Patch Lube

[thumbs]

First I am interested in what you guys are using for patch lube?
Actually I have been using WD40 with fine success but always looking for something better. The reason is during hunting season I'm not sure how long the WD will stay damp in the loaded barrel. Actually, in the past, it doesn't seem to be a problem. I was thinking about soaking the patch in bees wax. I was wondering if anyone uses bees wax and if you add anything to it to make it a bit more pliable.

thanks for the help

 

[Walks with fire]

I have been using Track of the Wolf Mink oil but the next time I go I am going to try some olive oil to see how that does.

 

[thumbs]

Just straight olive oil not mixed with anything? Sounds fine to me. I want to use something I can either make or get locally "cheap". LOL Olive oil sounds good.

I really don't know why I want to change the WD has always worked well and keeps the barrel lubed. Just not sure how long it will stay damp loaded for a few days.

 

[majg1234]

I use a mixture of olive oil and beeswax.I melt it on a small hot plate on low drag the patches I make from ticking through it and place them on waxed paper.Once cooled/dried stack them up in altoid tins and shoot.They are cheap and work very well

 

[Billnpatti]

You can use bees wax to stiffen up lard to make a good lube. The amount of bees wax you mix with your lard will depend on how cold it is where you are hunting. The colder it is, the less bees wax you will need. When you mix up your lard and bees wax, melt them in a double boiler or in a can that is setting in some water in a sauce pan. Melt them separately and then pour them together. Remove the mixture from the heat and stir as it cools. When it starts to thicken, add a teaspoon or so of either Pinesol, Lestoil or Murphy's Oil Soap to the mix and beat until it is cool. The soap will help blend the mixture, make it creamy and help in keeping your bore clean.

This is only one of an endless list of lubes and I am sure that you will get many suggestions for other lubes. Try several of them to see what works best for you and your gun.

I highly recommend that you go to this website www.blackpowderrifleaccuracy.com and order a copy of Dutch's system. He has an excellent lubrication method and without a doubt the premium accuracy development system that can be purchased anywhere. It is $20 extremely well invested and you have nothing to loose because if you are not satisfied with the system, Dutch will refund your money. His system is sold to satisfied purchasers all over the world.

 

[larryp]

What ratio of wax to oil do you use?

 

[ohio ramrod]

I've played with many over the years and find that almost all non petroleum oils or animal fats work well as long as you don't use too much. My stand by is 80% lard 20% beeswax above freezing , and pure lard below freezing . :hmm:

 

[Rifleman1776]

FWW, we had duck for T'day dinner. I threw out a bunch of the cooked off grease but not before conteplating if it was usable for something.
Actually, WD-40 can dry but still lube metal. I dunno about saving on a patch though.
My current lube is a beeswax/whale oil mix. Have a back up supply of beeswax/peanut oil mix.

 

[Alden]

Beeswax and Sweet (olive) Oil is common and was around. As was whale oil which one of the transmisson fluids is supposed to be basically almost a perfect man-made substitute for*. I use Sweet Oil alone and give it away as it reaches two years old as I go through 3-liter cans of it from long term storage...

*I find that petroleum stinks and question its usefulness afield. As for the transmission fluid, which even has a rust preventative added for the inside gears of your car? It really stinks to me and doesn't work -- I watched my in-the-white barrels "protected" by this stuff literally run rust-forming drips as water condensed on a cold drizzly day afield and if it stinks indoors, which I hate, I imagine animals will smell it...

 

[nchawkeye]

Either SnoSeal or Moose Snot..

 

[S.Kenton]

I'll second the use of straight Olive Oil..I've been using it for a number of years with great success. I even lube the inside of my bore with and put it away for storage.

 

[thumbs]

Thanks guys

I will probably stay with the WD this year since I started to late to play with it. I may try the straight olive oil though since no mixing involved to get the right ratio. If I get a chance to see how she shoots with it. My question has always been how long will the patch with WD on it stay damp while loaded in the barrel?
Dumb question but olive oil will protect the barrel against rusting right? I lost a barrel once because I was told by the manufacturer that their stuff would protect it but it didn't.
I normally dampen the patch with WD load and fire. Then put a clean patch down the barrel a couple of times with WD on it to clean it out then load again. Will olive oil help clean the barrel if I run it down it on a patch between shots? The WD does a pretty good job of gettin the crud out.
I think I'll take a couple of patches and put some olive oil on them tonight and let them sit over night and see how long they stay damp.

 

[William O.]

Patch lube can be as simple as olive oil or as complicated as some of the recipes out there that call for 5 & 6 ingredients. Straight olive oil has worked well for me but so has an 8-1 mix of olive oil and beeswax. Now I am trying Dutch's dry lube that uses Ballistol and water. Ballistol is water soluble oil that is mixed with water in different ratios, soaking your patch material in and then letting it dry, thus the "dry" lube moniker. I do recommend getting his paper and reading about it yourself.

