Ben's red in the long run

[Digger]

A while back when I started using Ben's red I had good results , .... well it's been quite a few months and my s+w 586 has not been cleaned as last I could remember until today ...
The gun was still functioning fine , just thought I would finally get around to it and as it turns out the worst of the whole thing was just the carbon buildup with a bit of the lube blow back on the face of the cylinder and outside with a little bit of a star pattern on the crown of the barrel ...Typical of our cast boolit shooting.
Thinking about 1,200 rds been put thru and the barrel was mirror like with just specs of powder here and there .... normal. ...
Accuracy is top notch with both Mihec's 125 gr. and 158 gr. molds .....and the lube is also working well in my 45 acp , 40 S+W and 9 mm.

All this has proven to me that Ben's red is a top notch lube .... very nice.

[nanuk]

What temp extremes have you shot it with, and how did it perform for you?

[geargnasher]

This is a good lube, I'm glad to see others reporting long-term testing. I'm also disappointed to hear little other than crickets chirping on this thread, I know lots of others are using this formula too, but no comments. C'mon guys, lets hear about it!

Gear

[runfiverun]

i haven't used it and know it's a good lube..
it's very similar to many i make myself.

[btroj]

I just haven't had time to try it much yet. I have no doubt it will work well.

[Ben]

I've been making and shooting Ben's Red for about 7 years now.
If I believed it not to be a good lube for rifle and pistol loads , I'd never have shared the recipe and encouraged my fellow forum members to try it.

I continue to have people PM me requesting the recipe. I'll post it below again in hopes that it will help more people be aware of what is in the lube and how to make it.

The formula is as follows :


50% beeswax
30% Red, Tacky Lucas High Temp Grease
10% Johnson's Paste Wax
5% Dexron II or Dexron III Trans. Fluid
5% STP Oil Treatment

This is some good stuff !

Here is a photo of the Lucas Red & Tacky # 2 Grease :



The only real and valid complaints that I have received from people who have tried the lube is their problems they had in getting all the components to liquefy and mix with each other. Of course, slight adjustments must also me made with the quantity of Beeswax relative to the outside air temperatures that you'll be using the lube in.

I'll admit that I've had some problems in getting all the Lucas Red and Tacky to liquefy also. Once I've dialed up the heat and stirred everything giving adequate time for the components to liquefy, then I simply run everything through an old cotton T shirt. Anything that didn't liquefy is captured by the filter & tossed.

This is what the lube looks like once it has solidified and is cut into strips with a utility knife for storage :



And YES, this lube has provided me with some very accurate groups from some of my .30 rifles, here is a 5 shot group shot with the 210 gr. HCB group buy bullet, Ruger # 1 stainless, 308 Win., 18.5 grs. IMR - 4198 :



Ben

[runfiverun]

grease needs 350 to 500-f to melt.
i would melt that first reduce the heat to just @ 200 and add the jpw.
it will give off solvents at this temp stir the grease and jpw together the grease will most likely start to gel.
get the b-wax in [in small pieces] and stir [better yet pre-melt the wax] then add the atf and such while blending the whole thing together.
then pull off the heat.
let it firm up then do a re-melt and re-blend. at the lower temp.

but's that's just me.

[HDS]

What can JPW be subsituted for? I can find all the other stuff here except JPW.

[Ben]

runfiverun :

Based on my experience - - - that sounds very logical and sounds like a good plan to improve the mixing of the ingredients. Many thanks for your suggestions.
____________________

HDS :

Do you have access to paste floor wax there in Finland ? Most likely another brand would also work.

Ben

[HDS]

I can only find liquid stuff when looking online and I dunno whats in that. I think JPW was mostly carnuaba so maybe I could replace it with that?

[Ben]

Can you order from the states ?

http://www.amazon.com/Johnson-Fine-W.../dp/B0000DIWIM

or

http://www.amazon.com/Minwax-78600-P...ef=pd_sim_hg_1

Ben

[nekshot]

Thanks Ben for sharing this recipe. I made the first batch and never felt a need to change. I find it very easy to stiffen up or keep it soft. All my barrels shine after shooting and I don't remember when I last cleaned one, they keep shooting good and that is all I need. I use it on the molds for the required lubing and it works for me.

