Bolt Carrier Group lubrication choices

[BlueOvalFitter]

I don't like mine with excess oil, but I don't like it dry either.
I put a couple of drops of Ballistol on the bolt and rub it all over. I put a drop on the gas rings and turn it to allow the oil to move around. After the BCG is put back together I put a few drops of Ballistol on the friction parts of the BCG.
That's how I lube my BCG's.

 

[KneeGrinder]

Just say NO! to Frog lube! CLP, fine, but I rarely use it. Break Free for a field action cleaner. MPro-7 LPX oil, I don't use it, but its good stuff. Slip 2000, good stuff. I use mostly oil, I put small dabs of moly grease on the bolt lugs and high wear sections of the BCG "Only when I am on the range shooting".

I use motor oil, any kind, but prefer 20W/30W for full time storage, or standby readiness for my BCG's. I'm more in the wet sloppy camp, if it does not sweat out from the upper and lower at room temp "Without Firing" in a day after applying its too dry. I oil the left inside of the upper receiver where the bolt rides also.

My pistol does not receive that much sloppy oil lube, it just gets a few drops of oil and a couple dabs of anti seize. "It gets put into places I don't want oil getting rubbed onto"! It does not need much lube anyway.

 

[jjjxlr8]

Some bolt carriers work better with a little grease, but you must just be talking about the AR15 rifle?

 

[AZjeff]

I shoot with a retired Army Small Arms Specialist who's job was to keep weapons running in the sandbox. He put a drop of oil on the gas rings only there and the same here. Situation and environment determines best practice. What you do sounds good for a range-home gun. Kneegrinder's lube works for him in Idaho but wouldn't do so well in the desert.

 

[Linctex]

Originally Posted by jjjxlr8
but you must just be talking about the AR15 rifle?


Yes, sir - he is

here's the giveaway:
Originally Posted by BlueOvalFitter
I put a drop on the gas rings

 

[Trav]

LSA is still a good choice for these weapons.

 

[WyrTwister]

I have assembled an AR from new parts . Would not cycle properly unless run WET . After a break in period ,, it would run fine with a moderate amount of lube .

When I change the oil / filter on a vehicle , I save the " empty " oil containers & let then drain for a period of time into one of my oil squirt cans .

I have also been given old odd ball containers of oil & ATF . They make good gun oil too .

 

[buck91]

I generally use breakfree clp on all my firearms with fluid film wipe downs on blueing... though I am starting to lean towards BF's LP instead.

 

[bubbatime]

In my experience, Balistol burns off so fast your head will spin. Its not a good AR15 lube, in my opinion.

Here are the bubbatime tested and approved AR15 lubes.

FP10
Breakfree LP (not CLP)
Weaponshield
Slip 2000 EWL30
Slip 2000 EWL
ALG very thin grease
Mil-Comm TW25b grease

Caviat edit: Ive bought most of these at much cheaper prices than they are available today. I wont spend $15 or $25 on a bottle of gun lube, when the $8 bottle of Breakfree works just as good.

And most people don't know how to lube an AR bolt carrier group. You can leave almost the entire thing dry, as most of it doesn't touch anything. Put a heavy lube application on the 4 rails, on the gas rings, on the cam pin, the forward and rear facing lugs of the bolt, a smidgen on the firing pin, and one drop of oil worked into the ejector.

 

[Ws6]

Originally Posted by BlueOvalFitter
I don't like mine with excess oil, but I don't like it dry either.
I put a couple of drops of Ballistol on the bolt and rub it all over. I put a drop on the gas rings and turn it to allow the oil to move around. After the BCG is put back together I put a few drops of Ballistol on the friction parts of the BCG.
That's how I lube my BCG's.

Slip 2000 EWL, dripping.

 

[Ws6]

Originally Posted by AZjeff
I shoot with a retired Army Small Arms Specialist who's job was to keep weapons running in the sandbox. He put a drop of oil on the gas rings only there and the same here. Situation and environment determines best practice. What you do sounds good for a range-home gun. Kneegrinder's lube works for him in Idaho but wouldn't do so well in the desert.