Neither olive oil or WD-40 have proven themselves to be very good rust preventatives nor are they good bore cleaners. I suggest that you use something designed to prevent rust such as Barricade or AMSOIL MP spray, but whatever you choose, use it sparingly. Any oil left over in the bore will render the next powder charge mostly inert and cause problems. For cleaning, a drop or two of liquid dish soap in a bucket of water makes an excellent cleaner and removes left over powder fouling. If of course, the barrels on your rifle(s) have a hooked breech that is easy to remove. Pumping water in and out of the barrel from the muzzle with the breech submerged is a quick and easy way of cleaning. Follow that up with some dry patches and then your favorite rust preventive and you're done.

 

[FishDFly]

I know a High Master pistol shooter who mixes WD40 and synthetic motor oil, equal parts, as a lube.

 

[Billnpatti]

The purpose for wiping between shots is to keep your bore exactly the same from shot to shot. It is not to actually clean it, just keep it the same from shot to shot. When you wipe, it doesn't make much difference exactly how you do it so long as you do it exactly the same every time. The way I used to do it was to wipe with plain water, now I use a version of Moose Snot. It is a mixture of 1 part Ballistol, 1 part Murphy's Oil Soap and 10 parts water. Either one will work just fine but be consistent. My patch is just barely damp each and every time. I run my damp patch down the bore, pause for a few seconds ( I count to five) and then withdraw the patch in one smooth motion. I do not pump the patch at the bottom nor on the way down or out. This does not actually clean my bore, just removes enough crud to keep it from building up and to keep the bore the same from shot to shot. Keeping the bore exactly the same for each shot keeps the muzzle velocity the same and helps to eliminate vertical stringing.

 

[thumbs]

I don't actually "clean" the barrel with WD just swab between shots. I do clean with dish washing soap and water. What I have been trying to do is to get the barrel clean enough after the first shot to hit the same poa as subsequent shots. Like was said using the exact same regiment each time. I used to foul the barrel first before I left the house then clean to have the shots hit the same place shot after shot. This is fine if you want to clean the barrel each day. I now shoot a clean barrel while hunting and use a WD patch to have the follow up shots hit the same poi.

I did a little exp last night with WD and olive oil. The results were the same. They both dried out over night left exposed to the air. I also mixed up some bees wax and olive oil this morning and tried it on some patches. I think these will be stay pliable and lubed for a longer period of time.

As we are discussing I think there are a ton of different ways to get to the same end. All of them work. I just don't want to complicate the method. I like to see what others use though. I like the ole KISS method. LOL

 

[Rod Lassey]

FWW, we had duck for T'day dinner. I threw out a bunch of the cooked off grease but not before conteplating if it was usable for something.

We had roast goose yesterday for Thanksgiving. I saved the goose grease, of course, as it works well for lube. For patch grease I'll heat it up with a bit of beeswax to stiffen it, and I'll use the stuff straight (liquid at room temp) for oiling the bore and lock after cleaning.

I go at this a little differently than many---I try to emulate the methods used historically, which may or may not be the best for accuracy or metal protection. I won't use petroleum oils or modern formulations, I'm trying to explore what was done 'back then'. Be that as it may, my method doesn't seem to hurt accuracy, at least not the way I shoot, and I haven't had any corrosion problems over the last 25 years that I've done it this way.

I find that most any animal oil works well---bear grease is the gold standard (whale oil would be even better, but kind of scarce these days), but beaver oil is good, so is goose grease, deer tallow, etc.

As far as cleaing, I like to keep it really simple--just water, warm if I can get it although cold works fine, too. Tow screwed on the worm of my wiping stick, and some elbow grease. Lube with the aforementioned goose grease or bear oil. Done.

Rod

 

[Walks with fire]

I dug out a bottle of the original Lehigh valley patch lube from Lestom Labs and plan to try it out. I must have used it at some point but don't recall how well it worked. I don't think it would be a good freezing weather lube though because it seems to dry out pretty quick. Lots of people give it good reports though.

 

[S.Kenton]

I prelude about 500 patches at a time with plain olive oil. I store those patches in a plastic sandwhich Baggie. I also store about 30 or so in a cap tin for long periods of time.....I've never had them dry out. What were the steps of your experiment?...now I'm intrigued.

 

[Billnpatti]

Be sure to clean your goose grease to remove all traces of salt or you will create a real rust problem. Just put it in hot water, stir well and allow the grease to rise to the top. Pour off the water and repeat a couple more times. For the last time, allow it to cool to room temperature and then refrigerate to cause the goose grease to harden on top of the water. Lift it off and put it in a container and it is ready to use. At this point, it will be a nice snow white and clean. When it returns to room temperature, it will once again be a soft grease or possibly more of an oil.