What's Your Favorite Solvent/Lubricant?

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BruiseLee

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Over the years I've used a lot of different stuff to clean, lubricate, and protect my firearms. LSA, Triflow, Hoppe's #9, Outer's Nitro Solvent, and Break-Free CLP among them.

Well, I've finally run out of chemicals and was wondering if there is some new wonder chemical I should know about before I throw down my money.

Also, I have heard that Break-Free was reformulated from the original recipe to be more enviromentally friendly, and that the present Break-Free formula isn't as good as the original. Anyone care to comment?

Does anybody use LSA any more?

Also, I've always steered friends away from using WD-40 on their guns. I don't believe its good at preventing rust. Read that in a firearms test years ago. Also, more importantly I've always heard that because it's a penetrating oil, WD-40 tends to seep into primers and render them useless. Fact or myth?

What are you guys using to clean and lubricate your firearms?
 
Regarding WD-40, WD-40 is a temporary lubricant that's meant to be a quick fix for stuck locks and bolts. It quickly dries out and leaves a gummy substance that is both a piss-poor lubricant and a piss-poor rust prevention. I doubt it does jack to primers because it has such a short lifespan and tends to stay where you spray it, so unless you spray it directly on the primer it's not going to seep into it and kill it. Keep WD-40 away from guns. It can't do any good, and it can sure muck up the works.

I prefer Breakfree or Hoppes. Breakfree seems to be better in terms of penetration and sheer lubrication, and Hoppes seems to do better in terms of longevity because it's thicker and tends to stay in one place. I always put a line of Breakfree on the rails of a 1911-style slide. Breakfree, with its tube adapter, seems to be a bit handier than Hoppes, though. Its round bottle also tips over less readily. Because of this, I typically use Breakfree for most applications.
 
I like MiliTec synthetic oil and grease for parts that work against other parts. I like the long needle Militec supplies for their oil. Takes a while to get oil coming but that needle will reach into places where no man has gone before...:)

Hoppe's #9 for general cleaning and powder residue.

Butch's Bore Shine for copper solvent, backed up by Shooter's Choice.

I like Tetra oil for external preservative type uses. I like it on 1911 barrels as they go through their bushings too because I can feel that there's still slickness after lots of firing.

Lots of oil hype going on.
 
Where Do You Buy Your Chemicals?

I should add, where do you guys usually buy your Hoppes #9, Break-Free, whatever from? Is there a good, cheap online source?
 
I have mixed up a batch of Ed's Red, and am using it. Cheap and effective. The lanolin in the receipe was obtained at a drug store. You can Google the receipe if you want it. Doesn't smell as good as Hoppes, but a lot cheaper.

Has anyone else used it?
 
Ed's Red + Spray Bottle + Bore Snake + Old Tooth Brush + Rag + Air Compressor = Excellent clean and lube and preserve that takes about five minutes for a normally dirty gun. Ten minutes for a very dirty gun. About $14 per gallon in Alaska.

For long term rust prevention, you can't beat Cosmoline. For light loads, BreakFree is about as good as you can get. For heavier loads, I like automotive assembly grease with moly and graphite.
 
WD 40 has its place in the gun cleaning world, if used for the intended use of displacing water.

I like to clean trigger groups of my guns by using a degreaser/ solvent, then a douse in hot soapy water with a good tooth brush scrub, then a rinse again with hot clean water, which will usually evaporate, but just to make sure I like to spray with the WD and then a final drying with compressed air. Then use a pin point oiler with my Break Free on my autos or 3in1 oil to lube the critical points. The areas that are higher stress auto slide rails sears etc. get Lubri-Plate lithium grease sparingly. Rust prevention of bores and exteriors of the guns is handled by light 3in1 , and the guns that set are stored in a locker with and electric dryer (Gunsaver) pistols and revolvers that are not in use are wrapped in corrosion preventitive paper, long guns for long term storage use treated gun socks.
 
Militech is very good for working parts, and they are a good upstanding company also. They give free "samples" (about 1oz) to servicemen (will outfit a company with their lube if requested). I am more than willing to support a company that supports the American people in the way Militech does.
 
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Ditto the ATF.

Inexpensive, easy to find, excellant penetation, non-gumming, good lubing qualities, good rust protection (still an oil, not a grease so don't depend on it for long term storage). What's not to love?
 
BUTCH WAX, no wait that was for my hair in the 50's, Tetra grease for slides and high wear areas and Hoppes oil for the rest of stuff.:D
 
WD-40 on their guns. I don't believe its good at preventing rust. Read that in a firearms test years ago.
Click to expand...

