Lubing big bore slugs?

With the extra surface area and traditional rifling I'd lube them to keep the gun barrel from leading up and more accurate for longer time between cleanings. 

I use a silicon spray that dries made by WD-40 on my Texan .45 and FX Impact configured as a .22 or .30. I stand the slugs up on a sheet of cardboard and spay. Let dry at least 10 minutes and put them back in the bag. Also do the same with pellets.

I have been using this.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002IDZXRM?aaxitk=DawlUKwKwYBY0bFwMBgfnQ&pd_rd_i=B002IDZXRM&pf_rd_p=44fc3e0f-4b9e-4ed8-b33b-363a7257163d&hsa_cr_id=9050520180501&sb-ci-n=productDescription&sb-ci-v=Finish%20Line%20DRY%20Teflon%20Bicycle%20Chain%20Lube

Other swear by RC Silicone Shock oil....I have not tried it. 

https://www.amazon.com/Team-Associated-Weight-Silicone-2-Ounce/dp/B0006MZSSG/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=rc+shock+oil+10wt&qid=1572534454&s=sporting-goods&sr=8-1

I've been trying to answer that question for about 60 years for my black PG and other lead slingers...ALL that I can say for certain is you HAVE to use SOME KIND of lubing with lead projectiles. There are so many variables and different kinds of formulations and different kinds of ideas/prejudices/LIES as to just confuse the HECK out of what to use....



The ONLY THING I know for sure is YOU have to do the testing for YOUR GUN and PROJECTILE...to have any kind of relative information.



YES...the are MANY lubes that will work so try a few and see...AGAIN for YOUR GUN. We ALL want the other fellow to do the work then tell us the answer so we can go out and buy it...and many time this works great...but I have BLK PG that just plug the **** up with lead if I just follow the crowd...I have to use DOUBLE lubing and sometimes also lube the barrels.

Silicone is a very good lube and slick as heck and will over time coat the barrel bore so try it ans see...I guarantee once you use it , it's there forever and you CAN'T GET IT OFF except by maybe abrasives.



"To Lube or not to lube" is one of the age old questions that is without a total answer I'm afraid...or you can just use jacketed bullets and not worry about it. Hahahahaha

Good Shooting.

I am now lubing all my big bore bullets and making a pass in the barrel with a patch saturated with 10wt silicone RC Shock oil. Way less lead fouling. Was a total bear to get the lead out previously. Now it’s way easier. 
.257 Texan

.258 Citrus

.458 Quackenbush Outlaw

.457 Sam Yang 909s

.58 Quackenbush Outlaw Pistol

.58 Quackenbush Outlaw Rifle

YUGE difference!

SteveOh, do you mean you make a pass with a lubed patch after each shot, or once in a while, or only after a good cleaning?

I watch my friends shoot BPCR silhouette and they run some kind of lubed patch after each shot. 

SteveOh, do you mean you make a pass with a lubed patch after each shot, or once in a while, or only after a good cleaning?

I watch my friends shoot BPCR silhouette and they run some kind of lubed patch after each shot.

Click to expand...

Nah it's just an oil/water (Moose milk) moist patch to keep the fouling soft. Bear in mind that @ 2/3 of black powder turns into solids, so a lot of cleaning is paramount for best accuracy

I do believe the man does an oiled patch after cleaning and then the bullets carry what is needed for the next one to slide through.

SteveOh, do you mean you make a pass with a lubed patch after each shot, or once in a while, or only after a good cleaning?

I watch my friends shoot BPCR silhouette and they run some kind of lubed patch after each shot.

Click to expand...

I finish up cleaning the barrel with a patch lubed with 1% RC Shock Oil. I lube the bullets with the shock oil. I don't re-lube the barrel until it's time to clean again. I clean after each shoot, or during if accuracy starts to suffer. I hate cleaning a lead fouled barrel. 

Thanks guys.

Another friend uses those abrasive copper charbroil BBQ cleaners to get the lead out of centerfire pistol barrels. He wraps them around a brush for a tight-ish fit which works really well for scraping the lead out of a leaded up barrel. Ever tried that with your big bores?

i lube my slug with a mix of stp motor old and hoppes gun cleaner.. i have a small bottle with a dropper. i mix it 3parts hoppes 1 part stp..just add a few drops to a old jsb tin i have and just lube what im going to shoot that day. i found a old blog about lubing pellets when i fist started getting into airguns tryed it and never looked back lol..

