Track of the Wolf Trapper’s Mink Oil

[Joe R]

Like many here I have been a user of TOW’s Mink Oil for some time. I have been trying to restock some for many months only to find it out of stock every time I check . I finally reached out and Ethan at TOW replied, “ The man that makes the Trappers Mink Oil is an older gentleman and is having health issues.  Unfortunately he does not have any succession.”

So it looks like we’re gonna have to come up with a Plan B.

May have to shoot a bear, whales being hard to come by.

[Martin S.]

I am very sorry to hear this.  This is my go to lube.

[Hungry Horse]

 This is the primary reason I don’t use materials sold specifically as a bullet, or patch lube, or cleaning products. If you develop your most accurate load around a product like this, and it goes away, you have to start from scratch to find a new product. I wasted years doing this, and I am done. If it wasn’t around back then I don’t use it.

Hungry Horse

[MuskratMike]

I mix my T.O.T.W. mink oil 50/50 with pure neatsfoot oil (not the compounds or blends). If this product goes out of production I will use pure neatsfoot oil.

[PEARL DRUMS]

I use pure Neatsfoot oil only. Yes, its drippy and yes it smells like cooked beef after each round. But it works great for me in all my rifle calibers and my double barrel 12. It's cheap, easy and readily available. Give it a try if you haven't already. I put dry patches in an old pill bottle and add enough oil to soak through the stack. But not leave any liquid oil behind.

[MeliusCreekTrapper]

Once again, rendered raccoon fat comes through for me. Easily obtainable, with an almost limitless supply right outside my back door.

If you know coon hunters or trappers, they'd probably be more than willing to supply the raw material.

[Steeltrap]

Try Mineral Oil. Yeah....not traditional but when I was load developing my .45 rifle I tried Mink Oil and a few other products (Ballisto). So....my not so great thinking was....Oil is oil. So one trip out I took a bottle of Mineral Oil as a "what the heck".

The MO shrank my groups and it also helps keep the fouling down.

FWIW

[Hungry Horse]

 I usually use venison tallow, or mutton tallow for patch lube. If you hunt deer you can render your own, but if not, you can buy mutton tallow from some muzzleloader suppliers.

Hungry Horse

[Daryl]

I might now have to try mineral oil, just to see how it works.
Not sure the evaporation rate, or if it is suitable for hunting(longevity in the bore). If indeed ot softens BP fouling as well as Mink Oil or Neetsfoot Oil, it might come down to which is least expensive or works best.
The larger bores with their normally larger charges, are what will make or break this oil as a viable patch lube for hunting.
For targets  I still use only a water soluble oil.

[Darkhorse]

Another option to try is Canola oil. I was looking for a hunting lube for my 40 caliber Rice B profile and I tried Canola oil. I get good accuracy and I can leave the rifle loaded for several days without rust (so far).
I have not tried it yet in my 54 as I already have a lube that works good for hunting.

[recurve]

Tallow  I like mutton but any will work as long as it's salt free .    Bear, racoon , deer seem to not go rancid , like beef/hog. some like to mix with bees wax , not me
I forgot you guys north of the USA Moose tallow should work great(and your bears are bigger/fatter)

[Daryl]

Not having and marmot oil, bear, deer, caribou or moose tallow, I use Neetsfoot oil or Tracks Mink oil.
Guess now I'll try Mineral Oil, but then I don't hunt anymore. Guess I should try it just to see how it works, for this forum's sake. Might be good afterall.
I'm thinking canola oil might be too far synthesized to work, but then only way to find out, is to try it.
Heading home today for a few. Might get out shooting, if not too hot.

[hudson]

Try coconut oil or grape seed oil from what I understand both have a high flash point and work.

[EC121]

I mixed the non-hardening coconut oil with the mink oil.  It worked fine and cleaning seemed easier.

[Daryl]

Tje Princess Auto chain store here sells a Mink oil that LOOKS very similar to what Track sells. Guess I'll have to try it in the .36 and "see" what she says.
Might even have a makers name on it.

[recurve]

perhaps someone should Buy the business from the inventor

[HighUintas]

Agreed. There are some very large mink farms in Utah. I do not know what for or what they do with the excess material.

[Habu]

For what little it might be worth, as a patch lube Angelus brand mink oil (the paste, not the liquid) seems a near-direct substitute for Track's product.  I say "near" because mink oil is not my usual patch lube, and I may be overlooking something.    The stuff has been available forever, and as far as I can tell the recipe hasn't changed.   

[Martin S.]

For what little it might be worth, as a patch lube Angelus brand mink oil (the paste, not the liquid) seems a near-direct substitute for Track's product.  I say "near" because mink oil is not my usual patch lube, and I may be overlooking something.    The stuff has been available forever, and as far as I can tell the recipe hasn't changed.

3 oz on Amazon is the same price as 8 oz at Track.  Ugh.

[bluenoser]

Has anyone tried Fluid Film?
I spit patch on the range and use bear grease when hunting, but have been tempted to try Fluid Film.  For those that don't know, Fluid film is lanolin based.  Lanolin is extracted from sheep's wool and FF is super slippery and creeps well.  It is, in my opinion, an outstanding lube for case sizing.  Not sure how it would stand up to ignition temperatures.

[oldways]

    I saw this product online.{ Fiebings golden mink oil} if you look in the Q & A part it has the list of ingredients by %. I don't know if it would be any good or not. I've been using neatsfoot oil as a lube.

[Tony N]

Hate to hear this, glad I still have a couple tins left

Tony

[HighUintas]

Is there any readily available hunting patch lube substitutes for mink oil?

Maybe could mix some neatsfoot oil with just enough beeswax to solidify it so it doesn't soak into the powder?

I've got some of this https://www.bs-bp.com/bearoil.html but I don't think it softens the fouling as much as mink oil, or at least it doesn't seem to go down the bore as easily. Not sure if I like it or not

[Habu]

Maybe could mix some neatsfoot oil with just enough beeswax to solidify it so it doesn't soak into the powder?

I don't think "oil soaking into the powder" is anything to be concerned about.  I've used oils for patch lubes for ~40 years, and have been using a chronograph for ~30 years.  In that time I have yet to see any significant velocity loss, even when the rifle was left loaded for as long as a month.  The velocity of the previously-loaded load has always been in the velocity range of the same loads fired on the same day. 

[Leatherbark]

I used TOW's mink oil for years.  A few years ago, I bought 2 tins that were spoiled for some reason.  The grease was much darker and smelled almost like it was rotten. I normally like the tallow aroma of TOW's mink oil, but those two cans smelled like something you wanted to forget you ever smelled. I tossed it.  The next two cans were normal.

Bob