pre lubing a barrel

Bezoar · July 15, 2014, 11:34 PM

im wondering on this possibility. alot of people spend money on products to "season" the barrel of a muzzle loader. They like to slather on grease on percussion revovlers although the first shot is the only one that puts the grease through the barrel.
the practitioners say doing so makes the barrel fouling easier to deal with.
my question is why cant we do something similar with a center fire revolver?

ive seen articles ofpeople making black powder gallery loads for revolvers by pushing the projectile into the case and then pushing either a lube felt wad on top or just crimping and pushing a little grease into it.

why couldnt we do something similar? say a 108 grain wadcutter in our .357 casing seated so that a felt wad could be slipped on top, or a 1/16 or 1/8 inch thick lube cookie be pushed on it?
Im just curious. even a bill jordan style wax bullet thats actually a .5 inch thick slug of bullet lube to help get a layer in the clean barrel?

10-96 · July 16, 2014, 12:00 AM

Good question. We've all always been told not to do it- maybe because of faster speeds and pressures and such? Maybe it is a safety concern from a mathematical process or something, I just don't know. The thing about this question that piques my interest is rifle shooters used to dip the tips of their bullets in grease back in the cupro-nickle days (1920's) to keep the stallactite type fouling from building up to crippling levels before the end of the matches.

Hammerhead · July 16, 2014, 01:02 AM

I've done it with my .357 revolvers and single shot carbine, and my .45 Colt carbine.

I apply thin coat of Lee liquid alox (LLA) in a very clean bore with a patch, let it dry for at least 24 hours, and only shoot alox lubed lead bullets at less than max loads.

That's all I ever shoot in the .45 Colt carbine and it's amazing how clean it stays. I can clean the bore to a shine with just mineral spirits and patches.

I like the Hornady swaged lead bullets with the knurling, they really work well with LLA. It's also fine with conventional cast bullets.

I would never shoot jacketed bullets with anything in the bore.

Hammerhead · July 16, 2014, 01:09 AM

Also if you use wads, never push them down on to the powder. Just put them in the case mouth and let the bullet seat them.

My old silhouette (IHMSA field pistol) .357 load was a light charge of Clays, a .360" X .060" vegetable fiber wad and a LLA coated Hornady 140 grain 'cowboy' LFP. I could fire hundreds of rounds without cleaning if I needed to.

The wads and the LLA also reduce smoke to next to nothing.

The 140 flat points stay stable at much greater ranges than the HBWCs do with light charges.

I find the swaged lead bullets (Speer, Hornady, Magnus) more consistent and more accurate than cast at low velocities.

ETA. I still lube my carbine barrels with LLA, but have stopped lubing my revolver bores after realizing the LLA on the bullets was enough to prevent leading. I think it's more effective in the carbines.

Magnum Wheel Man · July 16, 2014, 06:31 AM

I actually "season" the barrel on most of my guns prior to going out & shooting... a wet patch with Tri-flow with Teflon, or Kroil, followed by a dry patch, seems to keep fouling to a minimum, I do the same on my rifles...

Bezoar · July 16, 2014, 01:31 PM

ive been using rem oil with teflon in the spray can on my revolver, and well im only getting genuine build up in the forcing cone.

July 15, 2014, 11:34 PM	#1
Bezoar Junior member Join Date: October 19, 2004 Location: michigan Posts: 578	pre lubing a barrel im wondering on this possibility. alot of people spend money on products to "season" the barrel of a muzzle loader. They like to slather on grease on percussion revovlers although the first shot is the only one that puts the grease through the barrel. the practitioners say doing so makes the barrel fouling easier to deal with. my question is why cant we do something similar with a center fire revolver? ive seen articles ofpeople making black powder gallery loads for revolvers by pushing the projectile into the case and then pushing either a lube felt wad on top or just crimping and pushing a little grease into it. why couldnt we do something similar? say a 108 grain wadcutter in our .357 casing seated so that a felt wad could be slipped on top, or a 1/16 or 1/8 inch thick lube cookie be pushed on it? Im just curious. even a bill jordan style wax bullet thats actually a .5 inch thick slug of bullet lube to help get a layer in the clean barrel?

July 16, 2014, 12:00 AM	#2
10-96 Senior Member Join Date: October 19, 2005 Location: Tx Panhandle Territory Posts: 4,160	Good question. We've all always been told not to do it- maybe because of faster speeds and pressures and such? Maybe it is a safety concern from a mathematical process or something, I just don't know. The thing about this question that piques my interest is rifle shooters used to dip the tips of their bullets in grease back in the cupro-nickle days (1920's) to keep the stallactite type fouling from building up to crippling levels before the end of the matches. __________________ Rednecks... Keeping the woods critter-free since March 2, 1836. (TX Independence Day) I suspect a thing or two... because I've seen a thing or two.

July 16, 2014, 01:09 AM	#4
Hammerhead Senior Member Join Date: May 31, 2004 Location: Minnesota Posts: 2,432	Also if you use wads, never push them down on to the powder. Just put them in the case mouth and let the bullet seat them. My old silhouette (IHMSA field pistol) .357 load was a light charge of Clays, a .360" X .060" vegetable fiber wad and a LLA coated Hornady 140 grain 'cowboy' LFP. I could fire hundreds of rounds without cleaning if I needed to. The wads and the LLA also reduce smoke to next to nothing. The 140 flat points stay stable at much greater ranges than the HBWCs do with light charges. I find the swaged lead bullets (Speer, Hornady, Magnus) more consistent and more accurate than cast at low velocities. ETA. I still lube my carbine barrels with LLA, but have stopped lubing my revolver bores after realizing the LLA on the bullets was enough to prevent leading. I think it's more effective in the carbines. Last edited by Hammerhead; July 16, 2014 at 01:39 AM.

July 16, 2014, 06:31 AM	#5
Magnum Wheel Man Senior Member Join Date: July 26, 2006 Location: Southern Minnesota Posts: 9,333	I actually "season" the barrel on most of my guns prior to going out & shooting... a wet patch with Tri-flow with Teflon, or Kroil, followed by a dry patch, seems to keep fouling to a minimum, I do the same on my rifles... __________________ In life you either make dust or eat dust...

July 16, 2014, 01:02 AM	#3
Hammerhead Senior Member Join Date: May 31, 2004 Location: Minnesota Posts: 2,432	I've done it with my .357 revolvers and single shot carbine, and my .45 Colt carbine. I apply thin coat of Lee liquid alox (LLA) in a very clean bore with a patch, let it dry for at least 24 hours, and only shoot alox lubed lead bullets at less than max loads. That's all I ever shoot in the .45 Colt carbine and it's amazing how clean it stays. I can clean the bore to a shine with just mineral spirits and patches. I like the Hornady swaged lead bullets with the knurling, they really work well with LLA. It's also fine with conventional cast bullets. I would never shoot jacketed bullets with anything in the bore.

July 16, 2014, 01:31 PM	#6
Bezoar Junior member Join Date: October 19, 2004 Location: michigan Posts: 578	ive been using rem oil with teflon in the spray can on my revolver, and well im only getting genuine build up in the forcing cone.