[tercel89]

I'm going to start using engine oil on my guns . For preserving one for my son for later and for lubrication and for rust prevention .
Engine oil is a lot cheaper . My question is which should I go with :
1. conventional or synthetic?
2. what weight?
3. conventional detergent or a non-detergent?

I just thought I'd see what you guys thought and what you were using . Thanks in advance .

[docnyt]

There's a long and informative thread here somewhere - search Mobil1

Here you go:

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=291494&highlight=10w40

[bill in IN]

Engine oils are for engines. They are Ph balanced for the inevitable acidification that will occur in an internal combustion engine which doesn't necessarily happen in a firearm....

[jcwit]

Engine oils are for engines. They are Ph balanced for the inevitable acidification that will occur in an internal combustion engine which doesn't necessarily happen in a firearm....

True, but they work very well for firearms, after all they are a lubricating oil, also the price is right even if using any one of the synthetics. Even the Marines have a formula using Mobil 1. I doubt the weight will make any difference whatsoever.

[Sav .250]

Maybe you should have asked, "How many guys use car engine oil to preserve, lube,what ever" on their weapons. That way your counter-parts
would have had the opportunity to join in with their experiences .
"Engine oil is a lot cheaper." That`s the foundation for it`s usage?
Not trying to be a wise guy but I don`t agree with your motion that engine oil is the "proper lube" for weapons. Emergency, sure but not long term. Course you own the guns, so if cheap engine oil is your choice, go for it.

[jcwit]

cheap engine oil is your choice, go for it.

To classify Mobil 1, Pennzoil PP, Redline, Amsoil, ect., as a "Cheap" oil is more than a little off the wall. I suggest you peruse the afformentioned thread very carefully, as its very imformative regarding "Cheap" oils.

[kanook]

I'm going to start to use Hoppes oil for my 350 4 wheel drive. After all I fyou can use engine oil on a firearm, why not use firearm oil in a motor.

See how wrong that looks. and if you do decide to use the engine oil you better get the high milage oil just in case you have more than 75,000 rounds through it.

[BushyGuy]

whoa 5 qts of hoppes for a car would be like the price of 50 regular oil changes! i use regular 5w30 oil in my guns sometimes but i usually use Hoppes Elite oil cuz my guns seem to like that the best.

[jcwit]

I'm going to start to use Hoppes oil for my 350 4 wheel drive. After all I fyou can use engine oil on a firearm, why not use firearm oil in a motor.

See how wrong that looks. and if you do decide to use the engine oil you better get the high milage oil just in case you have more than 75,000 rounds through it.


This is like saying you couldn't get excellent results using auto wax on their stock, see how stupid that sounds. And yet many suggest using Johnsons Paste Floor wax on their stock.

Using a high grade synethic motor oil on a firearm is overkill compared to using Hoppe's gun oil in your vehicle.

Like I suggested check out the thread that was posted in post #2, might give you a little knowledge on the supject.

[JTQ]

I've been experimenting with Mobil 1, 5w30, simply because that is what I use in my cars and I have it on hand in the garage. Even a thin formulation like 5w30 is thicker than BreakFree CLP that I had been using. Mobil 1 tends to stay in place better than BreakFree CLP and seems to lubricate just as well.

I'm not a chemist, but my feeling is Mobil 1 is good enough as a lube, but if I was really concerned about long term rust prevention I would look for a product designed specifically for that purpose.

[jimmyraythomason]

If the gun is going to be stored for a long period of time,use a 50/50 mix of any ENGINE oil (any weight)and STP oil treatment. Apply with an eye dropper or a syringe. This is for internal works only,wipe down the exterior with an oil cloth(WD-40,Rem-oil,etc.)

[bill in IN]

It'll be very interesting when the temperature drops, or raises to about 90 with high humidity.

[kanook]

Maybe if I say it this way, When motor oil is packaged as a firearm lube or rust preventative I might consider it.This is like saying you couldn't get excellent results using auto wax on their stock, see how stupid that sounds. And yet many suggest using Johnsons Paste Floor wax on their stock.
Wood floor, wood stock.

High temp engine with lots of moving stuff
vs
percision firearm that might not benefit from all that the motor oil has to offer or whats it's lacking.

With as long as motor oil has been package it still isn't sold as a firearm lube. There is a reason why it hasn't been. I don't know it and that's fine with me.

