I own a s&w model 410...40cal. pistol...with the matte balck finish....noticed that the front rails getting worn . The manual says to add two drops of gun oil to the rails in the rear and two on the top of the barrel.(nothing for the front rails)
should i use gun oil or gun grease like tw25 ? and should i use a little like the manual says or use more?

I have very good results with Teflon bicycle grease; it gives good lubrication and doesn't run out like oils. The rail wear seems to stabilize after a couple of hundred rounds.

I`ve had good luck with Wilson Ultima grease after cleaning & EDC. Then add a couple of drops oil on the rails a barrel right before a range session.

__________________
2nd Admen.-Right to bear AR 's

Mobile 1 full synthetic

two weeks ago I bought 2 bottles of Bob Marvels gun oil, always used Rem Oil and Brakefree before. This is gonna be my "go to gun oil" from now on! At $8 a bottle I recommend that members try it.
No affiliation, just a great product.

__________________
NRA Endowment member

I've switched lately to Gun Butter. I like the fact it stays where I put it and after a range session, it's still there. that tells me I can lube my SD guns with it and even though they sit maybe a month or longer without shooting, I've broke them down and saw the lube was still there. Other lubes I've used have evaporated.

I use TW25B. A little expensive, but works very well. Regards 18DAI.

I quit buying special "gun" oils and greases. I lightly lube rails with green marine grease. If it can stand up to saltwater and wheel bearing abuse, it can certainly stand up to a slide. Any quality wheel bearing grease will do, and a can of it will last a lifetime (unless you use it up on your cars!).

Grease will stay in place on rails where oils will disperse. I dab it on a Q-Tip, run it down the rails and wipe off any excess. Shouldn't be a problem unless you're living in Arctic temps.

+1000!! Oil is fine for stronger frames, but for aluminum frames you simply can't beat some quality grease. Head over to your neighborhood NAPA auto store and pick up a tube of Lubriplate No. 105. Just a little dab will do ya!

I too got tired of the oil I so judiciously applied to my rails run off and end up on the side of my slide and on the inside of my holsters.
I now use the original old fashioned white grease, Lubriplate # 105.
Can get it @ Brownells or eBay. It stays where you put it.

I use X-19A it's a sprayon that stays there.
don't know what's in this stuff - the site says they are being sued for patent infringe - but it is unbelievably slick and long lasting.

I am now using the tw25 lubricant. i applied it along the entire rail with a q-tip so that it will lube the entire frame rail. i hope this stuff works! i now will only use gun oil to lightly oil the outside of the gun.

Do what the manual says. Firearm manufacturers don't pay people who design firearms big money to not know what they are doing. I have a Walther P99 manual says just a drop of oil on each rail, hood etc... Believe me, I used to overthink lube and you need to know that the materials made on the slide were designed to rub against each other. People talk about "shiney" spots as wear, yes it is wear but it is called "marrying". Or like on my P99 or a Smith & Wesson or Glock type pistol people talk about the slide being lose because of a little wobble. It is suppose to have a little wobble a little lose to let debris fall away. So as far as lube just oil in my opinion is fine and I am not saying people who use grease aren't doing it correct. A little grease on rails is okay. On my CZ I use Ewl 30 slip 2000, I have used everything on the market and always go back to slip 2000. Or if the slide is a little rough when racking don't think it has to be like on butter, as long as it works is what you want as long as it isn't grinding. My P99 very little oil on rails and maybe just a few drops in slide channels. My CZ p01 I do admit when I lube the rails I put a few drops and let run down rail then set my pistol upright muzzle down overnight to let excess run out. My opinion is do what the manual says. Like I said, they don't pay firearm engineers big money to not know what they are doing. Don't overthink lube. All you need is a very thin sheen, you don't need to slop it all over.

I use RIG.

