Oiling the bore ?

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kyron4

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Is it okay to oil the bore of a BP rifle (cva optima ) as long as it is all removed prior to shooting ? I know BP and petro products don't mix , but if several dry patches or alcohol and dry patches were used to remove the oil first, would there be a reaction ? -Thanks
 
I've been using olive oil in mine lately
Before a hunt it gets a shot of brake
cleaner through the nipple then a dry
patch wipe and I'll stick a patch in the
muzzle and pop a cap or two and make
sure the channel is clear ( the patch will
squirt out)
If I'm where it's convenient I've also used
a rubber tipped blow gun on an air hose
 
Clean BP/fouling with warm/hot soapy water.
Dry patch out thoroughly
Oil immediately with Standard Protective Gun Oils (BreakFree, CLP, RemOil, WeaponShield, Hornady 1-Shot (Black Can)... etc, etc) --- like you would any gun
Before next shooting seesion, dry patch out bore/nipple/flash channel --- like you would any gun

BP weapon maintenance/protection is no different than any other. Take care of it --- like you would any gun
 
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After drying the bore I run a patch with a little motor oil through it. I don't run a dry patch through before shooting again. So far no problems. The rifles are stored horizontally so the oil doesn't tend to run down into the breech area. This would be with my flintlocks. I don't have any cap guns but don't see why they'd be any different.
 
After a day of shooting my traditional BP I heat up 2 pots of water.
One pot I put soap into it.
I run a patch down the barrel with the nipple less barrel in the soapy water, next I put the barrel into the clean water (all while having gloves on).
When the water comes out clean I let the barrel sit for a few minutes to dry the run a patch through the barrel.
While the barrel is still warm I put Bore Butter on a patch and run that through the barrel and reassemble the rifle.
Done for the season.
 
Bore Butter in mostly Olive oil.
For Italian repro's only. :cool:

I'd check w/ the N-SSA troops ( as was I back when I was a real person) who do this for a living.
BreakFree was King
 
Howdy

I'm not going to comment on how I clean a firearm that has been fired with Black Powder because my method differs from most.

However, after cleaning the firearm; rifle, revolver, or shotgun, I soak a patch in Ballistol, place it in the slotted end of a cleaning rod, and run it through the bore. Bore and chambers of a revolver.

Then I follow up with a dry patch to mop up the excess.

This leaves a thin coating of Ballistol in the bore and/or bore and chambers.

Black Powder fouling is extremely hygroscopic. It will attract moisture out of the air. The combination of damp BP fouling in contact with steel is what causes corrosion.

I have lots of old rifles and revolvers with old, pitted bores. It is next to impossible to remove every last molecule of BP fouling from down in the pits of an old bore. Coating the bore (and the pits) with a light coating of BP compatible oil, such as Ballistol will saturate the fouling with oil. Once saturated with oil BP fouling cannot absorb any more moisture out of the air and is rendered harmless. I have been doing this for about 20 years, None of my old pitted bores (or shiny new ones) shows any corrosion after doing this.

I do not bother to dry the thin layer of Ballistol before firing the rifle, revolver, or shotgun.

I simply load up and fire. This is of course with cartridge guns, so there is no question of contaminating fresh powder with oil. I suppose if I was shooting a flintlock or a cap lock I would run a dry patch or two down to remove all the Ballistol.
 
I just use Ballistol for everything and I've never had an issue. I don't shoot any muzzleloading rifles so maybe they have a few particular intricacies that make that method troublesome, but I do shoot a lot of BP in my Trapdoor and a lot of cap and ball revolver shooting. My Trapdoor has some significant pitting in the bore and my experience has been consistent with Driftwood's, with Ballistol I've never had any issues with residual fouling causing corrosion. And as far as contaminating the powder goes, I have noticed no such problems with my cap and ball revolvers, but maybe in the process of going down a much longer tube coated with Ballistol more of the powder would make contact with it and potentially cause issues. Basically my philosophy is not to overthink it too much, my process of caring for my BP guns is identical to the way I care for guns that only see smokeless powder, save only that I wash BP fouling off with hot water first before applying Ballistol the way I would with any other gun and occasionally use one of those heavy-duty black powder solvents if there's enough fouling (or if it's just been allowed to sit and dry for too long) that hot water alone won't remove almost all of it.
 
