I've never read Single Shot Exchange and I'm not familiar with what they cover, beyond (apparently) Single Shot shooting.
When Lee uses Mobil 1 is he shooting real Blackpowder, a BP "replacement" powder, or smokeless..??
Thanks.

    He is using Black Powder the magazine is about single shot rifles and some lever action rifles
on the front of magazine it says Devoted to Antique&Classic Firearms.
 
Dick
 

      Never used automatic transmission fluid,isn't it a synthetic product?


Dick
 

It was designed during WW11 to be a direct replacement for whale oil. Apperently before the war whale oil had been the oil of choice for auto transmissions

      I wouldn't have tried it if Lee Shaver hadn't said the Mobil 1 formula was very similar to Whale oil ,in the 
middle of the formula with some difference on the ends.I have wondered if he should have said sperm oil
and not Whale oil.

      I was wondering if Mobil 1 oil worked in rifles other than mine. There might other synthetic oils that would
work also.

Dick
 

Don Steele wrote:

Well Dick, Now you've done it...!!!
I got to looking around and find I'm proud owner of 2 quarts of a very fine German made 5/30 Full Synthetic motor oil that I have ZERO use for in any of my current vehicles. While I'm perfectly satisfied with the patch lube(s) I'm using now the researcher in me loves trying new ideas...just for the fun of trying new ideas.
I don't have any Hoppe's Number 9 solvent on the shelf so I'll have to do some outside-of-the-rifle testing to see what might give the best results when wiping between shots and for cleaning after shooting....then who knows...I might have to give it a try at the range on my cotton patches.

Well boy Howdy! I guess so! Now you have me thinking I have had great success with "dry patching" using Ballistol and water but there are a couple of problems. First Ballistol and water don't really mix all that well and and tend to separate somewhat. No matter how I mix it the first roll of patching that I soak in the mix always comes out splotchy? The later rolls after that come out more consistent I think, so I use them for serious shooting and the first rolls for offhand practice.And the Ballistol mix seems to dry out over time so I don't make that much up ahead of time. So off to the Mobil ! experiment!

I first tried just rubbing some of the Mobil oil on a strip and patching but had way too much oil after giving it time to soak all the way thought the patching material.. The next try I was trying to find something to mix the Mobil 1 with to apply like the Ballistol and water. I came up with 91% alcohol it mixed very well and after several days no signs of separation so I put in a roll of patching and shook it up and removed and rolled out to let dry and it was very evenly distributed I think but still too much oil I think I used a mix of 6 parts alcohol and one part oil. The next time I'll try a 10/1 mix and of course it'l take a bunch of shooting to determine if it will shoot as well as the Ballistol/water mix. So off to the rifle range I go! As soon as the weather warms up a bit and the 30 to 40 mph winds calm down some.

RB
 

Last edited by rhbrink (1/08/2019 8:10 AM)

        I used 5W30 because that is what I had Lee Shaver used 10W30 high mileage.

Dick
 

RHBrink,
I've had great success using Ballistol/water 1:7, per "Dutch" Schoultz. For anyone interested, here's my procedure:
I've found that keeping the solution "stirred up" when I'm putting my patch material in it prevents "splotching". I cut my material into 16" long strips (because that's how long the cookie sheet is that I lay then out on) then soak the strips in the solution. The well saturated strips are removed and laid out on the cookie sheet to dry overnight in my garage. Somewhere during the drying process, I turn them over one time. I don't wring them out or do anything to squeeze out excess solution. Between uses, I keep the Ballistol/water solution in a Tupperware container with a tight lid where it lasts a long time without issues. As an aside...in 2017 the Bevel Brothers were offering pint jars of Mobil S-122 water soluble oil at their booth at Friendship. Joel ("Bevel Down") tells me it works just like Ballistol for them. I picked up a jar and have used it to replace Ballisol with good results. It's a LOT less expensive than Ballistol but hard to find in anything less than a 5 gallon pail and not even I shoot enough to justify that. I'm grateful to them for offering it in pint jars ($4.00 /pint vs $16.95 for Ballistol) and hope they will do so again.
For doing the same thing with Mobil 1, I can see how 91% Isopropanol (Iso-propyl alcohol...which is commonly available) would be an effective solvent as you've discovered and can assist in getting even distribution of the lubricating oil throughout the patch just as water does with Ballistol. There are a large number of non-polar organic solvents that will work in that role. Your choice of 91% isopropanol is the most safe to use BY FAR but still less safe than water which needs to be taken into account by anyone wishing to give it a try.
Definitely a creative solution to the question of achieving uniform lubrication. Thank you for sharing.
BTW: I'm an Organic Chemist and happy to discuss further if anyone wishes to do so.
Sorry to get so wordy...Hope this all helps.
 

When you refer to saturating your patch material by the "roll", I'm wondering if your material is rolled up when it goes into the solution ? 
That would seem to be a good way to get uneven distribution. I put 16" strips into my Ballistol/water solution that aren't rolled, folded or anything like that then stir the whole thing a little to ensure total and uniform saturation. My material is also washed twice using the HOT water setting on the washing machine after bringing it home then machine dried.
I'm looking forward to seeing some comparative shooting tests. I might give it a whirl in my Table/Chunk rifle off the rest where a small consistent change in group size at 50-60 yds would be apparent. Doubt it would show much in my offhand rifles though !!
 

I've tried Neetsfoot oil and as you mentioned with Castor...shoots great for a while but over a long range session I experienced the formation of a "crud ring" deep in the bore just off the breech face. Apparently I wasn't cleaning enough between shots. I generally just do a wipe, using both sides of a slightly damp patch moistened with a typical "moose milk" concoction of my own making. Perhaps when using any of these oils and shooting a lot with them, a more aggressive cleaning between shots is required to maintain precision.
It's fun to try new ideas.
 

     I was wondering what would work as a safe solvent. 

      I have around 100 shots through my rifle and haven't seen any lube build up more shooting will tell.
Just waiting for spring to do more testing.

        At 30 yards my groups hang around 3/4 of an inch I measure my group size to the center of the bullet hole.
Hope to cut group size down to 5/8 of an inch. A 40 cal. rifle should be able to do that at 30 yards. With my 77 year
old diabetic eyes some days I can see to shoot better than other days.

      I clean between shots with Hoppe's number 9 Black Powder Solvent and Patch Lube I use a wet patch using both sides and a dry patch using both sides.

Dick