Mink Oil

[hanshi]

I didn't want to hijack the .32 lube thread with my questions but my interest has been piqued.  I find that Mink Oil is one of the most commonly suggested grease type lubes.  I'm especially impressed with the claims of long shooting strings without wiping.  Hoppes and spit are great for this but both contain water. 

I'm interested in hearing more about it from those who've used it.  It HAS to be better than Bore Butter.

[moleeyes36]

I didn't want to hijack the .32 lube thread with my questions but my interest has been piqued.  I find that Mink Oil is one of the most commonly suggested grease type lubes.  I'm especially impressed with the claims of long shooting strings without wiping.  Hoppes and spit are great for this but both contain water. 

I'm interested in hearing more about it from those who've used it.  It HAS to be better than Bore Butter.

Hanshi,

Goose $#@* has to be better than Bore Butter  .  As for Mink Oil, I really think it's a matter of personal choice for target shooting when it comes to a liquid lube or Mink Oil.  I've tried Mink Oil for both hunting and target shooting and while I like it for hunting I don't like using the "Greasy Kid Stuff" for target shooting.  Using it with a tight patch and ball combo (.395 ball and .024 patch) I could shoot without cleaning between shots with accuracy pretty comparable to my usual liquid lube, Mr. Flintlock's Lube.  I can't fault it there and use it as my "go to" hunting lube.     

Mole Eyes

[JBJ]

I've used it with good results. I found that I had to slightly increase the powder charge comapred to my spit patch load.
J.B.

[FrontierMuzzleloading]

i can normally get 5-6 shots before I fear breaking the ramrod. I do use a tight .020" patch though, so thats going to limit me. I normally swab between shots anyway for best accuracy. I love mink oil though. I've left a rifle loaded close to 3 weeks and the recovered patch was stiff nicely saturated and protecting the patch after all that time.

[Natureboy]

   My issue with mink oil is that the mink industry is exceeding cruel to the animals.  I used Bore butter ONCE, and it fouled so badly that I had to get a friend to help pull the ramrod with its wiping patch.  Hoppe's #9 worked well.  Now I use Mr. Flintlock, and I
really like it.

[WadePatton]

i can normally get 5-6 shots before I fear breaking the ramrod. I do use a tight .020" patch though, so thats going to limit me...

? confused.  A tighter fitting patch is usually the path to finding a no-wiping combination, NOT the converse.  Perhaps you've not heard of these match shooters who load tight and never wipe?

"match" i said, not benchrest. 

[FrontierMuzzleloading]

i don't shoot their kind of rifles with super deep rifling nor do i slather the patch in lube. I am a hunter and if i can get 5-6 shots, I am safe in the field with  my wooden ramrod.

[hanshi]

I agree with Wade P; I use the tightest prb combo (.311" ball + .024" patch) that I can load without breaking the wood rod.  And it does keep the fouling down so no wiping is needed for an afternoon shooting string.

[Daryl]

I do believe some folks have to wipe due to fouling buildup in their barrels regardless of how tight the patch is as those barrels have used phony powders in their history at some point or were neglected and thus have a surface that accumulates fouling, regardless.

Both Taylor and I have been testing loads with patches that failed - burnouts, and strips of char like overly fried bacon, yet our barrels did not need wiping - as changing to thicker patches and they loaded and shot just fine. That must say something about bore condition & it's affinity to collecting fouling.

Used mass-production guns are usually the worse for wear (the ones I've seen were horrid) -  people shooting them with Pyrodex or some other substance, never cleaning them, then selling them because there was more work to it than they wanted to bear.  Most did not know to clean them after shooting or actually how to clean them properly. 

Just look at the video about bore seasoning - how many times did that bloke rust his rifle's bore in testing his "seasoning", attempting to find a condition in which he didn't have to clean it? - bloody $#*!! Nope, didn't work - barrel for sale!

[FrontierMuzzleloading]

and what i fail to see is that you old timers do not time into account RIFLING DEPTH from one gun to the next.

I'd love for one of you that can shoot all day long without loading getting hard, to put together a video, showing this, along with a 100 yard target, shot off the bench of course.

