SimonKenton said:
Can't seem to find lard in Noo Yawk City but will 80% Crisco/20% beeswax work? :hmm:
-Ray
Go to a butcher and ask to buy some pig fat, and make your own. A lady in my church showed me the easiest way to render it. Put it in a roasting pan, and put it in the oven at around 300. It takes a bit longer, but it does not stink up the house, and is almost impossible to burn this way.
Strain it through cheesecloth, and then eat teh cracklin's with salt.
Then take the lard (while still melted) and mix it with at least as much water, heat it on the stovetop STIRRING CONSTANTLY until it boils. Then take it off the heat, stir for a little while longer till it coos a bit. Then set it aside to cool. After it is cooled down a bit put the whole pot in the fridge overnight. Then, the next day, the lard will be solid on top of the water, and you can take it out and scrape or cut about 1/4 of an inch off the bottom of it, as this is where the remaining salts and other crud will be accumulated.
I am still in the process of building my GPR flinter, (stupid job gets in the way) and have never even shot a BP gun before, so I cannot attest to lard's effectiveness as lube. But I have rendered lard many times because once you've had pie crust or biscuits made with lard, you never go back.