Is Hoppes Lubricating Oil enough for the AR?

[Pops1085]

Just want your thoughts. I know it's mainly mineral oil, but that doesn't necessarily make it bad does it?

[BigBL87]

I'm sure it would work fine, I just think there are better options. I prefer something a little more viscous, if it's the same stuff I'm thinking of it was a little on the thin side to my preference. I'm currently using Lucas Gun Oil. Picked it up on a whim at Rural King one day and I really like it, may try their "Extreme Duty" formulation when I run out of what I have now.

[the rifleer]

I think just about every gun owner uses a different oil. Hoppes is plenty good for an AR.

[mete]

FBI tests , looking for a non-gun oil lube for guns , found Mobil 1 the best .

[imashooter]

I use whatever happens to be in reach at the moment. A regular buffet bar of lubricants. Seems more times than not it's a little bottle of Hoppes with the needle because it's so easy to transport. Works just as well as everything else I use.

[agtman]

I think just about every gun owner uses a different oil.

Likely true.

Hoppes is plenty good for an AR.

That depends on how hard Pops1085 uses his AR.

If it's just a lazy Sunday afternoon range toy, nothing more than a 'plinker,' through which he shoots maybe 20-rds before packing up, going home and cleaning it, then yeah, the Hoppes is fine.

But if Pops is taking it to a Tactical Training class in which he'll fire 1500-2K rds over 2- or 3-days with little or no cleaning, then much better high-stress lubricants are available that will keep his AR running problem-free under sustained, hard use.

My personal favorite at the moment is Slip 2000 EWL*, which gets applied generously and often to any form of AR I take to a high-round count class.

I prefer to call it Slip 2K CGL, which stands for Cool Guy Lube, ... ya know, like what Travis and Chris use.

* Officially, the 'EWL' stands for 'Extreme Weapons Lubricant.'

[MagnumWill]

I’m a G96 guy myself. Plus it smells a heck of a lot better than CLP.

[riffraff]

They also make a synthetic hoppes oil as well as a synthetic cleaner.

I like the Remington spray lube+cleaner for certain things too - like WD40 but for guns, spray a quick film on things and it loosens up the powder residue without evaporating away - perfect for putting a light coat of oil on stuff with crevices or doing a once-over cleaning and lube after you ran a quick 150 rounds in the rain and do not want to spend the time with solvent to completely clean then re-lube everything.

[kymasabe]

I have/use Lucas gun oil in the standard weight for most guns, and the extreme duty version for my AR's, which by the way is sold at Spikes Tactical if you need it. Only other lubes I use are SlideGlide which I've used for years and very recently tried Slip2000 grease, I think is EWG maybe? Anyway, the Slip2000 is nice, I now prefer it over my SlideGlide.

[kozak6]

If you already have a bottle, it's probably good enough as long as you make sure to regularly inspect and re-oil your guns. It doesn't seem to offer much corrosion resistance.

I've used Breakfree CLP a bit. I like the relatively good corrosion resistance and dry film it leaves.

I've been meaning to transition to Lubriplate products. A lot of their stuff is even food safe.

[marine6680]

The AR can be hard on lubrication, due to the type of gas system it uses.

Thin oils will get snug off and can burn off as well.

Light use, a couple magazines at a relatively leasurly pace, most any oil will do, but more viscous oil is better.


I will second Slip 2000 as a good oil. If you clean after every range trip, regular Slip2k is fine. If you run the rifle hard or go a long time between cleanings, then Slip EWL is better.

Slip2k is non toxic as well, which I think of as a nice bonus. I work with enough deadly chemicals, one less in my life isn't unwelcome.


Online from Amazon, the regular Slip2k is $25 far a large 16oz bottle. That is the cheapest per ounce way to get it, but a smaller bottle won't be too much. I use is a lot, and recommend it as a great general purpose gun lube. It is a CLP type as well, so it helps come cleaning time.

EWL is $45 for 16oz, that's the cheapest I have seen a modern high performance lube cost... you can spend that much on less than half the amount on some other brands.

[Pahoo]

FBI tests , looking for a non-gun oil lube for guns , found Mobil 1 the best .

At the last NRA, RSO training class, I asked the instructor a general lubrication question and he stated that all he used is Mobil-1. Then I asked him what weight. He said it really didn't matter but had found some 15-50 on sale for $4.60. It may not be the best but certainly an option ....

