Homemade patch lube recipes?

[BillinOregon]

Beaver scrapings also yield a nice oil that is liquid at room temp. I keep my hard-won stash in the freezer. I think it would make a nice lube mixed with beeswax or deer/mutton tallow, but have not actually tried it. I'm surprised we don't hear more about it, as it was easily available to any trapper.

 

[buttonbuck]

whatever you render up I found that If I store it in plastic containers that are used even if they are scrubbed clean the lube goes bad in a few months. THe stuff I stored in a mason jar with a regular mason jar lid kept well I bet you could even process it like foodstuff in a water bath to vacumn seal it. I made a quart last year a friend of mine likes it better than bore butter, 1 part of deer tallow, olive oil, and bees wax. It stays on bullets very well.

 

[ohio ramrod]

Back in the sixties my 70 plus neighbor who started me on shooting black powder recommended a mixture of lard and beeswax that his grandfather used. While he did not know the ratio, I have found that 80% lard and 20% beeswax works well.

 

[longcruise]

IF you are going to leave the weapon loaded for a weekend or so: place a dry patch over the powder and then placing your lubed bullet or patched ball. It keeps the lube from getting to the powder.

OTOH, IF you are using enough lube to have problems with lube migrating into the powder, you may be using too much lube! I have had guns loaded for months and they fired and shot to the same poi as a fresh load. But, I lube very sparingly.

 

[SimonKenton]

Swampy,

I used to really like the old Hodgon's Spit Patch. In the Dark Ages (Seventies) when I started I couldn't find a better lube although plain Crisco served well enough for all but arctic shooting. I did add a bit of beeswax for hot weather though.
IS there any commercial lube out there that dupes the characteristics of this stuff?

-Ray

 

[rabjr]

My mix? Best you can do is shoot a deer, render its fat. Warm it to liquid and then add one part deer tallow to one and a half parts olive oil. That makes a lube thats pretty darn close to what I use in the deer tallow/bear oil mix.

 

[BrownBear]

Whats' your ratio of deer/bear Swampy?

Today I ran into one of the longest-term muzzleloaders I know, who also happens to be a brown bear guide of some 30 years experience. He's been using bear undilluted since 1966. He swears by it, but agreed that stiffening it a bit with deer tallow would be handy sometimes.

And he promised to bring me a mess of it after his first hunt this spring! Reports at 9.

 

[rabjr]

http://nimrodsplace.com/nerifle22.html

I find this just stiff enough and easily spreadable with a finger.

 

[BrownBear]

Thanks Swampy. Lots of months and winter between now and bear season, but if my friend comes through I'll share with you.

 

[Robin Camp]

Try bacon fryings. It works pretty good and it will drive everyone around you nuts, trying to figure out who has got a bacon sandwich hidden..LOL....Robin

 

[bobznew]

Newbie question here...

I've been using the pre-lubed patches - the kind you can get at Bass Pro or Gander Mountain. Is there anything wrong with this type of patch/lube?

 

[sproulman]

i dont think so, but i am not good at this topic.

only thing i see is in winter, if it has bore butter, it freezes but a lot of guys just put a few inside their coat where they stay warm.

i use HOPPES BP in winter on my patchs.

summer i use bore butter patchs.

 

[musketman]

Newbie question here...

I've been using the pre-lubed patches - the kind you can get at Bass Pro or Gander Mountain. Is there anything wrong with this type of patch/lube?

The only thing I can think of is that if the patches sat on the shelf long enough, the lube could dry out if not packaged air tight.

 

[catman]

1 part ballistol & 6 parts water is all I'm using now, thanks to the Dutch. Works perfect in freezing or hot weather in my sticks.

 

[oldwolf]

I've been using Crisco for my percussion revolver wad. They seem to work OK.

The OO idea sound intriguing to me for use in my percussion rifles. But wouldn't there be some contamination of the powder? Just how wet do the patches need to be for good lubrication I wonder?

I'm using WW pillow ticking, 0.018" iirc.