Just for all of you. When I posted about oil don't think I mean you shouldn't use grease. I just hate grease on my rails especially my CZ. Ewl 30 slip 2000 works fine for me that is all I am saying and as far as the manual my CZ manual says to use grease for long term storage and just a little oil for use. I do also don't like oil dripping out on my clothes and in my holster but after lubing a couple days it stops dripping. I admit it drips out because I over lube and like I said, the materials whether aluminum frame with steel slide etc... The materials were made to rub against each other with very minimal lube. I think everyone and also me want a slide that slides like butter but it doesn't need to as long as it isn't grinding like sandpaper, it just needs to cycle and go bang properly. I have used grease but found out my CZ is so tight fit it just pushes the grease out anyway and I hate stripping my pistol and seeing grease but that is just me. The manual says gun oil so that is what I use. I have tried Hurleys gold but still went back to ewl 30 slip 2000.this is just my opinion and not trying to start a lube debate like the big caliber debate. I honor all of your opinions and what you use, this is just what I use and never had a problem...

STOS made by PONSNESS WARREN

MULTIPURPOSE LUBRICANT

Slicker Than Owl Shxt

__________________
NEVER GIVE UP YOUR GUN

Anything but this. Or Fireclean. Lucas Red n Tacky for grease or synthetic motor oil. All you need.

I've had good experiences using both Mobil 1 grease and a product called Super Lube Silicone Grease (both with and without PTFE)---both excellent products and MUCH less expensive than the high-priced "specialty" gun greases.

Light oil is fine. Your wear is most likely the anodizing being worn away. That is unavoidable.
Jim

I agree. I use their gun formulation & have used it for years. It works great!

__________________
Lounge Lizard Extraordinaire

Has anyone tried the old STP? That stuff was real slippery.

Amen, brother. I use Frog Lube or any quality lubricant. I long past done with the lube-of-the-month club.

I use TW25B on my aluminum alloy framed pistols and the results have been excellent.

It it the best? I can't say for sure but it's done great in my pistols for tens of thousands of rounds.

Aluma Lube.... Worked great on the sliding door.

I've tried a lot of different things, and can't really say one is better than the other.
Currently I'm using Ballistol for oil (for rubbing down most everything, and a drop or two here and there if it pivots), and a light film of Mobil 1 synthetic grease on the rails.
Ballistol seems to work well and is non-toxic; and the Mobil 1 grease is far less expensive than anything else I've come across per application.

Working great so far.

Mob 1 and LSA

I read through a lot of the posts and did not see this recommendation. If it is a repeat, I apologize. I think Tetra Lube is the best. It comes in a variety of formats (densities). The oil is what I use most. The thicker (grease) is good for certain applications. You don't need a lot of it and it seems to last forever. The smell isn't overly pleasant, but worth the results. I have used it on hundreds of handguns and long guns with excellent results.

I'm with you. I use a dab of auto bearing grease because I have, in one small can, apparently a lifetime supply. But I dab it on the rails with a toothpick.

Cycle the slide a few times, wipe off the excess and it's good to go.

My old man, the world's greatest shade tree mechanic, told me "if it rotates, oil it. If it slides, grease it." Always thought this was pretty good advice. He never had problems with his cars. And they get a lot more use than my guns.

Honestly, I think we overthink gun lubes, both oils and grease.

Just my two cents.

I bought a tube of white lithium grease and do exactly what CoronaDan does as stated in the previous post. My old man also preached the "oil for spinning things and grease for sliding things". When I get a new semi-auto I grease all moving parts well before shooting because of the break-in factor. This has always worked well as well as greasing older pistols. Subsequently, I have minimum wear anywhere on the pistol. I have seen alloy framed pistols that were NOT greased or oiled well and they always looked worn, well before their time.

What CoronaDan and Zebra War Wagon have both said!!

Lubriplate works fine too but I have had tremendous success at the range using lithium grease:


Proper lubrication in the right places is especially important for alloy frames and slides to avoid "galling" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galling ) which actually happened to me with a Springfield Armory stainless steel 1911. This can also occur if the slide and frame are of different materials - steel frame, aluminum or alloy slide.

It hasn't been mentioned, but always keep that feed ramp cleaned and polished to avoid FTF problems.

__________________
That's what we do!

I use Royal Purple Synthetic Gun Oil and I love it.

__________________
Jorge

While there are a zillion different "gun" lubricant products, I've always thought that the best oils/greases would be something with a Mobil One or Royal Purple label (just gotta get the right viscosity). Companies like this are way ahead of the curve with oil technology, and the funny thing is, they will still be a lot cheaper than the "gun" products.

