[NewShooter]

I've read a lot of posts about using crisco over the ball but on the side of the can it says that it can catch fire. Has any one ever had this happen? If it caught fire and the ball was not making a perfect seal then couldnt this create a chain fire? Which type of crisco are people using?

[AirForceShooter]

normal white crisco.
works like a champ and never caught on fire with me.
AFS

[ArmedBear]

Not a problem. It makes a greasy black mess but it works great to seal the cylinder and soften fouling.

Beeswax/Crisco mix has a better consistency, especially when it's hot out. But I've only used plain Crisco.

[MCgunner]

Not a problem. It makes a greasy black mess but it works great to seal the cylinder and soften fouling.

Beeswax/Crisco mix has a better consistency, especially when it's hot out. But I've only used plain Crisco.

Crisco is CHEAP! I used it for years. Also had some white lithium grease I used to use, but don't remember any brand names. I use cast conicals in my Ruger and pre lube 'em with regular bullet lube and that works fine, but with balls, I still use Crisco, or rather what ever generic Crisco like stuff I can buy cheaper 'cause I'm one cheap SOB. :D

[ArmedBear]

I've read that peanut butter was used sometimes, on the originals. So was beef lard.

Just avoid using pork fat or anything else with salt in it.

[rlltdjpr]

Crisco works like a champ--I've never had it burn. One question--being from Alabama, the public schools are very proud of George W. Carver and Tuskegee, and I remember learning that he invented peanut butter as a way to use peanuts to phase out cotton production. And I think that he was a little later in the 1800's--past the time of cap and ball--so I was just wondering about the use of peanut butter on "originals." But that is an interesting idea--might try it if I run out of crisco.

[stevelyn]

Most of the manufacturersof commercial lubes use food grade vegetable shortening as the main ingredient of their products.

Plain Crisco is fine and a lot of bp shooters use it. It can get a little runny in hot weather without something like beeswax stirred into it to stiffen it up a bit.

[TexasRifleman]

I continue to read these posts, and although I have not been shooting BP for long, I always wonder if people are using the right size balls.

In all my BP revolvers there is a CLEAR lead ring all the way around as I seat the ball.

If you are not shaving lead all the way around, thereby making a good seal, shouldn't you perhaps try another ball size before worrying about the grease?

It seems to me that if you shave lead all the way around that your chance of a chainfire is practically zero from that alone because you get such a good seal.

I do use Bore Butter over the ball, but that's because it does such a great job of softening the mess when cleaning.

Just wondering out loud I guess....

[NewShooter]

Thanks Guys.

[MCgunner]

being from Alabama, the public schools are very proud of George W. Carver and Tuskegee, and I remember learning that he invented peanut butter as a way to use peanuts to phase out cotton production.

Not long ago there was something on the History Channel about the history of food in America. They said GW Carver did a lot of things with peanuts, but inventing peanut butter wasn't one of 'em. They said peanut butter had been around a lot earlier, that the GW Carver thing was a myth. They didn't say who invented it or when, though. Guess you could always google it.

[rlltdjpr]

Very interesting, thanks.

[Zeke/PA]

I use the stuff we had in the Toolroom called " Old Bull" both for over the ball use and for lubing Maxi-balls in the rifles.
Works great and it's free.
Zeke

[pauli]

a little bit of research tells me that apparently, peanut butter was invented right around the same time as smokeless powder - 1890 or so.

[ArmedBear]

My Uberti 1858 has a shaved lead ring.

I don't believe that all the pistols I've shot have had this, however, even with .454 balls in guns spec'd .451. Maybe not all have a sharp edge.

Crisco will save you some money over bore butter, but bore butter is probably less sticky. I've started using those overpriced greased wool discs. I like them for convenience, but the fouling isn't soft.

[drdirk]

I keep my bullets in a plastic zipper bag and add some Bore Butter to it. Then I mix it all up and have "prelubed" bullets. Makes it easier to insert and does a good job of sealing the chambers.

I also agree that the bore butter seems to keep everything easier to clean. I had a long was vs crisco threat on thefiringline forum in case you are interested.

[Niner]

Use Wonder Wads or something like between the ball and the powder. Lots less mess.

