Hi all, I thought I'd try and make up a pile of cheap/inexpensive lube. I got one of those BIG 3 wick candles at the thrift store for $.25. I chopped of a big hunk with an axe, added a bowl wax ring and a few other odds and ends(grease, Lanolin, Murphy's oil soap...) until it started to look like lube. I haven't shot any yet. A couple of days ago we lost power, so we lit a bunch of candles. The wife brought out a BIG 3 wick candle that was burned way down so I thought that I'd just melt some of my $.25 candle and refill it. While it was melting in a pan on the stove(Gas) I looked at it with a flashlight and it had lots of metalic flakes in it. I'm thinking this would not have been good had I shot any of it. So I stopped by the thrift store today and got a $.50 tall square glass candle looking thing, melted my lube, poured in and added a wick. The candle started out green and had a nice pine scent to it. So I said look Honey, I make you a candle instead of working on Gun stuff today.
It seems to be burning pretty good and the greese and other stuff sin't giveing off a bad smell.

On the off chance that you get a remarkable mix, you might want to take notes on the formula.

Candle wicks are matched to the wax for burning rate.

I know of one person who picks the powder and lube to sound the loudest and smell the worst so as to influence shooters on either side during the match.

For the Wick, I just used some cotton string with a washer tied to the bottom of it to sink in the glass after pouring the lube in. I tied the top of the string to a pencil and just rolled it up until it was tight and let sit on the counter. I was kind of amazed at how clean it burned with the grease and stuff in it. My 16yo son said, of course it burned clean, it had soap in it.

"The NRA Handloader's Guide" 1969 a compilation of "American Rifleman" articles from 1950 to 1968.

One article in that book is "Pistol Champion Target loads".
All 9 featured champions use "Hensley & Gibbs" bullets, but the lubrication varies:

1) Gertrude E. Backstrom, locomotive side-rod grease

2) F. Bob Chow, perfect lube

3) G. P DeFino, Lyman Ideal

4) William E. Guiette, 7 parts way grease, 1 part Keystone open gear grease

5) Gil Hebard, Ipco Colloidal Graphite

6) John W. Hurst, 2 parts beeswax, 1 part paraffin, 1 part cosmolene

7) Ellas Lea, 3 pounds petroleum jelly, 1 1/2 pounds beeswax, 12 oz paraffin, 6 oz carnuba wax, 4 oz fine graphite

8) Harry Reeves, equal parts beeswax and water pump grease

9) W.T.Toney jr., 2 parts beeswax, 1 part beef tallow, 2 tablespoons powdered graphite to 3 pounds mixture