.58 caliber 20 shot test

[cayugad]

I took Stumpkiller's moose milk receipe (thanks very much... it worked great) and using my moose milk added some witch hazel and 91% isopropyl alcohol to it to produce his formula.

I also wanted to see how bad the Renegade with the Green Mountain Barrel would fowl out shooting 100 grains of Goex FFg and a .58 caliber Speer Roundball with moose milk patch lube.

I swabbed before starting the shoot to get the oils out of the barrel, and twice during the shoot because I became concerned over the seating mark (I put a piece of masking tape on the range rod and write the powder charge so I know where the ball should seat to...) for a total of three times during the 20 shot test.

At 40 yards off shooting sticks, I conducted this fowling test. The first shot off the clean barrel was low which did not surprise me too much. The rest of the shots held real true. In fact the high marks in the target were the two times I swabbed.

Over all the rifle performed flawless, and Stumpkiller's moose milk is much better then my old moose milk. I had never heard of the witch hazel in the mix. What it the purpose of the witch hazel?

40 yards was used because this is the distance at my hunting stand to where deer have to cross a creek to continue past me. Should be an interesting deer season too... ::

 

[Stumpkiller]

Bless you for being a guinea pig, er . . . I mean volunteer. I am thrilled that you have duplicated my findings. Now, if your gun doesn't rust and disintegrate line mine did . . .

Just kidding. You should oil it or use a product like Lehigh Valley Lube (or a coating of Stumpkiller's Moose Snot : to protect the metal after cleaning. The milk is primarily a powder solvent/liquid lube and the water & witch hazel aren't doing you any favors for long term storage. With the oils included it SHOULD be fine, but that's still in the testing phase. Spread the word and tell them you found it here.

I got the Witch Hazel idea from Superflint. Here's an excerpt from an earlier post of mine:

Then along comes Superflint and mentions he uses witch hazel to good ends as a ingredient patch lube. Witch hazel - in addition to being a volatile vegetable oil (it vaporizes readily) - is an astringent (it dries moisture).

The main purpose of both the witch hazel and the alcohol is to act as a solvent, displace water and then vamoose. The castor oil is the lubricant, the Murphy's Oil Soap is an emulsifier and surficant (smears across the metal and gets into crevices, grabs the crud molecules and entombs them in 'milk'.) The water is just a carrier and has a mechanical sloughing action to wash the fouling away.

To help get that first 'fouling' shot in closer to the group: swab the barel before loading with a cleaning patch containing whatever lubricant you will be using. It will still be slightly out, but closer.

 

[cayugad]

After I clean my rifles I always put a coating of Birchwood Casey Sheath in the bore and wipe the rifle down with it. They are well protected.

The only difference is, my premix had the NAPA Water Soluable Oil in it instead of the caster oil, so I added the witch hazel the alcohol, the murphy's soap, and then filled the liter bottle with the pre-mix.

I should mention, the rifle cleaned up real easy actually. I hot water bath, a few solvent patches, some denatured alcohol patches, then some dry ones. I dropped a bore light down it, and it was clean as a whistle.

This stuff worked better then the mink oil that was recommended by TOTW and borebutter also my homemade lube needs some work. It is melting bad in the heat. Turns almost liquid. I think it needs more wax...

 

[Stumpkiller]

Try my Moose Snot for texture.

2 oz. Beeswax
8 oz. Castor Oil
1 oz. Murphy's Oil Soap

This mix holds up from overnight in a freezer without freezing to being carried in a pants pocket without liquifying or the oil seperating out (my highly sophisticated tests). My goal with this was to make a patch lube that could sit in a loading block for a week without running all over your clothes or hardening up, but still protected the bore and was accurate. No mean feat.

You can't get away with swapping out the Castor Oil for W.S. Cutting Oil (which is similar to plain old mineral oil) for this one. Castor oil is available at drugstores or hobby shops where glow-fuel airplanes are sold. (Or motorcycle shops catering to two-stroke racing bikes).