[moooose102]

i am certainly NOT going to beat you up for using engine oil on your firearms. many of us do, including myself. firearms are not exactly stressful applications, not even ar-15's. if you think about the huge load placed on a high-performance auto engine (not your everyday run of the mill 4 cylinder chevy), the heat generated, the huge torque loads, the thrust put upon cylinder walls and pistons, that is stressful. and for many, many years, conventional motor oil was all there was. then came racing oil, which is regular oil, with an additive package. then, mobil decided to do us all a huge favor, and decided to sell to the general public synthetic oil that was specificly engineered for HARD, HARD use. i have tried both castrol gtx 5w30, and mobil 1 on my guns. either seems to do the trick for me. i have decided on mobil 1 0w40 for my guns, and that is what i am going to stick with at least until this bottle is gone. which will probably be long after i am dead. in any case, the reason i opted for 0w oil is i do hunt, and sometimes it get really cold and nasty. i do not want the firing pin to be sludged up by oil that is to thick when that buck of a lifetime comes up out of that swamp. the reason i went with 0w40, is i also shoot my pistols when it is over 90 outside, and when you shoot semi autos faily quickly in hi temperatures, i want the film of oil to be stable, and not fly off. pick whatever you feel is best. just give proper consideration to temps and type of firearm, and the stress put on those parts. as for storage, for long term storage, i personally subscribe to straight STP. i stored my fathers browning for 20 years after he died with it. it took a while to get all of it off and out of all the nooks and crannies, but there was absoloutly not one spec of rust on this gun, not one. the only thing i ever did to it through all of those years was to look at it once every few years, and make sure it was doing fine. it is hard to beat that kind of sucsess.

[jimmyraythomason]

Engine oil has properties not needed for guns but does not lack anything needed to be used on guns. Higher viscosity oils may slow an action at lower temperatures so a multi-viscosity oil would be better. Any oil will lubricate moving metal parts regardless of what they are assembled into. Any oil,grease or wax that is a barrier to moisture/oxygen will prevent the formation of rust.

[okonokos]

Anybody ever use BP2380 turbo oil? It's for turbine engines, temps up to 1000 C. It's very light, and very fine, and designed to operate in a wide variety of temperatures.

[glockmon]

I only use designated lube for firearms , mostly Militec . But if you're going the Engine Oil rout I would use Mobil 1 15,000 or Royal Purple. One court will last a life time.

[Visionz45]

My reserve unit fired 68,000 rds(5.56) in two days, I used clp two maybe three times and fired several thousand without a hitch. CLP is really cheap and doesn't build up like commercial moter oil. If you must grease parts like bolt lugs and rails LSA would work fine as well. When I say clp I mean the real stinky military stuff you can buy in 2.5 gallon white jugs not the crap I picked up once at wal-mart.

[natman]

I use Triflow on my guns. Goes on thin to penetrate and sets up thicker to stay put. I bought a large can at the hardware store for $6.50. Nice handy aerosol tip for easy application. Lubed hundreds of guns, door hinges, etc, etc. Finally ran it dry after 10 years. That's 65 cents a year. Yes, I suppose using the 1/2 quart of motor oil left over after your oil change is technically cheaper, but I can't imagine it's possibly worth the trouble.

It's one thing to be frugal and another to be ridiculously cheap.

[SlamFire1]

For preserving one for my son for later and for lubrication and for rust prevention .

Engine oils are lubricants. They are outstanding lubricants, and at $2.50 a quart, a bargin compared with "gun oils".

Engine oils are not rust inhibitors. It takes special additives to slow down the migration of oxygen, and for the life of me, I don't see why an internal combustion engine lubricant would have the stuff.

Boating stores have some excellent rust inhibitors. I purchased spray on cans of CRC Corrosion inhibitor at a marine store.

Still have cans of RIG, though that company went out of business.

[stchman]

I liked the one where he said he was going to use Hoppe's gun oil in his 350 engine.

Let's look at the cost of that.

Gun oil usually runs about $2 per ounce. 32 ounces in a quart would mean $64 a quart. 6 quarts of oil is $384. Yikes that is an expensive oil change.

My advice, use gun oil on guns and motor oil in engines. I use Rem-oil on my guns and Mobil 1 in my truck.

[SlamFire1]

I liked the one where he said he was going to use Hoppe's gun oil in his 350 engine.

Missed that.

Ed Harris, in his write up on Ed's Red made the statement that most gun oils are plain, straight mineral oil.

The difference between tea and water is additives. The difference between plain mineral oil and a great lubricant is additives.

