crisco for patch lube

[Jim Curlee]

I've been out of blackpowder shooting for awhile.
When I quit, I was using Crisco for a patch lube.
Doesn't anybody use Crisco anymore?
If not, why?
Jim

[hanshi]

I do, but only for the first load of the day while in the woods.  This makes it possible - if the gun isn't fired - to leave the gun loaded until fired at game or it gets wet.  Hoppes #9 is is my lube of choice but liquid lubes are a bit problematic if left in the bore.  Crisco and all grease lubes I've tried leave a gummy residue after the first shot making it impossible to seat a ball after 2 or 3 shots without cleaning between shots.  Hoppes lets me shoot all afternoon without cleaning or hard loading.

[Roger Fisher]

Sure Crisco works for cold weather.  Some guys like the more exotic stuff ,so I'll go back to Crisco if I live long enough to run out of my bear oil

[rsells]

I melt crisco and saturate the patches I use during hunting season.  I set the woods on fire once when I shot a buck, and had to put a fire out because I didn't have the patch saturated enough with the lube I was using then.  From that time forward, I melt the Crisco, saturate the precut patches in the pan, and place them on a paper towel to cool and solidify the crisco.  However, I do not use it to target shoot.
                                                                Roger Sells

[Ron Brimer]

Crisco also makes a good release agent when bedding with epoxy.
    RON B

[Jim Curlee]

Never thought about Crisco for a mold release.
If you mix it half, and half with butter, it also makes a great chocolate chip cookie. LOL
Jim

[northmn]

Like the others I use Crisco for patch lube when hunting as it is about as good as most of the grease lubes.  I also keep a can by my reloading bench as it makes an excellent case lube and I use it as a lube for drilling and tapping.  Some even cook with the stuff I am told.

DP

[T*O*F]

If you whip an egg white, you get whipped cream.
Crisco is basically just whipped vegetable oil.
Since vegetable oil is already liquid, why not just use it and save the hassle of melting the Crisco?

[Sequatchie Rifle]

I go the cheap and effective route- spit!  It is priced right and conveniently packaged and easy to come by!

[northmn]

Spit does not work for hunting, the patch dries out and the patches can be burnt.  Same for the liquid lubes like Hoppes #9+.  Crisco and other greases do not wotrk so well for a series of shots but do very well for that one shot used after carrying the gun for a while.  I have carried a load in a gun for more than one day in deer season adn even squirrel season.  they also offer some small amount of bore protection where spit may cause rusting.
DP

[hanshi]

Spit does not work for hunting, the patch dries out and the patches can be burnt.  Same for the liquid lubes like Hoppes #9+.  Crisco and other greases do not wotrk so well for a series of shots but do very well for that one shot used after carrying the gun for a while.  I have carried a load in a gun for more than one day in deer season adn even squirrel season.  they also offer some small amount of bore protection where spit may cause rusting.
DP

I agree with you on grease lubes and do that for hunting.  Hoppes #9 will dry out but is fine if the load is fired at the end of the day. 

[bgf]

If you whip an egg white, you get whipped cream.
Crisco is basically just whipped vegetable oil.
Since vegetable oil is already liquid, why not just use it and save the hassle of melting the Crisco?

Actually, whipped egg whites are meringue; whipped cream is whipped cream .  Aside from that, I agree, just use oil: soybean works well, unless the temperatures are going to get really cold, it will shoot well enough for a day of hunting.  I think the problem with it is that it is simple and easy to get and doesn't require any special preparation.

[Leatherbelly]

 I've never tried crisco but I'll bet it's messy. Would you be using it for hunting only or as an all round lube? I'm wondering if peanut oil would work? In a frying pan, it takes the heat better then all others so I'm curious if anyone has used it.?

[bgf]

CB (didn't you used to be a leatherbelly?),
I don't think peanut oil would hurt anything.  I read about problems with olive oil which I never had with vegetable oil (soybean) when I was using it for everything, and I wondered if olive oil wasn't fouling more due to the lower "smoke point" also.  Not too long ago, I switched to mostly WWF or alchohol with just a few drops of oil in it, but I would have no problem using soybean oil in a hunting situation (if I could ever find the time) -- with the right patch/ball it would load repeatedly without wiping before the fouling became an issue either in terms of loading or accuracy.  YMMV .  The reason I switched is because I got spooked by the Murphy Oil soap thread and worried that I might be building up grunge in the grooves with the oil and I wanted to wet my patches more for targets.  For a hunting rifle, it would take most of a lifetime for that to be an issue, if ever.

