On my 1/2 fiber wads do they have to be lubed? The load I described earlier this week that gave superior accuracy was powder, card, unlubed wad,ball, card. Nothing in the shot string was lubed. Tried lubed wad tonight and not as accurate. Do I have to lube?
Do I need to lube the wad?
- Thread starter gmannx217
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Nope.
I do just to make the eventual clean up easier. Stick the wad on a pin and roll just the edge of the wad in melted beeswax/mutton tallow in equal parts. Wipes the bore as it is pressed down on top of the overpowder card.
I do just to make the eventual clean up easier. Stick the wad on a pin and roll just the edge of the wad in melted beeswax/mutton tallow in equal parts. Wipes the bore as it is pressed down on top of the overpowder card.
Do what works for you. Smoothies are forgiving. I like to lube my tow. I find it easier to load and clean afterwards. Tow can burn easy and lubed stops that. However nothing is written in stone. Rifleman made a joke about a guy shooting a .45 ball in a blanket patch lubed with opposium droppings in a .54. While thats extream the point is lot of stuff work well with the way one person does it. Much of the fun comes from playing around to see in something some one elese does works. Dont argue with sucsess, if it works for you and it aint unsafe do it.
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I find it really helps keep the fouling soft. If you're shooting as many as 40-50 shots as we do on a good day for ptarmigan, fouling buildup is horrendous without lubed wads. Getting kinda iffy loading a dozen or so shots on a good duck shoot, too.
ohio ramrod
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About the only two absolutes in this game are 1. NO SMOKELESS POWDER, and 2. CLEAN & oil. For just about every thing else "if it works use it". Each gun has it own "likes and dislikes" . :idunno: :idunno:
Good advice so far. My usual practice is to soak my fiber wads in a soap solution then allow to drain well until they are only damp. That way each time you reload you are essentially cleaning the bore.
But do make sure those wads are not too wet when you reload. DAMHIK :redface: http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/291019/post/1429849/hl//fromsearch/1/
But do make sure those wads are not too wet when you reload. DAMHIK :redface: http://www.muzzleloadingforum.com/fusionbb/showtopic.php?tid/291019/post/1429849/hl//fromsearch/1/
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AZbpBurner
54 Cal.
I've been using a 1:5 mix of castor oil & denatured alcohol lately for rifle patches & found the same stuff works great with my fiber wads. OTOH, Olive oil dissolved in naphthalene left a cruddy residue that made cleaning at the end of the much more difficult. Castor oil cleans up easier than any other lube I've ever used.
GreyWhiskers
69 Cal.
If I'm shooting a lot, especially when it's hot here, I'll give the fiber wads a squirt of Simlpe Green. It's the same thing I use on my rifle patches under the same circumstances. Keeps the fouling to a minimum.
If I'm hunting and it's gonna be a long time between shots I roll them in bear oil. GW
If I'm hunting and it's gonna be a long time between shots I roll them in bear oil. GW
AZbpBurner
54 Cal.
AZbpBurner said:
Let me give a little more insight into why I'm a castor oil fan:
I can shoot my castor oil wads all day long & never gut that nasty sewerpipe build up that makes loading a snap. Same with PRB's in rifles.
OTOH, as I've mentioned before olive oil with wads left horribly hard to clean residue. Kindea disappointing, since olive oil does well with PRB patches & is cheaper than castor oil.
AZbpBurner said:
I don't get what you describe with olive oil at all. Have you tried it neat?
I was wondering why you cut it with naphtha?
AZbpBurner
54 Cal.
Olive oil Neat leaves a cruddy build-up after only a couple of shots. It also leaves a nasty residue that requires more effort to remove. Napthalene will dissolve olive oil, and is a carrier to evaporate and evenly leave a fine deposit of oil throughout the wad. Olive oil isn't soluble in Denatured Alcohol, but Castor Oil is.Britsmoothy said:
Strange, I never get what you describe with olive oil at all.AZbpBurner said:
Does any one else suffer as described with olive oil?
Why not wipe after every few shots??? :idunno: I do not see a need to hunt 20-30 shots without wiping. 
Sorry Brit not made answer to yu
Sorry Brit not made answer to yu
zimmerstutzen
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At the muzzle loading shotgun matches I have attended, nearly all competitors dunk their wads in soapy water for a few seconds. It is basically the equivalent of wiping with a damp swab between shots.
I found it works well. When hunting I would smear shortening on the sides of the wads.
I found it works well. When hunting I would smear shortening on the sides of the wads.
Flintfan69
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I simply dip the felt wads I punch out in mink oil that is melted in a simple double boiler (mink oil tin in a small pan with some water in it). I dip each wad no longer than one second in the melted oil.
I've fired dozens of shots without the need to wipe the bore, and the first shot loads as easily as the last. I used to use a mix of mink oil and beeswax but found in cold weather the wads would get a little too stiff for my liking. If you hunt in warm climates a little beeswax will help keep things from getting too runny.
I've fired dozens of shots without the need to wipe the bore, and the first shot loads as easily as the last. I used to use a mix of mink oil and beeswax but found in cold weather the wads would get a little too stiff for my liking. If you hunt in warm climates a little beeswax will help keep things from getting too runny.
Haven't seen it mentioned yet, but I think that the lube also helps prevent, or at least keep to a minimum, leading in the barrel. Have not tried this in my muzzle loader, but I loaded some black powder shotgun cartridges with dry wads, had terrible leading in the barrel. Took over an hour to get it cleaned out. Decided that I would not try to shoot my ml w/out lube.
Use boiling water next time bud. Lead will fall out :thumbsup:No Deer said:
rijerolmon
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From my childhood memories....a teaspoon full of cod liver oil will make you "shoot clean" for several days. :grin: Best gun lube I have used is bear fat and castor oil. :bow:
