SL68 ...continued

[358156 hp]

Not an equal amount. Maybe substitute trans lube for 1/4 of the Vaseline. Might have to add a tablespoon of Dexron III to even out the viscosity.

Engine assembly lube is either zinc oxide #1 grease (the Lubriplate garbage in a tube that people seem to think is somehow good for engine bearings) ora thick mix of oil, polybutene, and ZDDP. Designed to prevent galling of new parts under extreme pressure during initial startup and to stay in place and not run off until then, these engine lubes are very different from the transmission assembly products. Transmission lubes do not have any grease thickeners or stringy polybutene in them at all as they must melt and become invisible in the atf without plugging filters or contaminating the friction plates. Think of it as very thick, sticky Vaseline that us thick by virtue of long carbon chains and not gellants or solid additives. The main purpose of tranny lube is to stick parts like thrust washers and Torrington bearings in place like glue and protect lip seals during installation. It also lubes Teflon and brass sealing rings during initial startup and somewhat protects bearings, bushings, and sprags against corrosion. Typically tranny lube is dyed to differentiate it from atf in the event some external residue melts and runs and is noticed after the test drive. Two grades of tranny lube are available in the Trans-Jel brand for different shop temperatures.

Yup, that's exactly what I thought

On a more serious side, thanks Ian. It would have taken me a week to come up with all that.

 

[fiver]

a week? good lord man where were you when we needed you....?

 

[358156 hp]

Watching you guys...

 

[JonB]

So, RandyRat is back in the lube and lube component sell'n business, I just found out yesterday and sent him a PM with a couple questions and a idea. He plans to carry microwax. I don't know the details of that wax yet...but I know one thing, I'm gonna acquire some and play around with a simplified SL recipe, somewhere on the lines of this one.

OK, here's the super-simple short version of soap lube that seems to work the best. Gman, Barn, and I are all using it to very good effect. It shoots well no matter how many grooves are filler or how big they are, works in all temps, holds up in hot gun barrels, and has very little tendency to cold-start from a seasoned barrel. It also doesn't seem sensitive to barrel finish, meaning hand-lapped is just as good as old and pitted, once seasoned. It won't melt off the bullets in extreme heat and it doesn't leave a greasy coating all over the outside of a revolver like most lubes will.

Equal parts by weight:
Wax from taper candles (relatively high melt-point paraffin plus Vybar 103 so they don't slump)
Filtered beeswax
High-temperature microcrystalline wax (blending several different molecular weights preferred, try for 160°F final melt point)
Vaseline
Vaseline, again
Fresh, damp Ivory soap straight from the wrapper

2% of the above combined weight or volume castor bean oil from the pharmacy.

Notes on this recipe:

• Taper candle wax can be reduced to 10% of the total wax portion but 1/3 is fine. Paraffin increases cooled firmness but also increases thixotropy of the lube. Vybar in taper candles is a polymer stabilizer which increases melt point, sheen, and hardness.
• The larger the spectrum of carbon chain lengths represented in the microwax and paraffin wax/oil portions, the better. Microwaxes and modern USP Vaseline represent very narrow fractions which leave very big notches carbon chain length curve which affect the rate of melt and thixotropic properties. The fewer these notches, the more linear and predictable the lube will be. Ingredients which have not been overly-refined work best.
• Polyolester oil can be substituted for the castor bean oil, but I still prefer the unique heat-seeking properties of castor. DO NOT use more than 2% of the total volume of lube as it will make the bore too slick and cause flyers. For low-velocity shooting, castor is not needed but it never hurts. The beeswax in this recipe supplies adequate mono and diesters for EP and boundary lubrication and for HV boost the castor really helps lubrication at the land engraves at high velocity/torque.
• The Vaseline portion can be improved by substituting a portion of slack wax, transmission assembly lubricant, and plain white mineral oil, but this isn't necessary in most cases. This portion (1/3 the total) is used to plasticize the waxes and soap and is the ingredient which controls final lube "hardness". Adjust as necessary to suit. I prefer a very soft lube, about like Play-Doh or a little softer even, and this recipe produces that. Don't judge your lube's consistency right after it cools, give it at least 24 hours because things are still going on inside the lube after it cools which affect hardness and thixotropic properties. Vaseline also provides the only significant "oil" in the recipe, and it is a paraffin oil. Do not use any kind of engine oil, GL-5 gear lube, or other API group III oils as they are too slippery. ATF in the form of Dexron III is a very light (SAE 7-10 weight) paraffin oil that can be used to modify viscosity, but don't add too much. 2-3% is sufficient to make a noticeable difference in lube viscosity without affecting the friction characteristics of the lube.
• Micro-crystalline wax specifications may be difficult to obtain. Buying a variety of them from candle-making supply houses may be the best bet. This is important since I've made and tested beaucoup recipes employing and isolating one particular microwax and doing so presents problems. Try to blend microwaxes having a variety of melt points averaging about 160°F or so. Chain lengths of 22-80 represented equally would be nice, but one at the top, one at the bottom, and one in the middle is adequate. If all else fails just buy 10 lbs of Blendedwaxes BW-430 and if your lube comes out too soft after 24 hours of rest, reduce the Vaseline portion a little.

 

[Ian]

Thank goodness. Do you know how much popcorn Bob has eaten in the last ten months?

 

[358156 hp]

I needed the fiber anyway .

 

[L Ross]

I think the best thing would be if Randy Rat just made SL-68 and sold it to us guys that used to make Darr Lube, Emmert's Lube, Felix Lube, Ben's Red, on and on. Ian, who makes the best commercial lube to do close to what you have found to be important in a lube?

 

[Ian]

There are no commercial offerings that are even close to SL-68B or SL-71B. Walt Melander used to sell a stick lube that was actually repackaged Texaco Taurag brick soda grease and was absolutely excellent, but both Walt and Texaco are long gone.

