Lube tube - anal kit discontinued by Cal Exotics - review by Silverdrop

This is a simple, single-purpose product. It's meant to deliver lube into an orifice and it does this perfectly. It comes in an easy-open plastic clamshell, with two syringes to the package, but is not discreet as it has "Lube Tube" across it in big letters. At least we're spared the porn imagery Cal Exotics is so fond of!

The Lube Tube resembles a medical syringe, except for the looped handle, which seems designed to make it easier to hold if your hands are slippery. The outer surface is smooth, and narrow enough - thinner than a finger - that I don't need any preparation to insert it anally. I doubt many people would. The tip is rounded with a small opening, and covered with a soft plastic cap. This could be used if you want to prep your syringe ahead of playtime and have it waiting on the nightstand, but I imagine mine will get lost long before I become that organized.

The sizes on the product info page are correct, so I'll repeat them here for convenience:

Color: Clear (Frosted)
Length: 5"
Insertable length: 3 1/4"
Circumference: 1 1/2"
Diameter: 3/8"
Weight: 2.5 oz

The syringe is made of food-grade plastic, which rates 8 on Eden's Safety Scale. It can be cleaned with soap and water or toy cleaner, but cannot be boiled to sterilize it. To clean, pull the syringe and plunger apart and wash. To be sure you get the inside of the tube, use the plunger to suck up soapy water and squirt it back out a few times. Because it can't be fully sterilized, I recommend designating one tube for each orifice, and not sharing between partners. Especially at the price, there's no reason not to have plenty around, as well as a few spares!

Unfortunately, there is no easy way to label it. You don't want to put any markings on the outer part of the tube, since that's going to be going inside you. The top part of the plunger is heart-shaped and the plastic there has a bit of texture - it seems the best place to mark it. I tried a permanent marker on one syringe, and colour coded the other with nail polish. I'll report in the follow up how well these two methods held up over multiple washings. I suppose another method would be tying a coloured ribbon around the handle loop. I wish Cal Exotics had come up with some way of telling one tube from another, though I can't think of what that might be, so I won't dock them any points for it.

You can either insert the syringe into your bottle of lube and pull up on the plunger to suck up the lube, or put the lube in from the top with your finger or the cap on the tip to keep it from pouring out. The second method is safer, as you are less likely to contaminate your bottle of lubricant with germs, but is a little tricky if you're using a thick lubricant. If you have a squeeze bottle, I've found the best way is to tilt the syringe so that the tip is pointed up and squeeze the lubricant up into the tube from below. Then use the plunger to push the lubricant down to the end. Pump style dispensers are kind of fiddly, and it depends on the shape of the pump how well they'll work without making a mess. It might be easier to pump what you want into a paper cup or something similar so that you can use the suck it up method.

Since silicone lubricant is runny, it drips out of the syringe if you don't have the end covered, and it tends to try to coat the entire syringe. If you've played with silicone lube, you know this tendency! However, the syringe still works fine for its intended purpose. You probably won't want an entire syringe - or even half a syringe - full of the stuff, since with silicone a little goes a long way. Just use a few pumps of product to get exactly the amount you want. If you do leave the cap on while doing this, instead of using the finger method, turn the syringe upside down before removing the cap. I didn't, and the cap ended up being half full of lube and spilling. (And by the way, why is silicone lube so slippery when silicone toys are so frictiony? What's up with that?)

Another thing to take care with, whatever lubricant you use, is to be sure there's only lube and no air in the syringe when you use it. (Unless eproctophilia is your kink - I won't judge!)

My own experience was with anal play using Maximus lube. Since the syringe hadn't been used yet, I went ahead and inserted it directly into the bottle of lube and pulled up on the plunger. The lube was pulled into the tube without any difficulty at all. I adjusted the amount until I had the syringe about half full, and then inserted it into my anus and pushed down on the plunger. I barely felt anything at all - it was that easy. Next, I took my Tantus Ace Small buttplug and, instead of coating it liberally with lube, as I would have done previously, I smeared a drop over it with my finger - just enough to take the drag off the silicone. If it had been a glass or steel toy, I probably wouldn't have bothered.

The internal experience of anal play was the same as it would have been without the Lube Tube. The difference the Lube Tube made was this - I didn't have lube all over the outside of my buttocks, the sheets, my fingers, and everywhere else. The sphincter tends to act as a squeegee, pushing off any lube that's on your fingers or toys when you insert them, but with the Lube Tube, the lubricant goes exactly where it's needed, and nowhere else!

I have not yet experimented with using this vaginally, since the second tube has been designated for my boyfriend. It's a lot easier to lube up the vagina than the rectum, so this tool won't be quite as essential for vaginal play, but I still expect it to be useful and fun. Aside from sexual uses, this could also be used to apply vaginal moisturiser or medication.

I've given this product 5 stars for performing perfectly at delivering lubricant exactly where it's needed. I intend to pick up a few more packages in my next order and always have these on hand. They make anal play so much easier!

I'm crushed that this was discontinued. At least I got to purchase a second pack of them so that I have four total. I use mine every time I have anal sex.

I promised to report back on the marking: It turns out that nail polish is fairly durable as a marking device, but permanent marker washes off too easily.