AR lubrication.

[tark]

Hi, guys. here I am with my new AR and many questions. Mostly about lubrication. or rather, where you put it. I already know NOT to use WD40. I have always been told that you keep oil away from anything the hot powder gases touch, but the manual with the gun says otherwise.

According to it, you oil everything, except the gas key and the gas tube. It would seem to me that oiling the bolt and the gas rings would result in a sludgy mess in short order. (?)

Bushmaster says to use CLP It seems to me that CLP is a jack of all trades and a master of none. It is both a lubricant and a cleaner. Would something else be a better? If I want to clean the gun I'll use a cleaner. If I want to lubricate it I want a straight lubricant. Is Break Free any good?

I have heard of using motor oil. It would seem to me that Mobile 1 might be an excellent choice, it still lubricates at 800 degrees. Normal motor oil starts to break down at half that.

My Bushmaster (M4A3 Patrol) isn't the best AR out there, not the worst either, but it is perfect for my needs. I showed it to Mark Brand, our AR builder during the years I worked for Les, and he said it was a good gun for the money. Not top tier, but a good gun for the light use it will be put to.

He also told me not to worry too much about "Mil-spec" parts. Some commercially made parts are as good or better. The only true mil-spec guns are class III, because the military specifies that the M16s and M-4s are either three round burst or outright full auto!

 

[NeuseRvrRat]

http://www.thehighroad.org/search.php?searchid=14064737

If that isn't enough for you, just head over to AR15.com or m4carbine.net and search and read. That should keep you busy for a week or two.

 

[Sapper771]

CLP is ok. I dont recommend it for long term or high round counts or high temp environments though.
YMMV

You will discover that just about any lube works. Just stay away from heavy grease in the winter.
I use to use all those whiz bang products, which worked, but they also did nothing that plain old Mobil 1 couldnt do. I have also used a lot of Ed's Red lube on most of my firearms, It works great. My favorite mix is the NGMTU recipe. Great stuff.
I use Lubriplate white grease, Ultralube white lithium grease, and Lucas Red & Tacky when I am needing grease (AKs mostly).

As far as where to lube.....that is up to you. I lube the entire bolt and carrier, minus the breech face. I lube til the surfaces look wet. We all have our own methods, and most of them are acceptable.

 

[mf-dif]

I lightly lube the entire BCG including the gas rings and the charging handle. I use whatever is handy, right now that happens to be 3-in-1 oil.

 

[Archangel14]

I'm convinced that just about anything other than a mineral based oil or WD40 is acceptable. Go buy a tube of Lucas red grease or Mobile Synthetic for about $4 and enjoy years of lubricated shooting.

 

[2bfree]

Here is a short video from Ruger as to what to use and where.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hKuof-yI9Qo

 

[Sapper771]

Here is another article from Grant Cunningham on Lubrication. I dont know anything about him, but it seems to be a well written article.

http://www.grantcunningham.com/2006/05/lubrication-101/

 

[ColoradoShooter77]

I lube the entire bolt and gas rings, as well as the rails on the bolt carrier. I just use a dab of CLP on my finger and rub it in.

CLP will keep the carbon in a liquid form, so its much easier to clean up.

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

I use the Mobil 1 that I can drain from the jug after completing an oil change and keep it in an old eye drop bottle. The small spout makes it very convenient to apply exactly where I want it on all of my guns.

 

[carbine85]

Really the bottom line is you can use just about any type of lighter weight oils on the AR. It doesn't require expensive snake oil remedies and they function better without grease. People stress out over lubricants for the AR. I can't remember when the last time was I had a lubricant related problem with the AR. I use CLP, Hoppes, Frog Lube, Mobile 1 or just about anything that's in the range bad or within arms length. These things aren't spinning at 10K RPMs like a race engine and most of us don't shoot 1K of rounds in 1 outing without cleaning. Anything over $10-$12 a bottle is wasted money.

 

[Hacker15E]

I use the Mobil 1 that I can drain from the jug after completing an oil change and keep it in an old eye drop bottle. The small spout makes it very convenient to apply exactly where I want it on all of my guns.