 

[L Ross]

There are no commercial offerings that are even close to SL-68B or SL-71B. Walt Melander used to sell a stick lube that was actually repackaged Texaco Taurag brick soda grease and was absolutely excellent, but both Walt and Texaco are long gone.

Hoo boy. I used to like making lube. Heck, maybe powder coating isn't so bad after all.

 

[Ian]

I haven't made a single batch of of lube since I started powder coating. The last batch of SL-71B was a couple pounds and will probably last me the rest of my life. I also have a big batch of "homo lube" which is about 20 of the SL experiments blended together and bumped a little in the firmness department with extra microwax. Probably 10-12 pounds of that, well over a gallon.

IF I didn't do a lot of suppressed shooting and high-velocity shooting with soft alloy, I orobably wouldn't powder coat so much, but the coating solves SO many problems that I use it almost exclusively, even when I don't need to.

 

[JonB]

I think the best thing would be if Randy Rat just made SL-68 and sold it to us guys that used to make Darr Lube, Emmert's Lube, Felix Lube, Ben's Red, on and on. Ian, who makes the best commercial lube to do close to what you have found to be important in a lube?

During the first reply, Randyrat indicated to me, that he had enough on his plate and wasn't interested in making/selling a Soap Lube. I blathered on with my thoughts anyway. His second reply came a day later, and some of my blathering must have peaked his interest after he thought about it for a day ...So he may ...I say "may" ...try making a Soap Lube, with the intention of selling it as a product.

One of the things I mentioned to Randyrat, is that I, myself, may consider selling a soap lube. I've always had a entrepreneurial spirit. Most everything I've done, I've considered turning it into cash somehow. To be honest, I considered making/selling SL-68 in 2014, before I even made the first batch. I didn't tell anyone of my thoughts...and I am glad I didn't tell anyone, because I found out that the "Cooking" of a Soap Lube is nothing like making Speed green or something similar.

Today, I have some ideas of how to cook (and cool) a larger batch. Funny thing is, I had this conversation with someone (Grumps, maybe), who considered cooking large batches, and I told them that was a fools folly...and they shouldn't waste their time. So, anyway, I need to fail (or succeed) at cooking/cooling a large batch, before I seriously consider selling it...another thing, and I even told this to Randyrat ...is there is just too much competition selling lubes that work for most casters/shooters and they are selling it so cheap...there is no way to sell a soap lube at a comparable price, unless I want to cook lube for free labor. So I will likely never start selling it (unless the market changes?), but I kind of have a itch to see if I can overcome the cooking/cooling of small batches. Again, I have some ideas

 

[JonB]

Filling the Star with SL68B.

So, Prior to yesterday, I haven't used my Star for about a year. The Arsenal 411-220-RF that I was lubesizing has a fairly large lube groove. So, I "almost" ran the Star's plunger to the floor, but not quite. I dislike to store a lubesizer that is empty or almost empty, so I figured I'd fill the reservoir. I wish I would have calculated the amount remaining (by measuring the exposed threads of the plunger screw), but I didn't...I didn't even try to guess...I wasn't thinking

When I make SL68B, I pour it into tunafish cans, and that's how I store it. 2/3rds of a tunafish can equals about one stick of lube for a Star. So, yesterday, that's what I put in the Star. SL68B isn't to be melted, I cut the lube out of the can, and then form it with bare hands into a round lube stick shape, it works pretty good that way. This over filled the Star and I found out how the bleed hole worked...while trying to install the plunger, I obviously couldn't start the threads of the cap, so I just had to push down on it, so the excess lube could get pushed/extruded out of that bleed hole, until all the excess lube was removed ...that wasn't fun.


While I am posting this, mostly for myself, so I remember to NOT do that again, I figure some of you all will get a kick out of it.

 

[Grump]

Filling the Star with SL68B.

So, [. . . .] I figured I'd fill the reservoir. I wish I would have calculated the amount remaining (by measuring the exposed threads of the plunger screw), but I didn't...I didn't even try to guess...I wasn't thinking

[snip]
This over filled the Star and I found out how the bleed hole worked...while trying to install the plunger, I obviously couldn't start the threads of the cap, so I just had to push down on it, so the excess lube could get pushed/extruded out of that bleed hole, until all the excess lube was removed ...that wasn't fun.

While I am posting this, mostly for myself, so I remember to NOT do that again, I figure some of you all will get a kick out of it.

I feel your strain, JonB.

I'm back after a long hiatus. Good to see these discussions are continuing.

As far as selling lubes to us, MY sentiment is that half the price of the few times I can find RCBS or Lyman lubes in the stores is plenty cheap enough for me buy 5-10 sticks every once on a while. If that gets any of you enough gross revenue to keep it worthwhile, yay! If not, I might even pay "full" to get the better performance. I have told others in PMs that my priorities are accuracy without cold shot flyers or purge flyers or first shot flyers at any temperature (bullseye pistol, 3-inch max groups at 50 yards in .38 and .45; 2-3 inches at 100 yards with rifles), and now I can't remember the order of not melting to at least 110º F, and minimal or no group shifting between temperatures. Or whatever.

I would buy microwaxes from RandyRat now that he's back in the saddle if no one takes up making either SL-68/68B or the best version of SL-71 based on the "Extreme" goals. I remain unconvinced on the accuracy levels possible with the various coating methods. Fine for USPSA but I *like* hitting soda cans with a handgun at 25 yards and beyond.

 

[JonB]

Grump,
I haven't heard anything from Randyrat, since I posted about it on Jan 26th. It's still something I'd like to try experimenting with...mostly to see if I can cook a batch larger than two tunafish cans