Grease on a 1911?

[Plumb Bob]

Generally, oil for me. I also use a mix of both similar to what the 'School Of The American Rifle' guy posted on YouTube. I find it very good for AR-15 BCG.
Never had an issue using grease in a gun, but when it comes to 1911, I really respect Bill Wilson's opinion.

 

[Auto tech]

I have many high end 1911s and several big name gunsmiths I have spoken with always told me no grease just oil

 

[Hohn]

Even Bill Wilson’s “grease” is a thick, tacky oil.

Thus I will share with you the best "gun oil" I've used is SpectraSyn base oil at 100cSt. Thicker than many greases, never separates. This is the PERFECT lube for stainless slides like 1911s. It's pours about like honey as is almost as tacky. And it's impossibly slick.

I’ve gone back to oil on 1911s. Good oil, but the fact is - guns aren’t that picky. The act of lubrication is more important than the lubricant itself. I’ve tried G96, Hoppe’s, HPL, AMSOIL, and others - and the guns run correctly. If the gun is properly lubricated, and it isn’t running correctly - that is a gun problem, not a lube problem.

PUT THIS ON A PLAQUE. Of all the applications a lubricant faces, guns are among the easiest of all. Even some of the lowest grade lubes are sufficient for firearm use (witness the Fireclean debacle).

Now I happen to use a current mil-spec CLP that meets the stringent M249 test. But that's not because my particular application needs it.

The gun world is prone to many really dumb arguments, but none are dumber than arguing over gun lubes. Use lube. Wipe the excess. Live life. Literally dozens of lubricants can keep a firearm running quite happily a LONG time.

 

[Hohn]

I have many high end 1911s and several big name gunsmiths I have spoken with always told me no grease just oil

Which makes sense because high end 1911s have very smooth surfaces. Remember, the roughness of the surface is directly related to how viscous a lube it needs. With a beautifully hand-polished Wilson, even sewing machine oil would keep it running nicely.

Greases separate in many instances. And the oil parts of those greases are often quite cheap. I made the mistake of lubing a bolt rifle with Lubriplate 105, which is a good grease for certain things. But it's an awful choice for guns. Made a mess and I had to clean, strip, and relube.