Should I be using oil or grease for my guns?

[SC4006]

I was just wondering, is oil like remoil enough to lubricate the moving parts and high wear areas of my guns? Recently I've been reading about people using grease instead of oil for high wear areas, but is it necessary? After cleaning my guns I've always just coated the moving parts and high wear areas (like the locking lugs on my bolt rifles, or slide rails on my pistol) with remoil, but is that enough or should I only be using remoil to prevent surface rust?

[Brian Pfleuger]

Oil if it spins, grease if it slides.

[steveno]

make sure of the temperature rating on the grease. a number of years ago I tried some of Wilson's grease on my Kimber sst compact. at 30 degrees I might as well as used peanut butter. I looked and couldn't find any temp rating on the grease. when I got back from the range I cleaned all of the grease off and went back to using Birchwood Casey gun oil and been using that ever since. I use to use Remoil but to me anyway it cakes up and I had to scrape it out along with the crud. with the Casey gun oil all you have to do is take a patch and wipe everything out.

[ClydeFrog]

I've used CLPs & Ballistol on most of my weapons since the mid 1990s with 0 problems or issues.
For gun greases, you might want to look at the Gun Butter line or the new product; IGG, www.ItalianGunGrease.com . They have a few interesting T&E videos on www.youtube.com showing how well IGG performs.
I suggest reviewing these CLP brands; LPX, Gunzilla, Weaponshield, Slip2000.
See; www.midwayusa.com www.brownells.com www.gunzilla.us www.weaponshield.com www.natchezss.com .

[shortwave]

Oil if it spins, grease if it slides

Just about covers things for me as well.

FWIW, I like Lubriplate for slides.

[GLI45]

Whenever this topic comes up I've seen just about everything short of Vaseline and Crisco recommended. Different gun owners have preferences based on what's worked for them. What you use can be influenced by what you shoot and the environment you shoot in. I shoot primarily STI 1911/2011 pistols. They are tightly fit pistols and I shoot several of them in competition. Because of this I never use grease, though I've tried it on the rails. The last grease type product I tried was Brian Enos' Slide Glide. My experience has been that grease seems to accumulate dust and grit. Since most of the matches I shoot are outdoors and it can be dusty this can be an issue. When I've used grease I invariably find that after a hundred rounds or so in an outdoor match it feels like the slides on my pistols begin to run slower. My preference is for oil and I only use Break Free CLP for lubrication. While not dripping out, I tend to run my pistols "wet" and that's worked well for me. Most lubricants aren't that expensive so you can experiment with different products until you find one that works best for your gun.

[SC4006]

Oil if it spins, grease if it slides.

I like that, simple and easy to remember.

Most lubricants aren't that expensive so you can experiment with different products until you find one that works best for your gun.

That I plan on doing, thanks to all of the different products you guys have recommended I check out.

[zxcvbob]

Should I be using oil or grease for my guns?

Yes, but not much.

[Wreck-n-Crew]

Just about covers things for me as well.

Ditto.

I use Birchwood Casey's RIG Universal Gun Grease on My slides.

Remoil on my Wheelie.

[Sevens]

Okay, with the spin/slide idea, what is the big difference between the two? Is it simply that spinning is the same contact path without a defined terminal end whereas sliding has two defined ends? Otherwise, we're still talking about two metal surfaces mating, so I'm not sure how the distinction between the two calls for two different compounds. On a revolver, you'd be using two different lubricants in a handful of different places? Not trying to be adversarial, just trying to understand the concept.

For me, I use one or the other and find good & bad in both.

What I like about grease is that it tends to STAY where I put it, no matter how long it is there. (within reason, I'm not talking years here) For my EDC, I like Shooter's Choice grease, the red stuff in the syringe. It lubes up my G29's rails and that grease doesn't go anywhere when carried, and for months if it is asked to do that. Even after a couple hundred rounds, the grease is still there, and it never comes off the pistol and on to my holster or clothes for any reason.

What I don't like about the grease is that it captures grit & filth and (seemingly) runs that filth and grit in my pistol in normal operation. I don't see how running that filth in my pistol can be a wonderful thing... but in reality, I'm talking about a Glock and I can tell you honestly that I simply do not care about a small detail like that with THIS pistol. A Glock doesn't care about filth and I care even less.

In oil (or shall I say, a liquid lubricant?) I really like FP-10. This stuff is recommended by the (small) manufacturer of one of my favorite handguns, and that particular gun is very important to me, so I don't mind following their recommendation. (admitting up front that MANY 'recommendations' by manufacturers can be argued as crap sometimes... but that is another topic of discussion)

FP-10 is runny enough that I do feel as though I need to re-apply to get the protection I want from it, and it will fling around during shooting and likely during storage or carry as well. This is an annoyance, in my opinion, but one I can live with in many cases... but I choose -NOT- to deal with it in a carry gun like my G29.

I'm also a huge fan of revolvers and I'll tell you right now that except in a few isolated cases... I simply do NOT lubricate the internal guts of my S&W revolvers. I lube the easily visible contact points, and lightly so, again with the FP-10.

I can't stand Rem Oil, and that is for both personal -and- rational reasons, too!

[Mike Irwin]

Use whatever you want.

I use primarily greases, especially on my revolvers.

Grease stays put, and continues to lubricate long after oil has flowed away.

