What does patch lube really do?

[Danny Ross]

I was thinking last night after a day at the range, that in itself is scary. What does patch lube really do and is it really necessary to do? You see so many different ideas of what to use: spit, ballistol (?spelling), Crisco, bees wax and olive oil, borebutter, moosemilk, and others. Is it just to aid in sliding the patch and ball down the barrel with loading? Does it help keep the explosion that happens under the patch from burning through? Is there any real benefit from using different types of patching lube, or is it just what you think works best, or something that someone else has told you works best? So many questions so little time :wink: Seriously though, I had never really put much thought into what patch lube REALLY does :idunno: and just wondered what the plethora of information that abounds here has to say. DANNY

 

[Grizzly Adams]

Patch lube, aside from allowing easier loading of the ball down the barrel, it helps keep the fouling soft, which keeps it from excessively accumulating. Without it, the fouling would be dry and crusty, and the gun would be harder to load and clean.

 

[William O.]

It also helps seal the expanding gasses behind the PRB and get all the velocity you can out of your powder.

 

[coloradoclyde]

Also,”¦. Reduces barrel wear, improves accuracy, can be used for corrosion protection”¦”¦and if you make it out of beeswax, olive oil, lard it can fry up your morning egg with it. They can also be used as a candle or lamp. Not to mention lip balm, hand cream and waterproofing and leather conditioner.

Lube also acts as a fire retardant on patches and wadding.

For range work and plinking I use spit. for cold weather hunting or for being loaded for an extended period of time I use a beeswax olive oil mix.

 

[daniel collums]

load and shoot 3 times without lube if you can then clean and load and shoot 3 times with. we all know loading a broke-in barrel with a dry patch using a good rod isn't very hard but when fired it's not the same as a load with lube. there are lots of things that will effect that second loading such as powder charge used on the first shot, type of powder, humidity and a lot of other things but if you would have used lube with the first shot almost all things that come into play can be dealt with.

 

[Canute Rex]

The true and primary function of lube is to give us something to argue about and advise each other about. Softening fouling and all that is secondary, and not even close.

 

[coloradoclyde]

Oh sure! tell him the true answer before the other 47 people chime in. :rotf:

 

[Stumpkiller]

Patch lube does four things:

- keeps the fouling loose to allow multiple loadings without a seperate wipe.

- protects the patch in loading and firing.

- protects the bore from rust and corrosion.

- provides consistancy to improve accuracy.

 

[necchi]

First off the "patch" is to seal gasses and help the ball "fit" the bore diameter.
A patch should be snug enough to "impart" the barrels rifling to the ball as it moves in the barrel both while seating and while it travels the barrel under pressure at firing.

The "lube" affects;
* How well the patch seals the gasses and helps prevent burning and disintegration of the patch.
* How well the patch/ball actually travels/spins with the rifling under pressure.
* Determines and affects what condition the powder fouling deposited in the bore is after each shot.

For the best accuracy in any rifle, the patch lube itself isn't the only factor. The fabric of the patch itself and the thickness of the patch need to be considered along with the ball size and lube properties as well as how each individual loads.

I seldom participate in "What's the best lube" conversations anymore because guy's get stuck with the idea that it's the lube alone that does the job.
There simply isn't a "best" because of all the other variables each individual bring to the load regime and their shooting goals.
A Hunter, a Target shooter, and someone spending a day shooting pop cans,, can all have different "wants" when shooting.
:idunno:

 

[wayne terry]

Don't forget about us garage chemist who like to spend more time and money comming up with our own recipes instead of saving time and just buying the stuff in the tube. :stir: :youcrazy: :idunno: :rotf:

 

[necchi]

Yeah, but the stuff in the tube ain't the right stuff if your after target accuracy.
Sure you'll shoot well enough but you ain't gonna be walkin up to the prize table.
You don't have to be a chemist to gather toad sweat, cat snot, possum squeezins and find a cast iron brew kettle to mix it all on a full moon.
(and a peg leg blind man to stir the pot helps)

 

[mooman76]

Man I messed up. I got the blind guy but he had a hook for a hand rather than a peg leg! :idunno: Oh well. :rotf:

 

[ohio ramrod]

I have used a mixture of 80% lard and twenty % beeswax since the sixties when they outlawed the sale of Sperm whale oil. In addition to ease of loading and softening the fouling it also, makes a great hoof dressing for the horses, a great hand ointment for dry and chapped hands ( and lips as well), and even soothes the hemroids. (When you get desperate you will try anything !) :idunno: :idunno:

 

[longcruise]

I've just now resolved to never ever open another thread with the word"lube" in the title! :haha:

 

[Billnpatti]

If I were to be succinct in my answer, I'd just say "Yes to all of the above". It does all of those things. It keeps the fouling soft, it makes the ball slide down the bore more easily, it helps to seal the hot gasses from escaping around the ball and it lubricates the bore as the ball is seated and as it exits the bore when the gun is fired. And, yes, there are more different lubes and advocates of each than there are fleas on a dog. The important thing to remember is to use a natural vegetable based or animal based lube and never use a petroleum based lube. Vegetable and animal based lubes are less likely to burn in your bore and form the kind of undesirable coating inside your bore as a petroleum based lube will. Some folks, myself included, will add a bit of Murphy's Oil Soap to our bullet lube recipe to act as an emulsifier to help in mixing the ingredients, to make the lube creamy and more easily spread onto the patch or bullet and to help in keeping the fouling to a minimum. Because many of the natural animal and vegetable lubes are soft or are liquids, bees wax is often used as a thickining agent. Another thing to keep in mind is that if you decide to invent another lube, it is possible to have a lube that is too slick so do not pick your ingredients based solely upon their high lubricity. One of our members has written an outstanding series of papers entitled "Black Powder Rifle Accuracy" and in that work, he discusses the fact that too much lubricity can lower your accuracy. I would give you his name but Dutch asked me to quit touting his publication on the forum. If you are interested, you will have to Google it yourself because I keep my promises. :wink: :grin:

I will have to agree with Canute that one of the main functions of the many various lubes is to give us something to argue about. So, pick a lube or invent one of your own and come on in, the water's fine. :haha:

 

[19 16 6]

I just used a product called Woollube lanoline grease. It did all of the above for me.
O.

 

[hanshi]

Quick answer: it keeps the fouling soft or even cleans it out (depending on particular lube) and helps "fire proof" the patch.

 

[Len Graves]

I agree with you all. I use preperation H for the above reasons and it also shrinks the bore and prevents itching. Kind of comes in a handy container too!

 

[AZbpBurner]

The mere breathing of the phrase "Patch Lube" promotes contention, slapfights, and verbal elbowing as everyone jostles to promote their particular formula as the bestest.

 

[necchi]

Yeah, your right fer sure.
What a feller needs to do is watch the guy that win's the match all the time.
He probably won't say anything about his lube, even if you ask him.

But this ain't a thread about "Best" is it, :wink: