Using Motor Oil for Gun Lube

[Carlostrece]

1) The right oil for the right application.

2) A gun is not an automobile engine. As far as I know.

3) Auto mechanics wear gloves because fluids like motor oil are toxic.

4) A lot of American gun people can't wait to come up with a way to "save money." Here's an idea: Don't buy a gun.

Gun oil is also toxic. Some brands more than others. The sprays are worst.

Gun cleaning solvents are very toxic. The sprays are worst.

I avoid getting gun oil, gun solvent, and motor oil on my hands. I wear disposable nitrile automotive repair gloves and apply oil using a small brush or cotton patch. During cleaning, I apply solvent using a different small brush or a cotton patch. I should wear a gas mask when using cleaning solvents.

All these things are toxic. All should be used with caution. The only nontoxic options I know of are sewing machine oils (low toxicity),but food grade mineral oil (non toxic) or food grade silicon lube (non toxic).

That said, no body is smearing these things on themselves (if wearing gloves) and no one is eating them. Smelling them yes, which should be a concern with some gun lubes and all cleaning solvents.

Also dry spray lube (especially teflon) is nasty poisonous.

 

[Marrk]

Gun oil is also toxic. Some brands more than others. The sprays are worst.

Gun cleaning solvents are very toxic. The sprays are worst.

I avoid getting gun oil, gun solvent, and motor oil on my hands. I wear disposable nitrile automotive repair gloves and apply oil using a small brush or cotton patch. During cleaning, I apply solvent using a different small brush or a cotton patch. I should wear a gas mask when using cleaning solvents.

All these things are toxic. All should be used with caution. The only nontoxic options I know of are sewing machine oils (low toxicity),but food grade mineral oil (non toxic) or food grade silicon lube (non toxic).

That said, no body is smearing these things on themselves (if wearing gloves) and no one is eating them. Smelling them yes, which should be a concern with some gun lubes and all cleaning solvents.

Also dry spray lube (especially teflon) is nasty poisonous.

1) One example: Ballistol.

2) Another example: Post 19 above.

3) You are handling a lubricated gun without gloves. Sometimes, you are carrying it on your person all day.

Use what you like. But among gun people, it seems there is a mania to veer off into areas that are, in fact, both pointless and laughable. My favorite is the guy in his basement who knows just how to improve a Colt 1911. We've had the design for 100+ years, but somehow we missed something, and he has found it. The same guy winds up on a gun forum. His Post 1 is "My gun wouldn't work. It must be defective from the factory. Those idiots." His Post 9 is "I forgot to add that I modified everything in my basement using a claw hammer and some Crazy Glue."

Tomorrow, some guy will get a deal on a 50 gallon drum of 30W motor oil that is WWII surplus, and that will be the new "miracle lube."

 

[Carlostrece]

3) You are handling a lubricated gun without gloves. Sometimes, you are carrying it on your person all day.

The small amount of 15w40 motor oil that I use is inside the gun. Not on the outside were I touch the gun.

Gun oils on the other hand, are thinner and tend to run all over the place.

 

[Marrk]

The small amount of 15w40 motor oil that I use is inside the gun. Not on the outside were I touch the gun.

That's fair.

Gun oils on the other hand, are thinner and tend to run all over the place.

True for some. Fair enough.

Don't you give the surfaces of your gun (and gun parts) a thin wipe with some oil to prevent rust?

 

[JWC86]

Home brew recommendations from a gunsmith.
He actually instructs AR15 technicians/builders for many of the largest AR15 manufacturers in the USA.
If you are a fan of the AR15, you probably already follow him.

I love how in-depth this guy gets. As a complete AR nerd I’ve watched a lot of his content. This guy sweats all the smallest of details. My kind of guy.

Edit to add: with that said, I find ARs are very tolerant of what lube you use and the amount used except for extreme cold use.

I was very active in multi-gun and IPSC rifle competition for about 10 years, some of those years I shot 15-20,000 rounds of 223 through a few ARs. Sometimes I would go thousands of rounds between cleaning on my backup/practice rifles without cleaning, just squirting lube on the bcg and they ran like a top.

Most people stress way too much over this.

 

[Carlostrece]

That's fair. True for some.

Don't you give the surfaces of your gun (and gun parts) a thin wipe with some oil to prevent rust?

My Firestorm 32 ACP has black paint on exterior. My Ruger SP101 32 Mag is stainless steel. Neither gun poses any concerns for rusty fingerprints even if I don't wipe them.