[D. Bowman]

I'm not an old timer. I do have several rifles from.45 to 62 cal that have barrels from Gets ,Green Mt, Colrain , Rice. Bob Hoyt.With rifleing of varing depths. Not one of wich requires wiping between shots. Spit patch for target mink oil or neets foot for hunting. Most barrels shoot 5 thou under bore size ball and 20 to 25 thou compressed measure patching.
Listen to the old timers they know stuff!!

[FrontierMuzzleloading]

show me

[bob in the woods]

There are so many folks that have preconceived opinions re loading and fouling, and cleaning. If cleaning is what you like to do, then so be it. Continue on .  My .54 target rifle [ under hammer]  has a 1 in oct. Green Mountain barrel
I actually shoot a .540 ball  [ Green Mountain mould ]   and I really can shoot a match without cleaning. The patched ball pushes are the fouling down when loading, and that keeps it from accumulating.  The only time I need to clean is if we break for lunch or coffee and then I'll run a wet and dry patch through to keep the fouling from the last shot from hardening up. But, the fouling in the barrel is never more than the last shot.
My .45 has a 42 in swamped barrel and it likes .445 balls and a .022 patch. Same thing. I can shoot a complete trail walk without cleaning between shots.  No, it doesn't get more difficult to load as the shots accumulate.
One thing, though…use enough lube.  Some guys in our club were convinced that "dry " lubed patches were the way to go.  They had to clean between shots.  

[WadePatton]

show me

show yourself.

There are a hundred and thirty posts at this site alone in regard to this matter.  Please search up a few dozen and save us from the complete rehash.  I would search terms like "wiping" and "no wiping" and etc.

If we're going to do that, let us start a different thread, because it's not an "oil specific" practice.

[FrontierMuzzleloading]

There are so many folks that have preconceived opinions re loading and fouling, and cleaning. If cleaning is what you like to do, then so be it. Continue on .  My .54 target rifle [ under hammer]  has a 1 in oct. Green Mountain barrel
I actually shoot a .540 ball  [ Green Mountain mould ]   and I really can shoot a match without cleaning. The patched ball pushes are the fouling down when loading, and that keeps it from accumulating.  The only time I need to clean is if we break for lunch or coffee and then I'll run a wet and dry patch through to keep the fouling from the last shot from hardening up. But, the fouling in the barrel is never more than the last shot.
My .45 has a 42 in swamped barrel and it likes .445 balls and a .022 patch. Same thing. I can shoot a complete trail walk without cleaning between shots.  No, it doesn't get more difficult to load as the shots accumulate.
One thing, though…use enough lube.  Some guys in our club were convinced that "dry " lubed patches were the way to go.  They had to clean between shots.  

THANK YOU! Finally someone gets it. When I say I get 5-7 shots before its time to clean due to fear of breaking the ramrod, thats just it, I do NOT slather my patches in lube because in my case, it kills my accuracy. I run a forum as well and a fellow did that with his hawken, slathered the patches so he could get by without cleaning, and his accuracy started to suffer greatly.

Before ones says he can shoot all day without cleaning, you have to get the facts of what lube and how its being applied.

Mine are not dry, but then again, they dont ooze out lube as they go into the bore.

[bob in the woods]

But….My accuracy doesn't suffer from too much lube      Why  ?   Probably because I have a nice ball /patch combination.   Carry on . 

[D. Bowman]

My patches are not dripping with lube. the patch is saturated but not to the point of being squeezed out when started.
If swabing between shots proved more accurate. I would. It dos'nt.

[Mad Monk]

Just look at the video about bore seasoning - how many times did that bloke rust his rifle's bore in testing his "seasoning", attempting to find a condition in which he didn't have to clean it? - bloody $#*!! Nope, didn't work - barrel for sale!

The thing about "seasoning a bore" goes back to the 1980s.  Comments that one had to "season" the bore the same as one does a cast iron frying pan to keep it from rusting and you should never use a soap or detergent that would remove that seasoning.  Ox-Yoke tried turning some profit by having shooters send their barrels to them and they would "season" the bore for a price.  The barrel would simple be kept in a tank with melted bore butter.  The idea being that the melted lube would then work its way into the pores in the metal.