After hearing and reading so much about graphite I am going to start doing a ring around the relief of the slugs.

In Black Powder I always lubed my barrel with barrel butter it will actually season a barrel similar to doing so with a cast iron skillet but since airguns do not produce heat it will not work that way

10 wt. rc shock oil. Nothing but problems before, nothing but improved accuracy and no fouling issues since. IMO nothing is better or cheaper to use. I also use it to lube when sizing my cast slugs. Total game changer.

How do you alloy it? Any name brand you prefer? Thanks

Accuracy wise some airguns like lubed pellets and some don’t 

What is it about airguns that they have to lead to shoot properly???

******

I have a Marlin 94 in 44 Magnum that has gone past 4500 shots since last cleaning and they go 1750fps+ every single one of them.



Proper bullet fit and proper bullet lube, thats all.

*****

It cant be to get SD in the single digits as most all big bore airguns spread way more than that.

So why is it that airgunners "need" leading in their barrels?

Anyone actually used proper smokeless/black powder bullet lube in their airguns and recorded what happened?

I'm about 2 months+ out of experimenting myself but i have a boatload of black powder and smokeless bullet molds i have to test, and i do intend to use lube, not scrubbing barrels all day long ;-)

Been lubing PCP's with FP10 forever. It really cuts down on barrel leading to the point they never need cleaning...at the level I shoot anyway. Before FP10 I used to shoot till accuracy started suffering and then have to clean the barrel...rinse and repeat. I hated that. 

Part 1

I've posted about this before but I'll do it again.

I also hate to clean fouled barrels that have lost their accuracy so I try to prevent fouling in the first place. I've found that a good cleaning is the first step. And brushes and solvents are just not good enough. If I buy a used air rifle or am cleaning a fouled bore I first do a lead removal with chemically treated cloth on a tight jag (not a slotted tip). I prefer the Safariland's Lead Away [https://www.amazon.com/Kleenbore-Gun-Care-Lead-Cloth/dp/B07YG8WWR9 ] but Birchwood Casey makes a similar product. Ignore the stainless cleaning comments, it removes lead in the bore. You should have it tight enough that it takes a bit of effort to move it down the bore, say 6 or 8 pounds of force. Back and fourth, end to end.,

Cut a properly sized patch of the lead remover cloth and push it through the bore 10 or 15 times, back and forth. Flip the patch to the other side and run it through another 10 or 15 times.

For a badly fouled barrel it might take a second patch pushed through the bore more times. The patches will turn black from the chemical action.

Then use your preferred solvent or cleaner on a brush a few passes then some damp patches on a slotted tip to wipe the bore. I like Ballistol diluted 50/50 with water. Hopefully the patches will come out clean.

THEN, I POLISH the bore (I even do this on a new air rifle) by firelapping it with JB Bore Cleaner. This does not damage the bore and after I've done it to a rifle it's less prone to fouling in the future.

https://www.brownells.com/gun-cleaning-chemicals/solvents-degreasers/bore-cleaning-paste/j-b-non-embedding-bore-cleaning-compound-prod1160.aspx

I put a bit of JB paste on the nose and sides of the bullet and then load and fire it. I do this a bunch of times, 25 to 35 (I've done it to pellet rifles and do it 50 or 60 shots). So the bullet becomes like a lap that carries the polishing compound down the bore against it's entire surface.

After firelapping this way, I run damp cleaner patches down the bore to remove all the JB residue. Using Ballistol I don't oil the barrel, it cleans, oils and seasons the barrel all by itself. Note that you might have to clean your moderator too (if you left it on) the JB paste will be inside it. Or not till later, it will not hurt anything to be in there for a while.

Doing this polishing occasionally doesn't hurt the barrel but you don't want or need to do it every time because done many times it could cause problems. As I said, I do it when new then only if a barrel still fouls too much after many other shooting sessions. Mostly it's once and done to polish.

