View Full Version : Engine oil on your guns?
Anyone here use engine oil to lube your guns? I stumbled across it online and it seems like a decent idea with the only draw back being it will be more likely to attract dirt and debris.
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Great-Kazoo
01-02-2017, 23:36
It's what probably 50-60% of lubes are made with. It's been discussed here before, I use syn- 30W.
My guns are organic so non gmo fair trade coconut oil. Leaves a nice smell when firing
I will probably use 5w-30 Supertech synthetic or 0w-40 M1 leftover oil near future. Unless there is a petro engineers who will tell me that some of oil additive/blend can harm the gun finish.
My lawnmower had an oil change w/ 5w-30 supertech (walmart brand) synthetic. It was leftover oil, and it runs smoother than straight 30weight motor oil for lawnmower. (Yes, checked manual).
It's all I use to lube my guns. I just picked up a quart of cheap synthetic at the auto parts store and expect to use it for the next 10 years or so, at least.
I've been using leftover gear oil 80w
I use Mobil 1, in one of those little squeeze bottles that the e-cig/vape juice comes in.
I have been using 0-30 synthetic with BG moa additive for the last 5 years and it works well for me.
I use 5-20 Royal Purpul. Works great!
I used 30 wt synthetic motor oil mixed 50/50 with synthetic ATF for years. I use the Lucas products now and I prefer them, but the 50/50 blend is cheap and works better than most gun lubes.
I use synthetic stuff. A quart costs less than just a few ounces of "gun" oil. I figure if it's good enough to live my high performance machines and expensive engines it's good enough to lube my guns that won't run at nearly as many RPMs.
SideShow Bob
01-03-2017, 10:59
Would that be "Rounds Per Minute" ?
Synthetic only. I take it to 5,000 rounds before lubing again................
HoneyBadger
01-03-2017, 11:34
Yeah, mobil 1 synthetic 5W-30 or whatever I have I hand for my car. As Irving said, 1 quart ought to last a decade or more and it cost just a few dollars for a quart. An ounce of most gun oils is about the same cost.
Another vote for Mobil 1 synthetic.
There's a lot of science behind lubricants. Guns are simple devices and pretty much any lubricant will work but I choose to use stuff specially designed for firearms. I prefer teflon based lube.
beast556
01-03-2017, 16:01
There's a lot of science behind lubricants. Guns are simple devices and pretty much any lubricant will work but I choose to use stuff specially designed for firearms. .
Im with Ray on this. I used hoppe's gun oil since I was a kid. For the last 5+ years I have been using slip 2000 ewl. Once the slip 2000 ewl runs out in a few years I will go back to hoppe's. Hoppe's served my great grandfather my grandpa my father and me all through my youth with no issues.
I use a variety of motor oil (synthetic), gun oil and grease. This review seems pretty good and unbiased. I've purchased the grease he suggests and it works well, however I've tried a lot of different oils and greases and most seem to work well.
http://www.grantcunningham.com/2006/05/lubrication-101/
SouthPaw
01-03-2017, 16:22
Lubirplate motor assembly grease for anything that slides
Rotella 5W-40 synthetic for anything that spins/rotates (left over from oil changes from my motorcycle)
When you guys say "left over" do you mean whatever is left in the bottle, or actual used oil?
When you guys say "left over" do you mean whatever is left in the bottle, or actual used oil?
Left over in the bottle. [LOL]
That makes a lot more sense...
I use a variety of motor oil (synthetic), gun oil and grease. This review seems pretty good and unbiased. I've purchased the grease he suggests and it works well, however I've tried a lot of different oils and greases and most seem to work well.
http://www.grantcunningham.com/2006/05/lubrication-101/
He did do a good job and for not having a a formal background in tribology, excellent job. The two things missed are 1. the high use firearms, like FA and pistols and rifles shot in the action shooting sports. Those need a higher level of lubrication. and 2. the vegetable and water based lubes (FireClean, FrogLube, etc.) which are about in the WD40 class. Granted, this last miss has come into the marketplace since he originally wrote the article.
Also, look at the section where he talks about straight motor oil...and the benefit of the ATF blend. Spot on there.
Schaeffer's Supreme 9000 5-50w racing oil in all my Guns. Haven't finished half a quart in the last 8 years when I bought it for my race truck.
