Gun cleaning fluids and cold weather

[Grandpa Shooter]

Mods, if this is the wrong place for this I apologize.

I finally got my guns out and got back to shooting. Problem is I lived for 22 years where the coldest it got was 40-50 degrees. Might dip lower over night but was shirtsleeve weather by 10am. I live now where for 4 months it goes down to 40 and stays down or lower.

Went out shooting the other day when it was 26 degrees and the slides on my pistols didn't want to work (my fingers didn't like it much either). I use standard gun cleaning fluids and wipe off the excess when done. Is there an accepted procedure for cold weather use of guns?

 

[waumo]

You don't say what pistols but I routinely shoot 1911 type pistols in the sort of weather you describe. I have never encountered any problems in cold weather.

Typically I use oil on the pistols instead of grease.

Lately I have been using "Snake Oil" from Dillon and have not noticed any problems.

 

[Grandpa Shooter]

I use standard cleaning fluid, wipe it down and use teflon spray. I never had a problem with my 1911 match grade until using it in cold weather. The revolver had no trouble.

 

[dakotasin]

the only weather-related stoppage i've had was a beretta 92 that was teflon-oiled as well (just a little below zero that day). 1911's that got standard oil (kroil, rem oil) ran fine, even at 20 below zero.

since the beretta wasn't mine, i couldn't test it fer sure to blame the teflon stuff, but i never had any problems as long as i wasn't using the stuff.

 

[boredelmo]

I tend to think of teflon as a sort of wax. I don't have any sources or facts, but i always assumed that was the case. Grease doesn't freeze, wax might change properties with temperature, etc.

 

[Dorryn]

Have you tried white lithium grease?