Whitworth Barrel -Rust Mystery

[Richard Brinkman]

I have been following this thread from the start and hope that you find something that works. I've been muzzleloading for 40+ years cleaning with water with a bit of dish soap and then running boiling water through the barrel so that it heats up (too hot to handle) then dry and oil. No problems no rust what-so-ever. In the past I used WD40 but now use Ballistol. I always oil again the next day, then a week later, then one month later just to be sure, some rifles have been put away for years and still no problem. Keep thinking that something is amiss here, maybe you are not getting the barrel as clean as possible? Are you using some corrosive caps? Don't know just asking hope that when you discover the problem and find a solution that you will let us know.
Richard

 

[JasonUK]

Hi, thanks for your input. I had been using plain boiling water with no detergent or soap of any kind and just finishing off with oil. I think Paul may have nailed the problem in his reply - I'm just not shifting the carbon with water alone so I am going to have to make sure I add something to shift the fouling thoroughly. I note that you use soap and have had no problems - this seems to confirm where I have been going wrong.

As for percussion caps, I'm using the standard military top hats made by RWS.

This is one of those issues which I wish I had asked about ages ago - but no - I just kept struggling on, convinced that I needed to spend longer and longer putting the effort in! :redface:

 

[Richard Brinkman]

Maybe I should explain how I go about this. When I'm done shooting for the day I run a couple of patches that have been moistened with cleaning solution up and down the barrel, this is to clean most of the fouling out of the barrel. If they come out reasonably clean then I run a patch that has been well lubed with Ballistol down the barrel this will keep things under control until I get home for a proper cleaning.
When at home I have a nipple that has been reamed out with a length of plastic hose attached I screw this into the barrel and place the hose in a small pan of water that has a small amount of dish soap. Run a wet patch up and down the barrel this will pump water into and back out of the barrel. If really dirty sometimes change the water out but usually once is enough. While I'm doing this I have another small pan setting of the stove bring clean water to a near boil and pour down the barrel. The barrel will be too hot to handle so I wrap a towel around it to handle. After the clean water is poured down the barrel and the barrel is still very hot I run a dry patch down the barrel. This patch will pull some more crud out of the barrel, run another patch down the barrel this one should be much cleaner but will come out damp. I'll let it set for a few minutes to dry out you can tell by looking at the barrel as to when the water is evaporating. Now run a well oiled patch up and down the barrel several times and oil the outside too. I don't spare the oil at this point let it set a few minutes and do it again. Should be good to go at this point but check again the next day.
May sound like a big process but probably takes me 15 to 20 minutes to complete.
Hope this helps in some small way. Good luck!
Richard

 

[ResearchPress]

I have been using 10% tin mixed with the lead but I think I will reduce that to around 3% having read discovered the mix which some of the best GB shots use at long distance.

10% is quite high, especially to bump up a cylindrical bullet to the Whitworth's hex bore. 2.5%-3% tin is common (and should be fine with the Gibbs too).

You'll be able to shoot your Gibbs and the Whitworth at 600 yards in the Long Range Rifles match for the Rigby and Whitworth Cups respectively at the end of October! See you there.

David

 

[grey8833]

If I might comment. Your cleaning proceedure was stated as follows:

My cleaning procedure does involve the use of boiling water:

1.I fill the barrel from the kettle, leave for a minute and pour away.

2. Repeat.

3. Pour in up to 1/3rd of a barrel with boiling water. Scrub barrel with bronze brush heavily oiled.

4. Pour away water. Refill barrel with boiling water.

Step 3 may be causing the problem. Mixing an oiled brush with the hot water will play havoc with the chemistry in the barrel (semi-emulsified oil / water). I would try plain soap instead of oil (which I, and others here use). Once the barrel is cleaned of carbon and other residues, rinsed and dry (and Hot) then do a final cleaning with oiled patches. And don't forget to do a wipe down with alcohol prior to shooting. BP and machine oil don't mix well.

Mike F

 

[JasonUK]

I must thank all of you for your very helpful advice. It is a great re-assurance to new (and even the not so new) black powder shooters to be able to draw on your experience and ask for solutions to perplexing problems.

I now feel I am in a position to try out the methods you have suggested.

I think my Whitworth rifle will sleep better at night without the rusting when I implement your methods (and with far less hours spent rodding the barrel by me!).

Many thanks again.

Jason

 

[Mad Professor]

I use warm soapy water wet patches, a bronze brush, more wet patches........even if I run clean dry patches through,......

another patch, wet with iso-propanol, pulls out more gunk that is mostly lube, with I'm sure some minor fouling mixed in........

This is not a Whitworth, but a fast twist shooting lead conicals.......

 

[Birddog6]

Ditch the hot water & use cold or luke warm water. Add a good squirt of dishwashing liquid soap to the water to break down the lube left in the barrel.

That should stop the rusting issues.

Keith Lisle

 

[TFoley]

Hello Tac, In answer to your question in my Whitworth I shoot an 85 grain load of Swiss No.3 followed by a felt wad then a card hex wad. A paper patched bullet made from a Charles Higginbottom Mould sits on top. The bullets turn out at around 560grains. Regards,
Jason

Thanks for the heads-up, Jason - much appreciated. I can see that you are a serious shooter, unlike me. My Whitworth seldom gets used these days because I can't have BP in my house - my insurance company won't allow it, so I have to panhandle off my more fortunate fellow-shootin whenever I want to shoot - not ideal, especially at 80gr of FFg a time. It's fine taking charity like that once, but not more than once, and it's frankly become embarrassing.

Good luck to you with your new Gibbs - my pal John here has one, just like yours, and is doing some good shooting with it. Martin Tebbs designed and made the current lot of bullets he is shooting - a name I'm sure you'll be familiar with. He it was who sorted our my Whitworth a few years back - living about twenty miles from him was a stroke of luck!

Best

tac
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