What lubrication you use really comes down to the use case and duration the lubrication is expected to support. The use case for most gun owners is not a very tedious one. Most guns spend the majority of their existence not being used and when they are used its rarely more than 100 rounds between being cleaned and lubed again. Pretty much any motor oil can last 100 rounds of shooting and still get the job done. Hell, I bet you could use mayonnaise as a lubricant for 100 rounds and it would still keep everything lubed up. If you are expecting a lubricant to effectively last thousands of rounds between cleans and still provide proper lubrication, then the list of viable options quickly narrows. I usually shoot about 35,000 rounds a year through pistols and can tell you straight up that Engine Oil alone doesn't cut it if you are doing 500 - 700 round practice sessions. At least not without stopping to relube every few hundred rounds. I don't want to waste my range time maintaining a firearm so I pick an effective lubrication product that can handle the use case I put my guns through.
For the people who shoot a minimal amount of rounds between cleans then pretty much any motor oil will get the job done. If you are expecting a lubricant to last for thousands of rounds between cleans then you need a specialized product that is designed to function in those conditions. I have found that the Lucas Oil Extreme Duty Gun Oil fits the bill for severe use case scenarios. This stuff works great and lasts a very long time. Is this stuff overkill for the average shooters use case? Yes. But its the best stuff that I have found for getting the job done when you do a crazy amount of shooting.
http://lucasoil.com/products/out-door-line/extreme-duty-gun-oil
I have a free sample of that Lucas Oil stuff but haven't tried it yet.
gnihcraes
01-03-2017, 19:03
I like the Lucas gun oil, works well. Feels/looks like any other synthetic motor oil.
68Charger
01-03-2017, 19:05
CHA-LEE is dead on...
IF guns put huge demands on lubricants, they'd come with an oil pump... (maybe big/fast machine guns do?)
it would overly complicate them, and would be messy as hell- but they would never wear out.
in the early days of engines, they had open lube systems on many parts... even longer on stationary engines (or ship engines).
once they got more performance in the same space, they started added pressurized oil systems....
ETA: I'm in the "if it slides, grease it, if it rotates oil it" camp..
I use synthetic high-temp grease on slides, and other things that slide, and what's left of synthetic motor oil (what's in the bottle) on things that rotate.
The high-temp grease really stays put, but does attract crap- but it makes the cleanup easier- doesn't stick so much.
The Lucas Extreme Duty Gun Oil may seem to have the same feel and viscosity as motor oil when you first look at it, but it has some kind of tackifier added to it that really helps it stay where you put it. Motor oil does not have this same tackiness characteristic and it will weep out or fling off as the slide cycles. Motor oil is good as a stand alone friction on friction inhibitor. But it does a very poor job of staying where you put it because its actually designed to flow though an actively pumped lubrication system.
I use to use grease on the majority of the components within the gun because it was tacky enough to stay put and do its job as a lubricant. But I also found that grease is temperature sensitive and will obviously thicken up the colder it gets. You can't reliably use grease when shooting in freezing or below temps and expect your gun to cycle reliably. The Lucas Extreme Duty Gun Oil solves this problem because of its tacky "stays where you put it" nature and does not thicken up in cold temps. I have completely ditched using grease since I found the Lucas Extreme Duty Gun Oil as its not needed any more to keep my guns properly lubricated for a crap ton of shooting between cleans.
Mobile-1.
-it's gluten-free which makes it marginally OK within the city limits of Boulder. If it was wind or solar powered it'd be preferred in this town though.
Where do you buy the Lucas extreme duty gun oil?
Here's a couple of photos of the barrel out of one of my Glock 19's. Just over 1,000 rounds through the pistol and could probably just about pass for brand new as far as the finish goes.
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170104/63477f35b622ef30bea2b8929c8d829b.jpg
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170104/840d4a466379d5f3e7398b6e03fb829c.jpg
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170104/d77e597328ac5e9b62298b344d8d6083.jpg
TheSparkens
01-03-2017, 21:01
Guy's do any of you have a problem with the motor oil slowing the gun down in the cold? I ask because at one time I was on the frog lube band wagon, and I drank all the cool-aid I could, but the first time I used my guns in the very cold I jump of that wagon fast. I use Hoppe's #9 synthetic. I also use Hoppe's solvent for after shave but I find it burns a little [Sarcasm2]
Where do you buy the Lucas extreme duty gun oil?
Centennial Gun Club stocks it.
Great-Kazoo
01-03-2017, 21:47
Where do you buy the Lucas extreme duty gun oil?
