Did he say Turpentine? to clean with

[Molly]

Yes, the letter in the Muzzle-loader mag from a guy been shooting a long time claims to use turpentine to clean with.  Don't need a ton of side "how to clean and what to use" comments but has anyone use turpentine or what's the thoughts on it?  Just another novel approach!?

[wattlebuster]

I have tried reinventing the wheel yrs ago. I will stick to good ole H2O

[WadePatton]

Yes, I use turpentine.
No, not for cleaning an sort of combustion residues.

Maybe a resident chemist can illuminate us both as to why anyone would think that was necessary. 

[Marcruger]

Turpentine is good for cleaning a leaded bore. For example, a modern handgun shooting lead bullets. For a patched roundball I think turpentine would be useless. Best wishes, Marc

[nosrettap1958]

Never thought of it but if you're stuck out in a cabin somewhere it might make for a substitute.  The last trip I took with my muzzleloader I just took rubbing alcohol to quickly clean it before returning home.

[smylee grouch]

Well if I had the choice between rubbing alcohol and terpentine I would use the rubbing alcohol which has up to 70% water in it anyway.

[Black Hand]

Well if I had the choice between rubbing alcohol and terpentine I would use the rubbing alcohol which has up to 70% water in it anyway.

The 70% denotes the percentage of isopropyl alcohol, not water...

[smylee grouch]

Your right Black Hand, I think is was the medication that made me turn that around. I still would take the alcohol over the terpentine.   

[Nordnecker]

I have used turpentine to clean a paint brush. But afterwards, I don't want to be in the same room with it because it smells like turpentine. I really don't like the smell of it.

[nosrettap1958]

I didn't know that you could use turpentine to clean the lead out of a bore. How effective is it?

[490roundball]

i would expect turpentine to be hazardous to the stock's finish

[Hungry Horse]

This is yet another example of a guy that just can't possibly bring himself to take the easiest route possible. On what planet would you be in the woods, and have turpentine, but no water? Many shooters today just imagine that plain old cold water is the best cleaner for black powder guns. I think it's too cheap, and easy to get. They want something you have to really hunt for instead.

  Hungry Horse

[Standing Bear]

This is yet another example of a guy that just can't possibly bring himself to take the easiest route possible. On what planet would you be in the woods, and have turpentine, but no water? Many shooters today just imagine that plain old cold water is the best cleaner for black powder guns. I think it's too cheap, and easy to get. They want something you have to really hunt for instead.

  Hungry Horse

RIGHT YOU ARE, SIR.    👍👍

[Mike Brooks]

I use turp to get lead out of a bore. Pretty much all on modern guns. I have used it to get the lead out of ML shotguns as well. works as well as any other lead removal product.

[Marcruger]

Roger that Mike. 

For the gentleman that asked, somehow the turpentine works its way between the lead and the steel and lifts it loose. Don't know how.  It just does.  I heard that old time shooters of black powder cartridge rifles used it to clear lead.  A traditional cure for the leaded grooves.  Best wishes, and God Bless,  Marc

[nosrettap1958]

Thanks guys!!!

I'm going to try it on my percussion revolver. It leads up pretty quick.

[Mad Monk]

Yes, the letter in the Muzzle-loader mag from a guy been shooting a long time claims to use turpentine to clean with.  Don't need a ton of side "how to clean and what to use" comments but has anyone use turpentine or what's the thoughts on it?  Just another novel approach!?

That goes back to the days of lubes based on beeswax.  Prior to solvents from crude petroleum oils the standard solvent for beeswax was turpentine.  Was used as a solvent for both beeswax and natural asphalts (tars).  When cleaning a fouled bore.  If you don't get all of the lube out of the bore you promote after rusting in the bore.

[Mad Monk]

Yes, the letter in the Muzzle-loader mag from a guy been shooting a long time claims to use turpentine to clean with.  Don't need a ton of side "how to clean and what to use" comments but has anyone use turpentine or what's the thoughts on it?  Just another novel approach!?

