SuperLube Synthetic Grease and Almost Cold

[2016Accord]

In the last six months or so I've switched from MPro7 gun oil to SuperLube grease for most of my guns. http://www.super-lube.com/synthetic-multipurpose http://www.super-lube.com/files/pdfs/Technical_Data_Sheet_Multi_Purpose_Grease.pdf No particular reason other than curiosity. The auto pistols get a reasonable amount on the slides and rails, and a light coating on other relevant parts. Trigger groups and such still get a touch of light oil (MPro7) when appropriate. Mostly I've been shooting an HK P30 and a Ruger MKII. The Ruger has been in the safe for years, but recently got a rail and red dot and has been seeing regular use. It has become a really fun plinker with the red dot! I haven't had a malfunction in the P30 in years (10k+ rounds), and it seems to like the grease just fine. I've been doing a field step and light clean every 500-1,000 rounds. It's an EDC and the grease has stayed put, when with with every day IWB carry. The jury is still out on the Ruger. The rimfire cartridges are dirty, and the visible fouling is quickly obvious in and around the chamber and port. It has been getting grease since it came out of the safe and back into rotation, so I don't know if the grease leads to more fouling or not. I can't remember what it was like with oil, and when I was shooting it before, it was with different ammo, which may or may not have been cleaner. It seems to function fine, though occasionally when especially dirty, it will fail to go into battery on the first round of a magazine. A tap to the charging handle will remedy that. Also, I have been wiping it down without disassembling it every couple hundred rounds and occasionally wiping a touch more grease onto the slide with my finger. Not sure if this occasional first-round malfunction is related to the grease or not, though it does seem to be related to the level of fouling. When I first pulled it out of the safe it was running (old) oil and seemed to malfunction more frequently. At some point I'll probably switch back to oil just for comparison's sake. I'll also disassemble and see if the grease and extended cleaning intervals have led to any increased wear. The Ruger spent the night in the trunk of my car at about 30 degrees and first thing in morning, both guns saw a few hours of action with temperatures right around freezing. I know that's not very cold for you non-Texan's (lol), but the temperature seemed to have no effect on the functionality of the firearms with the grease. I know, a long rambling post without much of a point. I guess I'm thinking out loud and reflecting on a fun day at the range. Be safe out there. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

 

[john_pifer]

Cool that you’re experimenting. I don’t use grease on any of my guns except my Ruger Mini-30, which has the M14-style action. I think grease is unnecessary and it seems like it would collect more unburned powder, carbon, debris, dirt, etc. than would oil. It also makes the gun harder to clean, I think. I do understand the reasoning behind it (possibly better anti-friction protection in high-pressure/high-load areas, stays put better than oil). But I just don’t run my guns all that hard. Now, I do run certain ones of my guns pretty wet (AR-15, Dan Wesson 1911, Browning Hi Power). I use fully-synthetic motor oil (whatever dribbles are left in the bottles after an oil change go into my gun lubing syringe) as gun lube. Currently it’s PPPP 10W-30, but could also be M1 EP 5W-30.

 

[billt460]

For some reason your picture link wouldn't open for me. Just in case you're not aware of it, Super Lube makes a couple of different types of greases that look similar. For weapons the Super Lube Synthetic Grease might be a bit better than the Super Lube Multi Purpose Grease. I have and use both. The Multi Purpose stuff is more transparent, and has the approximate consistency and feel of Vaseline. While the Synthetic stuff has a little more viscosity, and is somewhat less transparent. The Synthetic stuff has a better temperature range from 450F, all the way down to 45F. So it might be better for hotter weather. Both are good, and the Multi Purpose stuff really resists water. It's all I use on all of my swimming pool fittings and O-Rings. And the stuff really helps prevent leaks. (Most everything ever built for swimming pools is made from cheap plastic or PVC, and is designed to LEAK). If you buy the Synthetic stuff be aware that much like Lubriplate, it comes in both a "Food Grade" class, as well as a "Non Food Grade". This is important to know because they both look and feel identical. I have always associated any "Food Grade" type of lubricant with a limited shelf life. Meaning that it can spoil over time. So I try to avoid it for any weapons type of use. Especially any that I don't shoot often, and they stay untouched in the safe for long periods of time.

