Neetsfoot Oil compound, which is a synthetic, I think.
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I don't know how much tighter I'd want to go, I only have 54's in round ball calibres. Use a .535 ball and a .015 patch which I need to tap down the whole way, getting it started with a short start is a bear and my palms are always sore at the end. Within a couple of shots I feel like I'm beating it down the bore.
I do have some .018 patches, I tried to use them once but couldn't even get them started.
For a hunting lube, ordinary Neetsfoot Oil works just fine, is available just about anywhere. Use it just as it comes from the can or bottle. 100% Neetsfoot Oil, not Neetsfoot Oil compound, which is a synthetic, I think.
Not so much synthetic as simply watered down with the much cheaper mineral oil, a petroleum product. IN any case I got no use for mineral oil and shooting.
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Interesting, thanks Wade. I've heard for many years that Neetsfoot Oil Compound was useless as a patch lube & as well, not to
rub it into your ball mitt - only use 100% Neetsfoot Oil.
I did not know it had mineral oil in it.