Kiwi Mink Oil for Leather

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Rubicon1851

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Wondered if anyone had used this stuff either as lube/patch lube or final wipe (post cleaning) protectant. I stripped and refinished the grips on both my '51 navies (along with losing the "Pietta tail") and used this stuff to refinish the walnut. After multiple coats, I'm very happy with the low-luster look and feel. In the process, I noticed ingredients of mink oil, silicon and some kind of wax, ... couldn't help but wonder if the product mixes well with the black/pyrodex. I had hoped to run my own little test, but have not been able to get out shooting since early May due to the extremely dry conditions, non-stop wildfires, and shooting restrictions in the West Desert this season.:cuss: Appreciate your thoughts/comments.
 
Thanks guys... after putting on my 'specs and checking the can we're looking at : mink oil, silicon, lanolin. Seems to me (and my smeller) there has to be a petroleum distillate (?) in the mix; a couple of stabs at on-line searching hasn't brought up anything more enlightening as of yet. There is also another Kiwi product called 'Camp Dry Mink Oil' in a larger 5 or 6 oz tub, but only listed ingredients as a "blend of mink oils". I'm hopeful (but still doubtful) I stumbled onto something good... price-wise it would compare with TC Bore Butter.
 
mink oil, silicon, lanolin. Seems to me (and my smeller) there has to be a petroleum distillate (?) in the mix;
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Why? And even if there was, your 'smeller' might just be discerning aromatics that are fully burned by black powder combustion. Not all petroleum distillates are bad for black powder; the higher distillates are fully burned and do not form the tar one gets from incomplete burning of the low distillates. Mineral oil-based products, like Ballistol, or machine tool cutting oil, are just two examples.

Dixie Gun Works sells mink oil as a patch lube. And many folks use silicon based lubricants as arbor lube and as anti-seize on nipple threads. And lanolin has been a part of patch lube recipes on this and other forums for years.

If you took my endorsement as an equivocation ("There should be no...") let me correct that now: There WILL BE NO ISSUES with any of those ingredients and black powder shooting.
 
Mykeal, that clears it up for me ! (even tho' you ended a little on the wishy-washy side). :D Looking forward to cooler weather and some excursions to the Desert. Will post comments if noteworthy at that time. Thanks.
 
Rubicon1851 said:
Wondered if anyone had used this stuff either as lube/patch lube
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Is this the Kiwi Outdoor Mink Oil that's a paste in a shoe polish tin?
Kiwi lists one of the other ingredients in it as being lanolin, and it's purpose to help waterproof leather.

http://www.kiwicare.com/kiwimcmssite/us/products/outdoor/mink-oil.html

If it is it apparently contains at least 20% - 24% Heavy Naptha and/or Stoddard solvent a.k.a. Aliphatic petroleum distillate (mineral spirit).

I don't know how it works as a patch lube or how compatible it is with black powder but most folks use pure mink oil and not a mink oil mixture that contains such a large percentage of another chemical. I'm not saying that it's bad but that it's not pure and that's because it's intended for waterproofing leather.

The listing for the ingredients are contained on these pages:

1. http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.go...1001018&query=Water&searchas=type&prodcat=all

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naphtha

3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_spirit

Track of the Wolf touts the purity of their mink oil tallow paste that's 100% pure.

http://www.trackofthewolf.com/Categories/PartDetail.aspx/181/1/MINK-OIL

Not a liquid, Mink Oil Tallow is actually a soft grease, the tallow rendered from mink fat. Also used as a leather balm, do not confuse our pure Mink Oil tallow with the synthetic blends sometimes sold at shoe stores as Mink Oil Brand leather waterproofing. They are entirely different!....Trapper's Mink Oil is excellent quality, pure and clean with no aroma, and very slippery....
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Arcticap: Thanks for the post. It is indeed Track of the Wolf and not Dixie Gun Works that sells the mink oil patch lube.

I don't see a problem with the heavy naptha or Stoddard solvent, but it can't be a bad thing to go with the pure mink oil.
 
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I ran into a gentleman down south a few years ago who claimed to use a lube formula dating back to the civil war. The formula involved mink oil, lanolin and I believe beeswax. Unfortunately the "mink oil" we buy today has other "stuff" in it other than just minks. That's not to say it won't work but I've got a sneaky suspicion that finding a pure mink oil is not gonna be that easy unless you skin the little buggers yourself.

If you were to decide to do the "skinning" just think of the possibilities though. How about a possibles bag made of mink?? A "mink" coon skin hat maybe or possibly a new coat for your lady?

Jeez, I've had too much coffee I'd better go find something constructive to do.
 
Yup, and I just re-read it again to make sure he hadn't suggested raising and skinning your own minks. He didn't.;)
 
There's commercial grade 100% mink oil with a slight scent that's sold in bulk and the more expensive cosmetic grade mink oil that's scent free. Pure neatsfoot oil is a cheaper alternative, and there's also blended mink and neetsfoot oil. Neetsfoot oil is rendered from the shinbone and feet of cattle (not the hooves).

http://www.minkoilforskincare.com/bulk_mink_oil.html

http://stores.ebay.com/MINK-Oil-Think-MINK-for-skin-care

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neatsfoot_oil

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mink_oil
 
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I've got a sneaky suspicion that finding a pure mink oil is not gonna be that easy unless you skin the little buggers yourself.
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Ok, I'm officially confused.:confused:

What's so difficult about ordering mink oil from Track of the Wolf? Or is their mink oil not pure enough? What am I missing?:banghead:
 
Now why would ya want to oil a mink..I thought the little buggers were slippery enough. At least I never seem to catch that many trappin back in my younger days, anf those I did get were cotton ones...lol
 
mykeal said:
What's so difficult about ordering mink oil from Track of the Wolf? Or is their mink oil not pure enough? What am I missing?
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Of course it is, but what's the fun in that??

I told you I drank too much coffee this morning, sometimes the voices in my head truly do sound real.
 
Aha. Now I understand. No wonder I was confused...what I was missing were the voices. Funny, I hardly noticed they were gone this morning. Maybe I should sleep under the porch every night.
 
mink oil

I was truly surprised that Mink oil was from mink. I figured that it was a fancy name for Vaseline.

I have use the several kinds of Mink oil products on my boots and other leather items. Seems to work well. When I rode a motorcycle all year I used to lube up my big gauntlet gloves with mink oil to seal the seams, to keep water and wind out, about twice a winter. Still have the gloves 25 years later and they are still good, I just don't have the bike any more. Nice on the hands as well.

I don't see any reason not to try it as a patch lube. Only draw back I see is that it is kind of thin when it is hot. You might want to use some sort of over the powder card. It is hot most of the time in Mesa AZ.

Joe
 
Arcticap, (yes that's the stuff in the little shoe polish tin) thanks much for the links and info; thanks Mykeal and thanks to you'se who wandered in many different directions... I'm anxious to check it out when Mother Nature will allow it.
 
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