The fact that gun oils have been straight mineral oil and no one has had real problems tells you that firearms are not stressed as much as combustion engines.

It also tells you can sell cheap oil, for lots of money, as long as the cans are colorful and have screaming labels.

It is better to use a product that exceeds your service envelope than one that does not meet it.

Running Hoppes in an automobile engine will lead to a $3,000 engine job.

[jimmyraythomason]

Don't think engine oils prevent rust? Go to a junk yard, find an engine, ANY engine even one out of the vehicle and lying on the ground. Remove the crankcase oil pan. Remove a connecting rod cap and a main cap. Look at the highly polished crankshaft journals. How much rust do you see? Assuming it hasn't rained directly into the crankcase (with water standing inside) you will not see any rust because the journals are protected by run of the mill engine oil.

[kanook]

Running Hoppes in an automobile engine will lead to a $3,000 engine job.Compared to a day shooting at the range at todays ammo prices, That Hoppes oil change looks pretty cheap :)

[chevyforlife21]

use castrol edge,sytec, or royal purple 5w-30

[SlamFire1]

Don't think engine oils prevent rust? Go to a junk yard, find an engine, ANY engine even one out of the vehicle and lying on the ground. Remove the crankcase oil pan. Remove a connecting rod cap and a main cap. Look at the highly polished crankshaft journals. How much rust do you see? Assuming it hasn't rained directly into the crankcase (with water standing inside) you will not see any rust because the journals are protected by run of the mill engine oil.

I have been in junkyards, and been amazed when I have pulled intake manifolds and found little or no rust. Or lifted the oil pan and everything looks good.

An oil coating, even an oil without additives, will provide better rust protection than an unprotected surface.

However, that does not mean motor oils are made with any consideration of rust protection.

It is unfortunate that you have to pay to see the SAE oil standard specs, SAE Standard Report J183, or the associated ASTM standards.

The military standard for oil is very incomplete, but it follows industry standards. You can look at Mil-PFR-2104 (better look at the older Mil-L-2104) at DoDiss. You can look at the test conditions and you won't see a rust test. You will see lots of other tests, but you won't see rust protection.

http://assist.daps.dla.mil/quicksearch/basic_profile.cfm?ident_number=3148

[Jolly Rogers]

Posted by Slamfire 1
Still have cans of RIG, though that company went out of business.

It is now back on the market produced by Birchwood Casey.
Joe

[nofishbob]

One other nice thing about synthetic motor oils is that their viscosity is stable over a wide range of temperatures. That is, they won't get too thin when they get hot, and they won't do a molasses imitation in the cold.

I used to put Mobile 1 in my truck to make cranking easier in the winter when I lived up north.

Bob

[jcwit]

It is now back on the market produced by Birchwood Casey.
Joe

Is this fact? I've heard rumers of this. Its not shown on their web site. Just wondering?

[sandmander]

I use Boesheid T-9 on my firearms, fishing gear,tools and marine electronics.To me ,the product is the undisputed king.Waterproofs,once dry leaves no residue,and doesn't attract dust.The only downside is it's a little pricey,and sometimes hard to find.

[Jolly Rogers]

Here is a link:
http://www.shotgunsportsmagazine.com/store/index.php?main_page=advanced_search_result&search_in_description=1&zenid=a4846f2a45f2ab15b5e4e541e1427853&keyword=rig+universal+grease
It may be available elsewhere also...
Joe

[jcwit]

I believe thats old stock, but get it while you can. Still one of the best, if not the best.

[Jolly Rogers]

No...look closely at the label, it says Birchwood Casey and is yellow not the Silencio colors. It is new stuff. I have read the B.C. news release in National Rifleman magazine and also in a email notice from "The Shooting Wire".
Joe

[jcwit]

Hey Hey Hey you're right fantastic. Wonder just when it'll start appearing in the stores. It is one of the best.

Thanks for enlightening me.
jcwit

[X - Man]

Here's a suggestion, to save a few bucks; save the containers from the motor oil you use for your auto engine oil change. Turn them upside down and let them sit awhile. 5 or 6 quart bottles, well drained, should yield enough oil for your gun use. Cheap.

I use a 50/50 mix of regular oil to synthetic oil, in my truck.

[jcwit]

HaHa, back in the 50's thats how we kids used to get cheap oil at the gas station. They used to set the "cans" upside down on a section of eaves trough that was sloped down. It was called drippings. I remember paying 10 cents a quart. If i cleaned out the bays I got a couple for free.