[Ben]

nekshot :

Thanks for those kind words. All the people who use Ben's Red right now are having similar comments to yours.

I push a couple of clean cotton patches through my rifles when I come home from the range with a thin coat of rust preventative on a patch as a final step ( just for triple insurance ) and then put my rifles in the safe.

I've had 7 yrs. of trouble free service out of this lube and won't be changing anytime soon. My bores , like yours , " shine like a mirror".

Thanks again,

Ben

[mongo]

Thanks Ben, I have been looking for a lube to use for all of my bullets. I think I just found it..

[chambers]

I have been using Ben's Red in 44-40 load and 45-70 loads. Seams to work well, no issues. Have to heat the ingrediants up as noted above to help all the contents mix, best to do outdoors if possible. No complaints here.

[ubetcha]

I have tried to use it as a pan lube but does not work at that.lube comes out of grooves.I have Felix lube in my sizer right now.Have to decide if to empty the Felix and install Ben's or just get another sizer for Ben's.Would like to use it in my 44 SBH for I.H.M.S.A silhouettes.Although My chamber throats on my SBH measure
.432 so I Beagle my mold and run through a .432 Lee push-through.My have to get a .432 die for my Lyman.May get a RCBS for the Bens.

[StratsMan]

I recently made my first batch... I measured the components with my Mark I Eyeball, but I think I will like the results anyway... I expect I'm long on JPW... It feeds nicely through my Star sizer and stays in the groove well but is not sticky to the touch... I'm liking it so far...

[Recluse]

grease needs 350 to 500-f to melt.
i would melt that first reduce the heat to just @ 200 and add the jpw.
it will give off solvents at this temp stir the grease and jpw together the grease will most likely start to gel.
get the b-wax in [in small pieces] and stir [better yet pre-melt the wax] then add the atf and such while blending the whole thing together.
then pull off the heat.
let it firm up then do a re-melt and re-blend. at the lower temp.

but's that's just me.

+1

When I was working on a lube formula that involved synthetics, I had to melt the synthetic lube/grease first--and that in itself took some doing. I then used another pot to melt the beeswax. I use a griddle so there is room for several pots on it although the temp stays the same--just melt the grease first, then put the pot with the beeswax in and once it melts, blend it in the pot with the melted grease, then add the other ingredients and stir, stir, stir and stir some more.

I can only find liquid stuff when looking online and I dunno whats in that. I think JPW was mostly carnuaba so maybe I could replace it with that?

Trewax if you're able to get that, otherwise any pastewax solid used for wooden floors or furniture.

[runfiverun]

a word of caution with the grease that hot.
i initially use a big fork to stir when melting,and the grease will induce an instant 3rd degree burn if it splashes on the skin.
when the b-wax and other stuff is melted i switch over to a hand blender and use that.
wax paper is good stuff to pour out into/onto.

[Forrest r]

I melt the grease first also, bought a used electric wok that has adjustable heat of all things from the salvation army. Played with the heat until I found the "sweet spot" to melt the red & tacky grease. It took a lot of stirring to blend everything but man IT IS WORTH THE EFFORT!!!!

I don't go crazy on my reloads anymore but I did try some hot 44mags with this lube in a tc with a 10" bbl & the bbl was clean and shinny after the test. I have used this lube in anything from lite 38spl/44spl loads to 30-06 loads (1600fps) with absolutely no problems. I've shot 1000's of pistol bullets with this lube in several different firearms & the results are always the same. A clean, shinny bore & a beautiful star on the muzzle.

I actually look forward to the star pattern on the muzzle anymore. When I try/test a bullet with this lube in a firearm for the first time, I look at the muzzle anymore, not the chambers, cylinders or bbl's. When I see that star pattern on the muzzle, I know the lube is doing it's job.

Thank you Ben!!!