Does a "several days'" load exist?

[Naphtali]

If there is a patch lube that retains its lubricity and sufficient liquidity to be effective several days after being loaded, please identify it.

I'm pretty sure that if such a patch lube exists, it is not the complete "answer." What is missing is how to isolate such a lubed ball from contaminating the propellant, since the two will be in intimate proximity for those "several days." About the only ways I can think of are to use an over powder card of hard cardboard and/or several vegetable fiber wads to keep powder and lubricant isolated from each other.

Whether or not such loading is a good idea is not really my question - which is, if it can be done, how?

 

[Semisane]

Several days? How about several weeks, or months.

I leave loads in the barrel for extended periods quite often, especially during our three month deer season.

I lubricate my patches with Liquid Wrench penetrating oil, then wrap a dozen or so patches in a paper towel and squeeze the bundle so the paper takes up most of the oil. They feel almost dry to the touch.

Three or four years ago I loaded a .58 Green Mountain barreled TC Hawken the day before our mid-November season opener. Ended up shooting that load out at after the season ended on January 31st. It behaved just as it should have.

 

[Stumpkiller]

I left a rifle loaded for 11 months with my Moose Snot wax lube a an experiment; it was a percussion rifle I don't use much and switched to the shotgun barrel for small game. Left it in my unheated garage from Dec to Nov. Hit a little high but wasn't off terribly. Went off first try and the barrel was fine.

I routinely leave my muzzleloaders loaded over a week in the hunting season if they haven't been rained or snowed on. I leave them in the cold so they don't attract moisture coming into a warm house from the cold.

Crumple up a little 1-1/2" x 1-1/2" square of waxed paper and put it in above the powder. It will keep the lube off the powder and doesn't have enough mass to alter the shot.

 

[necchi]

The Dry lube patch from Dutch's "system" works perfectly even after several months too.
I've done just that several times.

 

[azmntman]

YEARS ago I "accidentally" lft a .54 investarms loaded for 11 months. Used Hoppes #9 as a lube. When I went out to fire it, expecting the worst, it went off instantly. No rust either!

I also used to keep a revolver loaded and after a year with pyrodex and bore butter atop the ball it was comical. PHHSSSST ball could be seen traveling the 30-40 yards it went. Betting it was the bore butter.

 

[Rokon]

Try placing a dry felt wad over your powder followed by a greased patch and ball. The wad protects the powder for extended periods of time.

While hunting for extended periods with that set-up, you also must remember to keep the barrel, from muzzle to the top of the ball, protected with Barrier or whatever.

 

[Vaino]

Using OP wads w/ a PRB just adds another "thing" to be concerned w/ and has been proven to be quite unnecessary......just keeping it simple as posible.....Fred

 

[BrownBear]

I've run a couple of storage tests.

Left a 50 cal GPR capper loaded for 2 years, my usual light smear of mink oil grease for lube, 70 grains of 3f Goex for charge, and the hammer lowered onto a piece of oiled leather over the nipple. BANG! Fired just fine.

Left a 12 gauge SxS loaded for 12 months, dry Type A hard card over powder, fiber wad lubed with olive oil on top of that, same oiled leather pressed onto the nipples by the hammers. BANG BANG.

I quit worrying about it.

 

[George]

Try placing a dry felt wad over your powder followed by a greased patch and ball. The wad protects the powder for extended periods of time.

That couldn't hurt, but I've found it to be unnecessary. I've left my .40 caliber rifle for a couple of months loaded with patched ball directly on the powder, beeswax-lard-olive oil lube, and both ignition and accuracy were excellent.

Spence

 

[Kansas Jake]

I loaded my TC 50 for muzzleloading deer season the second week of September with 80 grains BP and a patched round ball with wonder lube on the patch. No luck on the deer so I left it loaded for a special two day doe only season the first weekend in October and again no deer. I finally got to the range a couple of weeks ago and capped it with a old CVA cap for a lot I bought in the 1970s. Guess what, it went bang just fine and was about 3 inches high at 12:00 at 50 yards. That is where the gun is regulated for that load.

I had also loaded my 58 Remington at the same time and fired it the same day. The load was about 30 gr. BP with a homemade greased felt wad over the powder and a round ball. All chambers fired with none seeming to be low powered or contaminated from the wad grease. That gun had been carried in some 90 degree temps earlier in September.

 

[Naphtali]

As you almost certainly notice, I have not shot patched RBs in the past, only SPG-lubed conicals in my muzzleloaders. (The patched RB I fired from an original Hawken was loaded by the owner, so it doesn't really count.) Since my one of my two 72s will be completed in a few months, I decided to try it with RBs. I mean, what the heck. Five hundred forty grains is "sufficient" for whatever I might hunt in Montana.

I thank every person who replied for showing the potential problem I thought existed, in fact, does not exist.

 

[ohio ramrod]

Ohio deer season is almost always cold/rainy. Long ago I developed my "deer hunting protocol". Make sure the bore is dry and oil free. Alcohol soaked patches are good for this, powder charge, leather over powder wad, Patched round ball with bees wax/lard lube.( 80%lard 20 %beeswax ) Both on patch , and then "swabbed" after loading to protect dry barrel.For percusions I "pull" a lubed soaked string around the base of the cap on the nipple,to seal the nipple/cap area This works well as long as the gun is not brought into a warm building after being out in the cold. :idunno:

 

[smoothshooter]

Ditto on the waxed paper.

 

[coloradoclyde]

Beeswax and olive oil lube.....

 

[Katahdin]

Mouse swet,,works everytime,but you have to get it from behind their ears,difficult to collect, but worth the effort....It ain't rocket surgery, :rotf: :rotf: :rotf: :rotf: :rotf:

 

[faste350]

Beeswax and olive oil lube.....

same here. no problem sitting for weeks or months.

 

[frogwalking]

Dixie, "old zip" patch lube. Or, make your own from bees wax and mutton tallow.

 

[Nativearizonan]

I expect deer tallow would be a satisfactory substitute for mutton tallow. They both seem to have a high melting point, but I have never heard of any research on the subject.

 

[omarick1948]

NO LUBE! :shocked2: ...That's right, NO LUBE! :shocked2:

Been hunting with M/L'rs for many years and load my deer and bigger game Hawken only once with a dry patch.

Think about it. Lube is basically made for cleaning from multi-shots. Keeps the fouling soft for cleaning. Loading with a dry PRB and letting it set for weeks at a time doesn't hurt a thing and when you finally shoot the ball out. There is very little cleaning of that bore vs. after a day at the range with many shots fired!

Has always worked for me and no chance of the patch p_ _sing in the powder!

Rick

 

[coloradoclyde]

Shot my gun today.....It has been sitting outside for 3 weeks. Been exposed to temps from 10 to 75 F
Been through two rain storms and a snow storm. stored muzzle up with a percussion cap on the nipple.
It went bang like always and struck my 6" 75 yard gong...