I was wanting to know the best way to wash pellets?
Usually before I shoot an event I wash some pellets using the follow method.
Wash pellets with Dawn dish washing liquid, a few drops work fine. Then roll the pellets out on a dry absorbent cloth to dry. Once dry, place a little bit of lube in a pellet tin and add pellets until you an almost have a full tin. Place lid on tin and rotate the tin on its side slowly like a tumbler til all pellets are evenly coated.
Note: They don't need to be dripping in lube!
Carl
I am using white lightning epic ride bike lube how many drops should I use to a tin of pellets?
I use the same wash method, Dawn in water with a little light swishing to cleanse the pellets. I then cover a pizza sized pan with newspaper and spread the pellets out on it in a single layer. This pan is placed in the sun and open air to dry.
As for lubing; I use an empty tin, with the little round sponge that comes with the tin (Crosman). I add ten drps of Super Lube (Teflon oil) to the foam, and I place 50 or so pellets at a time in the tin, and then gently nroll them around. After a couple hundred rounds, the sponge gets reseasoned with more Super Lube.
Dragon64, you like your testing experiments. If you ever get bored maybe an accuracy and chrono test comparing washed and lubed compared to non?
I don't wash mine. The pellets I buy these days seem quite clean to me - as clean as lead gets!
The gas cleans whats left and my tube collects the rest.
I did (when I was a teen) used to polish the diabolo heads. Sometimes I would get a knife and put an X on it for a dum-dum pellet.
But that was many moons ago..... and pellets are better now with more choices. It was childish fun for me!
Quote from: hotshot on September 12, 2011, 01:23:27 PM
Dragon64, you like your testing experiments. If you ever get bored maybe an accuracy and chrono test comparing washed and lubed compared to non?
From my own testing I can NOT say there was any accuracy improvement but I can say that because I felt better about the pellets I was shooting I probably did shoot better. There are so many facets of shooting that are purely mental and this could be just another one of those.
Carl
Dont do what a kid at school would and wash them in his mouth when re-loading! :o
Quote from: hotshot on September 12, 2011, 01:23:27 PM
Dragon64, you like your testing experiments. If you ever get bored maybe an accuracy and chrono test comparing washed and lubed compared to non?
I believe that lubing the pellets will help more with cleaning than accuracy. The lube I am using has Teflon embedded in it, and with each pass of the bb, it deposits a little Teflon onto the surface of the barrel. Cleaning lead and any other gunk should become much easier with the passage of time.
I have only just started, and the pellet lubing process is kind of time consuming... great for bad weather days. As for washing... I should show you the lead dust that comes off of the Crosman pellets that are in the box (match pellets)... these pellets are filthy!! Cleaning is a must for anyone using these pellets. Imagine playing in graphite dust... yuck!
This thread is confusing. I have read many posts/webpages espousing the virtues of washing and lubing pellets and many other webpages discouraging shooters from washing and lubing their lead. Is there really a definitive answer? Are the washers and lubers getting a more accurate pellet? Is washing and greasing only a benefit to a poorly manufactured pellet? I look forward to a barrage of vast knowledge on this subject.
"is there a definitive answer ?" yes and the answer is no .will it help ? maybe --- others will say yes and other will say no --- just like what is best to use to clean your barrel --- very subjective .
Quote from: eric on September 13, 2011, 02:41:40 AM
"is there a definitive answer ?" yes and the answer is no .will it help ? maybe --- others will say yes and other will say no --- just like what is best to use to clean your barrel --- very subjective .
Exactly, I read alot on the subject, but it was not until a welll respected local shooter gave me some pointers, that I even attempted the process. I would like to clarify, that I am not washing all of my pellets, only the Crosman pellets that come in cardboard box. These are excellent shooting pellets for field target, but they come dusted with lead from the manufacturing process. I'll take a pic or two to illustrate the issue.
Will the lead dust keep me from using them because they need to be cleaned first? No, because they are better suited Crosman pellet for target practice and competition.
The "each to their own" rule.
If it works for you, then go for it. Like many things in life what works for one person may not matter or work for another.
Carl made a great point. Sometimes it is mental thing and the cleaning has given you a mystical confidence. It may even be a case of you
having a zen moment whilst washing them before a shoot. Many sportsters have a routine to get them into the zone as it were. :-*
I tried to get mine to take a shower or even use the Jaccuzi before shooting, but they kept going down the drain. ;D
i just washed a 4 tin pack of Gamo sample pellets.
tried them all, and they ALL suck, 1 out of 9 will not slide into the chamber correctly, so i washed them all. tin by tin.
going to see if the oiling of them helps at all. Gamo pellets are junk!
going back to crosman SSP lead free type.
