Willy Snyder
PO Box 2732
Pocatello, ID 83206
Amyl acetate is insoluble in water and its substitution will reduce the efficacy of dissolving polar / water soluble compounds. Acetone is generally known as a "universal" solvent and readily dissolves polar and non polar chemicals.
Rights, and Privileges, are not synonymous. We have the Right to Bear Arms. As soon as the Government mandates firearm registration, and permiting, then that Right becomes a Privilege, and may be taken away at our Master's discretion.



Proverbs 14:7 Go from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceivest not in him the lips of knowledge.
“Turn up the heat, and cast cheap!”
Barry54
Rights, and Privileges, are not synonymous. We have the Right to Bear Arms. As soon as the Government mandates firearm registration, and permiting, then that Right becomes a Privilege, and may be taken away at our Master's discretion.
Well shoot, I heard long ago that a fella named Ed invented it with all kinds of trials and turbulations.
The Ed's Red name was also poking fun at the Bartles & James wine cooler of the same name which was popular at the time. The bore cleaner is the same color. The Internet rumor that Gallo wine sued to cease and desist to have the name changed is an urban legend. Bartles & James is no longer on the market. The Ed's Red recipe is in the public domain for anyone to use. You can even buy it pre-mixed from Brownells.
Last edited by Outpost75; 03-23-2026 at 03:15 PM.
The ENEMY is listening.
HE wants to know what YOU know.
Keep it to yourself.
Anyone that can’t find lanolin might try Amazon, it’s where I get my liquid lanolin for making case lube.
Then instead of acetone you might want to experiment with adding some of the glycols that are common in acetone free recipes. The recipe you use should be excellent for removing oils and carbon but it probably does little for polar lacquer type fouling that can be significant. You need to add something that mixes in well but is also water soluble. It is the basic chemistry saying "like dissolves like".
I am not saying your substitution doesn't work. Just that with a polar component it should work better.
For those interested in the history, I believe the originator was Ed Harris (?). He took a recipe from one of Hatcher's books and figured out what the modern equivalents were. IIRC the original had sperm whale oil and a couple other head scratchers. I think it came from a government arsenal. I have used it for years. The lanolin is a worthwhile addition. Try Amazon or eBay. You want anhydrous. Don't worry about dissolving it, just put it in and let it sit overnight and it should be dissolved. I keep mine in one of the metal cans the other ingredients came in.
Can you substitute laquer thinner for acetone?
According to my brief research, Lacquer thinner has some acetone in it, but also other organic compounds. You could mix up a small batch and see if it works.
OTOH, you can get small bottles of acetone in the lady's cosmetic section. It is sold as nail polish remover.
Wayne
What doesn't kill you makes you stronger - or else it gives you a bad rash.
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Fantastic stuff. I've used it for over 15 years. I definitely like the lanolin. Feels good on the hands and helps alot with lubricating and protection. I always keep two bottles. One with and one without acetone. If I'm only cleaning or wiping down a gun after a hunting trip I use without acetone. If deep cleaning is called for I use the one with acetone. Highly recommend storing in glass jars. Floyd
Nail polish remover is cut with water and other stuff but you can get pure acetone at a hardware store.
It would be interesting to see what happens if you run a patch of pure acetone thru the bore if it is not in the other bore cleaners. If the patch is colored or not it would be a good data point.



Proverbs 14:7 Go from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceivest not in him the lips of knowledge.
“Turn up the heat, and cast cheap!”
Barry54
After a quick search PVC primer it is mostly acetone but it also has / had more polar solvents like esters, ketones and tetrahydrofuran (great solvent but probably not the best health wise). Lacquer thinner today is mostly acetone and simple esters but used to have aromatic hydrocarbons like toluene, alcohols and ethers similar to the ones mentioned in the earlier arsenal recipes. The old lacquer thinner would have made a perfect bore cleaner.
Today we are left with acetone as the easiest to find additive. Methyl ethyl ketone would also work but that is getting banned now too.
We all like to tinker, but the original is so good & easy, I'm just sticking with it.
| BP | Bronze Point | IMR | Improved Military Rifle | PTD | Pointed |
| BR | Bench Rest | M | Magnum | RN | Round Nose |
| BT | Boat Tail | PL | Power-Lokt | SP | Soft Point |
| C | Compressed Charge | PR | Primer | SPCL | Soft Point "Core-Lokt" |
| HP | Hollow Point | PSPCL | Pointed Soft Point "Core Lokt" | C.O.L. | Cartridge Overall Length |
| PSP | Pointed Soft Point | Spz | Spitzer Point | SBT | Spitzer Boat Tail |
| LRN | Lead Round Nose | LWC | Lead Wad Cutter | LSWC | Lead Semi Wad Cutter |
| GC | Gas Check |