Mad Monk

[Daryl]

and what i fail to see is that you old timers do not time into account RIFLING DEPTH from one gun to the next.

I'd love for one of you that can shoot all day long without loading getting hard, to put together a video, showing this, along with a 100 yard target, shot off the bench of course.

 LOl- that would be a long video.

[Tony N]

and what i fail to see is that you old timers do not time into account RIFLING DEPTH from one gun to the next.

I'd love for one of you that can shoot all day long without loading getting hard, to put together a video, showing this, along with a 100 yard target, shot off the bench of course.

I'm not sure what you mean by" shooting all day" but I can and do shoot 20 to 25 shots without wiping and the last shot is as easy to load as the first! Using only Mr. Flintlock as the Lube.
My accuracy is not affected.

[LH]

Most roundball barrels have a personality all their own.  Never say never and never say always. 

[Standing Bear]

We need a smiley for kicking a dead horse.

[Daryl]

and what i fail to see is that you old timers do not time into account RIFLING DEPTH from one gun to the next.

I'd love for one of you that can shoot all day long without loading getting hard, to put together a video, showing this, along with a 100 yard target, shot off the bench of course.

First of all, I apologize for -re-posting this video to those who are tired of seeing it.

50- maybe 60 shots that day by me on the trail, and Hatchet Jack - probably 80 or more. He starts at sun-up - we start at 10AM. No wiping at any time - either of us.
I'm shooting a .445" ball and 10 ounce denim patch- about .0225" compressed in the calipers as hard as I can squeeze between forefinger and thumb on the jaws.



This is Taylor shooting his Virginia rifle, .50 Rice barrel with a .495" ball and .020" patch.  If mine, I'd be using a thicker patch as they will hold slightly if the powder charge is increased much over 85gr. 2F. For me, it's too thin- but it bloody well works well for him- no wiping for an entire day's shooting.



Here's a shallow grooved SXS rifle in .58- a Kodiak. I am using a .562" ball and .0215" ticking patch. The rifling is shallow- but is a cut rifled barrel- .008" on the rifling, so with the patch and ball, there is .0045" compression in the bottom of both grooves.  I've shot 30 or 40 shots in testing for regulation that day when I decided to make the video. I am using the rifle's 3/8" Hickory rod- a replacement as the rod I got with the rifle was maple- garbage as a rod.

[hanshi]

Well, I AM an old timer; been doing this for about 50 years.  Generally I use a ball .010" under bore diameter and a .024" patch.  But as an example I can also use this same combo in my .45 but with a .445" ball (.005" under bore diameter) rather than a .440" ball and they load the same and shoot the same.  I use Hoppes lube at the range or on trail walks and can shoot my usual 3 to 4 dozen shots and never wipe.  Accuracy is not affected in the least.  On rare occasions I may feel a crud ring forming at the breech.  If I do,  then I may wipe the bore (or brush it) and continue shooting.  Guns are always wiped prior to packing up and leaving for home.  Bore Butters are terrible patch lubes and worse for rust prevention. 

Barrels are individuals and my pet .45 has a spot in the bore that tends to catch fouling, etc.  I'm more likely to end up wiping this rifle's bore in the middle of my afternoon shoot although I seldom have to.  Daryl's observation concerning used factory gun bores is right on.  Some of these, even though they may end up being very accurate, can have an aggravating tendency toward heavy fouling.  There may be no expeditious way to solve the problem.

Yep, I'm an old timer along with many of the members here.  Take time to read my signature.

[WadePatton]

We need a smiley for kicking a dead horse.

When ignorance of the theory and practice arises, some of us feel a duty to try to help those who may not have experienced the joys of accurate wipelessness.  

-as to the Original Q, I've not tried extended shooting with anything but spit.  Only took 4 loadings to get me through venison season.  NFO was planned but tallow was used in field.  I haven't disproved NFO for my purposes yet.  



Hanshi knows, he's an old guy.  Others could learn from him.  He knows stuff.