I own a blued Makarov and blued CZ83. I wipe them down as follows.

I use a store-bought silicon impregnated gun wiping cloth to wipe down those blued guns before storage. Then wipe with clean dry white cotton rag before carrying or using because I don't want a slippery gun causing a butterfingers incident.

I use white cotton to clean and degrease exterior before use. White cotton is more absorbant than colored/dyed cotton. However, don't use white terry washcloth because it leaves lint. The best is clean white cotton diaper. Next best is clean white cotton Tshirt. This same white cotton advice also works well for wiping/cleaning scopes, binoculars, eyeglasses, cameras lenses, and inside of car windows. Clean glass doesn't fog easily. Dirty glass fogs easily because water molecules stick to and collect on dust and fingerprints. With clean glass there's not much water vapor can stick to.

 

[Marrk]

My Firestorm 32 ACP has black paint on exterior. My Ruger SP101 32 Mag is stainless steel. Neither gun poses any concerns for rusty fingerprints even if I don't wipe them.

I own a blued Makarov and blued CZ83. I wipe them down as follows.

I use a store-bought silicon impregnated gun wiping cloth to wipe down those blued guns before storage. Then wipe with clean dry white cotton rag before carrying or using because I don't want a slippery gun causing a butterfingers incident.

White cotton is more absorbant than colored/dyed cotton.

I have a blued Makarov.

 

[Carlostrece]

I have a blued Makarov.

The blueing on my Makarov isn't very good, but is adequate. Over all it's a good gun and is my most accurate target shooter. However, it's sights are too small and black for use in dim light. So for any low light self defense situation it's sights would be useless, but that's OK because it's just for targets.

My Firestorm (an upgraded Bersa) has much better combat sights.

My Ruger SP101 has nice big sights, but they were black when stock. I used bright safety orange fingernail paint to paint front side orange. That really helps. Revlon is my favorite brand of fingernail paint because it's very bright colored and durable. But even cheap generic brands like Amazon store brand is good enough.

Fingernail paint also works great for touching up paint chips on cars and autoparts, and it's much cheaper than the official laquer auto touchup paints. Fingernail paint is laquer paint and reasonably durable.

The paint on my front sight has been holding up well for years. Only thing to remember is gun cleaning solvents (like Hoppies) are also paint solvents. Keep the Hoppies off the fingernail paint and the front sight will stay painted for years, even on a carry gun.

 

[Marrk]

The blueing on my Makarov isn't very good, but is adequate. Over all it's a good gun and is my most accurate target shooter. However, it's sights are too small and black for use in dim light. So for any low light self defense situation it's sights would be useless, but that's OK because it's just for targets.

My Firestorm (an upgraded Bersa) has much better combat sights.

My Ruger SP101 has nice big sights, but they were black when stock. I used bright safety orange fingernail paint to paint front side orange. That really helps. Revlon is my favorite brand of fingernail paint because it's very bright colored and durable. But even cheap generic brands like Amazon store brand is good enough.

Fingernail paint also works great for touching up paint chips on cars and autoparts, and it's much cheaper than the official laquer auto touchup paints. Fingernail paint is laquer paint and reasonably durable.

The paint on my front sight has been holding up well for years. Only thing to remember is gun cleaning solvents (like Hoppies) are also paint solvents. Keep the Hoppies off the fingernail paint and the front sight will stay painted for years, even on a carry gun.

Good info.

I find that I shoot my Makarov well, too. It's in .380 with adjustable rear sight. You probably have the military Makarov in 9mm Makarov. I have a Sig in .380. Beautiful gun, but Sig ergonomics just don't suit me.

Sorry to go Off-Topic everyone. But it's Christmas. For a little while longer.

 

[Carlostrece]

Good info.

I find that I shoot my Makarov well, too. It's in .380 with adjustable rear sight. You probably have the military Makarov in 9mm Makarov. I have a Sig in .380. Beautiful gun, but Sig ergonomics just don't suit me.

Sorry to go Off-Topic everyone. But it's Christmas. For a little while longer.

I think this topic already ran it's course. It was a good discussion, but now it's as fully done as a Christmas turkey. Merry Christmas!

If others wish to continue this topic without me, feel free to do so. I'm moving on to asking for car maintenance/upgrade advice. See ya'll later.

 

[f355spider]

Gun oil is also toxic. Some brands more than others. The sprays are worst.

