I have two questions about Felix lube, both prompted by my attempt at making po-boy Felix lube last night. And yes, I have seen the sticky.
1) First I will state that volumetric measure makes sense for the liquid or grease-like substances, but it makes little sense to call out for a 3.5" x 3.5" X 1" brick of beeswax. Most beeswax is sold today in little pellets, or you get it from the hive. A weight measure would be better, so I did the work myself and converted it:
Beeswax is about 960 kg/cubic meter = 0.55 oz/cubic inch. 3.5 x 3.5 x 1 = 12.25 cubic inches, so 12.25 x 0.55 = ~6.75 oz of beeswax.
So I added the 2 tablespoons of mineral oil, 1 tablespoon of castor oil, 1 tablespoon of grated Ivory soap (which weighs about 4 grams or 0.14 ounces). And then added that 6.75 ounces of beeswax. That's when I realized that Felix lube is basically BEESWAX with some stuff added to it. Finally I added 1 tablespoon of Vaseline since I don't have Lanolin and am not paying 8 dollars an ounce for the lanolin nipple lube at the pharmacy, so I realize this is not orthodox Felix lube and I want to make it with Lanolin in the future. It seems to work alright, but I have not shot it yet.
Is my math wrong here or something, because FELIX lube is about 80% BEESWAX. People have been using beeswax as a bullet lube from the beginning. Also, has anyone found that bypassing the cooking of the Mineral Oil and Castor Oil has no impact on performance?If it is doesn't, I will gladly dispense with that tedious process.
2) Where do you guys get cheap Lanolin?
I like this lube, mainly because everything it is made from is food grade or at least body-contact grade. I will never heat up some EP lithium grease again after trying those lubes. It ruins everything it comes into contact with and smells horrible.