I also use Ballistol for everything. I don't think there is anything better as an all-purpose lubricant and preservative, I haven't experienced any problem with it hardening black powder fouling like petroleum oil does, but I use Crisco in the chambers for shooting, which keeps the fouling soft in any case. For protection against rust, and particularly for long-term storage, it beats out both petroleum oil and organic oils. It will not dry and harden and will not oxidize or turn rancid.

Check out the various uses for Ballistol on their website: https://ballistol.com/uses/
 
Is it okay to oil the bore of a BP rifle (cva optima ) as long as it is all removed prior to shooting ?

Yes.

After cleaning my .54 Hawken for the last time at the end of deer season. I will coat the bore with a CLP, Breakfree or Lucas Extreme Duty. Before loading it again, I run two or three dry patches down the bore. Never had a problem with either rust during storage or hard fouling when shooting resumes.

Actually, be prepared for some discoloration on that first dry patch coming out of storage. Allowing CLP to soak in there for a few months pulls out some more crud.
 
Tc Number 13 bore cleaner saturation of bore. Patches/Brush/Patches and then more 13…. And then more patches. Barricade spray down bore is used to dry up everything. Then a thin layer of Rem oil on a patch to protect……….
24 hrs later- Run some patches thru few time, Checking all is clean, After that one thin layer of final protective oil and she waits to slay in slumber till next season.
 
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I clean my guns with a 75/25 water Ballistol mix. Wipe bore and cylinders with 100 Ballistol. I don’t clean the bore or cylinder before shooting.
 
After careful cleaning (however you accomplish it) and getting a dry bore I run a patch with gun oil or Ballistol down the barrel. I follow that with a dry patch to get any excess. Not a sign of rust after decades of use. For what it's worth, I always run a dry patch or two down the bore before shooting and snap a cap if percussion. It may or may not be necessary but it works for me and can't hurt.

Jeff
 
I use Fluid Film ( FLUID FILM® is Eureka’s own unique lanolin-based brand of corrosion preventive and lubricant, used Worldwide in a multitude of industries and applications) Never any rust and leaves a nice slightly oily feel when also applied to the outside.
 
I've been cleaning my BP bores with motor oil for about 10 years. Still waiting for that "hard fouling" I keep hearing about. Maybe one day.
I shoot about 50 rounds at a time between cleaning, maybe if I did more it would be an issue?
Either way, Ballistol contains petroleum oil, but somehow thats not an issue.

If you are worried about oil, alcohol isn't going to do it. Acetone/MEK/industrial degreaser would. Probably not worth the effort.
You can always lube the barrel with olive oil.
 
...Ballistol contains petroleum oil, but somehow thats not an issue.
"Petroleum oil" is not a very specific term. I used it above trying to differentiate Ballistol from basic gun oil.

Ballistol contains mineral oil, which is a petroleum by-product derived through fractional distillation of crude oil. Various crude oil products come from the same source, but different refining processes result in different things with different properties, as in mineral oil, motor oil, heating oil, etc.
 
"Petroleum oil" is not a very specific term. I used it above trying to differentiate Ballistol from basic gun oil.

Ballistol contains mineral oil, which is a petroleum by-product derived through fractional distillation of crude oil. Various crude oil products come from the same source, but different refining processes result in different things with different properties, as in mineral oil, motor oil, heating oil, etc.
Yes,but no one here is talking about putting tar or polystyrene in their gun barrels. The petroleum oil in ballistol is going to be conventional liquid oil, much like motor oil, baby oil, chain oil or any of the other liquid tower products. Chemically, they won't break down much differently in firing BP.
 
I use hot water and soap and/or water/Balllistol to clean, and coat the bore with straight Ballistol when I'm done. I don't try to remove it before use, I just snap a couple of caps before loading.

Edit to add: And I hate the smell, but use it anyway. :cool:
 
Ballistol is primarily mineral oil, with some isobutyl alcohol (think solvent) thrown in for grins --
and Oleic Acid to keep the Italians happy (think olive oil)
It is not water soluble, but rather forms an emulsion when water is added as a carrier in dilution,
and is slightly alkaline to mitigate hydroscopic BP (salt) residues.

Not my 1st choice for preservation, but it does work.
 
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