Lube Recipes
When the old timers shot their black powder cartridge rifles in competition, they generally used the following lube recipe. Although whale oil is no longer available, you can substitute cod oil, or a synthetic whale oil that is sold by Dixie Gunworks. All proportions are by volume.
50% beeswax
50% whale oil
Of course, whale oil was expensive, even back in those days, and another old standard, which was favored by buffalo hunters, substituted lard and vegetable oil for whale oil. Mutton tallow was preferred over lard, but when shooting buffalo on the plains, one had to make due with what was available. Unfortunately, lubes made with these natural ingredients have a rather short shelf life and go rancid quickly. Using deer tallow, in place of lard, increases shelf life by several years. Using Crisco, the modern favorite, eliminates concerns over lubes going rancid. For a softer lube, like commercial products such as SPG lube, reverse the proportions of beeswax and Crisco.
50% beeswax
40% Crisco, lard or tallow
10% canola or olive oil
Make sure to heat these ingredients in a double boiler, and not in a microwave, to avoid setting everything on fire! Some shooters add a touch of soap. But others feel that this is not necessary, as fats in lard and natural oils combine with alkaline salts in the black powder fouling to literally produce soap in the barrel. Supposedly, this is the secret of a good black powder lube.
Once upon a time, wax toilet rings were a cheap source of beeswax. Unfortunately, toilet rings today are made from a synthetic product that just dosen't have the same properties as beeswax. The best source these days is to find a local beekeeper and buy direct.
Here is another recipe for a lube, which is said to look and feel a lot like SPG lube, a commercial product favored by many match shooters. Some believe that Steve Garbe, the inventer of SPG, uses a little soap in his actual formula, which of course is a carefully guarded secret.
40% beeswax
30% canola oil
30% lanolin
Lastly, one of the all-time favorites is given below. It is also a great bug and wife repellent, and said to be effective as well against sexually transmitted diseases. It does not smell as pleasant as the canola oil and lanolin recipes, but if it works, who cares. Those of Cajun ancestry may use alligator grease in preference to rattlesnake fat.
50% beeswax
25% rattlesnake fat
25% skunk oil