 

[cayugad]

Could pariffin wax be substituted bees wax? Finding bees wax reasonable around here is impossible. I do have a place to order it on line, but was waiting to shoot off all the other lubes I made...

 

That Moose Snot sure looks like a good recipe. I wonder if Home Hardware(cdn chain) has the Murphey's oil soap- perhaps Home Depot?

 

[NoJacketRequired]

Daryl,

You won't need to head off to Home Hardware for Murphy's Oil Soap. Check out the cleaning supplies section in your local grocery store - that's where we get ours in small-town Ontario. I'm sure the grocery stores in BC will stock it too!

 

Cool, thanks.

 

[Jay Gardner]

Here comes the rookie question - you use moose milk/snot as lube? What are the pros/cons over something like Bore Butter? Just curious.

Thanks

 

[cayugad]

Stumpkiller is the snot shooter not me... :: I use moose milk because it is inexpensive, works really well, easy to use, and I can make it in my home. I have used a form of moose milk for years but Stumpkiller told me how to improve it, which I think I did. :applause:

I have bore butter and use it once in a while. When it comes on sale I buy a tube and usually put it on conicals. I never was once that felt they had to season the bore like some do.

 

I'm having too much fun with my 58 using the Buffalo Ballet 405 HP. The bullet slides down the dry or fouled bore with very little push. I'm in a 5" kill zone at 100 yards using the open sights. The double trigger set-up is now adjusted perfectly. This gun/barrel combo is incredible! Getting it was the smartest move I've made since I joined the sport back in 90'. I still can't figure out which barrel I want for the single trigger Renegade stock assembly I just purchased at auction. Decisions-Decisions???

 

OxYoke now has bore butter in stick form for lube sizers. just the ticket for the Sharps. I haven't tried it yet, but very similar to regular bore butter, just a bit thicker and non-running (I hope). It's a bit waxier, which it needed for bullets. I did try regualr bore butter in the 149year old barrel, getting a 1 1/2" group at 100yds. for 5 shots. i fired 8 in total, with the other three making a 3" group. The 1 1/2", 5 shot group was fairly well centered in the middle of the triangle of the outside 3. It shoots well as is, so I'm hoping the stiffer stuff shoots as well. The battle sights on the 22" carbine barrel aren't that good for precision shooting so an overall 3" group is just fine. The 5 in the centre make a slot, all holes touching. Since I don't weigh it's bullets, they probably had voids causing the outside 3 shots.

 

[Stumpkiller]

No guarantees on the parrafin wax. It's a petroleum product and has different characteristics. You'll have to experiment.

I just got 3 lbs of beeswax for $18 (including shipping chgs) from www.beeswaxfrombeekeepers.com Good stuff.

 

[Stumpkiller]

. . . you use moose milk/snot as lube? What are the pros/cons over something like Bore Butter?

Moose milk (a genaric term for homebrewed powder solvent/lube) is a liquid lube and works very well as a patch lube IF you're loading one-at-a-time at the muzzle. As opposed to pre-loading a loading block or making up paper cartridges, speed *shudder* loaders, etc. I like Moose Milk to pre-clean the gun if it's going to sit a while and to wipe out fouling on long shot strings (or to clean it where boiling water isn't available). I worked up the Moose Snot recipe specifically for loading a bullet block and lugging it around during hunting season - where a ball may sit for weeks waiting to be fired; and in temperatures from 80

 

[Jay Gardner]

Thanks Stumpkiller. Given I don't get to shoot too much, what is the best commercially available substitute for Moose Snot?

Thanks again.

 

[Stumpkiller]

T/C Natural Lube 1000 Plus (Bore Butter), but it's kind of runny. For simplicity their pre-lubed patches are the easiest solution. I've never tried Laurel Mountain Forge Bore Lube, but have been told that is good stuff, too.