[Brian Pfleuger]

"Spins" includes rotate. Everything else is sliding. Basically, if the angle remains relatively the same (like an actual slide or even a sear) it's sliding. If the angle changes (like a trigger pivot point) it's "spinning".

[Sevens]

The most obvious "spin" I can conjure in my head in all of firearms is the rotation of a cylinder in any revolver. That seems to me to be surfaces in contact with each other in a very predictable and repeating manner.

It's okay that I'm simply not following the distinction.

[RickB]

Whenever this topic comes up I've seen just about everything short of Vaseline and Crisco recommended.

Vaseline was the recommended lube for Lugers.

[colbad]

I tend to favor Frog Lube..a dry lube. However if going to have a long shooting session I add a little hinge grease on moving parts. After, clean back to frog lube for storage or duty cary. Always add hinge grease to O/U shotgun hinges.

[Crankgrinder]

straight motor oil

[Hunter Customs]

I use both, light machine oil and Outers Gunslick grease.

Best Regards
Bob Hunter
www.huntercustoms.com

[Dwight55]

If you are doing variations of temperature, . . . get a quart of synthetic motor oil.

It'll last you several years, . . . doesn't run off like regular motor oil, . . . is not affected hardly at all by major temperature swings, . . . and FWIW, . . . it doesn't stink like Valvoline.

It's what I run on basically all of mine, . . . .22's thru the big boy stuff, . . . pistols, revolvers, rifles, shotguns, . . . no trouble at all.

May God bless,
Dwight

[dahermit]

Okay, with the spin/slide idea, what is the big difference between the two? Is it simply that spinning is the same contact path without a defined terminal end whereas sliding has two defined ends? Otherwise, we're still talking about two metal surfaces mating, so I'm not sure how the distinction between the two calls for two different compounds. On a revolver, you'd be using two different lubricants in a handful of different places? Not trying to be adversarial, just trying to understand the concept.

Good observation. "Spinning", is one metal surface "sliding" over another albeit on curved surfaces. Friction is friction no matter it be angled, or zero angle. "Grease for sliding surfaces, oil for spinning", begs the question: Why then are wheel bearings (spinning), greased instead of oiled? Another relative question, what gun parts actually spin? Rotating for sure... curved surfaces, pins, etc., but spinning?
I use both oil and grease. Grease on my auto slides, sears, etc., because it is sticky as well as slippery...it seems to keep lubricating longer. However, on pins (rotating surfaces), or other tight, rotating surfaces, I use oil because the capillary action of the close fit between the pin and the hole(s) it fits in draws the oil into it saving me from disassembling it to apply grease.

[Sevens]

I believe bearings are packed in grease because grease won't exit on it's own (much) especially in a sealed bearing.

Or, at least, that mostly supports my argument on when/where/why I use grease on some of my guns, and "oil" on other ones.

[RickB]

Good observation. "Spinning", is one metal surface "sliding" over another albeit on curved surfaces. Friction is friction no matter it be angled, or zero angle. "Grease for sliding surfaces, oil for spinning", begs the question: Why then are wheel bearings (spinning), greased instead of oiled? Another relative question, what gun parts actually spin? Rotating for sure... curved surfaces, pins, etc., but spinning?
I use both oil and grease. Grease on my auto slides, sears, etc., because it is sticky as well as slippery...it seems to keep lubricating longer. However, on pins (rotating surfaces), or other tight, rotating surfaces, I use oil because the capillary action of the close fit between the pin and the hole(s) it fits in draws the oil into it saving me from disassembling it to apply grease.

I tend to use grease as an "assembly lube", applied to cleaned parts as the gun is assembled, so that even areas that can't be reached are sure to be lubed. Oil is then used to re-lube the areas that can be reached without stripping. Areas that can't be easily reached by me are also well shielded from firing residue and other junk, so I don't see much of a junk-attraction issue with grease.
Since grease doesn't "run off" or evaporate, my cleaned, assembled guns can be fired without further lube, whereas guns stored with only oil as lube are usually discovered to be unlubed after a surprisingly short stay in the safe.

[wayneinFL]

Whenever this topic comes up I've seen just about everything short of Vaseline and Crisco recommended.

I've used Crisco on blackpowder stuff. I use it on the chambers in a cap and ball revolver, and as a bullet lube on muzzleloaders. Often, I have used it as all all around lube, since I have it all over the gun anyway.

So, now we have everything including Crisco and Vaseline recommended.

[Tortuga12]

I've used CLP, Hoppe's, and Mobil 10W-30 synthetic. Can't tell a bit of difference between them in terms of function, or corrosion resistance.

[madmo44mag]

Castrol Syntec 10W-40 Synthetic Blend Motor Oil for everything.

From hot to cold never had an issue.
Even when shooting any of my 1911 pistols hard and heavy I never had an issue.

[rlc323]

If you are a greaser you need to wipe it off and put on fresh. Break open shotgun hinges and surfaces that contact get grease. Wipe it clean and re-grease. If you are not religious about cleaning your guns, skip the grease you need to use Tri Flow. This advice from one of the best Perazzi shotgun techs Mr. Giacomo.

Rem oil is good for moisture removal and really it is ok, better than nothing as a lubricant. Tri Flow is all I use on pistols and rifles.