Jump to content
SASS Wire Forum

WHALE OIL


roughcreek, SASS#42949

Recommended Posts

Years ago I acquired a couple quarts of Sperm Whale Oil. I want to use it to lube my Navy's and occasionally lube my muzzleloader patches with. The bottles have a cloudy substance in the bottom. Anyone know what this is and if it needs to be mixed with the rest of the bottle for it to be effective?

 

Thanks, Roughcreek

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Be careful. I think you can get in serious trouble for possessing Sperm Whale Oil due to the endangered species act.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Be careful. I think you can get in serious trouble for possessing Sperm Whale Oil due to the endangered species act.

I think it is treated just like ivory. YOu cannot take it from a whale, sell what you have taken, or possess that which you have illegally taken, etc. But if it is pre-illegal, ok.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It's gone bad, you need to send it to me to be safely disposed of. :rolleyes:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Be careful. I think you can get in serious trouble for possessing Sperm Whale Oil due to the endangered species act.

 

 

Bull Hockey..As long as it is preban(before the mid 1970's as I recall) it is fine and very legal..I have been using sperm whale oil for the past 12 years on all of my firearms.

The first automatic transmissions, particularly the Chrysler Dyna Flo used only straight sperm whale oil as lubricant..Singer sewing machine recommendewd using only sperm whale oil on their machines;jewelers used it to lubricate watches and on and on...

Sperm whale oil Does not go bad with age..I am currently using my last quart of sperm whale oil that is in perfect condition and it is dated 1861..probably pre ban I would think....

I normally buy it at auctions...12 years ago i bought a 5 gallon steel drum of sperm whale oil .A little goes a long way.I sold about 4 gallons of it and kept i gallon for myself.It lasted over 12 years and was dated 1957.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Roughcreek, the "oil" from a sperm whale's head cavity is called Spermaceti. It is a wax, not oil. If you have a suspension, sounds to me like there is Spermaceti wax that has separated from the whale oil taken from the blubber.

If they were my quart bottles, I'd swirl a bottle to see if the wax mixed back with the oil. If it didn't, I'd warm the quart up in water in a pot just to to point where the 'cloudy substance' disappeared. Do not over heat the oil by bring the water to a roaring boil. The other option is do nothing and use the oil that is not cloudy

 

Might want to also consider buying jojoba oil to use instead of the good stuff. Jojoba oil is chemically and physically very similar to whale oil because the carbon-hydrogen and oxygen bonds are almost the same. Jojoba ester is similar to Spermaceti. Both variations of this jojoba plant make an excellent lube ingredient if you are a black powder shooter. The other oil that is similar to whale oil is meadow foam

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Buying whale oil at auction? Here's a 2004 case:

 

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration charged a resident of Lincroft, N.J., with four counts of selling or attempting to sell sperm whale oil over eBay’s online auction site, in violation of the Endangered Species Act. NOAA is an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department.

 

NOAA’s Office of General Counsel for Enforcement and Litigation assessed a $2,000 penalty against Alan Troshane for the infraction, which took place between March and April 2000. Troshane found the sperm whale oil in the basement of the school where he worked and advertised the whale oil for sale on the Internet-based auction site for $40 per ounce.

 

During the course of an investigation by NOAA’s Office for Law Enforcement, Troshane admitted the violation and subsequently paid the penalty.

 

Sperm whales are listed under the Endangered Species Act. The act governs the taking, possession, transportation, sale, purchase, barter, exportation, importation of, and other requirements pertaining to wildlife and plants determined to be threatened or endangered.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We got ourselves a great system where good intentions don't always make sense. Destroy the stuff that men and creatures died to obtain?

 

Kinda like not being able to pick a feather up off the ground any more.

 

CR

Link to comment
Share on other sites

John Boy is dead on about the Jojoba oil. I have been using it for about three years now. It has many uses with a lot of them being medical uses. It runs about $60 a gal. Makes a top notch BP lube with other things added.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.