Many of the TN Rifles had a flat bottomed hole in the right side of the stock back in the area where a patch box would be fitted. This hole was normally packed with patch lube, such as a mixture of Beeswax & Bear Grease.
Many experienced ML'ers say one should Never Ever put any petroleum product down the bore of a black powder gun. It will produce a gum which makes cleaning harder. Beeswax, animal fats etc can actually be used to Season a bore much like seasoning a cast iron skillet. Some fats such as hog lard will turn rancid fairly quick. Bear Grease was supposed to be good, never had any to try, also Mutton Tallow is supposed to be one of the best when mixed 50-50 with beeswax.
There are now several modern products available which apply this principal, Wonder Lube is one which comes to mind off hand, but there are some other brands available. You want to get the barrel as hot as you can with boiling water, let it quickly dry out & then swab on a good coat of the lube down the bore. Let set about a day, then repeat the process. After this it should clean easier & give it a coat of lube after cleaning each time.
