hoppes no. 9 blackpower solvent and patch lube

[Tracy]

Does anyone use this for patch lube while hunting?

 

[BullRunBear]

I don't hunt anymore but I've used this as a patch lube at the range with temps around 90 and below freezing. Had no problem. I'll be curious if that varies while in the field.

Jeff

 

[BrownBear]

I liked it at the range and determined to try it in the field. Worried about dampness fouling my powder on sometimes-long stints between shots compared to the range, I went with really minimal dampening of the patch. No more certainly than when using a spit patch.

I never detected any problems due to the powder becoming damp. But there's a chance I wasn't using "enuff" in my efforts to avoid too much. I say that because after 3-4 shots without swabbing the barrel, I started experiencing difficulty in ball seating due to hard fouling.

Sure I could have swabbed. But when using grease lube (TOW mink tallow) I can easily go a dozen shots from the same rifle without swabbing or loss of accuracy. That's the real measure of hunting performance for me. On our snowshoe hare or ptarmigan hunts we can get 20 or 30, sometimes even more shots in a morning. Atsa lotta swabbing between shots! :wink:

 

[Steve-ALA]

I started using a lubed fiber wad between powder and patches ball hunting and at the range. I patch with a sloppy saliva soaked patch and have had no issues. Also got better accuracy. So the other evening, I found several unopened containers of the original Hoppes 9 I had forgotten about so I'm gonna try those

 

[Tracy]

I wondered if it would dry out on an all day hunt.

 

[azmntman]

Best available in MHO. However I now use the Dutch Scholtz system. When using it I never swabbed and it did great. It "self Swabbed" at the range as I used a liberal amount. Hunting I used just enough to cover the barrel side of the patch, like a 1/4 size of the patch drop and rubbed in real good.

I will say I missed a few nice animals (nice to me is meat) due to misfires. Not saying due to the lube but after 3-4 times I now shoot a round before loading for the hunt and discharge and clean at night, reload and fire and load for the hunt the next morning.

Try it :idunno:

 

[hanshi]

I use nothing but Hoppes at the range, plinking and small game hunting. Patches should be WET, not damp when using a liquid lube. Yes, a dry patch, wad of hornet nest or a felt wad on the powder will make sure the powder isn't affected. Even without an op wad I've never had powder problems with the wet patches. With Hoppes I can shoot all afternoon without swabbing the bore; just use a tight prb and it often works with most any lube.

In the bush for deer I start off with mink oil so if I don't get a shot it won't hurt to keep it loaded. Sometimes, if I do shoot, I'll reload with a Hoppes lubed patch.

 

[Tracy]

I used bore butter until about 6 months ago.I tried Hoppes and have had good luck with it.Shoot all day and never swab the bore.Like Azmnman I shoot a fouling shot first.On my first shot on a clean barrel the ball can be 4 inches any direction from poa.After the fouling shot it shoots good.

 

[Critter Getter]

I used it for years and years. Shot really well. I didn't use a sopping wet patch and never had a problem with it drying out within a days hunt and effecting accuracy. Greg.

 

[Billnpatti]

I tried Hoppes No. 9 quite a few years ago but have since gone to other lubes. I don't remember having any problems with it but I also don't remember becoming overly excited by it either. I never recommend using a "sopping wet" patch with any kind of lube. Dutch Schoultz has proven that it is possible for a lube to be too slick and cause inaccuracies. I can verify his findings by my own testing of various lubes. For this reason, he recommends his "dry patch" system. While I am a great fan of Dutch and his system, I am not a real fan of the dry patch but I do use a minimal amount of lube on my patches. Dutch would one of the first to say "If it works, do it." Some of my rifles seem to like Bore Butter and others seem to prefer straight Ballistol. In either case, the patch is just damp with the lube, not wet. Sort of like a greasy rag. However, if your particular rifle likes a wet patch, I recommend using some sort of an OP wad to protect your powder

 

[rushlake1]

all I use in 32-62 cal.
here's an example...
load 90 2 f goex
1 over powder card 1/8th in.
570 rb
24 thousd. duct patch
wet lubed with Hoppe's
rifle loaded for 3 days..no issues.
here's the out come....2 weeks ago

I work up a tight patch ball combo..
Look at the patch weave imprint on the split round ball...
There is not much lube left on the patch going down the bore when loading...done squeezed out.
Hoppe's will freeze and get stiff around 14 deg.
I keep my lubed patches near body warmth.
It has not been an issue deer hunting but late season squirrels it matters....just makes the patches harder to load when stiff in a .320 bore.
I use a wet patch and shoot till dark.