NAPA carries it as does Markco
Guy's do any of you have a problem with the motor oil slowing the gun down in the cold? I ask because at one time I was on the frog lube band wagon, and I drank all the cool-aid I could, but the first time I used my guns in the very cold I jump of that wagon fast. I use Hoppe's #9 synthetic. I also use Hoppe's solvent for after shave but I find it burns a little [Sarcasm2]
Use a synthetic low viscosity, or any low / multi vis oil to avoid cold weather issues. Any heavy weight oil will have some sluggish tendencies as temps drop.
.Frog Lube.........................[Coffee]
TheNewKC
01-03-2017, 22:04
I use ATF and Syn motor oil in the winter time. When the weather gets warmer I will use grease.
funkymonkey1111
01-03-2017, 22:05
Where do you buy the Lucas extreme duty gun oil?
machine gun tours had it last week
gnihcraes
01-03-2017, 22:29
machine gun tours had it last week
Sometimes I've seen it at Napa and local shops. My last bottle I purchased from amazon. I didn't have to go source it somewhere in town.
Warning though, their oil bottle sucks. If you close it up and lay it down in your tool box, the oil will seep out of it. :( (my last bottle did, not sure about this new one yet)
colorider
01-04-2017, 00:21
Interesting finding about my hands on experience with Fire Clean. I got a small bottle to try it out. Seemed to work ok. However, the oil that got on the outside of the bottle becomes VERY sticky with time. Don't know if it does that when on a gun for a while and exposed to air, but sure as hell is sticky on the outside of the bottle. I don't use it anymore so it's not a problem.
Here's a couple of photos of the barrel out of one of my Glock 19's. Just over 1,000 rounds through the pistol and could probably just about pass for brand new as far as the finish goes.
http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20170104/63477f35b622ef30bea2b8929c8d829b.jpg
What lube did you use?
What lube did you use?
http://www.tetraguncare.com/
The grease for things that slide or have high friction points and the oil for everything else.
http://www.tetraguncare.com/
The grease for things that slide or have high friction points and the oil for everything else.
I have some of their oil. That barrel looks fantastic for having a thousand rounds through it. [Awesom]
Ray is a soft shooter though.
Ray is a soft shooter though.
I am. Also, if it factors in, I typically don't go much more than a hundred rounds before I do a thorough cleaning and relube.
I was going to mention that you clean a lot. I slap the trigger like it owes me money and by the time I get around to cleaning I usually have to use a chisel.
gnihcraes
01-04-2017, 16:55
I tried the Tetra gun oil many years ago, it turned to cottage cheese on a gun that had sat in the safe for a while. I wasn't impressed. But that was just my experience.
I used to make my machine gunners go to the motor pool and get oil for their guns there, it works great on those monsters, especially when your alternatives are wimpy CLP or TW-25.
Great-Kazoo
01-05-2017, 09:25
https://www.ar-15.co/threads/160378-LWRC-REPR-won-t-fire-when-cold
I was going to mention that you clean a lot. I slap the trigger like it owes me money and by the time I get around to cleaning I usually have to use a chisel.
vectorsc did some work on my SPR a few weeks ago.
vectorsc: "When's the last time you cleaned this thing?"
me: "What?"
vectorsc: "I thought so..."
HoneyBadger
01-05-2017, 10:46
Cleaning when they aren't dirty is a waste of time. :D
I usually fire close to 2000rds through my primary pistol before cleaning it. I also try not to intentionally introduce dirt and debris to the gun. I shoot at the range, not in a warzone. YMMV.
The info about oil "staying where you put it" is interesting. I figured motor oil would be good enough, since it is designed for high speeds, high temperatures, and millions of engine revolutions... I didn't consider the part where engines require a pressurized oil system.. [hammer]
Delfuego
01-05-2017, 11:14
Tetra grease is great. I use it on any metal on metal surfaces (bolt lugs/slides/etc). Apply it, cycle it a bunch and cleanup the leftovers. They advise against using on plastics. Never had any issue with it and it really can smooth out a pistol or action. Never tried their oil products.
Cleaning when they aren't dirty is a waste of time. :D
No it isn't. It's therapeutic.
Tetra grease is great. I use it on any metal on metal surfaces (bolt lugs/slides/etc). Apply it, cycle it a bunch and cleanup the leftovers. They advise against using on plastics. Never had any issue with it and it really can smooth out a pistol or action. Never tried their oil products.
The oil has the same bad ass stuff as the grease. Just in a more liquidy form.
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