Yep, this. Every car oil change I get to re-charge the drip bottle.

 

[W.E.G.]

EVERYTHING that can rust gets CLP.

Light film of grease on buffer spring and fire-control engagement surfaces.

 

[tark]

Wow , ten responses on a couple hours. I'm gonna go with Mobile 1, I like the idea of an oil that can reach 800 degrees and not break down. I imagine things can get pretty hot inside that bolt carrier.

And thanks to all for the links. I am exploring a whole new world. I always disliked ARs .....until the first time I fired one! In the thirty plus years since I last had one, they have certainly evolved into the best in the world at what they do.

And they are a lot of fun, too.

 

[CLP]

CLP is just fine. CLP gets the job done.

 

[OilyPablo]

A typical (over gassed) 5.56 or 6.8 AR won't be picky at all about lubricants. Use something like this guide:





If somehow anyone has an undergassed beast like a pistol caliber or .300BLK subsonic, then I highly advise polishing all those key moving parts on the BCG and then using Militec or the like.

 

[GRIZ22]

FYI, Breakfree is the commercial name of CLP. I've used CLP for about 30 years on all guns. Works well under all conditions. Hoppes is a better cleaner, it works for me as a lube, and not bad as a protectorant.

I've used just about any lubricant containing PTFE or Teflon in a pinch. Thats what is used in CLP. I like the fact if I use CLP if you lube it and store the gun for a year the PTFE is still there and the gun works properly. If you use a petroleum base oil it will dry up and leave a gummy residue.

It's true just about anything will work for a day on the range. Some AR experts will make an issue out of running one wet, specially the bolt as its some new found idea. We were dping that in Vietnam in 1968. The lube used by most was LSA. It worked well but I discovered Dri-Slide was better for the internals.

 

[md7]

Oilypablo's post has a good diagram on it for what needs lubrication. As for what to use..... Well, there's a lot of different options out there. I'm sure you'll find something that works for you.

I used slip 2000 for lube and slip 725 cleaner for a while. It's good stuff. Now I use MPro 7 cleaner and lube (lpx). Mainly because it's available locally and I like that it doesn't have a strong odor. Works well enough for me.

 

[briansmithwins]

ARs will run perfectly fine when dirty and wet, dry and dirty, not so much. Dry and clean also doesn't work so good.

BSW

 

[greyghost01]

I have a Wyndham Bush Master and it has been through a few thousand rounds shoots 1/2" moa at 100 with a scope, NEVER a FTF FTE I would put it up against any other gas AR, It just runs and shoots. The new ones I hear are a toss up. But Ive been a Remington guy all my life and Im 60 yrs old, Would not buy a Rem today, The freedom Group destroyed a lot of good guns You can buy parts to make your bushmaster very reliable, I frog lube everything that's metal and use heat and wipe off all excess then use high speed grease everywhere it shows wear a very, very small amount so far no complaints at all

 

[ColoradoShooter77]

My M&P Sport has been fantastic through 1500 rounds, no malfunctions.

 

[OilyPablo]

Pushing 12000 rounds in my DD. I just installed a Tubbs flatwire spring. The original spring still works. But those Tubbs springs seem pretty nice.

 

[Walkalong]

I use the Mobil 1 that I can drain from the jug after completing an oil change

I drain all my oil jugs as well. It builds up. People throw away a lot of oil. Even if you don't use it to oil a gun, it comes in handy.

 

[HoosierQ]

Motor oil is what I use. Motor oil and then CLP or Remoil.

 

[Tentwing]

Fellas;

Thanks for this thread. I am an AR newby, and you guys have filled in a lot of holes in my AR knowledge base. Oilypablo your diagram is a big help. I got a great deal on a Ruger AR 556 about a month ago, and I am about 800ish rounds into it with no hiccups and some surprisingly tight groups.

Thanks for the help fellas, Tentwing

 

[rbernie]

It would seem to me that oiling the bolt and the gas rings would result in a sludgy mess in short order. (?)

Yes, and that's the idea. Oil helps keep carbon and grit in suspension and moving, and that means that the rifle stays operational.