lard as patch lube

[rawhide]

Any one ever try lard as a patch lube? Wondering how well it will work. Don't see any reason why not right now I have buffilo tallow I'm using with beeswax. Just wondering.

 

[George]

I've been using beeswax-lard as patch lube for all my guns for many years. I also use it as protectant in the bore, rub my guns down with it, metal and wood. No problems, good stuff.

Spence

 

[Patocazador]

I use lard/beeswax 'pills' in my cap & ball revolvers as a lube. I also use it to lube the grooves in conical bullets.

 

[Billnpatti]

Sure. Lard works just fine. Different rifles may prefer different lubes to get maximum accuracy but as a generic patch lube, lard works just fine. In reality, it is not much different from bear grease and bear grease was used by many folks in days of yore.

 

[longcruise]

Spence, what ratio do you use?

 

[George]

Spence, what ratio do you use?

I can't pin that down for you. My basic ratio is about 30 beeswax and 70 lard, but I'll add more lard in the winter so it retains some softness in the cold, more beeswax in the summer so it doesn't melt so easily.

Spence

 

[CKeshen]

Does the smell of bacon permeate the air after the trigger is pulled. I would love to have bacon scented smoke when I shoot.

Anybody ever try chicken fat, or shmaltz as my grandmother would call it? Ah...the smell of fried chicken as you shoot. It could be a wonderful thing.

 

[longcruise]

I think any animal fat would be useful. But, watch out for salt content! :shocked2:

 

[nit wit]

I've used bear lard and bee's wax for years Daniel Boones formula :haha:
Nit Wit

 

[ohio ramrod]

The ratio I use is 20% beeswax and 80% lard above freezing. Below freezing I use pure lard. Any Salt in the lard can be removed by adding some water 50/50 and bringing to a light boil, allow to cool and the salt will dissolve in the water and the lard will "float on top. :idunno:

 

[George]

Smell? Salt? Not a bit of it. I use commercial lard, not bacon drippings. Bacon drippings are for cornbread, not lube. :haha:

Spence

 

[plinker]

The nutrition label on the Morrell Lard package shows no salt. But I bet there is a bunch in the can of bacon drippings that is in the refrigerator. It's good to learn that you can get it out by boiling the drippings along with an equal amount of water.

 

[Patocazador]

Why bother? Unsalted lard is cheap and comes in its own container.

 

[AFMSgt]

Doesn't lard get rancid?

 

[azmntman]

Not in fridge on top of butter?

 

[George]

Doesn't lard get rancid?

I've never had that problem. After I mix it with beeswax I keep it at room temperature for long periods of time, it's pretty stable. I do keep my stock of lard in the freezer, and it stays good for years.

Spence

 

[gwalker]

I have used pig tallow (lard) exclusively for a number of years and it works very well as a patch lube and metal protector. Here in Wyoming, I don't mix it with bees wax at all. Harriette Simpson Arnow in her book, 'Seedtime on the Cumberland' mentions that as settlers pushed westward in the wilderness the one thing homesteads all had in common was the ever-present pig. Pig tallow/fat is very similar in properties as bear tallow, another commonly used patch lube and metal protector. We don't need all those concoctions you find on the store shelves or people's miracle cleaners/patch lubes. The old timers used plain water to clean their guns, and pig or bear tallow to lube their patches and protect their bores and lubricate their locks. It also does well in putting a mellow shine on the stock (but buff the excess off). Where/when present, sperm whale oil was used for lock lubrication but it does not appear to have been commonly used as a patch lube. Read the label on that commercially prepared lard you find in the baking sections of stores. It is hydrogenated. This means it has water added to it. Don't use it for preserving the bore of your rifle or for lubing your patches when hunting, as you don't want that to sit in the bore for very long. Better to go to a meat processor or butcher shop and purchase a bag of pig fat and render it down to lard (easy to do). I have never used beef, sheep, or buffalo tallow for lubing shooting patches. I have heard, though, that they don't work as well as pig tallow and will often produce more fouling in the bore. Here in the Rockies, the mountaineers of the early to mid-1800s used the tallow of black and grizzly bears, with no record of buffalo fat being used as a patch lube or lock lubricant. Though under extenuating circumstances, any animal fat/tallow will suffice.

 

[Blizzard of '93]

I used lard for some time, then found lanolin in a tube at the pharmacy.
likely not pc but it sure does well.

 

[Huntin_Dawg1215]

I used lard years ago, and as I set here reading these posts, I think back and remember that it worked as well as anything I use now or in- between. And it was cheaper. :wink:

 

[AZbpBurner]

What's the name of that lanolin in a tube? What else is it made of besides lanolin?