Sorry, thread drift coming in this post.

I think as long as you perform some maintenance on your gun (clean it, lube it where you're supposed to), and the gun was good in the first place, you're ok.

I have recently bought 2 guns from CDI Sales, both cheapos. CZ 75 made in '89, and a CZ99 (Zastava, not the Czech CZ) from around the same time period. Both seem to be Israeli surplus trade-ins. The CZ 75 is all steel with a paint job (I understand that they parkerized before painting); the CZ99 has a blued steel slide, chromed barrel, and alloy frame with some sort of paint on it.
The guns were both "ugly gun specials", all numbered parts were matches, they smelled like dirty engine oil, and they looked as though they were stored in a sand pit that was used to burn trash.

They also shot to point of aim, as well as I could with any other pistol I own.

To clean and lube them, I used 3 chemicals, based on what I learned online (and YMMV).

1) removed the grips (only things not metal), and sprayed them out with a can of non-chlorinated brake cleaner. Amazing the amount of crud that ran free, and the guns looked clean afterwards. I'd seen this recommended in many forums, and the only warning has been "don't get it on plastic". Didn't hurt the finishes at all.

2) Cleaned as normal afterwards with Ballistol, and rubbed everything down with that. Seemed to slick and shine everything up. I use that because they claim it's non-toxic, and Hickok45 likes it.

3) Rubbed a film of Mobil 1 Synthetic Grease on the rails, and other visual sliding surfaces. Really, really smoothed things up. Slides feel lighter, they glide. I've read at bobistheoilguy that this grease and Lubriplate are great for rails, and I couldn't find the lubriplate at my auto parts store. It's worked great on my pistols, and if/when I ever run out of the 14 oz tube, I might try the other brand.

4) another quick wipedown of the outside with ballistol on a rag, and then I tucked the pistols into ... cheap cigar boxes.
Re the cigar boxes- I liked the size, and actually went as far as emailing some PhD of Wood (honestly, something along those lines!) at University of Oregon.
He replied back that the cigar boxes are made of a certain type of cedar, and the wood actually dries the atmosphere out. He said cigar owners have to keep them humidified, or they become bone-dry... and if I wanted to use them for dry storage, then leave them inside (in the AC), open for a few days, and they will balance out to the atmosphere in the house. Which I have done.. and I find the guns I've placed inside remain as nice as I put them in.

Earlier in this thread I made a recommendation for a product know as "Frog Lube". I had some given to me a year back and it seemed to work well. I did some more research into this product, and I have thrown the rest of mine in the garbage.

I have gone back to using Military red grease and LSA oil. This stuff as been used in every climate in blistering heat and freezing cold and it works

I have a 3rd Gen, a Shield and Kel tec. All of the instruction manuals say where to put oil. I do that and everything works fine. If oil is running out of your gun there's too much and you need to cut back, or just wipe it off.

I've heard, "If it slides, grease it, if it rotates, oil it." But I don't know where that adage came from or if there is any truth to it, at least regarding guns. I'm not saying grease is bad, just that the gun manufacturers specify oil and it should be adequate. And I know many firearms that require grease, just not mine.

__________________
"He was kinda funny lookin'"

Here's my $.02, which is about what it's worth.

Low friction parts like pivot points, springs and linkage get light oil. High friction points like frame rails, barrel bushings and locking lugs get light grease. Use of heavy grease may work in warm/hot climates but is an invitation to failure in cold climates, especially sub zero. That's why "light is right".

Brands don't matter much as long as they meet the above criteria.

Carry on.

__________________
So many S&W's, so few funds!!

I bought a 4 oz. bottle of Lucas Extreme Duty Gun Oil , just to try . It cost $10.00 for a small bottle with a twist top .
I swear it looks , feels and smells just like Lucas Multi-Vehicle ATF, which costs $7.99 a quart!
I'm starting to wonder about all these high priced lubes, could some manufacturer's be making a quick buck on gun owner's with these "special " gun lubes ? I'm not so sure it's that much better than ATF...which is a great lube in itself.
Gary

__________________
-jwk-
US Army '72-'95