firearms lubrication article

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Hers a link to grantcunningham.com discussing firearms lubrication. I'm a avid shooter and am always looking for the best lubes for my AR, M1A, 1911s, etc. Discuss.

Just want to ad that for the AR I have been using Mobil 1 full synthetic 5w30 as my AR oil. I found that any carbon on the bcg just wipes off and it will disolve carbon in the bore. I shoot often enough that the long-term exposure to air problems that motor oil is supposed to have according to Grant isn't a issue. May be for long-term storage. May not be the best oil to have come in contact with skin.

For grease I have been using Lubriplate 130A for the 1911 slide and the M1A. I tried it on the AR bcg lubing the 4 "rails" and found some cycling issues so I switched back to oil. "ARs like to run wet" is what most everyone says.
 
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I have used almost all fire arm lubes that are commercially available, including syn motor oil and chassis grease. They all have done the job of protecting my handguns and rifles. My favorites are good ol breakfree CLP and syn motor oil cuz it's cheap
 
50/50 Synthetic motor oil and ATF here for lubrication. I used Supertech 5W-30 and DexIII. My completely unscientific testing indicated that my AR was easier to clean with the ATF added. Why 50/50? It was easier to mix. It's worked well on all of my guns and doesn't burn off quickly like Breakfree CLP does.

I've used plain old white lithium grease on pistol slides with no ill effect.
 
long time lurker first time posting, but i also use the mix of synthetic oil and atf I use the mercon V atf fluid though
 
For lubrication I use any decent commercial lube such as Hoppes, Rem-Oil, etc. They do a great lube at lubrication.

For long term storage (I mean LONG term, when I don't expect to shoot a gun for more than a year+) I use WD-40. It coats and then evaporates the carrier, leaving a protective film that stays put and seems to resist rust more than any other product. However, before it's time to shoot, this is removed and then lubed with the products mentioned formerly.
 
Let's hear it for home brew gun oil recipes !! ...Why ? Because we are BITOG faithful !! Yes , I own and use commercial CLP's for my collection but also like to play around with what I have left over in the garage which can be surprisingly very good . Here are a few ingredients : M1 20W50 , Dextron IV ATF , Air Tool Oil , STP Oil Treatment (Blue Bottle) and Hoppes #9 bore cleaner . Using these ingredients I have several good home brew CLP's I have tried from information found else where (if anyone is interested - I'll post under a new topic) .
 
Let's hear it for home brew gun oil recipes !! ...Why ? Because we are BITOG faithful !! Yes , I own and use commercial CLP's for my collection but also like to play around with what I have left over in the garage which can be surprisingly very good . Here are a few ingredients : M1 20W50 , Dextron IV ATF , Air Tool Oil , STP Oil Treatment (Blue Bottle) , MMO and Hoppes #9 bore cleaner . Using these ingredients I have several good home brew CLP's I have tried from information found else where (if anyone is interested - I'll post under a new topic) .
 
I use Break Free and Hoppes powder solvent only. When I was in law enforcement, they told us not to use anything but these two (esp. no penetrating oil) because it can cause misfires if it leaches into the casing. One bottle goes a long way anyways and it's not all that expensive.
 
Originally Posted By: dnewton3
For lubrication I use any decent commercial lube such as Hoppes, Rem-Oil, etc. They do a great lube at lubrication.

For long term storage (I mean LONG term, when I don't expect to shoot a gun for more than a year+) I use WD-40. It coats and then evaporates the carrier, leaving a protective film that stays put and seems to resist rust more than any other product. However, before it's time to shoot, this is removed and then lubed with the products mentioned formerly.



Interesting, it seems that there are lots of discussions debating this, and I've seen some rustproofing tests out there show it to be more or less worthless; but also a few that show it to do well for non-salty situations.

I can't imagine that there is anything to remove! Seems to flash off clean. Maybe I've never applied enough - do you see a real residue after a year?

It would be far cleaner than other stuff, but that exact reason is why I've not personally found it to be useful for anti rust at all. Somewhat penetrating and cleaning in some circumstances, lubricating until it dries fully, perhaps. But I've not had luck, personally!
 
^^^And WD-40 was specifically mentioned as a product not to use by our Sheriff's Office when I was a deputy. Just for hunting, it would be alright, but a can of Break Free is the best thing to use for general lubing.
 
I use Froglube on my 1911 and my GP100.

Everything going good so far, and my guns smell like candy.
 
I use synthetic motor oil. At an S&W armorers school my dad attended the instructor told them that was all he used. If it's good enough for the pros, it's good enough for me. I had previously used 3in1 oil. No issues with either. I try to oil them after every time I shoot or twice a year for the ones I don't fire.
 
I keep seeing recommendations to include ATF. I have always viewed ATF as a toxic and very aggressive substance. Are there no problems associated with using it on guns?
 
Grant Cunningham was quite specific about the benefits of ATF, and so is Father Frog. One of the most copied formulas for a CLP is Ed's Red, and the main component is ATF. Automatic transmissions are made of various metals, such as steel, brass, and aluminum. There is no evidence that the ATF is bad for them.
The only part of a gun that ATF is probably bad for is the furniture, e.g. wood and wood finish.
Until I found Rand CLP, I was using ATF and Berryman B-12 at 50/50 for a bore cleaner. For slides I use Frog Lube grease. If I were storing a gun for a while, I'd probably fun the Frog Lube grease in the bore; then clean it before shooting.
 
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