How Much Lube

[hanshi]

Since I use mink oil out in the bush how much does it take to get good lubed patches without using too much?  I've been getting mine fairly greasy but not enough to have excess that will readily scrape off.  As usual a bit does squeeze out when the prb is seated.  This also the way I lube at the range with Hoppes.

[Mike Brooks]

Well, as Jesse Jackson said back in 2000 "get out the bushes".

I'd keep lubing the way you are.

[oldtravler61]

  If what your doing is  accurate leave it alone. Just my $.02. Oldtravler

[EC121]

Doesn't matter how much you put on it  It will all be squeezed out at the muzzle like you said.  Put a lubed patch and ball in the muzzle and pull it back out before cutting the patch.  See how much is still on the patch.  My money says the patch will be almost dry if the ball is a tight fit.

[wattlebuster]

I would just keep trucking the way you have been doing unless your not satisfied with your groups

[Daryl]

I heat up the Mink Oil, then dip the patches (on a thread) into the hot oil. When they are all wet, I squeeze the patches so the excess drips back into the tin.  These patches have plenty, but loading the 50th is easier than the first.  The first scubs a bit due to the old oil in the barrel from the last cleaning. If that is wiped out before being loaded, then the 2nd through 50th still loads easier than the first as the barrel for the next one, by all previous shots.
Dry bore or oiled bore- the mink oil gets easier to load each shot.  This, of course will or may depend on your ball and patch combination, as normal.

To get the stack of pre-cuts on a thread, use a fine needle.  This makes for easier handling of a 'row' of patches for lubing.  To get them of, just pull the thread out - no damage & yoiu have loose patches, or you can have them on the thread on your bag and pull them off, one at a time. I prefer loose in a tin or patch container.

 I really like the hinged tinder boxes for patches.  The snuff boxes are also nice.

https://www.trackofthewolf.com/List/Item.aspx/107/1

[EC121]

If you don't mind the stamped in lettering, Altoids tins are free after you eat the mints.

[hanshi]

Thanks to all for the suggestions.  I do pre-cut and keep lubed patches in a small tin.  I have two that I sanded the paint off of and they make dandy patch holders.  And yep, lube does accumulate at the muzzle.  I try and get just enough lube on the patches where the squeezed out lube is relatively minor.

It's been a while since I shot the .50 for accuracy; and I seem always to be the variable.  My eyes will never be any sharper than they are right now.  Cataracts are removed and reading glasses make possible a decent view of the front sight.

[smylee grouch]

You might squeeze a lot of lube out of the patch when you load but you will still lube the sides of the bore when you push the ball down and different kinds of lube, water based -oil based/lard based etc. will make my rifles shoot to a different point of impact. Shooting your gun with different kinds of lube and lube amounts is the only good way to find out what is the right kind and amount.

[hanshi]

Something that hadn't occurred, smylee.  I'll try squeezing them on dry patches.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

You cannot use too much lube.  The bore will compress the patch and leave exactly the same amount of lube against the bore every time.  But you can use too little, and have to wipe after a few shots so you can continue shooting.

[Daryl]

Taylor has a point - a good one.  If there is a lot of lube in the patch, it will also be beneath the ball in the patch wrapped about the bottom surface of the ball. As the ball is pushed down the bore, lube will be left on the bore by the patch, and I suggest that through capillary action, lube will be sucked up by the tight patch fit in the grooves and will 'feed' the contact between the ball and the lands.

If this was not happening, you would likely have what would amount to be a dry patch, after not very much ball movement down the bore.  I do think lube is (sucked is not a good word here) transferred up to the ball/patch/bore contact surface and continues to feed this area & is therefore deposited onto the bore & in the grooves - IF there is indeed, enough lube in the patch.

If the patch is too dry, you will lose this lubrication and thus, 'fouling softening' action of the lube after the shot as well.

I've noticed in my 48" barrel, that there is sufficient lube to shoot 'cleanly' even with patches that are on the thin side of my preferred fit.  Same with the .36 and er 38" bl.  A patch that is easily pushed in to the bore with a choked up loading rod, shot cleanly for 3 hours of constant shooting last Tuesday. I figured my rifle fired perhaps 80 to 90 shots. No wiping was ever needed nor did I have to use a starter.  I was shooting a .350 ball, .018" patches in a Rice barrel, square grooves and 43gr. of 3F GOEX.(because that is what the measure I used, threw)

This was a high school teacher's day at the range. We had over 40 of them, shooting small bore, big bore, trap, and cowboy action as well as my flinter and a friend's .58 S. Hawken.

We also gave them a history lesson - it was all very well received.

[hanshi]

Daryl, Taylor, I've long reasoned that a good, thoroughly lubed patch should do pretty much what you describe.  I've always tended to use a fairly generous amount of lube, anyway, and like to see a bit squeezed out on the crown.  This lets me know there is enough lube on the patch to load multiple times without wiping.  Your posts confirm my thinking.  Also, though I could be mistaken, I get the impression (mostly from chronographing) that it also seals the bore against "blow-by" and gives higher velocities and good accuracy.

What I'm working on now is to find the load, or load range, with the lowest ES and SD.  As the powder charge increases from low to high these two indicators start to go down until a point is reached where they are lowest; then as powder is added the ES and SD again start to increase.  I will, of course, have to test these loads for accuracy and make sure accuracy is consistent with the low numbers.  I've already done this with a couple of rifles and the results do appear to bear out what I've observed.       

[Daryl]

Reducing the variations, whatever types of variations, is always a good goal n the search for accuracy, hanshi.

Back in the late 70's & through the 80's, I did a LOT of chronographing & testing of my loads - with all my rifles & shotguns.  Shot to shot variations under 10fps, low to high, where the 'pipe dream' goal.  With the modern guns this was difficult to impossible, but not with black powder rifles, even with the powders back then (80's).  After 1986 (yr. of her birth), I achieved 6 to 8 fps, low to high  variations with my 14 bore rifle, but only when using spit for lube - go figure.  All shooting was without wiping.  Any sort of lubricant other than spit, would increase shot to shot variations, but still hold them under 25fps, however never under 10fps. That only happened with spit.

Good luck - the powders are better today, so it should be easier.