[Low Key]

By trial and error and on the advice of some very knowledgeable people, I have found that a little lube under the ball works wonders for keeping my 1858 remington lubed up and shooting clean. I have some dry vegetable fiber wads, (.030 thickness I believe), that I bought from cabelas, which I load over the powder and then some lube on top of the wad and then seat the ball in the chamber. Personally, I use bore butter for this but good old fashioned lard or crisco would be just fine too. You can add in a little beeswax for stiffness in hot weather if you need to. (I've never heard about using peanut butter, but hey, that might work too ;) )
As far as chain fires go, I don't think that they are caused from the mouth of the chamber, but probably from loose caps instead. I have never had a chain fire, but I still use some type of lube at the cylinder mouth just in case and I make sure that the caps I use are tight on the nipples so they don't back off under recoil.

[timothy75]

How would loose caps cause a chain fire? Would they fire other caps?

[TexasRifleman]

How would loose caps cause a chain fire? Would they fire other caps?

They don't fire the other caps. Sparks jump up under loose caps and it's all over. One spark in the flash hole and bang! I believe that is MUCH more likely to be the case rather than sparks somehow getting past grease and a lead seal.

[robert garner]

Used crisco for many yrs no problems with my ruger old army;
Got an 1860 couse it was ole timey, first round the top 3 chambers went off,
gun wasnt hurt but now resides in the Chattahoochee river.
its gotta be the nipple end that does it!
Crisco or olive oil and beeswax wont let you down

[Smokin_Gun]

I continue to read these posts, and although I have not been shooting BP for long, I always wonder if people are using the right size balls.

In all my BP revolvers there is a CLEAR lead ring all the way around as I seat the ball.

If you are not shaving lead all the way around, thereby making a good seal, shouldn't you perhaps try another ball size before worrying about the grease?

It seems to me that if you shave lead all the way around that your chance of a chainfire is practically zero from that alone because you get such a good seal.

I do use Bore Butter over the ball, but that's because it does such a great job of softening the mess when cleaning.

Just wondering out loud I guess....

I have to agree with TexasSIGman, I use lube pills nade with Bore Butter, Parafin, and Beeswax under the ball...or I'll use Bore Butter over the ball for the same reasons...to lube & season the bore keep fouling soft to shoot longer and the pills clean alot of the fouling out. Most all chainfires are at the cones of the cylinder, excludeing an undersized ball, a dropped dented ball, a conical from a mismatched mold like those brass replicas,or powder spill added to any of the previous, in a chamber. If a cap falls off wasn't pinched an open cone/nipple can catch hot gases or spark from the fire chamber. That just from what I've learned ...others opinions may differ. Just tellin ya what I do and why...

Merry Christmas to All!

[Low Key]

texasSIGman and smokin gun have it right, loose caps don't cause the others to fire but if one falls off the nipple then you have a clear path to your main powder charge. If a spark goes in there from an adjacent cap then BOOM that chamber fires too.

[Steve499]

Pepperbox pistols were prone to chainfiring due largely to the breechring which enclosed the capped cones and kept the sparks from a fired barrel racing around past the caps on the other barrels. A revolver isn't as prone to chainfiring since the nipple area is more open and sparks can escape but a loose or missing cap can still cause it to happen. Sam Colt's first versions had to be modified by placing barriers between the cones or tubes ( couldn't call them nipples due to 19th century sensibilities), to minimize that tendency. PERCUSSION PISTOLS AND REVOLVERS by Johnny Bates and Mike Cumpston was my source for the above information. Good book. Anyone who intends to shoot black powder revolvers would enjoy it.

Steve

[TexasRifleman]

Welcome to THR Steve! Yes, that book is a must have.

Mike posts here under the name "mec" and his posts are a wealth of good information.

[Across The Pond]

Welcome to THR Steve! Yes, that book is a must have.

Mike posts here under the name "mec" and his posts are a wealth of good information.

+1 on welcome, recommendation of the book and mec's posts..

Also - I had a friend take some amazing high-speed photos of my '49 pocket being shot indoors at the range. We illuminated the target only and left the firing point dark. The muzzle/cylinder flash is incredible, often completely surrounding the cylinder! No wonder a loose cap can be the culprit in a chainfire. IMHO the seal should be good enough so long as you're seeing a full ring of lead shaved off on ramming the ball. This is one of the reasons that I use a .380 RB rather than .375 as is more usual. With a lubed wad under the ball, I believe that you'd be really very unlucky to get ignition across chambers from the front.

(but don't sue me if you do... :D )

ATP