Any other heretics out there that oil their barrels?

[Eutycus]

.beardedhorse said "..now testing sperm whale oil" ... Real? If so,How did you obtain that?

 

[MLZ]

I oil mine with Marvel Mystery Oil, too. Been doing so for forty-odd years and never had a problem.

 

[KingTut]

I clean with warm water and dawn, dry and use G96 as a final oil both inside and out.
As stated in another thread of mine, just found Ballistol and have never tried it, so thought I would as a lot of folks on here seem to really like it. After 3 visits to the trail walk as a family, and using different guns each time, so far I’ve no complaints, but I believe it will still require an oil if stored for longer periods. Time will tell.
Walk

Never used anything but G96 on my non-BP guns. After cleaning with Ballistol, a light coat of G96 inside and out.

 

[N.Y. Yankee]

I use "gun oil" on all my guns. Used to use Bore Butter but I seemed to have problems with it "drying out?" in the bore so I switched to an oil. All I do is wipe the bore with an alcohol patch before shooting. I've not had any problems with that. I think "seasoning the bore" and using gun oils are two of the biggest myths we have in muzzleloading.

 

[Salvavita]

I oil mine. I did quit using Rem-Oil because it turns brown pretty quickly and always puts everybody in a 'it's rusty' panic. Stored muzzle-down & I've never had any ignition problems.

But then, what do I know? I also use bore-butter on my bullets and pyrodex to launch them.

Bubba50, the more I think about it, the idea of "Storing" my rifles muzzle down is just Brilliant. I always store my guns oiled and with a Balloon over the muzzle (purchased @ Dollar Tree they are 50 for $1.25).
And I must be an absolute Heathen, because I use Bore Butter, Pyrodex, and even oil my knives when I store them (GASP!)

 

[dehart.stephen]

I used to go traditional with hot water and tried various soaps, then changed to Murphy's when I have some, fiinishing off with Ballistol. Used natural turpentine once ro good effect in pinch, oiled up afterward. Even water alone can work, it's just easier on a late, tired, Sunday evening to get it done faster with the Murphy's/Ballistol. I took some advice and loaded the barrel channel of my Whitworth with water pump grease, so I now clean without disturbing the barrel bands. Speeds the job up. No rusty barrel so far. Still take the nipple and cleanout screw out for thorough cleaning, of course. We all should try the old boiling water flush in Ned Roberts' book just for an appreciation of what folks had to do after making their campfire out in the weather back when. After that, a little practicality buys us more time to shoot before we have to obey the clock....

 

[nkbj]

In the 70's I was told the traditional way of cleaning was to take a whiz down the barrel.


No, I didn't try it.

 

[Mike in FL]

Yep, clean it and oil it. When I go shooting or hunting I swab it good with alcohol to remove all oil. I even pour some in the bore and plunge it down until it squirts out of the touch hole. Then dry with patches. Any residue will quickly evaporate.
Never did believe it is possible to season the bore. A sales gimmick. Steel does not permit seasoning. Your rifle barrel ain't porus.
It ain't cast iron. It is not iron or made of the same stuff they were made of back then. Oil it and oil it good.

 

[AZbpBurner]

I've been burning black powder for over 1/2 century now & never had issue with oil in the bore building fouling.
After every cleaning I remove any moisture with a couple of patches with WD40, then swab with Birchwood Casey Barricade (used to be called sheath). Never had any rust issues.

 

[FlinterNick]

I oil the outside, grease the inside with marine grease (blue stuff). Wipe down with alcohol before shooting. Never have had any bore rust issues.

 

[pmccoywss]

Never did believe it is possible to season the bore. A sales gimmick. Steel does not permit seasoning. Your rifle barrel ain't porus.
It ain't cast iron. It is not iron or made of the same stuff they were made of back then.

Opinions differ. Check out this article: HBN: A Dry Lubricant for Rifle Barrels

Claims made in the article are very similar to those made by TetraGun Lube many years ago (Like 72 shots from aBP revolver without cleaning). I went from "must clean to load" after 3 rounds of 120gr 2F in 50cal, to getting 6-7 shots before "must clean", after "seasoning" the bore.

Increase velocity and worked the same way in my unmentionables.

Just my experience.

 

[nkbj]

Once upon a time I forgot to oil a barrel.

 

[JEBMs]

My shooting times are rare these days due to my wife’s health issues. As the storage time increased about 10 years ago I switched to 10W30 motor oil when I put one up after cleaning. I scrub it down with warm soapy water and then dry it with dry patches followed by a heat gun (don’t own a hair dryer anymore, I’m washing considerably more face these days than I used to) and then oil her down with motor oil. I keep a close eye on them and haven’t seen any sign of rust. Before I go to shoot I clean all the oil out, it comes out as easy as it went in and have no problems

 

[COTNTOP]

All we had when we were youngins was 3in1 oil and that kept our guns healthy. Have not saw any for sale in a good while, gonna look some up.

