First batch of BP lube

[Kraschenbirn]

Brewed up my first batch of "real" BP boolit lube this afternoon. Had a bit of a problem cleaning up the wife's measuring cups but otherwise all seems to have gone quite well. Pan-lubed a couple hundred 400 gr RNs for my trapdoor carbine while the mix was hot and those came out better than anything I've managed with the commercial lubes I've tried...or, more likely, my technique is improving with practice.

Does anyone have any idea of the formula for SPG might be? My mix of 1 cup refined lard, 1 cup beeswax, 2 liquid oz. anhydrous lanolin, and 2 liquid oz. canola oil hardened to (as near as I can judge) exactly the same color/consistency as SPG...and, to my notably insensitive sniffer, smells the same, too.

Bill

[44man]

You should know better then to use the wife's utensils for lube, there are a lot of flattened rolling pins around! You really took a chance there.
SPG is not a good enough lube to copy, your's is most likely better.

[Kraschenbirn]

I'm not looking to copy SPG, just curious about the physical similarity to what I cooked up. Considering the going per stick cost of SPG versus the $12 and change I've got invested in a double batch (36 liquid oz) of that lard/beeswax/lanolin/canola recipe, if mine proves out as good (or better) then I've probably bought my last commercial lube.

I think I've only got one stick (plus whatever's in the sizer) left from my last order of commercial Alox-base for smokeless so I'll probably take a crack at cooking up my own lube there, too.

Bill

[44man]

You will enjoy it. I have made hundreds of different lubes for BP and smokeless and most all have been better then the big companies stuff.
The fellows here that make and sell lube have the best too. If you search this site, there are more recipes then you can ever hope to make. The only thing needed is to find what you like for the gun and conditions you shoot in.
I think the best all around home made lube for smokeless, is Felix lube. There is no end to how you can alter it too.
My problem with SPG was it only worked under very tight weather conditions. The last 10" of my barrel would be full of hard, dry fouling and even a damp patch was hard to push through. I had to drink bottles of water when blow tubing and had to shoot fast because the stuff would dry out so fast the hard fouling would return. The cost is also 100 times more then it is worth. I don't know of a single shooter at my club that uses it and one of the shooters won all of the national shoots last year.
It is as bad as using a super hard lube with super hard boolits in a revolver, just doesn't work!
Lar 45 makes several great lubes for BP if you want to try to match a good lube and his prices are just super. Bullshop makes good stuff.
Making your own lube is fun though and the quest for the perfect lube will never end.
I would suggest you buy some pots and measuring stuff so you can stay away from the little woman's utensils. A fore head lump in a pan makes it hard to cook with.