Best practice in the desert with a bunch of moon dust is sloppy wet, clean often, keep your ejection port door closed and a mag in the gun of course.

 

[MGF1964]

Got no experience in the desert, so won't address that.
For a range gun in the Midwest, here's what I do:
1) Single drop of a decent oil in the recommended places, especially the rings.
2) Drop or two of oil on a fingertip for the bolt body and BCG body. Just a wee bit of corrosion protection is all I'm looking for.
3) For the rails, I pick something that's slick, slightly thick (for adhesion) and without easy burnoff. Most stuff works in a moderate amount, IMO. Among oils (liquids), I've used BreakFree, G96 synthetic, FP10, Super Lube. Among greases, I've used TW25B and Lubriplate SFL-0. Have also tried LSA (do we call that an oil or a grease?). All worked just fine.

 

[Astro14]

I like Ballistol for many uses - but mostly, I use it to wipe down wood/metal guns, and my axes and other outdoor tools. It won't hurt the wood, or leather sheaths, while still protecting the metal.

I saw the diagram that Bubbatime posted many years ago. That's how I lube a BCG - there are lots of points, many of them generous. You can tell where the lube is needed by looking at an older BCG - the finish wears off quickly on the rails, on the inside of the BCG where the cam pin rides, and on the cam pin itself. It wears off slightly less quickly on the lugs, bolt body ring, and the extractor pin. Those areas clearly need generous lube.

While I think that guns in general aren't particular about lube, I think that AR-15s are the most picky of all the guns I've owned. Ballistol is mostly mineral oil, and I would choose something better at lubrication than Ballistol for an AR-15 BCG. I've heard great things about Weapon Shield, and my son in law, who shoots a LOT in competition, raves about it. An excellent endorsement.

I've had good results with the AMSOIL gun lube in recent use. Lots of shooting in a dusty environment, gun in the dirt or in contact with the dirt, no cleaning all day, and the gun was field-stripped at the beginning of one stage, lying on a dusty bit of cardboard. It was pretty dirty, with lots of dust/dirt inside the receiver, along with the usual powder residue/junk that AR-15s accumulate.

No failures, no signs of problems with my AR in that competition, so, I can recommend the AMSOIL. At $7 for a 4 oz. bottle, it's a tremendous value when compared with the other gun lubes on the market.

 

[buck91]

delete

 

[AZjeff]

Originally Posted by Ws6
Originally Posted by AZjeff
I shoot with a retired Army Small Arms Specialist who's job was to keep weapons running in the sandbox. He put a drop of oil on the gas rings only there and the same here. Situation and environment determines best practice. What you do sounds good for a range-home gun. Kneegrinder's lube works for him in Idaho but wouldn't do so well in the desert.

Best practice in the desert with a bunch of moon dust is sloppy wet, clean often, keep your ejection port door closed and a mag in the gun of course.


Next time I see him I'll tell him he was doing it all wrong.

 

[hatt]

Originally Posted by AZjeff
Originally Posted by Ws6
Originally Posted by AZjeff
I shoot with a retired Army Small Arms Specialist who's job was to keep weapons running in the sandbox. He put a drop of oil on the gas rings only there and the same here. Situation and environment determines best practice. What you do sounds good for a range-home gun. Kneegrinder's lube works for him in Idaho but wouldn't do so well in the desert.

Best practice in the desert with a bunch of moon dust is sloppy wet, clean often, keep your ejection port door closed and a mag in the gun of course.


Next time I see him I'll tell him he was doing it all wrong.








It looks like the original link to this report no longer works but I found part posted here. I run pretty wet.
https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/foru...ng-and-lubricating-the-glock#Post1006705
Quote
Treated with light lubrication, new M16A4s and M4s, performed poorly in the extreme dust and sand conditions of the test, according to a January report from ATEC.

But when testers applied a heavy coat of lubrication to the weapons, the test results showed a �significant improvement.�

Out of the 60,000 rounds fired in each phase, the M4 stoppage-rate dropped from 9,836 with light lubrication to 678 with heavy lubrication.

