doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Black Powder cleanup after shooting

I shot quite a lot of black powder muzzleloaders last weekend at our State Shoot http://www.tmlrassociation.com/
After reading the article by Ross Seyfried in the latest DGJ, I decided to use Ballistol as he suggested, 25% in warm water. I am having much more after rusting , I believe after using it that I do with my normal hot water and detergent for cleaning. I would appreciate any comments from those who have used Ballistol for Black Powder cleaning.

All I can tell you is never never attempt to clean black powder residue in your wife's kitchen sink with a bottle brush on a stick!...Geo

Different stuff but I have never found anything that even comes close to cleaning with Windex. Wet three or four patches, run them through, dry and oil with Wonderlube. I've cleaned this way for well over forty years and have never had any afterrust. Sure a lot less mess than water, etc. (I clean with flannel patches I cut myself and dry with blue shop towel paper patches)

I second Joe on the Windex.

Thanks, that will be my new cleaner. I didnt know WOnderlube was a good rust inhibitor either.

I have been using "Wet Ones" ever since I was without any cleaner, and had some in the truck. They did such a good job I quit using anything else.

Leighton, I have never had any rust problems with Wonderlube or something similar that is not petroleum based or has any salts. Petroleum lubes are the worst thing that can be put in a black powder barrel. They tend to char under the intense heat and form a very hard substance. At least that has been my experience.

I still use water w/a touch of dish soap in it. A small squeeze bottle makes for quick and easy use in the field.
Windex I use for cleaning up cartridge arms fired w/ corrosive primers. Done it that way for 40+ years and haven't lost a bbl yet.
Windex alone in cleaning a M/L works just as well too. I just never got into that habit.

Ballistol is a mixture of isobutyl alcohol, the solvent side of the stuff,,, and 'pharmaceutical grade white oil' (that's baby oil, mineral oil, other names for it too). Oleic Acid is a component,,an emulsifying (sp?) cleaning agent as it is in soap.
Some perfumes thrown in I'd guess.


A couple of new M/L shooters at the range I shoot at swore by it to clean their M/Lds. They were going by info given to them not having tried it yet for BP cleaning.
They used the stuff for cartridge firearms and everything else they could pour it on and into. There isn't much in it that can harm anything. Lubing a gun with babyoil isn't on my list though.

Anyway, after a couple of sessions, they both switched to water/soap cleaning I originally suggested as they admitted to having after rust problems w/it.
They were still in search of a 'better' solution though.
Just like any normal younger person would be!
Hope they find one..

That's the only time I've run into anyone using it to clean a BP/ML firearm.

Lot's of people say it works great. Maybe it's all in the technique.

I wash the barrels with a pine cleaner water mixture submerging the nipple end of the muzzle stuffer in the bucket. a good sized patch sucks up and forces out the cleaner. After rinsing and drying a coat of ballistol

Equal to Windex, but a whole lot cheaper, is the blue gallon bottles of windshield washer fluid you buy for not much over $1 a gallon at auto parts places, Walmart, etc. Used it for years until I discovered the brew below.

I personally prefer to mix equal parts of Murphy's oil soap, alcohol, and h. peroxide. Absolutely no after rust problems in 25+ years, and very very cheap. Must keep mixture in opaque bottles, like the peroxide comes in.

SRH