Gun cleaning solvents are very toxic. The sprays are worst.

I avoid getting gun oil, gun solvent, and motor oil on my hands. I wear disposable nitrile automotive repair gloves and apply oil using a small brush or cotton patch. During cleaning, I apply solvent using a different small brush or a cotton patch. I should wear a gas mask when using cleaning solvents.

All these things are toxic. All should be used with caution. The only nontoxic options I know of are sewing machine oils (low toxicity),but food grade mineral oil (non toxic) or food grade silicon lube (non toxic).

That said, no body is smearing these things on themselves (if wearing gloves) and no one is eating them. Smelling them yes, which should be a concern with some gun lubes and all cleaning solvents.

Also dry spray lube (especially teflon) is nasty poisonous.

There are a number of non toxic alternatives if that is a consideration. I have used MPro7 cleaner for 15 years or so...it is non toxic and works very well. I have not tried their lubricants though...but yes, gloves should always be worn. If you read the SDS on many common products you would surprised at the toxicity of many common products....and it is not called out in the instructions for use on the labels. I see this often with automotive products...particularly with ceramic and graphene spray on, wipe off products

 

[f355spider]

I love how in-depth this guy gets. As a complete AR nerd I’ve watched a lot of his content. This guy sweats all the smallest of details. My kind of guy.

Edit to add: with that said, I find ARs are very tolerant of what lube you use and the amount used except for extreme cold use.

I was very active in multi-gun and IPSC rifle competition for about 10 years, some of those years I shot 15-20,000 rounds of 223 through a few ARs. Sometimes I would go thousands of rounds between cleaning on my backup/practice rifles without cleaning, just squirting lube on the bcg and they ran like a top.

Most people stress way too much over this.

True of many modern military arms of the last 30 or 40 years or so for both pistols and long guns. Keeping them lubricated is critical. We generally go overboard with cleaning more often than necessary, but more concerning is too aggressively.

Case in point:

 

[ChrisD46]

Gun oil is also toxic. Some brands more than others. The sprays are worst.

Gun cleaning solvents are very toxic. The sprays are worst.

I avoid getting gun oil, gun solvent, and motor oil on my hands. I wear disposable nitrile automotive repair gloves and apply oil using a small brush or cotton patch. During cleaning, I apply solvent using a different small brush or a cotton patch. I should wear a gas mask when using cleaning solvents.

All these things are toxic. All should be used with caution. The only nontoxic options I know of are sewing machine oils (low toxicity),but food grade mineral oil (non toxic) or food grade silicon lube (non toxic).

That said, no body is smearing these things on themselves (if wearing gloves) and no one is eating them. Smelling them yes, which should be a concern with some gun lubes and all cleaning solvents.

Also dry spray lube (especially teflon) is nasty poisonous.

Heck , I must glow like Chernobyl then with what I have used to clean & lube guns !! Throw in some brake cleaner spray too along with Eezox to protect exterior gun finishes for added affect .

 

[Spring Break '92]

AR-15/AKM - just plain old wheel bearing grease. Semi auto pistols - any ATF or 5W20/30. Gun lubes are a complete waste of money and you likely have all you need in your garage.

 

[Elkins45]

Back in 1992 I used to shoot with an older fellow who was a retired armorer for the National Guard. He used a mix of 50% ATF, 25% STP engine treatment and 25% Mobil1 5w-30. I mixed up a batch and have been using it ever since. The ATF is a good penetrant, the STP gives it good clinging ability and the Mobil1 holds up to heat in places like bolt carriers.

About 10 years ago I bought a tube of CRC food safe grease and that’s what I use on the slide rails and barrel contact surfaces of auto pistols. That one cartridge will last for generations.

 

[Elkins45]

To add: about a decade ago there were a couple of “custom formulated high performance” firearms lubes on the market that were purportedly the absolute pinnacle of firearms lubricant performance. Both were sold in small containers for big money.

Somebody did NMR or IR spec on them. One was mostly coconut oil and the other was almost entirely canola.

Motor oil will do just fine.

 

[Carlostrece]

Heck , I must glow like Chernobyl then with what I have used to clean & lube guns !! Throw in some brake cleaner spray too along with Eezox to protect exterior gun finishes for added affect .

I hope you stay healthy, but you're using a lot of inhaleable poisons and carcenerogens. Motor oil is NOT something you're going to inhale. All these things are unhealthy for skin contact, but you can wear rubber gloves like people do for automotive work.