Be Safe !!!

[sigshepardo]

In a short, yes it will work.

Next question is how well do you want it to work?

I've shot them dry. I've shot them with Canola Oil (decent). I now only use Lucas CLP. Lucas has been the best performer for me to date.

My only problem with Hoppes is that I've seen it with about 10 months neglect and changing weather conditions, completely gum up a Ruger SR9C.

So long as you don't ask too much of it I'm sure it will work fine for you.

[xandi]

I found it Smokey. And my bolt got stuck. Fun first range date with miss ar15
Guess mine didn’t like it,
Breakfree clp, and mobile 1 synthetic works for me

[imashooter]

For bathing during rare times of dumps, I use either Mobile 1 or Lucas 5wt Synthetic Fork Oil.

[Kvon2]

I use final drive oil currently. Very viscous but lasts a good while. The downside is the smell, I may experiment with a less viscous motor oil to see if I can find something a little more pleasant to the nose.

[Arub]

Don't laugh, but Ballistol seems to work well.

[hdwhit]

Pops1085 asked:
Is Hoppes Lubricating Oil enough for the AR?

Yes.

Page 38 of the manual for the S&W M&P-15 (all models) specifies a "high quality firearms oil".

No Mobil 1, no CLP, no Ballistol, required. You may choose to use one of those options, but it is not required.

I'm using up the last of the Sears Roebuck & Co. Household Oil (their bottling of 3-in-1) that I bought in 1979. It still works. It still isn't gummy. Guns lubricated with it have in some cases set idle while I fought for my life against a neurological disease for 20 years and suffered no deterioration.

If you're going to regularly maintain clean and oil your gun (as you should do) any- and every-thing mentioned in this thread so far will work.

[Bartholomew Roberts]

Hoppes will work but you are going to be reapplying it a lot more often than something like Mobil 1, CLP, LSA or Slip 2000. My experience is that it generally burns off quickly in classes and the rifle starts having issues. At about 600rds/day, it is probably a good idea to reapply whatever lube you are using regardless; but I haven’t seen Hoppes make it that far.

[agtman]

Quote:
Pops1085 asked: Is Hoppes Lubricating Oil enough for the AR?

Yes.
Page 38 of the manual for the S&W M&P-15 (all models) specifies a "high quality firearms oil".

You're giving bad advice.

First, M&P-15s are Sunday afternoon, low-round-count range plinkers at best. Under hard use they quickly morph into jammomatic junk.

Second, a "high quality firearms oil" applicable to hard-use, high-rd-count ARs IS NOT Hoppes.

The proper lube is one of the aforementioned high-grade AR specific lubricants ... e.g., Slip 2K EWL.

[Rangerrich99]

In my limited experience (I've only owned AR-15s for about 12 years, all medium-to-low price-point guns), Hoppe's should be fine, so long as your typical shooting session is around 200-300 rds or less. I used WD-40 exclusively on my first AR, and except for the time I tried to shoot steel-cased ammo out of it, it ran flawlessly through up to 300 rds per session. I don't think Hoppe's is that different as a lubricant to WD-40.

Nowadays I usually lube my ARs with CLP (Breakfree/Lucas), but I still carry a small can of WD-40 with me to the range just in case.

If you plan on running your gun pretty hard in tough conditions (i.e., dirty environment or little cleaning between range visits), then I'd probably look at a higher viscosity lube/oil.

[AK Man]

If you are shooting at the range during the warm weather just about any of the gun oils will work fine.
If you hunt in 32° to sub 0° you will need to look for something else. I have tried some very light oils, & a few synthetic oils, but a small squirt of spray silicone over parts works best in the cold for me. It is a lot harder to keep your gun functioning in the cold than what you would think.

[Eazyeach]

Yes. It is fine. I use Hoppes or Lucas gun oil most times. Heck Remoil will work too. Not everyone shoots 2000 rds through their rifle on the weekend.

[turtlehead]

Works fine for me in all my guns. But I never go more than a few sessions without cleaning. And always add some oil before shooting.

[RC20]

Synthetic because it does not burn up as much.

At some point you have to clean the bolt out of that crud.

Mobil 1 is low cost and handy.

Better yet is a g short stroke or or full piston gun.

Most won't ever know the difference.