The Lead Away gets used as needed, but after you polish you will not need it or the brushes as much since the time between cleanings increases. I use it maybe every 6th or 7th cleaning unless I see evidence of lead fouling popping up.

Note that even a trace of lead left where the land and groove join will act as a 'seed' to grow more leading. Most rifles that get leaded up quickly might be cleaned and LOOK clean but then foul fast again because they still had microscopic lead still there. Only getting it ALL out will result in a barrel that seldom fouls if a good lube us used thereafter which leads to part 2

Part 2

I always lube for Big Bore (not so much for pellet rifles, some like it, some don't) air guns because it makes for less fouling but I tested it shooting with and without and a seasoned rifle shoots a bit more accurately with it (no miracles, but 2 or 3% better on average)

I've tested a bunch of products and mixes and lots of them work somewhat and some work well. I tested the 'superlubes' and friction reducers too but I found that with some of them you get too much of a spread in velocity in your shot curve which is bad for accuracy. Remember, just because it may be a good antifouling lube if it adversely effects accuracy it's worse than having fouling.

I used many different types of sprays, wet and dry... generally adequate but none spectacular, no magic. Graphite, Moly, Teflon, silicone, WD40, Pledge, etc.

I tested all kinds of light oils: transmission, 3in1, shock oil ,Naiper, FP-10, synthetic Two-Cycle oil (it worked well to mix some solvent with it at 20:1 and wash pellets and let them dry. Leaves just enough residue to keep them from oxidation and helped as accuracy lube. Some oil on the fingers but just a trace so not too messy) and many more.....

I'm going to mention something about wet vs dry though. If I'm at the shooting bench using wet lubed and messy bullets is sort of OK. BUT, what about hunting in the field? Do you really want an oily slug there? How will you carry it easily and accessable, how much grit and crud is it going to pick up. And then you've got that oil on your fingers/hands after you've loaded so what, get it on your gun or wipe it on your pants?

I have even done a bit of testing with powder coat (great for no fouling but Questionable in accuracy, takes some time to work out the airgun vs powder burner differences in application techniques)

And using HiTek coating I did better by diluting it much more and only doing one coat, thinner was better so you don't see much of the color you see used in centerfire guns bullets. 

What I worked out was using a wax lube and then started using a friction reducing powder with that.

For example using Rooster Jacket worked for less messy bullets. It dilutes with water if you want but dries to nonsoluble wax. I use a 50/50 mix and dip the bullets in it then lay them out to drain and dry. Works best if they are put on a screen to drain/dry so no thick buildup under the bullet where it lies on a flat surface. Pour the unused Rooster into a sealed container and it will be there to use next time.

Recently, I mostly use Finish Line Chain Wax + Hexagonal Boron Nitride powder (this is nicknamed 'white graphite and is VERY slick). This makes slick, no fouling bullets that don't pick up crud and grit in the field. I've shot up to 300 shots (each) from several .357 air Rifles of mine such as a Texan, Slayer and Pitbull with NO fouling. Shot 500 shots from my 257 Texan using 72gr bullets @ 1050 FPS and NO fouling with the FL+HBN lube.

I take an old butter tub and fill it about half way with bullets and squirt a bit of the Finish Line in, about 1/2 a teaspoon and then put in 10 gr of the HBN powder. Put the lid on and start tumbling it over and over for about five minutes to get the bullets completely covered. [DO keep holding the lid down do it does not pop off and make a mess] The Finish Line and HBN make a paste. Then I dump the bullets in a silicone baking mat to dry. Don't push them around, you'll disturb the coating. Finish Line has an evaporating solvent so do this where the fumes will not 'get' you. It has to dry a day or so.... I've tried putting it in a broiler or using a blow drier and caused the coating to do poorly. The bullets will have a waxy white appearance and if handled a bunch will come off but it's better than slick, oily bullets in the field. I've gotten good ES and accuracy with this 'lube'

https://roosterlab.us/

http://www.finishlineusa.com/products/chain-lubricants/wax-lube

http://www.microlubrol.com/drylubricants.aspx

I'm using the ultra fine grade HBN from Microlubrol. I've given you the manufacturer's sites but you can shop around and find each of these cheaper

Hope this helps.