My Results w/ Hoppes vs Ballistol

[Austinpaulster]

Every moving part on my 629 Dlx has been so smooth and, well just amazing. Best of any of many revolvers I've owned or touched. The hammer especially, just so pleasurable to pull back. Cylinder just spins and spins.

My model 10 (NOS from '90) has always been tighter. Still smooth and terrific to shoot, but not silky like the 629.

I treated both exactly the same way for cleaning and lubing - Hoppes #9. All I've ever used. Anyway, I got a hair and switched over to Ballistol. Night and day difference. The 629? You can spin the cylinder, go have a sandwich, come back and it'll still be spinning.

But what really I'm happiest with is the improvement to the model 10. I'm especially feeling it in the hammer. Very nice.

I think the heavier viscosity of the Ballistol just works better for mine?

 

[Echo40]

Ballistol is amazing stuff, my only issue with it is that odor, which is extremely unpleasant fresh from the can. Fortunately, it smells better over time once it has settled.

If only they could combine the cleaning power of Ballistol with the non-toxic, minty fresh scent of Frog Lube, then it would be the ultimate gun cleaning/lubricant solution on the market.

 

[ISCS Yoda]

Ballistol is my take-to-range lubricant. It's great.

 

[rockquarry]

I've never used Ballistol for gun cleaning, but it's good for other things and you get used to the aroma of dirty feet.

 

[Austinpaulster]

Ballistol is amazing stuff, my only issue with it is that odor, which is extremely unpleasant fresh from the can. Fortunately, it smells better over time once it has settled.

If only they could combine the cleaning power of Ballistol with the non-toxic, minty fresh scent of Frog Lube, then it would be the ultimate gun cleaning/lubricant solution on the market.

It's funny, my wife likes the smell of it better than the Hoppes. Go figure!

But yep, the smell fades pretty fast.

 

[Gearhead Jim]

I've never tried using Hoppes #9 as a lube, only as a bore cleaner.

#9 does not work well as a rust preventer- one of the officers in my department cleaned his Airweight J-frame thoroughly and then wiped it down with #9 and started carrying it. A week later, the cylinder & barrel had rust freckles.
I took a "white" barrel from a Hi Power that was pristine, slobbered it up with #9, and left town for two weeks. When I came home the #9 still covering the barrel, was turning brown because the steel underneath was rusting.

 

[Scharfschuetzer]

"I treated both exactly the same way for cleaning and lubing - Hoppes #9."

I've never thought of Hoppes as a lubricant and I don't think that it's marketed as such. Perhaps I'm missing something here, but I find a good gun grease the best way to lubricate the high friction parts in either a revolver or semi auto.

For rust protection, RIG is pretty good for long term storage and Birchwood Casey Sheath is good for light duty for carry guns or storage in a dry area.

I've never liked the aroma of Ballistol, but if my wife would have used Hoppes as a perfume, I'd have married here much sooner.

 

[jeffrefrig]

That mineral oil in Ballistol is what they used in refrigeration/AC compressors. It doesn't gum up at very cold temps. It's great on leather and wood, too. Before I found Ballistol, I'd use refrig. oil to break in softball gloves, tool pouches, etc. Worked great.

 

[Jimmy4570]

Hoppe's love potion is strictly a solvent. One must still follow up with a lubricant for moving parts or overall for storage. Ballistol is a coal oil derivative that the Germans whipped up that is probably one of the first CLPs ever made. I've come to appreciate it overall.

FWIW, I had a correspondence with master barrel maker Wil Schumann back in 2001 after reading an article in the now defunct but wonderful magazine Precision Shooter in which he and some other barrel makers, silhouette and long range shooters analyzed barrel wear of brushes, solvents and oils. Bottom line, and a conclusion I've come to follow over the years with excellent results, is that it's best to not use solvents or metallic brushes in bores you care about. Keep your chambers clean to ensure feed reliability. Use Strictly oil, perhaps JB bore paste to remove leading if necessary but leave your barrels alone. They'll foul up to a point then stop. It's proven itself to me over two SIG P series self loaders with over 10k rounds through each of them over the years, the third with over 12k before I was forced to swap it for a G19M. Same with my issue carbines. Perhaps once or twice a year I'll scrub the bores using Mili-tec1 or Ballistol and JB just because and my pieces show as good and better accuracy compared to my colleagues who scrub the snot out of their guns with brushes and Rem oil and/or Hoppe's.

