Does Bore Butter oxidize ?

[kyron4]

Cleaned my Traditions Hawkens with hot soapy water and dried it very well with several dry patches. Barrel was cleaned to a mirror finish. I coated the bore with a single patch with a little bore butter smeared on it. A week later I ran a dry patch down the bore and it had light orangeish colored streaks that looked like rust . Barrel still looked mirror finish bright and I was told this this was just "oxidized " bore butter. Not sure if that make since so I thought I'd ask more informed BP shooters here for input. -Thanks

 

[Ranger99]

Never used any of the actual commercial
Bore butter with that name on it
Used the wonder lube yellow sort of mentholy stuff in the white jar
Mostly use the dregs from olive oil from
the kitchen on this last one
I only use the real black and IMO that
makes a difference in the way it cleans
up . I started many years ago using
Pyrodex rs and it seemed to be more
difficult as far as clean up. I also used
crisco for patch lube on the advice of
an " experienced " ML shooter. That
possibly contributed to whatever difficulty
I might have had. I don't know

Also- mustard on hotdogs
No beans in the chili
Wood for barbecue- no sauce

 

[hawg]

I don't know if you would call it oxidation or what but Bore Butter does that. I coat the bore with olive oil. I use olive oil for a patch lube and as a lube on revolver wads.

 

[C Younger]

I don’t get rust, but I also quit using bore butter about 23 years ago when I went shooting with my C&B revolver in January near Palmer Alaska. The stuff was frozen solid and I had to warm up the tube in my armpit for about an hour before I could get any out. That was back when I believed you had to “seal” each chamber with grease for the gun to be safe. Come to think of it, that might have been the first time I shot without grease over the balls. Anyway, for the last 12 years, or however long it’s been since getting back into these guns, I’ve been oiling the innards and bore with regular petroleum based gun oil. I’ve read the horror stories about it turning to tar when it mixes with black powder residue, but just haven’t experienced it. On the rare occasion that I put any lube over the balls, I use a heavy lithium grease.

 

[BullRunBear]

I had the same 'problem' with Bore Butter many moons ago. I thought it was rust but it was just the discoloration from the stuff. Haven't used Bore Butter in years because I learned that gun oil or Ballistol does a better job. Never shot a C&B revolver, or anything else, in Alaska but BB as a lube on the arbor is a big mistake. It will harden and make the cylinder difficult to turn. Since I switched to a white lithium grease on the arbor and nipple threads, there has been no problem.

Bore Butter isn't a bad product and is comparatively safe around kids and pets if that is a factor. But it has its limitations.

Jeff

 

[Hugger-4641]

I use bore butter during the season on cast bullets, but I quit using it for storage because in addition to turning orange, it hardens and shrinks when it dries will allow some rust. Now, when I store my Traditions inline for the year, I use a mop with 90wt gear oil. I also coat the bolt and breach plugs with it. Haven't had any rust or tar issues since I started doing this, but I always clean it with Hoppies or Bore Blaster before shooting again.

 

[gtrgy888]

I recommend scrubbing with lots of lye soap in hot water, which will coat the steel in soap scum and prevent rust even without extra lubrication in my experience. I use Bore Butter for revolver internals and barrel and it does leave an orange/brown residue over time, but no rust after a month in the holster.

I also like BB since it is made of edible ingredients. Remoil and Ballistol tend to cause me coughing and skin rashes, even in the small amounts covering a stored gun. BB gives me no problems, and works as lip balm in a pinch.

 

[Jackrabbit1957]

Been using recovered hvac compressor oil for the last 10 years or so. As to 90 wt gear oil I can see how it would work well, after having overhauled countless Toyota truck transmissions I can't stand the smell of it. I have also used wheel bearing grease as ball lube on revolvers as well, had no problems with it either. Makes me wonder how much of this is mythology about using petroleum products for lubes.....hmmm, mehinks I see some testing in the near future.