The M16A4 stoppage-rate dropped from 2,124 with light lubrication to 507 with heavy lubrication, results show.

 

[BlueOvalFitter]

Originally Posted by WyrTwister
I have assembled an AR from new parts . Would not cycle properly unless run WET . After a break in period ,, it would run fine with a moderate amount of lube .

When I change the oil / filter on a vehicle , I save the " empty " oil containers & let then drain for a period of time into one of my oil squirt cans .

I have also been given old odd ball containers of oil & ATF . They make good gun oil too .

My cousin owns a 2015 Silverado which holds 8 qts. of oil. He runs Mobil 1 5W30 oil along with a NAPA GOLD oil filter every 7.5K miles. He saves a couple of the old containers so I can drain them into my 1970's oil squirt can. I use this oil to lube my firearms if I'm not using the BALLISTOL.
I think it was member JRZH2 that suggested I try BALLISTOL. It stinks but works great on my firearms, ESPECIALLY my AR-15's BCG if I'm not using my Mobil 1 oil.
It also works great on wood, small moving parts, and other misc. items.

 

[bsmithwins]

I help out at the pre-match orientation the day before our local monthly rifle match. We have the guys check zero and run a simple course of weapon manipulation. I've seen several AR15s that have been too dry* to function. I've never seen any rifle, of any make, that had a problem from being over lubricated.

What you're using for lube doesn't seem to be very important. Using enough of it is.

BSW

*Gun doesn't work, usual sign is short stroking. ‘Here, try some oil in and on the BCG'. Gun works afterwards.

 

[Ws6]

Originally Posted by AZjeff
Originally Posted by Ws6
Originally Posted by AZjeff
I shoot with a retired Army Small Arms Specialist who's job was to keep weapons running in the sandbox. He put a drop of oil on the gas rings only there and the same here. Situation and environment determines best practice. What you do sounds good for a range-home gun. Kneegrinder's lube works for him in Idaho but wouldn't do so well in the desert.

Best practice in the desert with a bunch of moon dust is sloppy wet, clean often, keep your ejection port door closed and a mag in the gun of course.


Next time I see him I'll tell him he was doing it all wrong.









His CO already should have. His methodology was proven to not be as effective as heavy lubrication in desert environs years ago. Also, I'll note that this is why "I was/my so and so was....a such and such...military..." is absolutely meaingless aside from fishing for the "thanks for your service" line.

The June 2010 M16/M4 Operator's Manual (TM 9-1005-319-10) states that "In a desert environment, generous amounts of lubrication should be applied to the internal working surfaces and functional parts of the weapon only. Unload and dry ammunition and the inside of magazines daily. DO NOT lubricate magazines."

 

[Inked]

Originally Posted by Ws6
Originally Posted by AZjeff
Originally Posted by Ws6
Originally Posted by AZjeff
I shoot with a retired Army Small Arms Specialist who's job was to keep weapons running in the sandbox. He put a drop of oil on the gas rings only there and the same here. Situation and environment determines best practice. What you do sounds good for a range-home gun. Kneegrinder's lube works for him in Idaho but wouldn't do so well in the desert.

Best practice in the desert with a bunch of moon dust is sloppy wet, clean often, keep your ejection port door closed and a mag in the gun of course.


Next time I see him I'll tell him he was doing it all wrong.









His CO already should have. His methodology was proven to not be as effective as heavy lubrication in desert environs years ago. Also, I'll note that this is why "I was/my so and so was....a such and such...military..." is absolutely meaingless aside from fishing for the "thanks for your service" line.

The June 2010 M16/M4 Operator's Manual (TM 9-1005-319-10) states that "In a desert environment, generous amounts of lubrication should be applied to the internal working surfaces and functional parts of the weapon only. Unload and dry ammunition and the inside of magazines daily. DO NOT lubricate magazines."


While I agree with your opinion on lubrication, I've never known anyone I've ever served with "fish" for the thanks for your service line. In fact I've always felt odd during those occasions since two different branches gave me way more than I gave back. However, since you brought up the subject, you're welcome.

; )