I have made Ben's Red 2 time now and both times it comes out brownish orange not red. It is my understanding that the lube is no good because it is burnt?
Is this true? It is all so awful sticky and gets all over the other bullets when stored and clogs up my loading die. If the lube is usable..... how can I make it less sticky? Also how do I make a batch that is actually red.
Mine is an orange color. How red it is depends upon the beeswax. The more refined, and whiter, the wax, the redder the lube.
It is sticky stuff, supposed to be. As for worthless due to being burnt, hard to say. Shooting it will answer that. It will either work or it won't.
It can be made less sticky by adding a bit more beeswax. Try adding an ounce and see if that makes enough difference. Better to add in small amounts or you could end up with a bunch that is too hard.
I find that soft, sticky lubes work best. Dies are easy to clean.
I find that soft, sticky lubes work best. Dies are easy to clean.
I'll echo that also.
Don't get too concerned with what it looks like or for that matter what it feels like, get concerned about what it looks like down range and then look in the interior of your barrel once the shooting is finished.
In my opinion, these are the important determining factors in choosing a lube.
__________________________
Shot some of that " old Ben's Red soft sticky lube " yesterday.
Last edited by Ben; 05-22-2013 at 07:22 AM.
Originally Posted by btroj
Brad, My beeswax is a very dark yellow, and it turns out red everytime. You would think though, just like you posted, whiter wax would make the lube be red or redder.
Billdean.....explain exactly how you are making it. It should turn out red. Every batch I've made is red. I agree with Ben and Brad, the outcome down range is more critical than the looks. I just made a batch up yesterday again, here's a pic of it. Can you post a pic of your batch?
I'm going to start a new thread on this batch too, as I did it a little different. This batch came out burgundy/dark maroon in color
Double post
Last edited by 41 mag fan; 05-22-2013 at 01:45 PM.
My lube doesn't look any different than yours. Maybe its OK. My bees wax I got from RandyRat which is a darker yellow. The lube seems to shoot well. My second batch for sure came out better.Billdean.....explain exactly how you are making it. It should turn out red. Every batch I've made is red. I agree with Ben and Brad, the outcome down range is more critical than the looks. I just made a batch up yesterday again, here's a pic of it. Can you post a pic of your batch?
I'm going to start a new thread on this batch too, as I did it a little different. This batch came out burgundy/dark maroon in color
I cook the R&T until it is liquid which it does not seem to ever do..........increasing the heat as I go. It does smoke a lot at this point. It does melt to a somewhat liquid state but is the consistency of say heavy weight motor oil. I combine the STP, JPW, and the dexron III and bring these to a liquid state. Then I add the R&T to the other mixture. I let cool some and the add 3 cups of pre-melted beeswax.
One question I have is what are the temperature limitation of this lube? Is it good for colder weather that we have here in Alaska? The picture in the bowl I added some carnuba wax to to see if I could make it less tacky and it seemed to help
Reason why your is dark, like my last batch is from the cooking of the R&T. the beeswax I used was from randyrat also.
To get a true red color, mix the R&T in without cooking it any to the beeswax,JPW, Dexron, STP.
But I'd call it more a burgundy or maroon than orange. To get the orange, you'd have to scorch the beeswax like I did tryng to melt mine from the pyrex.
I've shot mine in 20-30* weather up into the 90's. We don't get the -0* weather here that often. When it hits here, it's a very very damp cold that will keep you inside.
I don't follow what you are saying here. Could you explain?
I am going to say that color is not important at all.
Exactly
Like BassAkwards would say- it only matters when it does
It looks like delicious fudge.
he means follow bens directions then strain it.
it comes out a bit more on the red side.
it could just be the ingredients in the red and tacky making the color change too.
you can use white lith to make yellow, add some coloring for more red or purple.
color means nothing really.
having everything mixed together properly and how it shoots does.
I have lubes here that are green,brown,purple,yellow,white,red, and black.
they all shoot just fine.
