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Ballistol

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JEBar
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Ballistol

Post by JEBar » Thu Mar 31, 2016 9:19 pm

for several decades I've used Hoppe's #9 to clean our firearms and didn't give much thought to trying anything else .... a few months ago our oldest son gave me a can of Ballistol Multi-Purpose Aerosol Can Lubricant Cleaner Protectant -- http://www.amazon.com/Ballistol-Multi-P ... =ballistol -- I decided to humor him and give it a try .... to test it, I thoroughly cleaned a rifle barrel with #9 and ran dry patches through it until I was sure it was dry .... sprayed a patch with Ballistol and ran it through the barrel ... the patch proved the barrel wasn't even close to clean .... since then we have used it exclusively to clean and lube our firearms .... the more times they are cleaned, the easier it seems to be to do so .... I'm convinced that it is the best product we've ever used
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Re: Ballistol

Post by Squatch » Thu Mar 31, 2016 9:44 pm

It's also one of the oldest. The black powder guys love it and one turned me on to it recently. It does work well and I'm told it's water based. A few holster companies recommend it for their leather goods. It works well but I find it a slight irritant to my nose.
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Re: Ballistol

Post by White Squirrel » Thu Mar 31, 2016 9:53 pm

I have been a Hoppes #9 guy for over 50 years, but I tried some Ballistol about six months ago and now that is all I use.
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PT7
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Re: Ballistol

Post by PT7 » Thu Mar 31, 2016 10:06 pm

Since I'm a "cleaning nut," thought I'd chime in.

I looked at the amazon link you posted, JEBar. There were over 1000 customer reviews, with most being quite positive. I read maybe a dozen, and found a couple of them even "entertaining:"

When Hickok45 tells you he likes something, you're better off just purchasing it! I love my Ballistol products! Have a nice day.

Unlike Hoppes #9, the odor will not trigger happy memories of cleaning guns with grand dad- unless grand dad was in the Wehrmacht.

I most often have used Hoppe's Number 9 and G96, which both work quite well. Based on your comparison eval between the Hoppes and the Ballistol, I might pick up a can of the Ballistol next time I see it on the shelves. Have you used it on wood? That is what I'm most careful with when cleaning/maintaining my Henry rifles. Always cautious what I use on that beautiful furniture!

Thanks for your post.
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JEBar
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Re: Ballistol

Post by JEBar » Thu Mar 31, 2016 10:19 pm

PT7 wrote:Have you used it on wood? That is what I'm most careful with when cleaning/maintaining my Henry rifles. Always cautious what I use on that beautiful furniture!

Thanks for your post.
I've used it in cleaning our Big Boy Steel 44 mag three times and our 45-70 twice .... I haven't deliberately wiped it down with a rag coated in Ballistol but some has run out onto the stock/forend wooden pieces and I can't tell any impact .... in addition, I'd read somewhere that it was bad for blued finishes .... it had no impact that I could see on the finish of our steel Henry rifles .... it you have any concerns, I'd recommend you not use it .... the only negative for me is it has a strong smell and needs to be used outside or in a well vented area ... I've just ordered 3 more cans
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Re: Ballistol

Post by Squatch » Fri Apr 01, 2016 8:09 pm

I wiped down my entire 45/70 with it including the wood and haven't seen any problems so far.
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Re: Ballistol

Post by PT7 » Fri Apr 01, 2016 8:23 pm

Good/interesting thread. Thanks, Gents, from the "cleaning nut."
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Re: Ballistol

Post by ditto1958 » Fri Apr 01, 2016 11:46 pm

I use Ballistol and am really happy with it. Just as you can't go wrong using Hoppe's No. 9, so it is with Ballistol.

It's a gentle but effective solvent. It smells good and is pretty much non-toxic. It seems to perform just fine as a firearms lubricant. As a bonus, if you mist a soft cloth with it and wipe down your guns before putting them away, you will start to notice that they look better.
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Re: Ballistol

Post by Rugerfanboy » Fri May 27, 2016 11:16 pm

I use ballistol on my leather Ruger Redhawk holster. When I first got the holster, I could verily get the gun in the holster. It was a two handed fight every time I tried to insert the gun in the holster. Decided to soak the holster with ballistol and took a freezer bag and inserted the gun inside of the freezer bag and soaked the holster for about hour. After an hour, I inserted the gun that was inside of a freezer bag inside of the holster and let it set inside of my gun safe for about a week. Bingo, now the gun can be inserted into the holster with one hand.

If you look real close at the bottom of the cylinder, you'll see a blue piece sticking out. That is a blue paper towel soaked with ballistol and that area needed a little bit more clearance for the cylinder to slide inside of the holster with ease. After a week like the picture shows, this holster works like a charm now. The ballistol really made the leather form to the curves of my Ruger Redhawk 44 Magnum.
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Re: Ballistol

Post by bandit1250 » Sat May 28, 2016 5:57 am

Does the Ballistol have any thing in it to remove copper? With the time of the year here now for the high velocity Varmint rigs to be put into use I need to clean with a copper remover as to not let the copper get a head of me and have to go through what I just went through with my friends 25/06. If I keep up with the fouling as I use these high velocity rounds I will have better accuracy and less head aches. Ever get any blue on patches after shooting jacket bullets?
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