 

[Billnpatti]

Congratulations on a fine deer. :thumbsup: I envy your hunting woods up there. While I have never been to Wisconsin, I have seen plenty of photos of the beautiful woods up there. It reminds me of the woods in which I hunted when I lived in Indiana. I miss those woods and the wonderful days of squirrel hunting with my .32 caplock.

 

[hanshi]

Mostly with liquid lubes (Hoppes, eg) a wet patch rather than just a damp patch is often the best bet. Not "soppy wet", mind you, just wet. Spit works almost as well as Hoppes but dries out quickly. Hoppes is a bit greasy and can take days to "dry" out. But absolutely, if your way works for you there is NO reason to change. :thumbsup:

 

[Critter Getter]

Nice buck 22........ Thanks for reminding me....... Yes When I used Hoppes #9 it would freeze and my patches would freeze stiff as well. Forgot that as most but not all of my hunting was done in warmer weather then. Greg.

 

[rushlake1]

Thanks guys...40 cal. and above...I do not swab ..don't need to due to tight ball patch combo.
With a 1-30 twist 32 cal. I swab. its been my experience this bbl. calls for it.
Think head shots.....
Found this lube works better for multiple shooting opportunity hunts.
I have tied the bear fat-deer tallow lubes and find I over lube the patches and every thing goes south after..

The flintlock gremlin goosed me on the first shot.

 

[Zonie]

For the newbies who don't know, when these people are talking about using Hoppes No. 9, notice the name includes "Black Powder Gun Bore Cleaner".

This is NOT the old Hoppes No. 9 solvent used to clean barrels on smokeless powder guns.

You know. The old Hoppes No.9 that your dads, dads, dad used to clean his guns.

Yes. The stuff with that memorable smell that filled the room with such a great odor that many men wished there was an after shave lotion that smelled like it so they could splash it on their faces every morning.

That old Hoppes No.9 has a lot of petroleum stuff in it and it won't work well with black powder or black powder fouling.

For the life of me, I can't figure out why Hoppes kept basically the same name when they came out with this new Black Powder Gun Bore Cleaner but, there you have it.

 

[graybeard]

A single whiff of No.9 shoots me right back to my childhood.My grandfather, who was born in the black powder era, let me use plenty of Hoppes No. 9, but the gun or guns had to be spotless. "But grampa, this ammo even says "kleanbore" but that didn't make any difference. graybeard

 

[Billnpatti]

I well remember my grandfather using 3 in 1 oil on his guns and it, too, had a very nice smell. Alas, it no longer has that lovely smell. I think the change was a bad choice but I don't know why they made the decision to eliminate the great odor. Perhaps, they improved the performance of their product by eliminating whatever component gave it that memorable smell. In any case, it reminded me of my grandfather. He and my grandmother raised me after my father was killed in WW II. He and my grandmother became my mom and dad and I adored both of them.

 

[hanshi]

I was raised by my maternal grandmother; both grandfathers were long dead. Happy smells for me were WD40, 3 in 1 oil, fired paper shot shells and Hoppes solvent. I still use the WD40 and sometimes the 3 in 1 oil. My Hoppes #9 nowadays is the BP lube and I've gotten to like that smell, too.

 

[excess650]

I used Hoppes #9 almost exclusively for cleaning when I shot BPCRS competitively. It worked very well in those barrels requiring brass chambers to contain the powder. At that time, 15 years ago and earlier, I was buying #9 in quart GLASS jars. I suspect that they've modified the contents again, because all of the new stuff is in plastic bottles.

The subject of the plastic had me a little curious, so when presented with the opportunity to purchase several small bottles in glass at a gunshow, I did. Some of the boxes were yellow, and others orange, so different vintages. The oldest was pre-zipcode, so 50+ years old. THAT oldest bottle had a slightly different aroma than any of the others in glass bottles. I suspect benzene was still present, and is one of the things missing from the current formula.

Hoppes #9Plus is the BP cleaner and lube. I ahven't seen it for sale locally for quite some time, but I had used it many years ago in frontstuffers and it worked well.