Heat your beeswax up till it's melted, add all the other ingredients into beeswax. Put on low heat stirring con stantly, slowly turn up heat till you think most of R&T lumps are gone, strain, then put in pan. Time spent about 35 min total on the batch.
It'll come out a nice red color due to not heating and melting the R&T.
But color doesn't matter as the properties of the lube is there, and they should all shoot fine or equal.
I just get finicky on making lube and want it right or how it should be to my thinking.
But are they swirled is the question I have??!!
no mixing.
I have tried different lubes in different orders in different lube grooves trying to overcome a few things.
it doesn't work.
making one homogenous batch with the correct viscosity and temperature stability does.
Somewhere..... in following different threads on Ben's Red it was suggested to liquidize the R&T first then add the rest. The thought as I recall was it becomes liquid at 3 or 4 hundred degrees and at that temp it would scorch the beeswax. So it was said melt the R&T first then add the other stuff. Both times this was the way I made it. It appears now the opposite is true. Your not looking to liquidize the R&T but blend it with the beeswax at low heat. As I read Ben's directions he seems to throw everything in one pot and blend it under a low heat until most is blended and then strain off the rest.
Anyone using this as a pan lube? If not what's yer method of application?
Billdean...not being sarcastic, but you're making a mountain out of a molehill with making Bens Red. There's several different ways to make Bens Red. If you do a search on here for Bens Red you'll find several threads, that Ben hisself has started, I have started, and several other members have started, on making this lube.
One way to make it, like I did my first couple of batches, is melt your beeswax, add all the other ingredients and stir slowly turning up the heat till it smokes. Take off heat, strain. You'll get alot of chunks of R&T still this way. But it will be Red.
Other way is to melt the R&T, JPW,Dexron and STP. Melt beeswax, add to mix, stir and it will bring it together. Very little straining is needed this way.
The reasoning to do it this way, Runfiverun and geargnasher can explain the terminology, but when melting the R&T fully and the JPW and Dexron and STP, you'll burn off the unwanted ingredients in the mix.
The draw backs to making it this way is....takes longer to make, and will make your batch anywhere from a dark maroon to a brownish red color.
If you heat your beeswax up fast, it will scorch. This will leave you batch with an orange color, but from what I'm hearing from members this will not affect accuracy or viscosity of the lube. It just affects color.
Ben came up with a good lube, esp for rifles by the way I'm hearing from feedback from other members and from my tests. In revolvers it might be too slick causing neck tension problems.
I use my lubesizer. I don't pan lube.
As I read Ben's directions he seems to throw everything in one pot and blend it under a low heat until most is blended and then strain off the rest.
________________________________
It is true that I've made many lbs. of Ben's Red using this technique. Using a wisk and stirring to attempt to get all the lumps of Lucas R/T liquified in the mix. The mixing is indeed a challenge. This technique often will fail to get 100% of the Lucas R/T to liquify and require pouring the mix through an old clean cotton T-Shirt .
Others here on the forum may have tapped into a better technique of mixing the ingredients together. In America, we seem to always find a " better mouse trap ". Dean Winchester and 41 Mag fan have worked hard and pumped a lot of effort into refining the mixing technique of the components for Ben's Red. They have chosen not to change the formula for Ben's Red, they have however changed the sequence and manner in which the individual components are mixed with each other. My hat if off to them for their efforts.
The " bottom line " IS NOT the color of the finished lube , it is the performance characteristics of the lube.
If a shooter just has to have bright red lube, put in some red candle dye and that should get you there without affecting the performance of the lube.
Ben
Last edited by Ben; 05-23-2013 at 08:09 AM.
My Ben's Red came out the color of raw hamburger. Seems to work fine.
The color of boolit lube seems to be on about the same level of importance as the color of parachutes - with both, there are FAR higher priorities. . . unless someone has discovered that candy-apple red makes the boolits go faster.
WWJMBD?
In the Land of Oz, we cast with wheel weight and 2% Tin, Man.
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