Will the lube go fluffy

[Limey]

I read about making up BP lube using beeswax and mutton or beef fat.

My questions are:

........because you are using a fat extracted from meat, does this lube go fluffy or mouldy over time?..... (just like meat products left in the fridge too long!!!)

....has it got a shelf life or a best by date once it is made up?

....once it's combined with the beeswax does it become stable and inert to mould growth?

....and does it smell like mutton/beef fat or does the beeswax smell mask that?


From all the good reports I've read about this lube mix it clearly works well but I don't want to mix up a batch if any of the downsides I've listed above get a positive response!

Safe shooting

Limey

[Bent Ramrod]

Limey,

Haven't tried it myself, but animal fats will get rancid after a while sitting out. This breakdown of the fats is supposed to compromise some of their lubrication properties. I don't think mold will actually grow on them after they are rendered, though.

You might make the stuff up and store it in the refrigerator or freezer and only defrost it to lubricate those boolits you plan to shoot up quickly. In the good old days, the air was full of the smell of unbathed people and horse manure; in none of my reading of those times did I ever note that anyone complained about his bullet lube smelling bad. They probably didn't even notice it.

[powderburnerr]

IF it is rendered well and if done right it will be fine as to smell it changes and is a mix of the tallow and wax , some like it some dont ,, if you keep it covered it wont get mouldy and the shelf life is dependant on your conditions I rendered some mutton tallow that set for years in the house on a shelf with no ill effects ,, and some that wasnt rendered properly that turned rancid in the fridge,......Dean

[KCSO]

I have 2 gallons of lube made from bear oil and bees wax. I keep it in covered coffee cans in the cellar and so far it is still good after 3 years. What will happen is that the lube on the bullets will deteriorate from heat and cold over time. I like to lube my bullets and shoot them up within a year. As the lube breaks down it doesn't do as good a job of keeping the fouling soft and your number of shots w/o cleaning decreases. But I have shot FA 88-90 loads and they didn't lead even after 100 years, you did have to swab the bore about every 3 shots.

[Limey]

Guy's,

...thank you fr the feed back on traditional lubes going ransid and smelly.....


'.....Mrs. Limey' say's I am smelly enough without the help of anything else!....

......so I guess I'll stick to bees wax plus the usual stuff like shortening and olive oil and molybdenum and on and on and on.....the recipe's for lubes are endless.....

Safe shooting

Limey

[WBH]

I make my own lube from beef fat and beeswax with a little exotic plant oils thrown in for good measure. I have tubes that I made up 2 years ago and never have seen any deteriation. I will say, though, that the bullets that are lubed for a while before being loaded get to looking funky.

[Ricochet]

I still have a good bit of a tin of Dixie Gun Works' "Old Zip Patch Lube" that I bought in 1981. It's 50/50 mutton tallow and beeswax. Looks, smells and feels just like it did when new. No fuzz. Not a very good lube to put on cloth patches, it's hard.

[WBH]

Ricochet. Melt it on low in the micro and add jojoba or murphys oil soap to it. It will soften it up for patches.

[hydraulic]

I use a mix of beeswax and deer tallow, 50/50, in my trapdoor. When you gut your deer, peel off the lard along the backbone between the tenders. Throw a gob into a coffee can on the wood stove and let it set for several days and then skim off the cracklins. Add an equal amount of beeswax and stir it up and let it cool. I found that it can be improved by mixing in a little canola oil. I have never noticed any odor that was offensive, and I still have bullets I lubed last year.

[montana_charlie]

The underlying point is...there is 'fat' and there is 'tallow'.
Tallow, when properly rendered from the fat, has a very long shelf life...quite different from the original substance.
CM

[Ricochet]

Thanks, WBH, I think I will melt it and blend in some oil.