[Leatherbelly]

bgf,
  yes,I'm the same.
  I use a WWW fluid mix for the range and trail. I used to add a little soap but most soaps have salt in it.Not sure about casteel soap(which I used),but have switched to adding pure neetsfoot oil, about 2oz per quart of WWW fluid. It needs to be shaken before use tho.

[blunderbuss]

I think Crisco has salt too. I use 1pt bees wax 7parts lard that's an old formula from back in the day .Lubes for a Minnie was just the opposite 7 pts bees wax 1 pt lard. If it gets real cold one might have to add more lard.Just tweak it until you get the consistency you like
I use to use Crisco in my revolver but it would get warm and you had a gooey mess so i switched to a high temp grease to lube the revolver. Lard is cheaper too

[alsask]

I have never seen any Crisco with salt in it,  the worst lube I ever tried was bees wax with mink oil.  I use Crisco when hunting and Hoppes plus target shooting.

[Daryl]

In a veggie-type oil, I've found Neetsfoot oil works.(not neetsfoot compound)  Animal oils, like Track's Mink oil, real Marmot oil and bear's oil, also work as patch lubes for hunting. Taylor is currently using Neetsfoot oil - did all winter on the trail walks - no fouling problems at all - 60th shot loads as easily as the first.

Water based lubes are good only for range shooting.

[hanshi]

Crisco or Bore Butter is what I've been using for the FIRST shot in the woods.  Everything else is with Hoppes Plus.

I have a tube of Traditions white patch and revolver lube - don't even know how long I've had it - and have used it on a few occasions.  They claim it doesn't melt in heat.  I just wonder if it could be melted and soaked into patches.  Does anyone know anything about the stuff?

[blunderbuss]

I have never seen any Crisco with salt in it,  the worst lube I ever tried was bees wax with mink oil.  I use Crisco when hunting and Hoppes plus target shooting.

Your correct I checked no sodium in Crisco thanks

[alsask]

I have never seen any Crisco with salt in it,  the worst lube I ever tried was bees wax with mink oil.  I use Crisco when hunting and Hoppes plus target shooting.

Your correct I checked no sodium in Crisco thanks

I should have specified that the mink oil was not really mink oil.  I googled the MSDS sheet and found out in reality it was mineral oil and lanolin labeled as "mink oil".  I can't remember the brand name and I threw it in the garbage after I found out it had  mineral oil in it.  Probably had it been actual mink oil it would have worked fine.

At one time I had quite a bit of lanolin I used to use for case sizing lubricant and have often wondered if that would have worked OK for patch lube.  Being the cheapskate I am I will stick with Crisco.

[FRJ]

I just checked my can of Crisco for sodium, it states that it contains less than 2.4mg of sodium and the nutritional facts panel says there is 0 sodium. Crisco works fine for me in my hunting loads and for target shooting I use windshield washer fluid, 20/20 brand. Both work great for their intended usage. Frank

[Candle Snuffer]

I've used the crisco shortning in the past with no ill effects but once I tried the TC Bore Butter I stayed with that for a patch lube when needed on the hunt.  When target shooting I've been using spit.

[BrownBear]

My single issue with Crisco is warm weather use. And up here 70 is a warm day.  It works fine as a lube, but so do a lot of other things.

Crisco gets really soft compared to the other greases I use, and pretty quick it's all over everything including me.  It doesn't necessarily drip and spill until a fair bit warmer, which can happen quickly when it's left out in the sun in the 70's.  But it gets soft enough that smearing just a little onto a patch is problematic, and the mess starts with the gob of it collected on the muzzle as you start the ball.  It's going somewhere, and typically that's not downrange.

[hanshi]

I have never seen any Crisco with salt in it,  the worst lube I ever tried was bees wax with mink oil.  I use Crisco when hunting and Hoppes plus target shooting.

Your correct I checked no sodium in Crisco thanks

I should have specified that the mink oil was not really mink oil.  I googled the MSDS sheet and found out in reality it was mineral oil and lanolin labeled as "mink oil".  I can't remember the brand name and I threw it in the garbage after I found out it had  mineral oil in it.  Probably had it been actual mink oil it would have worked fine.

At one time I had quite a bit of lanolin I used to use for case sizing lubricant and have often wondered if that would have worked OK for patch lube.  Being the cheapskate I am I will stick with Crisco.

Mineral oil and lanolin, what's the problem as a patch lube?  I've never tried such but do have some mineral oil I had considered experimenting with.