OLD DAR Lube OK?

[PBSmith]

Just finished purging my Lyman 45 of its 60-year-old load of Lyman Ideal, that blacker-than-night goop that was state-of-art when we bought the press around 1960.

I've had two unused and unopened sticks of 50/50 Alox/Beeswax that I bought from DAR about 30 years ago. I was going to load a stick into the cleaned 45 and then said to myself, "I don't want to do this cleanout again. Could this 50/50 possibly have gone bad since I bought it?"

The DAR 50/50 looks, feels and smells like what the label says, and is easy to indent with the fingernail. I can't imagine it wouldn't still be good, but it never hurts to ask.

Attachment 239873

Thanks

[Tom W.]

I'd use it, but I'm a cheapskate. I never emptied my lubrisizer, just added different lubes until I found White Label Carnauba Red. Now that's all I put in,and all the other stuff was used up. If the lube was working for you before, it should be good to go now.

[PBSmith]

Tom, I doubt the cheapest of cheapskates would want to use that old black IDEAL. I cleaned it out of the grease machine so I can try the 50/50 DAR.

[Tom W.]

If it's the same as that old Lyman moly, I have tried one tube of it. Awful nasty staining stuff....

[PBSmith]

Could be, though I believe moly didn't come along until much later. I started a thread on Lyman Ideal lube here some time back. One gent said it contains lampblack. It's almost as bad as the eye makeup that some girls use.

[KenT7021]

A couple of years ago I used a Lyman 45 that I hadn't used for 20 years.It had the Lyman Ideal lube in it.I dropped a stick of Carnauba Red on top of the old lube and lubed and sized bullets.The old lube worked fine.The recipe for Ideal lube is in one of the older Lyman Ideal manuals.I don't recall lampblack being an ingredient.There is no moly in it.I used a lot of the Ideal lube during the 50's and early 60's.

[Alstep]

That DAR 50/50 is as good as the day it was made. I wouldn't hesitate to use it.
The old black Lyman lube was their graphite mixture. I still have some but never used it. Was wondering myself how it compares with NRA lube and the stuff we have today. Someday I'll have to try it.

[PBSmith]

That DAR 50/50 is as good as the day it was made. I wouldn't hesitate to use it.
The old black Lyman lube was their graphite mixture. I still have some but never used it. Was wondering myself how it compares with NRA lube and the stuff we have today. Someday I'll have to try it.

Al, that IDEAL reportedly does an OK job at low velocity. We lubed big 45-70 slugs with they shot well over duplex loads with black powder.

But I warn you, friend, figure on a mess. A spec of that on your T-shirt and shirt becomes a garage rag.

Thanks for your estimate on the old GAR. Into the grease machine she will go.