[lefteyedom]

Nothing wrong with using motor oil on your firearms.
I am sure olive oil (extra virgin) would be better than running it dry.
I can not believe how emotional THR member get over some subjects.

[jcwit]

Oh but the 2 oz. bottle of hokum kokum surper semi synthis compined with the secret formula handed down by gread uncle Charlie who worked in the oil fields of eastern Texas compounded this special forumla made from an unidentified species of catus that guarantees satification for 10 years. Superior lubing qualities and total rustproofing of any and all sporting equipment for the life of the lube.

This can also be used to cure chigger bites and poison ivy and poison oak. Use sparringly on rattle snake bites, and quananteed to draw all poisons from any and all infections.

Do youhave a Pick-up using oil because of low compression or a worn muffler, 2 bottles of this elixir is guanenteed to rejunivate your motor to as new condition.

Please send $9.99 for one or save and get 2 for only $5.99 each plus $22.00 shipping.

[okespe04]

Kerosene and mobile 1 synthetic.

[Magnumite]

I love these lube threads. They get better and better...:banghead:

BTW, I agree in a pinch many things will work and under most conditions our civilian arms will be okay with pet lubes. Just throwing more wood on the fire.

The US military has a standard for the full auto small arms and artillery applications and they did tests on the oils submitted for contract approval.

That lube is what we may purchase as Breakfree. If all the synthetic oils are so good for firearms, then why didn't the military spec that out in their arms maintenance and use program?

If one is able to emphatically say Mobil 1 is better than Breakfree, Tetra Gun, FP10 or many other lubes formulated for firearms, I'd like to see that test data. Engines do work under greater loads than firearms. Some of those additives need that pressure to "work" as they do.

[Slim Pickens]

My personal favorite is Mobil white synthetic grease with Teflon. I buy it from McMaster-Carr in full-size tubes, and the price is very reasonable. It is very similar to TW-25B synthetic gun grease, at a fraction of the price. It can be blended with Mobil-1 or any other synthetic oil to reduce the viscosity, and I don't worry for one minute about compatibility. I also bought some surplus synthetic turbine oil from CMP a while back, they were selling it as gun oil for $1/quart (I think), and it works fine too.

CLP does a great job of cleaning, but I am not jeopardizing the wear parts on my gun by using a different lube. At worst, it just takes much longer to clean out carbon fouling on my ARs. As long as you keep an oil film on them, metal parts will be protected.

I will say that I think CLP is a poor choice for guns with fine walnut stocks. CLP is made to penetrate roll pins and detent springs on autoloaders, and it does this extremely well. The same properties will make it migrate into a wooden stock and soak it over time. I always stick with a higher viscosity grease on my older mil-surps, whether it is labeled for guns or something else.

For a corrosion inhibitor, LPS-3 is the absolute best that I have tried. Absolutely wonderful. It is available in gallon cans or an aerosol version from McMaster-Carr. The spray version foams up to a large volume to cover parts, then it dries to form a waxy film similar to cosmoline. It cleans up easier than cosmoline and it smells way better. You can spray a barreled action with LPS-3, then let it dry several hours before reassembling to the stock. The metal parts will stay fully protected indefinitely, and the corrosion inhibitor will not soak into the wood. When you remove it from storage, just swab out the bore with light oil and it's ready to go to the range. So much easier than dealing with cosmoline.

[AK Krazy]

First I would never use engine oils on my firearms, they are much to valuable to risk for the savings I would get between a good gun oil & engine oil.

But if you really want to try this there is a test to find the best oil.
We did this test back in high school shop class, it really surprised me.
Take a qt. of the oils you are planning to use, heat it until it starts to smoke & drop in a polished steel ball bearing.
Let it cool & set it on the shelf for 3 months.
Three months later when you pull the ball bearing out of the oil if it has any rust, pitting, or a dark color on the polished surface don't use that oil on your gun or in your car.
This is why the oil producers suggest that you change the oil in your car every 3 months even if you have not driven the car after the last oil change.
Oil does break down and it absorbs moisture, you would not want that against the metal in your guns.

[jcwit]

That shelf that you put the container that the ball bearing is in, is it in a humid enviroment or a dry enviroment, is it hot or is it cold.

I believe the oil industry has moved way past the High School Shop test for their lubricating, rust resistant, and any other requirements.

Furthermore the major oil companies selling synthetic oil no longer push for a 3,000 mile OCI.

