Talk:Sperm oil

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Freezing point?

The article states that the freezing point of sperm whale oil is very low, which was a very important characteristic for its utility as a lubricant, but no figure is listed.

I know that modern synthetic motor oils for four-stroke gasoline engines have pour points of -40 C. and lower. Supposedly a new formulation of Petro Canada Duron 0w-40 has a pour point of -66 Celsius, or at least they make that claim on their web page. Does sperm whale oil remain liquid to such low temperatures? Given that its low freezing point was supposedly the biggest reason it was irreplaceable in Western industry for so long, in my opinion it would be appropriate to have an actual figure so that it can be compared to its modern replacements. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:400:8000:4526:BD1E:1DCA:AB18:8529 (talk) 07:02, 16 December 2018 (UTC)[reply]

Illegal to possess in US and Enforcement? Bogus?

Apparently, the US enforced the Endangered Species Act on a person trying to sell sperm oil on eBay in 2000. That seems to be suspicious, especially since the NOAA submitted a press release about it after the guy was fined $2000. See archived 6/8/2004 Press release: "$2,000 PENALTY ASSESSED FOR ILLEGAL ATTEMPTED SALE OF SPERM WHALE OIL OVER INTERNET."

However, there is a Marine Mammal Protection Act, also in 16 U.S. Code § 1372. Prohibitions, (e) Retroactive effect that indicates that possessing old whale products is just fine:

This Act shall not apply with respect to any marine mammal taken before the effective date of this Act [December 21, 1972], or to any marine mammal product consisting of, or composed in whole or in part of, any marine mammal taken before such date. See [1] or [2] or [3]

So while the above text seems to make it ok to possess or sell sperm oil, the fact that the whale is endangered seems to make it a bit cloudy. I like to saw logs! (talk) 23:54, 13 May 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Is the source for sperm oil being used for gun-type nuclear bombs reliable?

The last paragraph of the Applications section claims that sperm oil was used to lubricate the barrel of gun-type nuclear bombs. The source provided seems rather unreliable, citing no sources of its own or evidence of its claim. Am I missing something, or is this just a good enough story to be convincing? Corviraptor (talk) 02:55, 20 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]

I removed the paragraph for now, and put a citation needed tag on the claim that Rust-Oleum used sperm oil as well. It's a shame, because sperm oil being used in gun-type fission weapons is a really endearing story. Corviraptor (talk) 20:35, 20 May 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Duplicated article?

There is this entry for Sperm oil and another for Spermaceti. It seems (to a non-expert like me at least) that both refer to the same substance. If that’s not the case, it would be fitting to include an explanation of the terms in both articles. DNEP (talk) 01:08, 19 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Transmission Problems

I can't find evidence for the below figures: "transmission failures rose from under 1 million in 1972 to over 8 million by 1975." in the referenced source: https://www.nytimes.com/1975/04/17/archives/transmission-problems-in-cars-linked-to-ban-on-whale-killing.html — Preceding unsigned comment added by 213.78.10.44 (talk) 21:03, 30 June 2024 (UTC)[reply]