 

[smoothshooter]

I've been cleaning guns for more years than I care to count and when I got into BP quite a few years ago I decided to lubricate with the same products and methods I've used successfully on many cartridge guns. I take care of my firearms and never had a spot of rust due to improper cleaning or storage. I read about Bore Butter and the kinds of concoctions used to protect the barrel but never understood why no one recommended a light coat of oil same as you put on the cartridge gun barrel after cleaning. I do remember reading that it was the worst thing to do because it fouls the powder and it won't ignite.

In the beginning, I use to run a clean patch through before shooing in case there was too much oil but have since even stopped doing that before shooting. In all this time, not one load has been oil-fouled and not one spot of rust in my BP longarms or handguns. I buy and use the same products for all my guns regardless of the type of powder that goes in them. The only products I added to my cleaning arsenal for BP are hot water and dish soap.

Are there any other BP cleaning heretics and barrel oilers in the forum?

I use Break Free, Balistol, or even regular Hoppe’s #9, same as on my modern guns.
Simply using SOMETHING is better than using NOTHING.
For long-term storage, I have found that either Balistol or Break Free work just fine.
No point in making things more complicated than they need to be.

 

[DuncNZ]

I clean my barrels thoroughly with Lehigh Valley cleaner , of which I probably have enough to last the rest of my shooting life .I presently store them with a lanolin based spray. As Dutch Schoultz recommends , I re check my barrels 2 days later . I am storing cleaned barrels muzzle down in a safe in a safe in a dry climate .
When I lived in a high humidity climate I used Eezox as a barrel rust preventer .
I have used PTFE based lubes like Tera Gun ,Rem Oil and Breakfree , I found they were better as lubes than for storage . I found all PTFE based lubes completely stuffed the accuracy of my CF benchrest and varmint rifles until 3 fouling shots were fired .
I also like and use Ballistol as a patch lube , cleaner and preservative
I don't mind using 3 different products as cleaner , a lube and a preservative .
Before use I swab my ml barrels out with 99% isopropyl alcohol then dry the bores.
I am investigating using Jojoba bean oil as a substitute for whale oil, which it very closely resembles , as a patch lube and a metal lube and preservative.
One thing , whatever oil you use make sure it does not effect stock finishes or stock wood , I have seen many firearms with oil rotted or softened stocks .
I oil my knives with Ballistol , or olive oil or Jojoba oil , all food grade and non toxic .

 

[Mike in FL]

I can't understand the concept of seasoning steel. what is it chemically that causes the seasoning? Surely there is something more to it than I know. Might any steel implement be seasoned? Like the bore of a cartridge gun that uses smokeless powder? Is there something special about ML barrels that lend themselves to seasoning? Does the use of blackpowder have anything to do with it? Is it a coating? And can that coating be removed by cleaning? One more question: If hour barrel is seasoned, will a cleaning g patch come out clean if the gun is neither loaded nor fired?

 

[THE_LAST_WORD]

I've been cleaning guns for more years than I care to count and when I got into BP quite a few years ago I decided to lubricate with the same products and methods I've used successfully on many cartridge guns. I take care of my firearms and never had a spot of rust due to improper cleaning or storage. I read about Bore Butter and the kinds of concoctions used to protect the barrel but never understood why no one recommended a light coat of oil same as you put on the cartridge gun barrel after cleaning. I do remember reading that it was the worst thing to do because it fouls the powder and it won't ignite.

In the beginning, I use to run a clean patch through before shooing in case there was too much oil but have since even stopped doing that before shooting. In all this time, not one load has been oil-fouled and not one spot of rust in my BP longarms or handguns. I buy and use the same products for all my guns regardless of the type of powder that goes in them. The only products I added to my cleaning arsenal for BP are hot water and dish soap.

Are there any other BP cleaning heretics and barrel oilers in the forum?

omt my barrel is so clean you would think there had never been bp in it. smiles and due to the forum rules i cant even show you or discuss the rifle that is so clean without me actually cleaning it, it stays clean even when fired. well for like 300 shots , then gotta send cleaning patches down the barrel , some baristol maybe but thats it.

 

[necchi]

i cant even show you or discuss the rifle that is so clean without me actually cleaning it, it stays clean even when fired. well for like 300 shots ,

Air rifles don't create any caustic powder residue when fired. So Thanks, and your right, that info is not much help here.
Good luck,,

 

[Coinneach]

In the 70's I was told the traditional way of cleaning was to take a whiz down the barrel.


No, I didn't try it.

Wellingtons Infantry practised it as a routine on campaign, when I wore Jungle Greens in the 70's we pissed down the M60 GPMG barrels after theyd had a hard day in defensive positions.