 

[stansdds]

As others have pointed out, Hoppes #9 is not a lubricant, it is strictly a solvent designed for removing powder residue and there is a small amount of ammonia to aid in dissolving copper jacket deposits.

 

[shocker]

Mineral spirits to remove powder residue, lube with a minimal amount of mineral oil. Cheap and effective.
Mineral oil also dissolves powder residue so it's a CLIP. But there are certain places where lube isn't needed or desired, so the mineral spirits.
My remaining use for ballistol is a 1:9 dilution with water for rinsing the barrel after corrosive ammo.

 

[Sistema1927]

In defense of the OP, Hoppes is now marketing both CLP and gun oil using the "Hoppe's #9" designation. Back in the day, everyone knew that #9, in addition to a scent that drives the gals wild, was only a solvent. Now, all bets are off.

 

[oysterer]

She doesn't like the smell, you spend too much time in the garage all by yourself. So sad, it doesn't have to be this way.

Now this comes to the rescue:

Ballistol Romantic...

Wellness-"Ol | Wellness K"orperpflege-"Ol | Mensch | Produkte | BALLISTOL

 

[ken158]

Every moving part on my 629 Dlx has been so smooth and, well just amazing. Best of any of many revolvers I've owned or touched. The hammer especially, just so pleasurable to pull back. Cylinder just spins and spins.

My model 10 (NOS from '90) has always been tighter. Still smooth and terrific to shoot, but not silky like the 629.

I treated both exactly the same way for cleaning and lubing - Hoppes #9. All I've ever used. Anyway, I got a hair and switched over to Ballistol. Night and day difference. The 629? You can spin the cylinder, go have a sandwich, come back and it'll still be spinning.

But what really I'm happiest with is the improvement to the model 10. I'm especially feeling it in the hammer. Very nice.

I think the heavier viscosity of the Ballistol just works better for mine?

#9 is a solvent - not a lubricant. Use the #9 to clean and the Ballistol to finish up with, although there are better options for a lubricant.

 

[505Gibbs]

The 'original' formula Hoppe's 9[ the aftershave of choice by knowledgeable shooters] has evolved with their newer offerings. The original was fine in its time but there are many that are now better at removing powder & copper- IMO.

 

[Buzzzer]

I also use just JB and oil, usually Kroil, for cleaning barrels. However, on the cylinders of a revolver I use a brush. I do use Hoppe's #9 for wiping powder residue off various firearms/parts but always follow it with some oil. I have never heard of anyone using #9 as a lubricant...

 

[Echo40]

I've never used Ballistol for gun cleaning, but it's good for other things and you get used to the aroma of dirty feet.

To me, it's worse than dirty feet. It honestly reminds me of skunk roadkill, a potent yet vile mixture of skunk spray and rotting flesh.

However, after a short while, after it has been out in the open air for awhile, Ballistol's odor seems to combine with ambient scents in the environment and become more pleasant.
Last year I soaked a rusted out Tokarev magazine in Ballistol to remove the rust and sat it in my kitchen inside of an open container, when I returned later to check on it, the Ballistol's scent had combined with the scent of fresh baked goods in my kitchen to form a rather pleasant scent.

It's funny, my wife likes the smell of it better than the Hoppes. Go figure!

But yep, the smell fades pretty fast.

I've never used Hoppes #9 because I only really got into firearms back in 2015, and by that time Hoppes #9 was widely regarded as an older cleansing solution which was inferior to modern CLPs, so I used Frog Lube and later Ballistol, and both worked so well that I had no reason to bother with Hoppes.

That said, obviously neither is perfect. Frog Lube smells great and is non-toxic, but unless you follow the instructions EXACTLY during application, then it turns into rubber cement. Ballistol is an excellent cleaner/lubricant, but smells awful, is hazardous to your health if sprayed in a closed-in area, and turns into a vile brown sludge if left out in the air for too long.

 

[Marshal Tom]

Have any of you used Gunzilla BC10. I purchased some at a show several years ago and love the stuff. I have ordered it several times since and have recommended it to others. It just works great and has a very pleasant smell that the wife likes much better than Hoppies. It has been my go to CLP for a few years now.

 

[Warren Sear]

Ballistol mixes with water; mineral oil does not. I don't know what is in Ballistol, but it is not mineral oil.

Great stuff though, once the stench goes away.

 

[series guy]

Ballistol is plant based. It's also skin safe. The only gun cleaner I know of that is.