Howdy yall, I've got a question.

[rtguard]

For many years I have shot round balls and used many a pound of charcoal. I have spit on the patches and other things I'll not admit to.
What I would like to know is, what all substances that yall have used for patch lube over your years.
keeper in tha wind.
ugly snake :results: :results:

 

[vanstg]

I haven't tried many different things... Crisco, spit, olive oil, canola oil... I guess that's it. Crisco is what I use 99.99% of the time. Just the other day I got some Bore Butter, but heven't tried it yet.

 

[Donny]

All this junk to feed BP guns, shot, ball for various cal guns, wads, patches, flint,caps, etc. I have off the top of my head, I have used tranny fluid, gojo, boot waterproof, (beeswax) for patch lube. i ain't no great shot, so I saw no difference. Prefer the Dutch Schoultz type Wet/Dry patch. ::

 

[Liver eatin’ Johnson]

My favorite patch lube and waterless gun cleaner - all in one!

 

[sse]

I bought a bottle of that stuff (Hoppes) and I really like it. I jst get the impression it could be replicated somehow in bulk.

Regards, sse

 

[Stumpkiller]

I've used about everything commercial or home brewed, animal, mineral and vegetable oil I have come across. Haven't tried bear oil and sperm whale oil is out, but most others . . .

About anything liquid works, some better than others. My version of moose milk is an attempt to get the benefits of T/C #13 or Hoppes 9 Plus from materials available at a drug store. Do a search on "Lube" in this category and there is loads of information.

I recommend whenever you clean the bore with a powder solvent containing water that you oil the bore afterwards with something like Lehigh Lube or oilve oil that help prevent rust. I did a steel plate test and the section treated with T/C #13 rusted FASTER than the spot just rinsed off with tap water!

 

[Ravenx]

There are two lubes that I use. The first is Old Zip from Dixie. This is a mutton tallow based lube and it works great. I also use Lehigh lube and it also works great. I have also used bacon grease and it is also a good one. With spit patches, I found that a good whack off a plug of chewing tobacco really helps to get the spit just right. I found that Brown's Mule and Black Maria plug works best. I've tried beef tallow, but it does not work as well as mutton in my experience. :results:

 

[rtguard]

It has come to my attention that lubing the patches with Natural Lube tends to cause the patches to unduly fray.

Ugly snake

 

[NORD]

I use Mink oil...I but it at www.trackofthewolf.com.

I cut my 0.012" thick cotton fabric into strips and warm the mink oil on the stove and slowly dip the patch material through the oil and screed it off with a table knife. It works great, and keeps my bore clean shot after shot...I have actually shot an entire match with ot having to clean the bore once! :thumbsup:

 

[Gatofeo]

For some years I have used the same lubricant for a variety of black powder uses: lubricating the felt wads for cap and ball revolvers, patch lubricant, bullet lubricant in muzzleloading or black powder cartridge guns.
The recipe is:
1 part mutton tallow
1 part canning paraffin (the hard type used to seal preserves in jars)
1/2 part beeswax
All measurement are by weight, not volume. I use a kitchen scale to measure 200/200/100 grams of ingredients, then place the ingredients in a quart, widemouth Mason jar. The jar of ingredients goes into a pot with 3 or 4 inches of boiling water, for a double boiler effect (the safest way to melt greases and waxes).
I too have found mutton tallow to be superior to beef tallow, or any other tallow I've used (deer, elk, pork and even chicken).
Some people claim that mutton tallow contains lanolin, however a recent reply to me from a seemingly knowledgeable reader reported that lanolin is NOT in the fat of sheep, it's only in the wool and tiny glands under the skin.
I don't know. I do know that mutton tallow is very good stuff, though.
Dixie Gun Works' "Ol Zip Patch Grease" is made of mutton tallow and beeswax. One can will lube hundreds of patches. It's a very good patch lubricant. Dixie also sells mutton tallow, for those who wish to experiment.
In some very old family documents, I found a recipe for patch lubricant from my great-great-great-not-so-great-great Grampa' Gato.
He mixed Dodo Bird bile, Passenger Pigeon spit, tincture of Ground Sloth and Wooly Mammoth tallow. :what:

He reported great success. I haven't tried his old recipe; finding the ingredients is a bit of a problem. ::

 

[roundball]

Natural Lube 1000/bore butter

 

[roundball]

...I have actually shot an entire match with ot having to clean the bore once! :thumbsup:

IMO, shootin' sure is a lot more fun when you don't have to wipe & clean between shots !
:redthumb: