Member
Joined: 12 Mar 2005
Posts: 6535
Location: massachusetts
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Tulsey, I'd load a greased felt wad (Thompson Center wonderlube on the felt works good and does not affect ignition if you use it sparringly) under the plastic wad and over a tight card wad. Even replica BP leaves a lot of fouling. This will make cleanup a lot easier, especially on those warm days when fouling cakes up like concrete.
Also, if you use any of the replica powders with sulfur or saltpeter, or Goex BP, don't ever use regular gun oil or petroleum based grease in that gun ever again, even after a thorough scrubbing with hot, soapy water and a good clean rinse. Use the Thompson Center wonderlube as a grease and bore presevative from then on. Petroleum compounds mix with residual BP fouling left in the pores and finest crevaces and forms acidic compounds. These compound will ruin a gun in no time. The wonder Lube is a natural grease mixed with beeswax and oil of wintergreen to keep it from going rancid or hard. It will waterproof and neutralize any residual fouling to keep it inactive.
I now make my own black powder gun bore grease, patch, and slug lube. I use unsalted Crisco or its generic equivelent, mixed with 5% bees wax, and 2 teaspoons of oil of wintergreen to each pint of mix. I slowly melt the wax and then add the shortening and evenly and slowly heat it until its well mixed and liquified. I do not overheat it. I then remove the mix from the heat while it is pourable, pore it into a one pint plastic butter tub, and stir in the oil as it cools. I keep mixing it to a buttery consistancy. Then let stand. Thats it. The stuff is as good as the T/C stuff and a lot cheaper too. It stores forever. Keep it capped or the oil of wintergreen will disperse slowly. It is an aromatic oil. That is what these oils do.
I learned my lesson about BP powder fouling and petroleum based oils the hard way. I ruined a fine shooting replica rifle many years ago by dressing the bore with gun oil after a scrubbing and a good drying. I was following the directions that came with the gun. A month later, the bore was junk. So this knowledge about BP fouling and petroleum was not widely known until well into the black powder gun revival of the 1960's and '70s. They do not make the gun anymore. So its gone for good. It was a fine shooter too. What a shame.
In the days before petroleum oils and greases were common, folks used natural greases, rendered fats, and oils to lubricate, clean, and preserve iron and steel tools and weapons. Black powder fouling was only corrosive if it was not cleaned out and allowed to absorb moisture as it lay against the steel. It was not corrosive in and of itself. The salts in it were and still are hygroscopic, but not chemically active. Sat is neutral. Once the steel or iron was cleaned of the salts in the fouling and the bore and gun surfaces were tallowed, the residual fouling in the pores and crevaces was neutralized. The weapon stored well. (Olive oil works too but has less body and film strength than tallow or vegatable fat mixed with beeswax and an aromatic oil from wintergreen, peppermint. and cloves.)
However, once petroleum became commonly used, black powder fouling became acidic and corrosive. Once BP fouling is mixed with any oil or grease, the resulting gunk becomes acidic due to the hydrocarbons present in the oil. Since smokeless powder also came along about the same time as petroleum based oils and greases, this problem did not become widely recognized until a good many fine old BP guns were ruined. Many a fine old Colt model P revolver or old black powder era rifle, or double gun got wrecked this way. Once it became known what was happening, folks used to have to boil the BP fouling out of a gun repeatedly to remove any trace before the gun was safe to use with smokeless powders and petroleum based lubes. For too many older guns, it was too late. We can still see the results at almost any gun show today. |
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