Gunsmith says "stay away from CLP." Really?

[LawDawg72]

A friend of mine recently picked up a model 10-7 snubby that had a little bit of surface rust on the crane. He took it to a very reputable local gunsmith and inquired about the best solution for removal of the surface rust. During their conversation the gunsmith said to stay away from CLP. He went on to say that he refuses to use it and steers his customers away from it. He claimed that it is not a good cleaner and that there are many better products out there.

Now, my buddy is a dedicated Frog Lube fan and I use CLP exclusively. Needless to say my buddy couldn't wait to hit me with this due to some previous remarks I've made about his Frog Lube. Hey, what's a little ball bustin' between friends, right?

So, what say the the folks in the know? Is CLP good to use exclusively? I've been using exclusively for about two years and I've been completely satisfied with it, but I'm not an "Expert" by any means.

 

[O2Guy]

It's all hype to sell more high priced lube and cleaners. The older guns that we own now were not brought up using the latest and greatest super lubricant to hit the market. People are so gullible to think grandma's old sewing machine oil is no good and would never consider using it. What do you think grandpa used on his guns?

 

[swinokur]

Or the US Army?

 

[MY15-22]

Frog lube is a CLP.

 

[Hamster65]

I've used Hoppe's for as long as I can remember and I've even used Rem-Oil in a pinch.

 

[S&W Fan]

Your friend needs to find a new gunsmith.

 

[KLYDE]

My normal cleaning routine is to swab and brush the bore with Hoppies. I then run patches through until they come out clean. I would then run an oiled patch with Hoppies or Rem oil to protect. A few swipes to protect and the oiled patch would come out wet but clean.

I recently was given an older bottle of CLP. Using the CLP as a final lube and protectant I have found that the patches now come out with a good bit of dirt on them. Completely same routine. I'm thinking the CLP has some good cleaning qualities. As I said this bottle is older. I don't know if the formula has changed.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

I started off using my mother's sewing machine oil.
Been going downhill ever since.

 

[CatSnipah]

Your friend needs to find a new gunsmith.

This. Just because you call yourself a gunsmith doesn't mean you are all-knowing.

Think about it...what do you call the guy who finishes last in his law school class?




Lawyer.

 

[Harrison]

I have used Break Free CLP extensively in the past, and had no problems. I would not say it is the very best, nor would I say it is the worst. I have found that I like Mobile One/ATF and Ed's Red, or Ballistol better. BF-CLP seems to be somewhere in the middle, not the best and not the worst.

 

[Evil Dog]

Think about it...what do you call the guy who finishes last in his law school class?

Lawyer.

Even scarier is the one that finishes last in his Medical School class.

 

[Mcwsky09]

Sounds like an opinion and there is a well known phrase that can help determine the value of those.
What evidence, even anecdotal does he have for the opinion?
There are likely many thousands of formulations of cleaner and lubricants in the world made from both natural and synthetic which have wide range of properties and characteristics under various environmental conditions.
Is there only ONE that works with ALL firearms? No.
The one you use properly will do a better job than none or one used improperly.

 

[checkmyswag]

I use Mpro 7. There is no miracle gun lube. CLP is pretty good and adequate im sure as are most others. Frog Lube I've seen some issues with. I am not an AR guy so "the best gun lube debate" has become less important to me.

People have preferences with what they buy or use. Harley guys say Hondas are junk. People love or hate Glocks.

Its all ego and consumerism and nonsense.

 

[Rule3]

Good Grief. Isn't there a new Snake Oil forum?

 

[Frank237]

Results of gun care product evaluation

An interesting test of quite a few of todays boutique and not so...lubes/cleaners.

And an equally interesting read on LUBES.

GrantCunningham.com - Library


FN in MT

 

[Arik]

Another gunsmith that knows everything?!?!

Honestly I don't know how to tell which is better and how. However I've been using CLP since 98 without any problems. No rust, no dirt, no nothing. It might not get every micron, speck of powder/copper/lead but it's perfectly fine

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

 

[Marshwheeling]

This sounds just like a chain lube thread. Motorcycle forums are full of them. Everybody has his favorite snake oil. There is no scientific data at all, and darn little of the anecdotal variety.

What little there is tells us that, for a bike that sees a significant amount of unpaved surfaces, and without a continuous-feed chain oiler, no chain treatment regimen has been shown to give longer chain life than WD40.

I wonder if something similar couldn't be said about CLP.

 

[Rule3]

Results of gun care product evaluation

An interesting test of quite a few of todays boutique and not so...lubes/cleaners.

And an equally interesting read on LUBES.

GrantCunningham.com - Library


FN in MT

Frank,

The first link is one heck of a test, When I have more time I plan on reading it all and watching the videos. I skimmed it over and it appears to be excellent. I have read lots of tests and this one looks like one of the best.

 

[Rule3]

Heck WD 40 was developed to protect the US Nukes sitting in wet silos so it must work pretty well.

 

[Doug M.]

There is a lot of hard use data the shows the flaws of CLP (especially the Break-Free, as I recall), and this is OLD news. No one product can do these incompatible jobs well. It's better than neglect, but it is not as good as some other products. There are plenty of good ones out there that do better.

I used to use Hoppes religiously until I realized that it is a major hazmat and the level of care required to use and dispose of it is beyond most of us and the juice isn't worth the squeeze. My recollection is that at least the Marine Corps is using Slip EWL or their even heavier formula one MaDuece and some other heavier weapons; it might be that this is savvy gunners getting it on their own because the issued stuff was sub-optimal. Don't recall, and it isn't my lane.