Lubricants

[JM Campbell]

So whats the verdict on Fireclean? Isn't it a "penatrating oil" too?

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[jetfire]

I keep hearing and reading various lubricants and finishes "penetrate into the pores of the metal."

How the heck did this get started? Does anyone actually think their gun has pores at its surface? Just for the sake of argument, lets say it does have microscopic pores (it doesn't). And lets say the lube/finish (usually an epoxy based finish that continues to offer "corrosion protection" after it has worn off) does penetrate said pores....that mean the lubricant needs to have nearly no surface tension and no viscosity, both of which are necessary to act as a film layer lubricant. And if said oil has such a low viscosity, it will need to have a low molecular weight, meaning it will evaporate quickly. And this argument ignores the fact that the lubricant will need to overcome the bubble pressure of those microscopic pores before penetrating them (not gonna happen).

I want to rub sand in the eyes of the person who got this started. Coarse sand.

[justintime]

So using my sweet shifter kart chain oil that does not offer pore penetrating properties doesn't hold me back! Sweet

[KevinB]

So whats the verdict on Fireclean? Isn't it a "penatrating oil" too?

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I don't care it works...



I don't want to get into a metallurgy battle with Bill - but if you clean an AR or any other gun for that matter -- wipe it spot less, then let a solvent/lube sit in a it for a week, your going to get more carbon. Steels and other alloys have grain structure - so there is a way for low molecular density materials to get trapped -- maybe not like a pore in human skin - but enough you do not see it / can't get rid of it initially.

[Aray]

If Glocks were made out of cast iron, we could season them in the oven with hog lard.



The discussion of metal coatings that somehow no longer require any lubricants also makes me want to step on kittens.

"Glocks are designed to run dry, never lube them." I've heard this more than I care to remember. Discussions of hydrodynamic fluid wedges or Langmuir Theory is usually met with references to what ther friend in the Army told them or what Pappy used to do.

[orionz06]

Right, people seem to believe from their posts that because the lube spreads around that it is instead soaking in. The fact is, for an AR, that most any lube will work if it is there. So their ritual of tossing their bolt into their daughters Easy Bake and brushing the magic goo all over it works and they feel that supports the false claims.


Too many people who seemed to be above the silliness but into it.

[JHC]

Right, people seem to believe from their posts that because the lube spreads around that it is instead soaking in. The fact is, for an AR, that most any lube will work if it is there. So their ritual of tossing their bolt into their daughters Easy Bake and brushing the magic goo all over it works and they feel that supports the false claims.


Too many people who seemed to be above the silliness but into it.

I enjoy the bliss of just applying the Pat Rogers approach and slather on whatever (mostly Mobil 1 synthetic) and they just shoot and shoot. I stopped thinking about it long ago.

[JBP55]

I enjoy the bliss of just applying the Pat Rogers approach and slather on whatever (mostly Mobil 1 synthetic) and they just shoot and shoot. I stopped thinking about it long ago.

Mobil 1 Synthetic works for me.

[justintime]

Royal purple is prettier

[cclaxton]

Different metals will have a different "pore" structure. There are also metals that are intentionally made with visible pores in them, although I don't know of any guns that use that kind of metal. When you look at the surface of a metal under a microscope it will show the surface has a lot of places where lubricants could occupy space. Here are images of carbon steel surfaces: http://dspace.jorum.ac.uk/xmlui/bits...section15.html

Aluminum, other alloys, tungsten-steel, and other metals will all have different "pore" characteristics. But they all have imperfections in the surface that lubricants could adhere to or occupy.

Some lubricants/protectants focus on displacing water molecules that might be occupying the pores. Others have additives that, after the carrier evaporates, leaves behind a residue that inhabits the crevices and pores and kinda sticks to them, like PTFE or nanoparticles.

Most of the manufacturers of these products keep their lubricant designs secret because of the threat of corporate espionage, and R&D continue in this area...people are always looking for a better lubricant and different applications.

This company had an informative web page: http://www.globalspec.com/learnmore/...netrating_oils

I use Slipstream, which is a nanoparticle lubricant combined with synthetic low temp gun oil. I also use ZeroFriction which is a synthetic gun oil that replaces water molecules. I have tried the PTFE types and don't care for them as they don't have a very low coefficient of friction, but they do seem to do an excellent job of protecting the metal from high loads. In pistols the loads are not that severe where I apply the oil, so not an issue. I prefer the less friction.
Cody