Oil does not absorb water, water floates on oil in case you haven't noticed.

[SlamFire1]

That lube is what we may purchase as Breakfree. If all the synthetic oils are so good for firearms, then why didn't the military spec that out in their arms maintenance and use program?

There is absolutely no technical inhouse capability left in the Government. For the past couple of decades there has been a deliberate decline in the inhouse technical capabilities. It is about zero now.

If you notice on DoDiss, 99% of the specs were obsoleted 15-20 years ago. Back then, the Government no longer had the technical expertise to update product specifications. The problem got so bad, vendors were complaining about 50-60’s vintage specifications, that the powers that be obsoleted the DoD specification library. Can only use the old specs for reference. The best they can do now is write “performance specifications”. That is, specify that they want something that works, but not specify how it works, or what makes it work. They are barely bright enough to understand the problem, no one wants the numb nuts specifying a solution.

Private Industry has tribologists, where are they in the Army? LubeCom? Does not exist.

So, who in the Government recognizes that the current lubrication specifications need to be updated, and why would anyone care to make the effort?

Stupid is as Stupid does.

[chevyforlife21]

x man im pretty sure you shouldnt do that. theres a reason they say dont put synthetic in any engines that have over a few thousand miles on them. that being cuse the conventional oil doesnt mix good with synthetic.

[RogersPrecision]

LOL!
Another lube thread full of BS and wild claims.
Be like me, use bacon grease!

[2nd 41]

I use Triflow on my guns.
This is seriously great stuff. I use it on guns and anything that moves. I spray outdoor combination Master Locks that go through each season in Pa. Never had a problem working them.

Do what ever you are comfortable with.

[jimmyraythomason]

Funny, Oil that is used to protect a high reving Ferrari or Lamborghini engine isn't good enough for guns! FWIW,camshaft gears and other press fit parts are heated IN OIL to just under flame-up temps to allow them to be installed. THEY DON'T RUST AFTERWARD.

[Maj Dad]

"You can trust your CAR,
To the man who wears the star,
The Big, Red, Texaco STARRRRRRRRR...."
:neener:

[jcwit]

x man im pretty sure you shouldnt do that. theres a reason they say dont put synthetic in any engines that have over a few thousand miles on them. that being cuse the conventional oil doesnt mix good with synthetic.

Just where did you come up with this gem? What do you think synethic Blend is. Being as you don't know do a little research on bitog.com

Triflow is basically nothing more than Slick 50, put up in small containers.

[kanook]

Tongue in cheak comment removed due to lack of humour

[jimmyraythomason]

never mind

[Beelzy]

Go hang around a machine gun forum, they like tranny fluid mixes.

FWIW, Browning 1919's love motor oil.

[Horsemany]

I've been running my own corrosion tests since 2004. I've tested just about any oil, wax, grease I can think of. I save the results after the weeklong saltwater spray tests. Motor oils of any kind offer very little by way of rust protection. Even the lowest grade gun oils will protect from rust much better than dino or synthetic motor oil I don't recommend motor oil for preservation.

[jim357]

For preserving one for your son, and for rust protection, I found a web page that tested many types of oils and the best they found for this purpose is Eezox. I bought a can and like it. I have also used Break Free Collector for preservation and rust protection. As I recall, the web page I referred to compaired it with Mobil 1 and found Mobil 1 to be lacking. Jim

Edit to add web page: 6mmbr.com/corrosiontest.html

[armsmaster270]

Quote:
"My reserve unit fired 68,000 rds(5.56) in two days, I used clp two maybe three times and fired several thousand without a hitch. CLP is really cheap and doesn't build up like commercial moter oil. If you must grease parts like bolt lugs and rails LSA would work fine as well. When I say clp I mean the real stinky military stuff you can buy in 2.5 gallon white jugs not the crap I picked up once at wal-mart."

The white jug stuff that stinks is Generic CLP made by Royal Lubricants The real CLP is Breakfree and works better than the white bottles. I have Gallons of both.

A lot of competitive shooters mix their own with transmission fluid as well.
__________________

[Bad Hammer]

A lot of competitive shooters mix their own with transmission fluid as well.
I learned the rust preventive qualities of ATF a long time ago.
Anyone that hasn't tried it should do so.
And I also have become a believer in Ed's Red as well.
It's pretty much all I use now.
And it also has good rust inhibiting properties. Probably the ATF.
As for "engine oil use on guns", I'm OK with it. It works.