Ammo lube question...

[Blowt]

I was shooting some R50 ammo this weekend and noticed that if I shot some other cheaper ammo right after that it would shoot very good. I guess it's the lube in the barrel. So maybe I could mix some R50,eley Sport,R50, Eley Sport...etc. Has anyone ever done this? Just curious. It would help save on some of the price. Thoughts please.

[Softreset]

It's most likely going to be a YMMV situation. For example, I usually practice with Eley Club ammo and I'll switch to Eley Match if I really want the shots to count. If I just swap on the fly it's close to 10 shots before my groups tighten back up to an acceptable level. It's certainly not instant and the groups do not improve immediately.

Whereas if I run my patch cycle (1 dry, 4 wet, 2 dry) between switching ammo, it's about 5-7 shots before they get dialed into what I consider acceptable (to ability/skill).

I can't speak to RWS R50, I've never shot it (too rich for my blood) as I buy my Eley in large enough bulk where the price is extremely manageable for my budget. So it's possible that different 'bullet lubes' will react differently to one another.

I will say that a few times I've gone from shooting Eley Club to Federal Automatch and it took the Federal almost 20 shots to get dialed in to groups that I know I'm capable of with that ammo.

As with barrel cleaning procedures, I suspect a lot of shooters handle ammo switching differently and get different results based on barrel and that barrel's taste for that ammo.

[sofbak]

This guy got some interesting results "waxing" his ammo with pledge (emulsified silicone):

https://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums...ghlight=waxing

[Blowt]

Thanks Sofbak, that's interesting. I may have to try some of that on some blazers.

[Doodaddy]

Originally Posted by sofbak

This guy got some interesting results "waxing" his ammo with pledge (emulsified silicone):

https://www.rimfirecentral.com/forums...ghlight=waxing

Very cool. Definitely going to try that on some cheaper ammo.

[Vincent]

A few years back a bunch of us in the SuperStock forum tried a number of lubes.

T/C makes a black powder bullet lube that seemed to work.

I used STOS (Slicker Than Owl Snot) and it definitely made small but consistent improvement. Our lost friend Ricochet actually posted a good improvement with Preparation H After claiming it was not his he said an old girl friend left it at his place. That resulted in a number of barely acceptable posts He also did well with bees wax toilet rings. Many bullet lubes have used bees wax.

If I try it again I am going to try "Bert's Bees" brand lip balm and lip protector.

[Doodaddy]

The line of thinking I've got going is that I can improve some cheaper, standard velocity ammo to be acceptable for off hand shooting. It takes an immense amount of real practice to improve your abilities and that translates to...well..an immense amount of ammunition. If I can do it cheaper, well then.

[Ohcsim]

A bunch of years back when I was measuring, weighing and sorting to find the magic formula for great groups with cheap ammo, I tried this.

Having shot a lot of WMT with good results, I thought that perhaps the lube made the difference.

So..........I coated a bunch of the cheap stuff with Crisco and tested it vs the non-treated ammo.

Yes, there was no apparent improvement in my groups.
But, the other guys all thought I was frying eggs and wanted to know when to expect breakfast...

[Blowt]

The Toilet ring sounds like it would be good. Is there any harm(barrel or reciever)in doing this?

[bill4282]

Search toilet ring. The old post explains how to melt the wax ring and coat the bullets.

[wetdog1911]

Originally Posted by Blowt

The Toilet ring sounds like it would be good. Is there any harm(barrel or reciever)in doing this?

Way, way back, doing BPCR (Black powder cartridge rifle), beeswax was used quite a bit as a lube. Still is, good stuff.

A bee keeper would be good to know, but the toilet ring would be the easiest to find. Just make sure it's real beeswax. The price will let you know.

Wet

[elohssa63]

Do you remove the factory lube or wax before applying the toilet ring wax or whatever lube you may be using?

[squirrelsniper]

22LRs are very picky when it comes to ammo, and changing anything about the ammo can change how they shoot. Even if you find a certain lube that works in one temperature, let a big temp swing occur and you may find it makes things worse instead of better. I've tried a few different different things concerning bullet lubes (including wiping it all off and using nothing), but eventually found it was more trouble than it's worth to me. I just find a round the rifle shoots well, and even if it costs a lot, that's what I use for serous accuracy work. But if you have the time, the trial and error process can be fun and enlightening.

[timberbeast]

Beeswax won't harm the bore. You can remove factory lube or lube over as you desire. As others have experimented and had limited success, YOU might be the one to find the magic lubricant combination.