AR Lube

[Roadwild17]

I run my AR wet (the way they should be) and I hear a lot of guys run motor oil. Is there a brand name / weight that runs best.

Im looking for lube qualities & something that doesn't burn away very quickly.

I think the general conscious was Exxon or Mobile, but I may be mistaken.

 

[JWarren]

With what I do with my rifles, Rem-Oil has done fine.


-- John

 

[Al Thompson]

Mobil One has a following. Take a look in Gunsmithing for some good reading.

 

[Nhsport]

If you are buying the tiny bottle of clp at the range or at your local mom and pop gunstore it is crazy expensive.
I buy the 16oz bottle and refill the little ones to carry in my toolkit or rangebag. The price is reasonable .
I like the way CLP works for cleaning and lubeing with one product and one of these 16oz bottles will last me quite a while.
Some guys get all excited over mobile 1 or some particular brand of super high tech wonder lube that they claim is somehow "beter". The only folks I have ever seen haveing any troubles that were lube related were basicly useing no lube at all .
I will continue to recomend Breakfree CLP as it has been good for my use and is available at a reasonable price .
As you noted ARs like to run wet , pick a product and use it and I expect you will never have a problem .

 

[Coronach]

We used Mobile One in my patrol rifle course. We had no malfunctions that could not be traced back to a bad magazine or some user error, and we shot a LOT of rounds.

Mike

 

[mljdeckard]

To clarify, only SYNTHETIC motor oil offers an improvement. Synthetic oil has much more stability at exteme high and low temperatures, and detergent additives that don't suck in dirt like conventional motor oil. I've see guys in here swear by Mobil 1 5w30 synthetic for EVERYTHING, some guys have named some of the motorcycle blends being best for gun uses. (I won't pretend to understand why.) In the service manuals of some service rifles (The M-14 comes to mind,) it says that in emergencies, motor oil can be used instead of gun oil, but it says to remove it as soon as possible afterward. In 1955 they would have been talking about conventional oil.

I suppose I might try it, but I still have half a gallon of CLP I stole from the army I'm using.

They do like to run wet, but more than once, I've gone through the zero and qual table (52 some-odd rounds) bone-dry.

 

[briansmithwins]

I use LSA instead of CLP. I buy it by the quart instead of CLP. I prefer it because it doesn't dry out as fast CLP, which also works very well.

Did a little rust testing last year. From left to right: CLP, LSA, Swiss rifle grease, Mobile 1. ATF (auto tranny fluid), Machine Gunners lube, control-no lube.

Samples are parkerized clips that were cleaned with acetone before the lube was swabbed on.

\

 

[Coronach]

You FOOL.

You're not supposed to test stuff and generate actual data. You're supposed to sit there and pound on your keyboard and endlessly debate hypotheticals.

You have failed at the internets.

Mike

 

[longdayjake]

next time separate them more to test them. Oxidation is contagious to metals. How could you not know that. The ones closest to the control will always have more rust no matter what brand you are using. Trust me I know.

 

[BADUNAME37]

What do you mean by

"run wet?"

Do you mean just well-lubricated in the places where metal meets metal?

I use Tetra grease on most things like the bolt face lugs, slides, etc. and Break Free on everything else.

I do run Synthetic 5w-30 in all my vehicles and lawn mower and snowblower (so I have some new quarts in the garage -- off brand name, but pure synthetic 5w-30).

Are you saying that synthetic oil would would be better than what I'm using (or should it be specifically Mobil 1)?

 

[The Foo]

My AR loves CLP and nothing but. Run's great. For guns that require grease, it's Lubriplate. For oil, I use Hopps.

 

[BIGRETIC]

Any one use Mil-comm?

 

[Rubber_Duck]

I use CLP and automatic transmission fluid exclusively. Works great, no reason to change.

 

[Grunt]

The only thing my ARs ever see is CLP for cleaning and protecting the metal parts and LSA for general lube.

 

[normal]

I use Castrol Synthetic, it works great and is cheaper than many oils.

 

[BADUNAME37]

Militec

http://www.militec.com/video/militec.html

Check out this video!

 

[possum]

i don't use oil of any kind on my guns, i use high temp lithium grease. dosen't migrate like oil, and it is easy on easy off, cheap and easy to find. for $2.50 for a 1lb can that will probally last you a lifetime.

 

[jd46561]

Were does one purchase Militec?.

 

[gaweidert]

I'm a big fan of EEZOX. Even better corrosion resistance than CLP. This statement from a similar test done a few years ago that a guy on another site did. I also use it on my milsurp rifles after cleaning as I shoot corrosive ammo through them and spray a bit down the barrel to help corrosion resistance.

 

[Slamfire]

The lubrication environment of an AR is not that stressing. This thing is not a turbine blade, running cherry red hot, in a jet engine exhaust.

That's why these things will work on gun oils, most of which are simply straight mineral oil without any additives. And hideously overpriced for what you get.

Incidentally, grease is a thickner saturated with oil. The oil in the grease does the lubrication.

I used to use Mobil One motor oil. It took about ten years to use that quart, and the replacement was Castroil Synthetic. Because it was on sale.

Motor oils are outstanding lubricants. Millions are being spent to advance their technology. Nothing is being spent on gun lubricant research. I believe that all “gun oils” are either straight mineral oil, or simply repackaged industrial lubricants.

Go look in the Grainger’s catalog for those. Pages of them.

 

[SHvar]

Ive used hoppes, CLP, Mobil 1, and conventional motor oil over the years.
The motor oil regardless of type or brand (synthetic, conventional, mobil 1, castrol syntec, quaker state, pennsoil, etc) always dries up too fast, and needs added frequently compared to hoppes or CLP.
I used to work on cars for years, I can tell you that auto trans fluid is designed to clean and lubricate, but has a red dye added to make identifying it easier, its thin and dries out quicker than motor oil does.
Hoppes dries quicker than CLP does, and cost more (mostly sold in tiny bottles). I dont use grease on my rifles, I want then to be a bit wet with oil.
I stick with CLP, I can coat the parts with a thin coat, put the rifle away (or handgun), pull it out later on and fire hundreds of rounds without adding any oil to it. The rifle is still damp, and cleans alot easier than with other types of oil in my experience, in fact very easy.
I used to keep alot of mobil one for my car and my cycle, and filled up a small bottle for use on the firearms, but it just didnt work as good for some reason.

 

[Roadwild17]

So it boils down to CLP or synthetic motor oil with a few claims for militec and LSA.