 

[Slick17601]

Hornady Dry Lube is a solid choice for rimfires.

 

[Triple_Se7en]

Did you perhaps catch a few of my posts here from the recent past? I use Superlube instead of oil for almost a year now. and John Pifer, yes it's necessary for us conceal-carry users that keep our little buddies in our front pockets unholstered. No more oil marks in those pockets. No more grinding when the slide is manually moved forward and back. All is much quieter with Suerlube's synthetic all purpose light grease. The only oil I use is around the trigger parts that move.

 

[john_pifer]

Originally Posted By: Triple_Se7en

Did you perhaps catch a few of my posts here from the recent past? I use Superlube instead of oil for almost a year now. and John Pifer, yes it's necessary for us conceal-carry users that keep our little buddies in our front pockets unholstered. No more oil marks in those pockets. No more grinding when the slide is manually moved forward and back. All is much quieter with Suerlube's synthetic all purpose light grease. The only oil I use is around the trigger parts that move.

I carry my P938 in my front pocket, but I use a Tagua pocket holster.

 

[2016Accord]

Originally Posted By: billt460

For some reason your picture link wouldn't open for me. Just in case you're not aware of it, Super Lube makes a couple of different types of greases that look similar. For weapons the Super Lube Synthetic Grease might be a bit better than the Super Lube Multi Purpose Grease. I have and use both. The Multi Purpose stuff is more transparent, and has the approximate consistency and feel of Vaseline. While the Synthetic stuff has a little more viscosity, and is somewhat less transparent. The Synthetic stuff has a better temperature range from 450F, all the way down to 45F. So it might be better for hotter weather. Both are good, and the Multi Purpose stuff really resists water. It's all I use on all of my swimming pool fittings and O-Rings. And the stuff really helps prevent leaks. (Most everything ever built for swimming pools is made from cheap plastic or PVC, and is designed to LEAK). If you buy the Synthetic stuff be aware that much like Lubriplate, it comes in both a "Food Grade" class, as well as a "Non Food Grade". This is important to know because they both look and feel identical. I have always associated any "Food Grade" type of lubricant with a limited shelf life. Meaning that it can spoil over time. So I try to avoid it for any weapons type of use. Especially any that I don't shoot often, and they stay untouched in the safe for long periods of time.

The packaging is confusing! I have the Synthetic in the tube. I thought the tub package was the same product, as both say "synthetic", "multi-purpose" and "with PTFE" on the front. Tricky! So, the links I posted are to the wrong product.

 

[2016Accord]

Originally Posted By: Triple_Se7en

Did you perhaps catch a few of my posts here from the recent past? I use Superlube instead of oil for almost a year now. and John Pifer, yes it's necessary for us conceal-carry users that keep our little buddies in our front pockets unholstered. No more oil marks in those pockets. No more grinding when the slide is manually moved forward and back. All is much quieter with Suerlube's synthetic all purpose light grease. The only oil I use is around the trigger parts that move.

Now that you say that, I do remember seeing those. I don't recall the exact timing, but they probably factored in to my decision to experiment with it. I've seen it mentioned on other gun forums over the years too. I know lots of people use motor oil, but particularly for a carry gun that is agains my skin 12+ hours a day, I like the idea of a possibly less toxic lubricant. The lead exposure is bad enough! And, as you say, the slide stays buttery smooth with a bit of grease.

 

[2016Accord]

Originally Posted By: john_pifer

I think grease is unnecessary and it seems like it would collect more unburned powder, carbon, debris, dirt, etc. than would oil. It also makes the gun harder to clean, I think.

That was one of my concerns, and what I have found so far is that the grease does get dark with carbon and such, but that cleaning is actually easier, as it just wipes off very easily. Put simply, it would appear to me that there is more residue, but it is easier to clean from the surfaces of the firearm. The question that remains for me is does it have an effect on wear? Subjectively, the slide seems to operate with less friction with the grease, even when "dirty". It seems better lubricated, but are the retained particulates creating more wear in any significant way? I can't imagine that they are. Other than the expected parts like springs and barrel/bore, I have a hard time thinking that I could shoot enough to wear out the slide/rails, etc. regardless of lube choice. Anyway, I thought I would run the grease for a while and see how I liked it and if there were any visible indications of more/less wear.