Lube Question

[RangerFrog]

I recently bought and began shooting a Zouave repro with the smaller, lighter RCBS Minie-type bullet. I pan lubed the bullets with some leftover Emmert's lube left over from my old BPCS days and from the standpoint of soft fouling, etc. it did an admirable job. The "fly in the lubricant" is that it doesn't stand up well to being carried around in warm weather, running off and/or down into my plastic cups with the pre-measured powder charges, or becomes flakey at medium to low temperatures. :cry:

What are some good commercial lubes or some recipes with commonly available components that do well for pan lubing our big bullets for use in the musket? Thanks in advance for any and all help.

Regards,
Froggie

[pastore]

Bee"s wax and Crisco. Begin with 50/50 and adjust the amount of bee"s wax to make the mix softer or stiffer according to the temperature.

[RaiderANV]

Yeah,,,,what Fletcher said.

But I'd add that it's best to lube ONLY the bottom two rings of yer bullets then insert the round pointy end first and seat it just til the tube meets the lube. No lube insdie now to mess with yer powder and the 50/50 mix hold up for me year 'round.

[Jim Strang]

What are some good commercial lubes ...

MCM, available from North East Trade Co, a long-time sutler whose shop is roughly across from the button outlet in the southernmost aisle of sutlers at the Fort.
http://www.northeasttradeco.com/
I'm partial to the plunger-applicator he sells as well, which not only fills the rings, but squirts a coating of melted lube into the base. MCM doesn't run in the heat of summer, nor does it become rock-hard in the chill of winter. Good stuff. Good man.

[Edwin Flint, 8427]

Your post is going to keep you busy for the next year or two try out all of the suggestions! :lol: Seriously, I agree with Jim, MCM is one of the better comercial lubes. SPG is also very good.

I wil disagree with Jim on one point though. In the DS region, MCM will run on hot days. In the milder MW, it probably is fine. I add a little bees wax for the hotter skirmishes.

[RangerFrog]

Fletcher and PJ, the Emmert's lube I'm using is about half Crisco and half beeswax... actually a little more than half BW, and a little canola oil in place of a similar amount of Crisco. I'll look at MCM this Spring @ the fort. Has anybody tried adding a little anhydrous lanolin to the BW/Crisco to make it stick to the bullet better?

On a related topic, what do you use to seal the chambers of a revolver? My straight Crisco is getting liquid by about the 3rd shot. Would MCM or one of the others be spreadable over the chamber mouth at normal temperatures?

Thanks again for all the input!

Regards,
Froggie

[Ken Hansgen, 11094]

Charlie, I was taught to use Len's Lube in my revolver cylinder. It works pretty well, except in the very hottest and coldest weather.