Do you use grease?

[Eagleman]

Looking at the Muzzle Loaders International Committee safety rules I note:

521 It is mandatory to seal the chambers of revolvers with grease after loading the projectiles.

Do you use grease? If so, what do you use?

[harricook]

Hi Eagleman

I do not use grease to seal as the balls I use are soft lead & correctly (over)sized & cut a nice lead ring when you ram them.

I do however usually lube 2 of 6 cylinders to just keep the fouling soft.

I use Black Powder Lube (BPL) from Allwoods Stocks & Mouldings.

I made my own for a while - but the aftermath of 'cooking your own' was not worth the outcome !

If I was forced to 'seal' every chamber by range rules - then I would again just use a thin ring of BPL squirted from a 50ml syringe (no needle !)


Cheers


Roy

[Eagleman]

Is that stuff still ok to use re substitutes Roy like 777?

[Smokeless Coal]

No over ball grease for me, my club has banned it.

We shoot down tubes (read 3ft sewer pipes) buried in a hillside. They used to use grease but over time it coated the tubes along with unburned powder. Finally one shot ignited the residue and sent a very spectacular ball of flame down the tube. Luckily the power of our extractor fans drew it away from the firing point.

No, I use 777 and lube my balls with alox. Brilliant, no mess and easy to clean. Purists frown on it because it is not in the spirit of original muzzle loaders. But hey, I hold my firearms for target shooting not to be a pretend Jesse James.

[Wobbly 2]

No grease.

ROA uses 16 grains pyrodex, .38 case of semolina, then a aloxed bullet.

Nice and clean.

[tim56]

Wonder lube with every shot. Over the ball with the revolver, Patches soaked in it for the single shot pistol and rifle, Bullets coated in the .577 and the 45/70 cartridge rifle. I used to use water pump grease which did the job but found it a bit messy especially in the summer. Wonder lube keeps the fouling soft and aids cleaning even if my guns are left a few days. It also smells nice and a pot lasts for ages. Tim

[Simon G]

No I don't use grease, I use 777!

.44 cal, 23gns 777, wonder wad, ball. That's it. The R&S print an honest 2 inches at 25yds.

A wet (water) patch down the bore, a wet brush for several strokes, and a dry patch. Then an oiled patch. Never had a worry about keeping fouling "soft".

[Smokeless Coal]

No I don't use grease, I use 777!

Sums it up nicely Simon.

[Jim McArthur]

No, I use 777 and lube my balls with alox. Brilliant, no mess and easy to clean. Purists frown on it because it is not in the spirit of original muzzle loaders. But hey, I hold my firearms for target shooting not to be a pretend Jesse James.

Jim

[Chocchip]

Well if you were shooting as a Western purist then you'd sneak up behind the target and shoot it from about 1 foot away. The average distance of most pistol fights was arms lengths

[Eagleman]

Well if you were shooting as a Western purist then you'd sneak up behind the target and shoot it from about 1 foot away. The average distance of most pistol fights was arms lengths

And given my shooting performance today Choc (see main Firearms section) that is about right for me!

[bryantanthonydp]

Pure tallow

[Smokeless Coal]

MLAGB insist on BP, why?

I can understand no modern adjustable sights but not powder.

[pmercer]

I use BP and no grease. I do get a nice ring of lead when I load though.

[tim56]

I used my r+s without lube once (because i forgot it. OOPS. ) After 2 rounds of 6 they were flying all over the place and it took ages to get the thing properly clean again. With the 577 its near imposible to load a bullet after 2 shots if no lube is used, you can feel the hard crud biting all the way down. With wonder lube i can shoot a full morning session with out even swabbing the barrel and the 45/70 is the same. Maybee just my guns but ill stick to wonder lube till something better comes along.
Intresting to see that some use allox on round ball. I use it on .357 and .44 bullets but have not tried it on b/p ball or bullets yet. Will give it a go sometime.