Actually it is VERY good at rust prevention - Brownell's did a test and I think it was second only to Cosmoline, blew away CLP and others. It's posted on their website somewhere. WD40 was designed for one purpose and one purpose only - to displace water, not as a penetrating lubricant. It is OK in some gun applications, but it does indeed leave a gummy yellow/brown residue behind, so it is bad practice to just stick it in crannies and "hose it down." I have seen revolvers locked up from that practice after enough times.

Hoppe's for cleaning works just great for me. If I needed lots of volume, I would use Ed's Red. Otherwise, Grease on sliding parts (like the lithium grease in a tub at the auto parts store is great), light gun oil on rotating ones. Has worked great and cheaply/affordably for decades for me. In the motorcycle world we used to call all the "super" additives/specialty chemicals "mouse milk" - very expensive, and not really worth it. That is pretty much how I view most specialty gun products - there just isn't anything unique about guns' needs for lubrication that is very different than other machinery.

The one thing I do to the guns that is a bit different is I use Renaissance Wax as an outer coating. Great protection, looks beautiful, stuff just wipes right off and the gun stays beautiful. It was designed for the weapons and collections at the Imperial Museum in Britain. It is great stuff - you can get it at woodworking shops. $15 for a small can, but the can will do about 200-300 handguns, so it's not a bad deal at all.

This is some of the clearest, most sensible talk on gun lubes I've ever seen:

http://grantcunningham.com/lubricants101.html
 
KRS, I gave up, then added the links, too many band aids, Hoppies #9 reminds me of John Wayne toilet paper, neither one will take crap off on anything. Starting with a clean barrel and maintaining it is the easy part, acquiring a rifle and or barrel that has been abused or neglected is another matter, in my opinion #9 is too expensive and is not effective at cleaning abused barrels. Cleaning clean barrels? I spend less for something that is better.

F. Guffey
 
Mil-Com, TW-25B grease (consistency of sour cream) and and MC-2500 which is the same ingredients as the grease in different proportions so is absolutely compatible. Mc-25 cleaner rounds it out and that's all you will ever need. Opinion.

LOG
 
"Does anybody use LSA any more?"

Yeah. Me.

I use LSA on my Colt 1911. Shooter's Choice for cleaning.
 
Upon reccommendation by a fuels/oil engineer, I puchased a quart of Mobil 1 synthetic motor oil and filled filled several small bottles with this lubricant and put the remainder in another large bottle. For five plus bucks this oil is the best lubricant I have ever used since I started shooting over 40 years ago. I do believe some of the other wonder lubes on the market are the same thing at 10 times the price. Anyway I have a lifetime supply of gun lube now and will never switch back to "XYZ Wonderlube". Just my two cents! :)
 
Boeshield t-9,made by Boeing Aircraft,is my absolute favorite for guns,marine equip,tools,electronics.It's a little pricey but worth every dime of the price.Can't say enough good about it-I've put it to some really tough tests.Used it for years,and will continue as long as it's avalible.
 
I've gotten to where I love M-Pro7 for cleaning - this stuff gets the job done quickly and without the intoxicating aroma of Hoppes.
The Mili-tec products are great lubricants for every purpose.

For copper removing, Sweet's 7.62 or Barnes CR-10 are what I still reach for.
 
Have you ever heard of cleaning a chain as follows:
1. remove chain
2. soak in kerosene
3. rinse
4. place in towel in the washing machine and spin-cycle the chain dry
5. lube as you like and reinstall

We thought all new chains Shimano included have a wax coating which should be left on
AND
Wouldn't the kero wash off all the lube in-between the pins and rollers too?

We asked our LBS guy and he says he just leaves the stuff on a new chain for the first 20mi or so then wipes off the excess and applies Prolink or T-9 etc.

Kind of wondering if the kero method is ok. for a new chain and if T9 etc. will work it's way in-between the pins and rollers again.

Thanks in advance
Bring popcorn. These chain lube threads tend to get long and contentious fast.

Yes, I've heard of solvent washing a new chain and yes, it takes all of the lube out of the pins and rollers if done thoroughly. I happen to think it's a lousy idea and Sheldon Brown used to agree quite strongly.

Your LBS has the right idea. I usually run a new chain for about 200 miles before I start my usual lube program. If you want to, you can wipe the exterior of a new chain to remove some of the excess external lube but don't solvent wash it.

BTW, the guy who suggested placing the kerosene soaked chain in the washing machine to spin is either not married or no longer married. :p
 
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