I wash anything that has that graphite crap on. I do not like it all over my hands or in my guns. So mostly gamo and crosman stuff, yes it is graphite not lead. The gamo I am not to keen on, quality is naf and other "reasons". I dump them in a jar with dish soap or shampoo then dish out a few at a time in a strainer and soap em up then rinse them and paper towel or towel to dry then I do the dry lube (wax stuff) or use pelgun or the like on the ones that don't go into the nitro break barrel. I use a old tin and stick 1/4 tin in and a few drops close it up roll it about and dump em in the tin they came from and repeat until they are all done.
Friend soaks his so they are dripping and slams em out of a crosman springer, detonations and all but more often than not he hits what he shoots. I still keep the oiled pellets out of my nitro gun for the smell of it alone. :o Gun stinks enough on it's own.
Im sure the graphite is not any worse than wax, lead, or oil in the barrel etc. Mostly it is the mess on the hands and elsewhere is the reason I wash them. Personally I have not seen a improvement in accuracy due to washing.
QuoteI have only just started, and the pellet lubing process is kind of time consuming... great for bad weather days. As for washing... I should show you the lead dust that comes off of the Crosman pellets that are in the box (match pellets)... these pellets are filthy!! Cleaning is a must for anyone using these pellets. Imagine playing in graphite dust... yuck!
I'm just asking here because I don't know. Is the "filth" on the pellets really graphite? Graphite is a lubricant. Do you suppose Teflon in the barrel is better than graphite? Would you end up with a layer of Teflon builtup? Graphite being a fine powder might not accumulate as bad in the barrel. I don't mind swabbing the barrel, which one would be easier to get out of the barrel? I have not had to clean my barrels much but I don't know what is on the "dirtier" pellets which I sometimes use and haven't cleaned or lubed any pellets so far. White Lightening works just fine on bicycle chains.
Mostly thinking
Cheers,
Jerry
Don't know about White Lightening working on bike chains unless it is to take off Rust, but it sure taste good.
teflon or wax would be harder to remove from the barrel than the graphite dust. You would have to use a solvent since a wire brush or other firearm scrubber/swag would likely damage the fine rifling in a airgun barrel. With the pellets that use graphite I think it is done more for appearances more than anything sort of lubrication aspect. Sorta hides bad molding etc.
Quote from: Madkoifish on September 18, 2011, 12:54:56 PM
I wash anything that has that graphite crap on. I do not like it all over my hands or in my guns. So mostly gamo and crosman stuff, yes it is graphite not lead. The gamo I am not to keen on, quality is naf and other "reasons". I dump them in a jar with dish soap or shampoo then dish out a few at a time in a strainer and soap em up then rinse them and paper towel or towel to dry then I do the dry lube (wax stuff) or use pelgun or the like on the ones that don't go into the nitro break barrel. I use a old tin and stick 1/4 tin in and a few drops close it up roll it about and dump em in the tin they came from and repeat until they are all done.
Friend soaks his so they are dripping and slams em out of a crosman springer, detonations and all but more often than not he hits what he shoots. I still keep the oiled pellets out of my nitro gun for the smell of it alone. :o Gun stinks enough on it's own.
Im sure the graphite is not any worse than wax, lead, or oil in the barrel etc. Mostly it is the mess on the hands and elsewhere is the reason I wash them. Personally I have not seen a improvement in accuracy due to washing.
How do we know that the gray dust/filth on the Crosman premiers is graphite? Regardless, I wash the grime off, whether it is lead or graphite, the stuff really trashes your hands and the inner barrel.
I'm no longer on the fence about lubing the pellets; after shooting my first field target match, I can say that the barrel cleaned up nicely in less than eight passes total with patches + Crown Saver, to include solvent patches, dry patches, and two lubed passes with Remoil. I was paired with Harold Rushton this past weekend, shooting field target, and he stated that washing is a must for Crosman premier pellets (boxed match pellets, especially the heavies), but he has suspended lubing pellets, as he noticed some decreases in accuracy... Coming from the 2010 national field target champ, I take his advice seriously... I have a couple hundred rounds of lubed pellets left, and then no more pellet lubing for me.
good info...
i noticed there is definately a graphite even on the SSP alloy lead free crosman pellets.
and they bend in my fingers really easily, i have to check for round wth each one, and i get a fair amount of grey on my fingertips.
i also double seat my pellets, after they go in, i re pull the bolt to allow a no-pinch scenario...as i have found some Gamo pellets are not seating correctly (which i don't use GAMO any longer)
i will now wash a few tins of the LEAD FREE alloys and see if that has any known issues, i will have to start a ledger. as i have a dedicated 1377 for lead free ammo vs. a 1377 lead ammo. (searching for barrel wear)