Forgot to mention in my previous post.  If you go back into the late 1970s and mid-1980s you see a bunch of ML patch and bullet lubes that were nothing more than repackaged commercial lubricating greases made from "stiffened" lubricating oils from petroleum.  As you fired the gun with these lubes they would from films of asphalt in the bore back around where the ball, or bullet, was seated on the powder charge.  Eventually as the film built up you could no longer seat the projectile on the charge.  No regular cleaner or cleaning method would remove the asphalt film from the bore.  You had to get into the bore with an asphalt solvent.  Some used mineral spirits while others used turpentine.  Both acting as asphalt solvents.  Once we got away from the petroleum based lubes the problem with the asphalt films became a thing of the past.  In a way you can tell how long a person has been shooting back powder by what they discuss as favored cleaning methods.

[bones92]

Brake Cleaner!   Cleans super fast without making a mess.  Dries quickly.

(bones92 quickly runs off before arrows start flying his way... )

 

[Darkhorse]

Many years ago I made the transition from Crisco and spit to Wonder Lube and I shot WL for years. I still use it for certain applications. But after many shots through a barrel it forms a film of nasty brown wax like stuff that you can't clean out with traditional methods. Even after using water and soap and the water comes out clean a tight patch will still come out covered in this nasty brown stuff.  I didn't like it and wanted it out of my barrels but what to use?
BRAKE CLEANER did the job. A patch wet with BRAKE CLEANER easily cleaned all that stuff right out. It's true I can't find brake cleaner in the piney woods or hardwood bottoms but I can find it in my shop if needed.
It's taken over 40 years but I've got most black powder and rifle problems finally worked out. It's like magic. Now I can just go shoot and these old problems just never seem to appear anymore.

[Marcruger]

Brake cleaner really cleans. Just be very careful not to get it on yourself. Very toxic stuff.
Also, don't let it drip on your stock finish.
One last thought: Brake cleaner strips off everything from the metal. Do a double good job of lubing and protecting the bore afterwards, as all previous oil will be gone. Rust will jump on steel quickly after brake or carb cleaner.
Hope this helps. Be safe out there. Marc

[HAWKEN]

I have never tried turpentine but I do like the smell of it.  For a really tough job, I use carburetor cleaner, it's cheap, dries quickly and blasts away carbon.  I buy the cheapest brand I can find, either Walmart or Big Lots.  Keep yer powder dry.........robin 

[BruceH]

To the fellas using brake cleaner, please be careful.  It can cause some awful nasty things to happen to your brain if it comes in contact with a heat source and flashes.  The warning is on the can and you can find true instances of this by searching.  The fumes are extremely hazardous.  Carb cleaner is OK.

[WadePatton]

To the fellas using brake cleaner, please be careful.  It can cause some awful nasty things to happen to your brain if it comes in contact with a heat source and flashes.  The warning is on the can and you can find true instances of this by searching.  The fumes are extremely hazardous.  Carb cleaner is OK.

A fellow I know was hospitalized following an encounter with brake cleaner, but it was an odd combination of circumstances. I'll summarize: His fabrications include a good bit of TIG welding (GTAW in the current lingo). The inert gas for his application is Argon. He was working on some rusty bits and had a habit of final cleaning/wipe down before welding with carb cleaner.  He was out of or misplaced his carb cleaner and grabbed the next best substitute-brake cleaner.

As there were tiny pits from corrosion not all of the brake clean had evaporated before he struck arc.  He remembers seeing tiny puffs of smoke in the process.  The combination of heat, chemicals from the cleaner, AND Argon being present--created the toxic nerve gas (Phosgene) and put him out for a long time, requiring hospitalization and recovery-and might have killed anyone else.  Steve Garn is his name this was published in a magazine several years back. 

Here's the full story in Steve's words: http://www.brewracingframes.com/safety-alert-brake-cleaner--phosgene-gas.html

Note that while it takes some doing to make Phosgene from brake cleaner--that the other stuff that's already in there is not to be trifled with. 

[Maven]

After reading the letter mentioned in "Muzzleloader" + the above posts, I had to see whether turpentine was the magical cleaner as claimed.  My rifle was cleaned with warm, soapy water, patches on a jag, and a bore brush, followed by more patches.  (It was really filthy.)  I then oiled the bore and put it away.  A little while ago, I dried the oil and used a patch saturated with turpentine and ran it in and out of the bbl. a few times.  Well, either I cleaned the bbl. [by conventional means] really well, or turpentine isn't the miracle elixir which the letter writer claimed because the patch wasn't dirty at all.  You may want to try it and draw your own conclusions about its effectiveness.