BALLISTOL! Heard of it, use it, opinion of it?

N320AW

This stuff has had so much hype on Youtube I'm almost afraid to talk about it. Ballistol, if you're not familiar with it, is an oil/lubricant developed in Germany in the very early 1900's. It is non-toxic and is almost supposed to do everything by way of cleaning, lubricating, finishing, etc. Maybe if you want a dry martini you could garnish your gin/vodka with an aerosol shot of this stuff and be in Heaven.

I've tried the stuff on barrel patches and didn't see anything remarkable about it. Other than that it has an odor that I don't care for.

Some like it and some don't. I'd like to hear from anyone with any experience with this stuff.

Varmintmist

I have used it for years and I like it. I dont think it is a bore cleaner, but as a lube that emulsifies with water it is great.

BigDanS

Well, it isn't Crisco...

D

JKP

I use it but not for bore cleaning of course. Good stuff that won't harm stock finishes.

Teach

Any black powder shooter who isn't using Ballistol simply doesn't know what he's doing. It's one of the few products that don't create hard, crusty deposits when exposed to BP residue. It was the only cleaner/lube product used by the German army in two world wars, and was also used as a preservative for wood, leather, and even as a minor wound treatment. There are better copper solvents, and other specialty products, but as a general purpose bore cleaner, lube, and preservative, it's hard to beat. Other things we love smell funky- - - -get used to it!
Jerry

Gene L

I like it and it's a good cleaner and will slick things up real nicely. It's at least as good as CLP, I think.

Durwood

The smell of the crap is too foul to outweigh any usefulness it may have.

Ranch13

I've used it, not found it to be the gods gift to blackpowder shooters some say it is. For cleaning the barrel I much prefer to use a mix of 3 parts NAPA water soluble cutting oil and 7 parts water. Then using a good bore solvent to clean the carbon and residue from the barrel, and what ever lead there may have been deposited in the grooves.

Gene L

For cleaning the barrel on a blackpowder rifle, it's hard to beat hot water and soap. Afterwards, spray with WD 40 and then lube it. Ballistol is fine for the lube, I guess.

Also a little ammonia in the soap works great. Ballistol smells like liquorice and dirty socks. But it's a great lube. So is the Swedish autofet which you can sometimes find.