Pro's/Con's T/C Bore butter?

[jtmattison]

Some folk say they love Bore Butter.
Some folk say they hate it.
Got any reasons either way?
Please share.

Huntin

 

1) pro: The ability to preload your muzzleloader before deer season and leaving loaded the entire season without the fear of corrosion from patch lubrication

2) pro: an easy source of mini ball, maxi ball and conical lubrication

3)con: the cost, for patches a moose milk concoction is only a fraction of the cost and for bullets a home-grown mixture of beeswax and Crisco works just as good to prevent leading of the barrel.

 

Oh yes one more thing, "ye ol spit" I'm not sure of the cost but maybe someone out there might know? (rollingb) :: :: ::

 

[roundball]

PROS:
Natural lube 1000 is all I've used for the past 15 years as a general bore lube and for all of my shooting, using prelubed wonder-wads and prelubed patches...also use it to lube conicals like maxi-hunters.

I've used it:
In an inline rifle with Pyrodex RS and Select;
In sidelock percussion rifles and SxS .12ga percussion shotguns with Pyrodex P, RS, Select plus Goex FFg & FFFg;
In Flintlock rifles & smoothbores with Goex FFg & FFFg;

They all gave excellent accuracy with natural lube 1000 and are in as perfect conditon today as when I bought them.

The biggest reason I use it is because it minimizes fouling and lets me shoot repeatedly without wiping between shots.

CONS:
Haven't experienced any

 

[jtmattison]

I use a homemade 3:1 crisco/beeswax lube on my conicals and RB patches. It is a good all around lube in my opinion. Plus you can adjust the consistency of homemade lube based on your climate.
I was wondering about Bore Butter because of the T/C PRE-LUBER's I got today (see my post on T/C PRE-LUBER). I want to try them.
I am also going to try to fabricate a tool to use my homemade lube with the PRE-LUBER. Maybe I can make an adapter to put on something like a cookie press so I can fill the press with my own lube and pump it into the PRE-LUBER.
If I'm successful I will post pictures.

Huntin

 

[roundball]

FYI...as an alternative to the pre-luber which was designed to screw onto the end of a tube of TC's bore butter, I've seen a number of posts where some guys just take a small pan, line up rows of conicals in it, put in the lube they want to use, heat up the pan to melt it so it flows around the conicals...let it cool, remove the bullets, lift out the leftover lube for use the next time, etc

 

Pros
Very good patch & bullet lube

Cons
I've read far-too-many posts/threads where shooters experienced bore rust after the rifle was stored for an extended period while using Bore Butter/Wonderlube 1000 as a rust inhibitor. Your best bet is a good gun oil.. just like shotgunners & centerfire shooters use. Inhibitors (Bore Butter) discourage rust.... a product like Birchwood Casey Sheath oil and others listed below prevents rust.

The night before Opening Day of deer hunting, you can use either Ballistol or Lehigh Valley lube in your barrel with a loaded charge for the entire hunting trip (up to two weeks). Your best bet is to use either product as a short-medium term bore protectant for storage... run a lightly wet patch of either one before loading .. then run both sides of a dry patch... then load your ML rifle. You are now 'good-to-go" without fear of contaminating the powder.

Muzzleloading barrels need no seasoning... just like shotguns & centerfires don't either. ML manufacturers push that stuff cause it highly profitable & makes loading easier. Most shooters lose accuracy using it -- much like they lose accuracy using 150 grains (3-pellet loads).... which by-the-way manufacturers also push as a speed enchancer (2400+fps).. in an effort to sell more "light-weight" bullets... which are more profitable for them vs heavy bullets -- plus it aids the powder companies (Goex/Hodgdon)... etc in their profits.

 

[jtmattison]

roundball,
I pan lube my conicals as you said right now.
I put them standing upright in a shallow pan and pour melted lube in until the grooves are filled.
After the lube sets back up I cut the bullets out of the lube with a speedloader tube.
Works great. I'm just looking for a cleaner way of doing it and these PRE-LUBERS look like a good tool to keep the mess down.

Huntin

 

[roundball]

Ok, so you at least have a workable method...

Yes, the pre-lubers are neat and fast...I just did two more boxes maxi-hunters (40) and it only took 5 minutes...I lay a sheet of aluminum foil on the counter, dump the conicals out of their boxes into a pile, run them through the luber letting them drop back onto the foil, and at this point still haven't touched any lube.

Then I pick up the bullets and set them back in their boxes, wipe my fingers with a kleenex, roll it up in the foil and drop it in the trash.

FYI...lube used on the "pre-lubed" TC maxi-hunters is different (firmer) than the lube in TC's tubes...lube from the tube is softer and a little messy on the bullets so you'll probably want to consider a carrier for hunting...
I use TC's 4-N-1 Magnum Quick Shots for everything, which also ensures that conicals are started perfectly straight in the bore.

 

[JesseJames]

The new tubes of bore butter have big throats save the emty tube, melt down some bore butter or your own mixture get a small funnel and fill the tube and use pre-luber. Don't let your friends trash their emty tube.

 

Pro: It's good stuff. I've used it for many years to coat the inside of the barrels, outside for that matter, and never, not once did I get any corrosion of any kind.
Does it "season" the bore?
I don't know, but it does seem to make it much easier to swab out fouling.
Pro: It's a good patch lube as well as conical lube.
In spite of what some think it's good stuff and there is no reason to brew up your own lube when for 6 bucks you can by bore butter and it will lube hundreds of patches.
Now if'n ya wanna brew your own lube that's 'nuter story.
You see I'm a sucker for do-it-yerself when store bought is better and cheaper in the long run.
If'n yer inta brew'n yer own then folly this here recipie.
1 part Crisco
2 parts lard
0.5 parts lizard fat
0.5 parts mares sweat
0.25 parts chicken lips.
Your mileage may vary! :bull: :bull:

 

[jtmattison]

I picked up a tube of Bore Butter yesterday. I've never used the stuff. It looks like a good lube. All I have ever used before is my home grown lube. If I don't like the Butter I will fill the tube with my lube and use the PRE-LUBERS. I don't have any buddies that use Bore Butter so empty tubes won't be available to me.
Are there any Bore Butter users on here who would like to donate empty tubes to me?

Huntin

 

[Stumpkiller]

Pros: It works as advertised and you needn't wipe between shots. The same grease can be used for loading and cleaning (so you need carry only one small tin in your hunting pouch). Cleaning with hot water & non-detergent soap (i.e. Ivory cake) works well and doesn't remove the protective coating.

Cons: It melts at low temperature - my tin of it seeps into the hunting bag if I leave it on end. Pre-loaded blocks will stain clothing if worn around the neck. I haven't figured out a home-made recipe (dang nabit). If you clean or coat the inside of the barrel with an petroleum based oil cleaner/lube it will destroy the Natural Lube emulsion (I guess that's what some refer to as the "seasoning" - I never ate a barrel so I don't know if it's seasoned properly). This means you should switch to a non-petroleum product for longer-term storage (Lehigh Valley Lube, for instance).

 

[jtmattison]

I am only interested in Bore Butter as a conical or patch lube. My homemade lube works great so after the Bore Butter is gone it's back to my home brew. My lube is 3:1 mix of crisco and beeswax with a touch of canola oil for good measure. I've never eaten a barrel before either so I wouldn't know how to properly season one ::

Huntin