Lube Consistency

[GoBig]

Mixed up a batch of Ben's Red and feel the process went well. No scorching, darkening or burnt smells. Loaded and shot 40 rounds of 32 WS with it, testing Varget powder. under an RCBS 32-170-FN. No leading, a couple patches and bore was clean. Poor accuracy, but that could be (and likely is) a combination of other factors. My biggest issue is how soft and sticky it is. It gets all over my fingers and seems to need only the slightest excuse to come out of the lube grooves. I've read I can add 5 or so percent more beeswax to stiffen it up, but before I change what I have I wanted to know if that would be advisable. Is there a certain consistency I should be aiming for or this a do what you like scenario?

[Murphy]

Lube making. The one and only ~Felix~ of Felix's World Famous Lube was my mentor. He may (or may not) have regretted ever giving me his phone number and worse yet, his address. For those who grew up reading Skeeter Skelton articles, I can honesty say I kind of feel like I may have been his Jug Johnson in the world of cast boolits.

Felix's advice was there are times one has to adjust their lube to ambient temperatures, etc. All I really wanted, was a good lube that eased the leading in my choice of what I was shooting. Following his advice, I got what I was looking for. I also wound up with some lube that had a bad habit of not only getting the job done, it lubed the outside of my cases, dies...etc. Been there, done that. Felix advised me to stiffen it up by adding more bee's wax. I never got around to making a 2nd batch. But will indeed follow his advice on the topic of stiffening it up should I make a second one. The first batch lasted years. 2 pounds is a lot of lube and goes a long way, which is what I made up.

Now for the fun part. I spent 20 years working in water and waste water as a plant operator. Lab work was a part of my daily chores. I went about it looking like Doc Brown from Back To The Future trying to make the perfect sunny side up fried egg.

Heated stir plate: Check
Stir bar large enough to stir it: Check
Graduated cylinders: Check
Lab grade thermometer: Check
Etc, etc, etc.

And, 4-5 calls to Felix during the process. One of the most kind, patient people I ever met.

Good luck on your next batch of lube!


Murphy

[GoBig]

Thank you, Murphy. I can certainly see how a little will go a long way. The small batch I made is currently split in half. I will try modifying one of the halves with more beeswax. Currently I’d rather ask questions and look stupid than spend hours brushing lead out of 20 inches of barrel.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

One thing a soft lube does, that you want it to do is "Fling off" as the boolit exits the barrel.
You can test that, shooting at a piece of cardboard a couple feet from the muzzle.

I like soft lubes, but I hate a sticky, tacky, messy lube.
If you wish to keep using Ben's Red (a fine lube as testified by many), I would add a small amount of beeswax and test it. repeat until you get the consistency you desire for handling purposes, but still has the Fling Off quality.
Good Luck.

[kevin c]

I'm a complete lube rube and noob. Why does fling off matter if the lube did its job in the bore? Is it something to do with non concentricity and boolit accuracy?

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I'm a complete lube rube and noob. Why does fling off matter if the lube did its job in the bore? Is it something to do with non concentricity and boolit accuracy?

You are correct in thinking of nonconcentricity.
If the lube doesn't fling off, and what's left in the groove is concentric all the way around, it's not a problem. The thing is, how can you measure that shot to shot?